The Xaverian Brothers or Congregation of St. Francis Xavier are a Roman Catholic religious institute founded by

Theodore James Ryken Theodore James Ryken, CFX ( Theodoor Jacobus Rijken; 1797–1871) was a Dutch Catholic missionary who founded the Xaverian Brothers. Life Theodore James Ryken was born August 30, 1797, in Heusden, the son of devout Catholics Antonius and Maria Ann ...

Bruges, Belgium Bruges ( , ; ; ) is the capital and largest City status in Belgium, city of the Provinces of Belgium, province of West Flanders, in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is in the northwest of the country, and is the sixth most populous city in ...

, in 1839 and named after

Saint Francis Xavier Francis Xavier, SJ (born Francisco de Jasso y Azpilicueta; ; ; ; ; ; 7 April 15063 December 1552), venerated as Saint Francis Xavier, was a Navarrese cleric and missionary. He co-founded the Society of Jesus and, as a representative o ...

. The institute is dedicated to education.

History

was born in 1797 in the small village of Elshout,

North Brabant North Brabant ( ; ), also unofficially called Brabant, Dutch Brabant or Hollandic Brabant, is a province in the south of the Netherlands. It borders the provinces of South Holland and Gelderland to the north, Limburg to the east, Zeeland to ...

, the Netherlands, to ardently Catholic

middle class The middle class refers to a class of people in the middle of a social hierarchy, often defined by occupation, income, education, or social status. The term has historically been associated with modernity, capitalism and political debate. C ...

parents. Orphaned at a young age, Ryken was raised by his uncle. Ryken was trained as a

shoemaker Shoemaking is the process of making footwear. Originally, shoes were made one at a time by hand, often by groups of shoemakers, or '' cordwainers'' (sometimes misidentified as cobblers, who repair shoes rather than make them). In the 18th cen ...

. He felt a calling by God which drew him to work first as a

catechist Catechesis (; from Greek language, Greek: , "instruction by word of mouth", generally "instruction") is basic Christian religious education of children and adults, often from a catechism book. It started as education of Conversion to Christia ...

, followed by helping manage an

orphanage An orphanage is a residential institution, total institution or group home, devoted to the care of orphans and children who, for various reasons, cannot be cared by their biological families. The parents may be deceased, absent, or abusi ...

, and later by caring for

cholera Cholera () is an infection of the small intestine by some Strain (biology), strains of the Bacteria, bacterium ''Vibrio cholerae''. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. The classic symptom is large amounts of watery diarrhea last ...

patients in the Netherlands.Kuppel, William. "Theodore James Ryken." The Catholic Encyclopedia
Vol. 13. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1912. 17 August 2019 At age 34, Ryken went to North America, where he served as a

among the

missionaries A missionary is a member of a religious group who is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thomas Hale 'On Being a Miss ...

to the Native Americans. During his three-year tour, he conceived the idea of starting a

congregation Congregation may refer to: Religion *Church (congregation), a religious organization that meets in a particular location *Congregation (Roman Curia), an administrative body of the Catholic Church *Religious congregation, a type of religious instit ...

of brothers to work alongside the missionary priests. On returning to Europe, he set about planning to found such a society in Belgium, a country known for its missionary zeal.

Founding

When Ryken returned to the United States in 1837, Bishop

Joseph Rosati Joseph Rosati, CM (30 January 1789 – 25 September 1843) was an Italian-born Catholic missionary to the United States who served as the first bishop of the Diocese of Saint Louis in the Missouri Territory from 1826 to 1843. He built the first ...

of the Diocese of St. Louis, Missouri, persuaded him that the children of Catholic immigrants were in even more need of instruction than Native Americans. The bishop encouraged him to found a congregation of laymen to teach all classes of youth. Six other bishops sanctioned his plan to bring religious teachers to the United States. Ryken went to Rome to receive the permission and blessing of Pope

Gregory XVI Pope Gregory XVI (; ; born Bartolomeo Alberto Cappellari; 18 September 1765 – 1 June 1846) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 2 February 1831 to his death in June 1846. He had adopted the name Mauro upon enteri ...

for his mission. He then, at Bishop Boussen's request, served a year's novitiate with the

Redemptorist The Redemptorists, officially named the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer (), abbreviated CSsR, is a Catholic clerical religious congregation of pontifical right for men (priests and brothers). It was founded by Alphonsus Liguori at Scal ...

