Anileve Posted February 12, 2004 Report Share Posted February 12, 2004 (edited) Recently found out that our Director at work is a prominent member of Opus Dei. Also finally discovered identities of the little suspicious nuns dressed in blue uniforms frisking around. The headquarters is here in NYC, and apparently an architecturally extravagant building. Very shocking truth behind this religious cult with the Vatican in their pocket. =================== Opus Dei is an organization founded in Spain in 1928 by Josemaria Escriva de Balaguer. The stated aim of Opus Dei is to "spread throughout society a profound awareness of the universal call to holiness and apostolate through one's professional work carried out with freedom and personal responsibility." (Encyclopedia of Associations) Opus Dei is made up of lay members and priests; Opus Dei laity continue to work in the secular world, but remain under the strict spiritual direction of Opus Dei. All Opus Dei members follow "the plan of life," made up of spiritual practices such as daily Mass, rosary, spiritual reading, and mental prayer, as well as Opus Dei prayers and customs. There are different classes of membership in Opus Dei: Numerary members pledge to remain celibate and generally live in Opus Dei houses. They commit their entire salaries to Opus Dei, submit incoming and outgoing mail to their directors, and practice various forms of corporal mortification, including use of the cilice, a spiked chain worn around the thigh, and use of the discipline, a knotted rope for whipping. Supernumerary members may be married, and live with their families. They follow the same "plan of life" as the numeraries, but generally do not know about many of the details of numerary life. They contribute large portions of their income to Opus Dei, often at the expense of their local parishes. Numerary priests join Opus Dei as lay members, but are then hand-picked by Opus Dei superiors to become priests of Opus Dei. Numerary priests hold the top government positions in Opus Dei. Many hold important positions in the Vatican. Each Opus Dei house is assigned a numerary priest, whose responsibilities include saying Mass, hearing confessions and giving spiritual direction to the Opus Dei members. Associate Opus Dei members also pledge celibacy, but they generally do not live in Opus Dei houses. They include people who have not acquired university degrees, or who must remain with their families for personal reasons. Numerary assistants are women who pledge celibacy, and are responsible for the care and cleaning of all Opus Dei residences. Cooperators of Opus Dei provide financial support, but are not considered members of Opus Dei. Unlike Opus Dei members, cooperators do not have to be Catholic. Despite its seemingly noble intentions, Opus Dei has stirred up controversy in countries all over the world. Families of Opus Dei members are almost never involved in the vocation process, (in fact Opus Dei itself often discourages its new members from even telling their families about their decision!) Also questionable are Opus Dei's recruiting tactics, which are comparable to the tactics used by cultic groups. Perhaps most controversial is the effort to canonize Opus Dei's founder, Josemaria Escriva de Balaguer, who died in 1975 and was beatified amidst substantial controversy in 1992, and was canonized on October 6, 2002 in Rome, Italy. See ODAN's opposition to the canonization. Also controversial in the early 1980's was the granting of Opus Dei to be a "personal prelature" within the Church. A personal prelature is an entity within the Catholic Church that is headed by a "prelate" (currently Javier Echevarria) and defined by persons rather than by geographical area (such as dioceses). Therefore, local bishops have little control over Opus Dei's membership, activities or practices. Opus Dei has stated that there are approximately 80,000 Opus Dei members worldwide. Opus Dei is located in many countries, including England, Spain, Italy, Ireland, Canada, Mexico, Japan, Australia, the Philippines, countries in Central and South America, and many others, including the United States. Opus Dei generally locates in or near major cities, often near prestigious universities, where they hope to attract recruits. Since its inception in 1991, ODAN has been in contact with people from all over the world who have experienced the questionable practices of Opus Dei. Many are former members; others who have contacted ODAN include parents, siblings and friends of current or former Opus Dei members; priests and religious, including bishops and campus ministers; news reporters from both the Catholic and secular press, and many more. From the contacts ODAN has made, it has become apparent that wherever Opus Dei is, there is controversy. source Cilice: a spiked chain worn around the upper thigh for two hours each day, except for Church feast days, Sundays, and certain times of the year. This is perhaps the most shocking of the corporal mortifications, and generally Opus Dei members are extremely hesitant to admit that they use them. It is a painful mortification which leaves small prick holes in the flesh, and makes the Opus Dei members tentative about