The Institute ''Id'' of Christ the Redeemer, Idente Missionaries, is a

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

religious institute of consecrated life founded by

Fernando Rielo Fernando Rielo Pardal (28 August 1923 – 6 December 2004) was a Catholic mystical poet, philosopher, author, metaphysician, and founder of a Catholic religious institute. Rielo founded a school of metaphysical thought known as the genetic metap ...

in 1959 on the island of

Tenerife Tenerife ( ; ; formerly spelled ''Teneriffe'') is the largest and most populous island of the Canary Islands, an Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Spain. With a land area of and a population of 965,575 inhabitants as of A ...

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

. The congregation has religious men and women, as well as married missionaries.

History

The Idente Missionaries were founded on June 29, 1959 in the Diocese of Tenerife (Canary Islands, Spain), with the support of Bishop,

Domingo Pérez Cáceres Domingo Pérez Cáceres (November 10, 1892, Güímar, Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain) - August 1, 1961, San Cristóbal de La Laguna, Tenerife) was a Spanish ecclesiastic, eighth Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of San Cristóbal de La La ...

. The name is derived from a combination of the Spanish word "id" and the Latin "ente" to convey the idea of the "Great Commission" {Matt.28:19) "Go and teach all nations." In January 1994, the missionaries were canonically recognized by the

Archdiocese of Madrid The Metropolitan Archdiocese of Madrid () is a Latin archdiocese of the Catholic Church in Spain. It is one of Spain's fourteen metropolitan archbishoprics. Since 12 June 2023 the archbishop of Madrid has been José Cobo Cano. Although Madrid ha ...

as a Public Association of the Faithful. In 2009,

Pope Benedict XVI Pope BenedictXVI (born Joseph Alois Ratzinger; 16 April 1927 – 31 December 2022) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 19 April 2005 until his resignation on 28 February 2013. Benedict's election as p ...

elevated the Idente Missionaries to the status of a religious institute of consecrated life of pontifical right. The Institute has some ninety houses in twenty countries."Idente Missionaries celebrate their 60th anniversary. They work in 22 countries", ''Rome Reports'', August 10, 2019
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Charism

The charism of the institute is a "filial consciousness" of God. This filial consciousness consists in complete receptivity to

grace Grace may refer to: Places United States * Grace, Idaho, a city * Grace (CTA station), Chicago Transit Authority's Howard Line, Illinois * Little Goose Creek (Kentucky), location of Grace post office * Grace, Carroll County, Missouri, an uni ...

. It is reflected in three principles: * a vocation to holiness; * community life; and * a commitment to evangelization

Spirituality

The members of the Institute profess the religious vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience. There is a particular devotion to Mary, under the title "Our Lady of the Mystical Life", (honored with a chapel at

Almudena Cathedral The Cathedral of Saint Mary the Royal of the Almudena, commonly known as the Almudena Cathedral, is a Catholic cathedral in Madrid, Spain. It is the seat of the Archdiocese of Madrid. Its construction began in 1883 and finished over a century l ...

); and to St. Joseph."Our Founder", Idente Missionaries, USA
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Administration and Government

Both the men's and the women's congregations of the Idente Missionaries each have a General Superior. The Apostolic President oversees both. The men's congregation has a Patriarch, responsible for the administration of each continent. The women's congregation has a Matriarch for administration of a continent. Provincial Superiors are responsible for administration in each Province. A province may have one or more delegations within it. A Superior administers each residence of the Idente Missionaries.

Ministry

In the

Diocese of Novaliches The Diocese of Novaliches (Latin: ''Dioecesis Novalichesina''; Filipino: ''Diyosesis ng Novaliches'') is a diocese of the Latin Church of the Catholic Church in the Philippines. The diocese was created by Pope John Paul II on December 7, 2002 ...

(Philippines) the Institute runs the Holy Family residence for Senior Citizens. Since 1994, the Idente Missionaries have administered the Parish of Santa Maria in the Bronx. In 2014, they assumed administration of the Parish of Our Lady of Loretto in Hempstead, NY.Our Lady of Loretto Church, Hempstead, NY
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Foundations

The ''Idente Family'' is made up of lay people who share the spirit of the Institute, but do not profess vows. The ''Idente School'' is a school for theological and philosophical studies. Its headquarters is in Rome, Italy. The ''Idente Youth'' is a foundation to promote idealism among youth. The ''Fernando Rielo Foundation'' publishes books and works of the Founder. It also encourages culture and poetry. Each year, since 1981, the Foundation awards the "Fernando Rielo World Prize for Mystical Poetry.

References

{{portal bar, Catholicism, Spain

External links

Institute Id of Christ the Redeemer

Section on the Consecrated Life in ''The Code of Canon Law'', 1983

Idente Youth - United States
Catholic lay organisations Roman Catholic Diocese of San Cristóbal de La Laguna