Fathers.Kuppel, William. "Xaverian Brothers." The Catholic Encyclopedia
Vol. 15. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1912. 17 August 2019 He modeled the religious garb of members of his institute after that of the Redemptorists. The spirit of the Xaverian Brothers, on the other hand, can be traced to the influence of Isidore Van de Kerckhove, the

Jesuit The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

confessor and counselor of Ryken; De Kerckhhove drew up the original rules of the order. Although many

religious institute In the Catholic Church, a religious institute is "a society in which members, according to proper law, pronounce public religious vows, vows, either perpetual or temporary which are to be renewed, however, when the period of time has elapsed, a ...

s were being founded at the time as part of a Catholic revival that succeeded the fall of

Napoleon I Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

, Ryken had a different vision. He wanted to found a missionary institute rather than a congregation that would address the needs of a specific region. On June 15, 1839, Ryken, then 42 years old, settled in a rented house on Ezelstraat in the centuries-old city of

Bruges Bruges ( , ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the province of West Flanders, in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is in the northwest of the country, and is the sixth most populous city in the country. The area of the whole city amoun ...

, Belgium. For five days he waited for the arrival of the two companions who had promised to join him in his undertaking: a weaver and a

tailor A tailor is a person who makes or alters clothing, particularly in men's clothing. The Oxford English Dictionary dates the term to the thirteenth century. History Although clothing construction goes back to prehistory, there is evidence of ...

. His companions proved to be less dedicated and resilient than he and he needed a year to recruit better suited candidates. He and his colleagues soon opened two primary schools in Bruges, and some of the Xavieran Brothers were sent to a normal school at

Sint-Truiden Sint-Truiden (; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and Municipalities in Belgium, municipality located in the Provinces of Belgium, province of Limburg (Belgium), Limburg, Flemish Region, Belgium. With more than 41,500 inhabitants, it is on ...

for professional teacher training. By 1841, the community had grown beyond the space available in the little house on Ezelstraat; with a loan from a sympathetic banker, Ryken purchased a large estate in a neighboring section of Bruges called "Het Walletje", for the moat that surrounded it. A boys' sodality was opened at Het Walletje, followed shortly by a primary school in the same place; the work of catechizing was taken up at the Church of Notre-Dame, and some attention was given to the training of deaf-mutes. The brothers' first grammar school was opened at Bruges in 1844 and in the following year a second school was established. The Xaverian Brothers began to attract candidates from Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, England, Ireland and France. In 1848, a colony of brothers went to England to open schools in parishes in Bury and

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

. Eventually, they opened

Clapham College Clapham College was a Roman Catholic secondary school for boys in South London. Background It opened in 1897 and closed in 1989. Its history falls into three phases: for half a century it was a private school, for three decades it was a publicl ...

, London and the boarding schools of Mayfield College and its associated preparatory boarding school at Foxhunt Manor, in Sussex. Mayfield College closed in 1999 because of the lack of entrants to the order.

Troubles and resignation

For the rest of his superiorship, Ryken would be burdened by the loan he took in order to purchase Het Walletje. In addition, he was not a very good administrator, and his institute had a crisis at the Mother House in Bruges. Ryken was asked to tender his resignation by

Jean-Baptiste Malou Joannes Baptista or Jean-Baptiste Malou (1809–1864) was a Belgian theologian who became bishop of Bruges. Life Malou was born in Ypres on 30 June 1809, the son of Senator Jean-Baptiste Malou and Marie-Thérèse Vanden Peereboom. His older broth ...

Bishop of Bruges The Diocese of Bruges (; ) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in Belgium. It is a suffragan in the ecclesiastical province of the metropolis (religious jurisdiction), metropolitan Archdiocese of Mechelen ...

. Ryken willingly turned over his office to a younger man, and spent the last eleven years of his life as a simple member of the institute he had established. Before his death on November 26, 1871, at age 74, Ryken attended the first general chapter of his institute in Bruges in 1869. By this time the institute had cleared its debt and the number of brothers had increased from 58 in 1860 to 133. They had nine well-established communities working among the poor in Belgium, England, and the United States.

Mission to the United States

In 1853

Louisville Louisville is the most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeast, and the 27th-most-populous city in the United States. By land area, it is the country's 24th-largest city; however, by populatio ...

Bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

Martin Spalding Martin John Spalding (May 23, 1810 – February 7, 1872) was an American Catholic prelate who served as Archbishop of Baltimore from 1864 to 1872. He previously served as Bishop of Louisville from 1850 to 1864. He advocated aid for freed slaves ...

invited the Xaverian brothers to open a school in his

diocese In Ecclesiastical polity, church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided Roman province, prov ...

, and in 1854 the first colony of brothers moved to the United States. The Brothers took charge of several

parochial school A parochial school is a private school, private Primary school, primary or secondary school affiliated with a religious organization, and whose curriculum includes general religious education in addition to secular subjects, such as science, mathem ...

s in 1864 and opened

St. Xavier High School, Louisville, Kentucky St. Xavier High School, colloquially known as St. X, is a Catholic Church, Catholic all-boys, college preparatory Xaverian Brothers, Xaverian school in Louisville, Kentucky. It is located in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Louisville, Archdioc ...

. In 1864, Spalding, then

Archbishop In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

, asked the Xaverians to open schools there, and they did so. Baltimore was made the center of Xaverian activities in the United States, and in 1876 a

novitiate The novitiate, also called the noviciate, is the period of training and preparation that a Christian ''novice'' (or ''prospective'') monastic, apostolic, or member of a religious order undergoes prior to taking vows in order to discern whether ...

was opened there at the site of

Mount Saint Joseph High School Mount Saint Joseph High School (commonly MSJ or Mount Saint Joe) is a Catholic college preparatory school and secondary school / high school for young men from ninth to twelfth grade sponsored by the Xaverian Brothers and founded in 1876. It is ...

, where it still stands. By 1900, the Xaverian Brothers had opened schools in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

West Virginia West Virginia is a mountainous U.S. state, state in the Southern United States, Southern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States.The United States Census Bureau, Census Bureau and the Association of American ...

, and

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

Rosary making

A small

Rosary The Rosary (; , in the sense of "crown of roses" or "garland of roses"), formally known as the Psalter of Jesus and Mary (Latin: Psalterium Jesu et Mariae), also known as the Dominican Rosary (as distinct from other forms of rosary such as the ...

-making club formed by Xaverian Brother

Sylvan Mattingly Our Lady's Rosary Makers is a non-profit Catholic apostolate in Louisville, Kentucky, USA dedicated to spreading devotion to the Virgin Mary and the Rosary. According to the OLRM Web site, its 17,000 members, in the U.S. and other countries, make ...

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville is the List of cities in Kentucky, most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeastern United States, Southeast, and the list of United States cities by population, 27th-most-populous city ...

in 1949 grew to be the largest Catholic Rosary making group in the United States. Inspired by the message of

Our Lady of Fatima Our or OUR may refer to: * The possessive form of " we" Places * Our (river), in Belgium, Luxembourg, and Germany * Our, Belgium, a village in Belgium * Our, Jura, a commune in France Other uses * Office of Utilities Regulation (OUR), a governm ...

, Mattingly formed "Our Lady of Fatima Rosary Making Club" in the basement of St. Xavier High School. Although Mattingly died in 1951, the organization grew to be

Our Lady's Rosary Makers Our Lady's Rosary Makers is a non-profit Catholic apostolate in Louisville, Kentucky, USA dedicated to spreading devotion to the Virgin Mary Mary was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Saint Joseph, Joseph and the mother o ...

, which has 17,000 active members in the United States and has distributed hundreds of millions of free rosaries worldwide. Controversy Following a Pennsylvania Grand Jury ruling in 2019, an internal Xaverian Brothers investigation revealed 34 brothers credibly accused of sexually abusing school children.

Affiliated schools

Previously affiliated schools

References

External links

Xaverian Brothers
Official website
Living the Charism
The Brothers' blog site with articles, communications, videos, news, etc.
Xaverian Brothers
i
ODIS - Online Database for Intermediary Structures

General Archives of Xaverian Brothers
i
ODIS - Online Database for Intermediary Structures

Belgian Archives of Xaverian Brothers
i
ODIS - Online Database for Intermediary Structures
{{Authority control Catholic orders and societies Catholic teaching orders Religious organizations established in 1839 Catholic religious institutes established in the 19th century 1839 establishments in Belgium History of Bruges