The Resurrectionists, officially named the Congregation of the Resurrection of Our Lord Jesus Christ (; abbreviated CR), is a Catholic clerical

religious congregation A religious congregation is a type of Religious institute (Catholic), religious institute in the Catholic Church. They are legally distinguished from Religious order (Catholic), religious orders – the other major type of religious institute – i ...

pontifical right In Catholicism, "of pontifical right" is the term given to ecclesiastical institutions (religious and secular institutes, societies of apostolic life) either created by the Holy See, or approved by it with the formal decree known by the Latin na ...

for men. It was founded in 1836 by three men: Bogdan Jański, Peter Semenenko and Hieronim Kajsiewicz on the heels of the

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Polish people, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken * Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin ...

Great Emigration The Great Emigration () was the emigration of thousands of Poles and Lithuanians, particularly from the political and cultural élites, from 1831 to 1870, after the failure of the November Uprising of 1830–1831 and of other uprisings such as ...

.Grzechowiak CR, Francis. "History", Congregation of the Resurrection-US Province
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History

The Congregation of the Resurrection began in Paris on

Ash Wednesday Ash Wednesday is a holy day of prayer and fasting in many Western Christian denominations. It is preceded by Shrove Tuesday and marks the first day of Lent: the seven weeks of Christian prayer, prayer, Religious fasting#Christianity, fasting and ...

of 1836. Bogdan Janski, Peter Semenenko, and Jerome Kajsiewicz, the first three members, are regarded as the founders. As a university student in Warsaw, Janski became involved in various student movements. He then studied economics in France, England, and Germany. Disenchanted with various social movements, he began to assist Polish exiles living in France, where he worked as a tutor. He supplemented his meager income as a contributor to encyclopedic dictionaries and dispersed his funds among poor Polish exiles throughout France. Janski sent two of his associates, Peter Semenenko and Jerome Kajsiewicz to Rome to work on re-establishing the Polish college to educate priests for Poland. Joining them, the three established a small community. Semenenko and Kajsiewicz were ordained in 1842.

Pope Pius IX Pope Pius IX (; born Giovanni Maria Battista Pietro Pellegrino Isidoro Mastai-Ferretti; 13 May 1792 – 7 February 1878) was head of the Catholic Church from 1846 to 1878. His reign of nearly 32 years is the longest verified of any pope in hist ...

advised them to "Organize yourselves in a way that will do the most good for the Church". The name of the Congregation refers to the bells sounded in Rome at noon on

Easter Sunday Easter, also called Pascha (Aramaic: פַּסְחָא , ''paskha''; Greek language, Greek: πάσχα, ''páskha'') or Resurrection Sunday, is a Christian festival and cultural holiday commemorating the resurrection of Jesus from the dead, de ...

, 1842, when the first seven brothers left the

Catacombs of San Sebastiano The Catacombs of San Sebastiano are a hypogeum cemetery in Rome, Italy, rising along Via Appia Antica, in the Ardeatino Quarter. It is one of the very few Christian burial places that has always been accessible. The first of the former four flo ...

, near

San Sebastiano fuori le mura San Sebastiano fuori le mura (Saint Sebastian outside the Walls), or San Sebastiano ''ad Catacumbas'' (Saint Sebastian at the Catacombs), is a Basilicas in the Catholic Church#Minor basilicas, minor basilica in Rome, Central Italy. Up to the Grea ...

, after their

religious vows Religious vows are the public vows made by the members of religious communities pertaining to their conduct, practices, and views. In the Buddhist tradition, in particular within the Mahayana and Vajrayana traditions, many different kinds of r ...

. In 1866 the ''Collegio Polacco'' (Polish College) college was finally opened due to the efforts of the Congregation of the Resurrection, which raised the first funds to which Princess Odelscalchi, Pius IX, and others contributed later. As consecrated religious, resurrectionists profess the vows of

poverty, chastity and obedience In Christianity, the three evangelical counsels, or counsels of perfection, are chastity, poverty (or perfect charity), and obedience. As stated by Jesus in the canonical gospels, they are counsels for those who desire to become "perfect" (, ). ...

. Their life as consecrated religious within the Congregation of the Resurrection is fulfilled as a Priest, Brother or Permanent Deacon. Internationally, they are divided into three Provinces and one Region, ministering in sixteen countries worldwide. The Community works and has its missions in Italy, Poland, Bulgaria, Austria, Germany, Canada, the United States, Brazil, Bolivia, Australia, Bermuda, Mexico, Ukraine, Belarus, Slovakia, and Israel. The Congregation has its Motherhouse in Rome. The superior general and the general council are located there. The current superior general is the Very Reverend Paul S. Voisin, C.R. One of the principal aims of the Congregation is providing and improving religious education.

References

External links

Congregation of the Resurrection website

Congregation of the Resurrection (Ontario Kentucky Province) website

Congregation of the Resurrection (USA Province) website
{{Authority control Polish diaspora in Europe Polish diaspora organizations Religious organizations established in 1836 Catholic religious institutes established in the 19th century 1836 establishments in France

History

See also

References

External links