Secret of Opus Dei: members do not wear religion on their armsleeves

By Fr. John Trigilio in EWTN

Msgr. Escriva devised a spirituality of and for the laity.

Opus Dei, the Work of God, is a means by which the Catholic faithful sanctify themselves and the world in which they live and work. It is comprised of all walks of life, doctors, lawyers, homemakers, teachers, students, bus drivers, retirees, etc.

The goal is for each member of Opus Dei to bring their Roman Catholic faith into their whole life, home, work & play.

As leaven in the world, the laity being in the world bring Christ and the Catholic Faith into that same world by the way they practice their Faith. The clergy's function is to help the laity find their spirituality and to help them bring the faith to the world.

Opus Dei, then, is a vehicle by which its members sanctify the world by sanctifying themselves in whatever situation and condition and vocation they find themselves.

The so-called "secret" of Opus Dei is that the members do not wear their religion on their armsleeves. They are very well read in the Magisterial teachings of the Church, are very loyal to the Holy See, and they quietly but effectively defend Church dogma and faithfully practice their Catholic Faith 24 hours a day without crediting it to Opus Dei, necessarily. Their absence of self-publicity breeds contempt from their enemies who see them as clandestine. In reality, it is nothing more than humility.

Opus Dei members study the Faith and they INFUSE Catholic virtues into a secular world and secular society. Rather than selling out to the social mores of the pagan culture like modern sycophants, Opus Dei members uphold the moral and doctrinal teachings of the Church and encourage all men and women of all faiths to obey the Natural Moral Law. Due to their resistance of diluting Church law, many opponents accuse Opus Dei of being anti-ecumenical.

All in all, Opus Dei is a superb method for any Catholic Christian to know their Faith more fully, to create a concrete strategy for Christianizing the world and to build up the kingdom of God via ALL members of the Church, lay and clergy.