wearing swim suits wherever non-Opus Dei members may be. Edited February 12, 2004 by anileve Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anileve Posted February 12, 2004 Author Report Share Posted February 12, 2004 CNN's Bill Delaney's investigation of Opus Dei. An interview with a few members of the cult. GROOM: I don't think there's any plot for taking over a government or something like that. They do exercise a kind of back room politics that I find very ominous and, indeed, threatening. Now, the Catholic Church has never been a democracy and it never will be. But there is a certain kind of public discourse that ought to go on that ought to surround any group. Any group should be open about its membership, for example, but if I ask for a list of members here in the Boston area, if I ask for a list of members for the Society of Jesus, the Jesuits would be happy to tell me who they are. Ask for a list of membership of Opus Dei, they will never tell. So there is a certain kind of secretiveness and also these very questionable practices of mortification, flagellation and so on. I mean psychologists and other people would certainly warn about that. And theologians would, as well. It reflects a very negative image of the human body and quite, indeed... http://www.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0105/18/ltm.10.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anileve Posted February 12, 2004 Author Report Share Posted February 12, 2004 Inauguration speech of George Bush: January 2001 "Sometime tonight we are called to do great things. But as a saint of our times has said, everyday we are called to do small things with great love." The words were from Josemaria Escriva, the founder of Opus Dei. Fifteen years ago, at the height of the Reagan administration, dozens of Opus Dei members held prominent jobs in the White House, on Capitol Hill, and throughout the government. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anileve Posted February 12, 2004 Author Report Share Posted February 12, 2004 Opus Dei has its main base in Spain, where it has raised the largest contributions and enjoyed the most substantial political and economic influence. Opus Dei retained a strong influence on Spain's banking system and industry. (3) The Spanish branch has the largest membership (24,000, some 5,000 of whom are numeraries), the biggest network of centers and schools, including Pamplona's University, and a business school in Barcelona with ties to Harvard University. Opus Dei members claim to control more than 150 companies and financial entities known as the "Holy Octopus. " Critics allege that Opus Dei served the Franco dictatorship and works through rightwing parties in Spain. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Azat Posted February 12, 2004 Report Share Posted February 12, 2004 Recently found out that our Director at work is a prominent member of Opus Dei. Also finally discovered identities of the little suspicious nuns dressed in blue uniforms frisking around. The headquarters is here in NYC, and apparently an architecturally extravagant building. Very shocking truth behind this religious cult with the Vatican in their pocket. ... No way!!! I have always been interested in Opus Dei and how they operate. They are probably the most influential organization(cult) out there. The organization is also known as the "The Holy Mafia" and while it's membership is very secretive, it is a known fact that Supreme Court Justice Anthony Scalia is a member as is the secretary to the Pope and MANY MANY others. There are only about 3000 members in the states, but they are very influential people. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boghos Posted February 14, 2004 Report Share Posted February 14, 2004 Opus Dei is an interesting organization, if this adjective is the right one. There are several sites with testimonies by ex-members which might be enlightening if biased. Focus in recruiting is quality not quantity. Very pervasive in Latin America. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stormig Posted February 14, 2004 Report Share Posted February 14, 2004 The organization is also known as the "The Holy Mafia" I thought that was Herbalife. Sorry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
THOTH Posted February 14, 2004 Report Share Posted February 14, 2004 I thought that was Herbalife. Sorry. No that would be holistic mafia Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gurgen Posted February 15, 2004 Report Share Posted February 15, 2004 I thought that was Herbalife. Sorry. Haha this is what my uncle in LA keeps telling me. He works for Melaleuca Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stormig Posted February 15, 2004 Report Share Posted February 15, 2004 Haha this is what my uncle in LA keeps telling me. He works for Melaleuca I don't know much about these so haven't heard of that one. Sounds like Greek for "white apple." And does Opus Dei mean "work of God"? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gurgen Posted February 15, 2004 Report Share Posted February 15, 2004 Yep, to my best latin knowledge Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sasun Posted February 16, 2004 Report Share Posted February 16, 2004 All secret religions are false, they surely have a hidden agenda. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anileve Posted February 16, 2004 Author Report Share Posted February 16, 2004 All secret religions are false, they surely have a hidden agenda. It's actually not a secret religion any longer, it's recognized by the Vatican and is considered to be a branch of Catholicism. The secrecy is how it gained so much power and how it spread it's venomous testicles into the powerful sectors of authoritarianism. Our director for example uses the numeraries to report the inner activities of the workplace. It's actually quite uncomfortable, since the "nuns" are very secretive about what religion they belong to. And always answer "Catholicism". The director herself is quite a strange character, and is constantly encouraging me to get married. In fact if we are celebrating someones baby or anniversary or a wedding, she always makes it mandatory to walk over to me and tell me that she is still waiting for me. In her words "You are so beautiful and smart, now if you just get married you'll be perfect" Off topic, but is there an Internet marriage available, so I can get married over the Internet and get rid of people who bug me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
angel4hope Posted February 16, 2004 Report Share Posted February 16, 2004 It's actually not a secret religion any longer, it's recognized by the Vatican and is considered to be a branch of Catholicism. The secrecy is how it gained so much power and how it spread it's venomous testicles into the powerful sectors of authoritarianism. Our director for example uses the numeraries to report the inner activities of the workplace. It's actually quite uncomfortable, since the "nuns" are very secretive about what religion they belong to. And always answer "Catholicism". The director herself is quite a strange character, and is constantly encouraging me to get married. In fact if we are celebrating someones baby or anniversary or a wedding, she always makes it mandatory to walk over to me and tell me that she is still waiting for me. In her words "You are so beautiful and smart, now if you just get married you'll be perfect" Off topic, but is there an Internet marriage available, so I can get married over the Internet and get rid of people who bug me. aaaaaaaah hahahhaha aaaaaaaahahah rotfl... evelina u crack me up like a vase exposed to a high pitched level of volume....i cant stop laffin... anyway...dont mind me--please go on...! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stormig Posted February 16, 2004 Report Share Posted February 16, 2004 The secrecy is how it gained so much power and how it spread it's venomous testicles into the powerful sectors of authoritarianism. (...) Off topic, but is there an Internet marriage available, so I can get married over the Internet and get rid of people who bug me. Devilina! Surely you meant tentacles??? Who is bugging you? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sasun Posted February 16, 2004 Report Share Posted February 16, 2004 It's actually not a secret religion any longer, it's recognized by the Vatican and is considered to be a branch of Catholicism. The secrecy is how it gained so much power and how it spread it's venomous testicles into the powerful sectors of authoritarianism. That doesn't speak well of the Catholic church in my mind. Trying to get secular authority is one of the worst flaws that a religion can have. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anileve Posted February 17, 2004 Author Report Share Posted February 17, 2004 (edited) Devilina! Surely you meant tentacles??? Who is bugging you? HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!! Stormy jan, apparently you were the only one to notice, or rather everyone did, but they chose to allow the word to just "hang" there (Oh God, I can't help myself that just goes so well with the context). But you know, now that I have noticed the mistake I've realized that it actually fits the genre quite well, considering what Opus Dei is doing to the Vatican and its followers. Does anyone have any other knowledge of the cult, or perhaps you may have encountered people that are members? I really would like to know more about it, and preferably from the members. Interviewing some of the nuns at my job is a bit risque and can result in me tap dancing at Times Square to pay for my phone bills. Who's bugging me? Well let's just say at least 3 people I know are not bugging me, that just leaves me with 100 others to deal with, not so bad... Edited February 17, 2004 by anileve Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boghos Posted February 17, 2004 Report Share Posted February 17, 2004 http://www.mond.at/opus.dei/opus.dei.uo.faq.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Accelerated Posted July 14, 2004 Report Share Posted July 14, 2004 Im 2/3rds of my way through the 'Da Vinci Codes'. Its a great book (fiction) and has a lot of info on this organisation the author claims as fact. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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