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About Us
The Community of Ss. Isidore and Maria is, of course, inspired by the life and example of Ss. Isidore and Maria. However, we are also inspired by various other movements within the Catholic Church. In the fifth century Benedict of Nursia began a religious order that was to shape the course of Europe for the better part of a millennium and provide the foundation for all subsequent religious orders in the West. Like Augustine of Hippo before him, Benedict recognized that the life of his brothers should parallel his own in that studies [be] undertaken, and then, not precisely scorned, but renounced and transcended, for the sake of the kingdom of God
(The Love of Learning and the Desire for God, 20-21). Gregory the Great has written that Benedict was scienter nescius et sapienter indoctus, that is to say knowingly ignorant and wisely unlearned. This is an example we strive to follow, wherein we study but do not see this study as an end unto itself, but rather a window for furthering the work of and desire for God. Many of us who have spent time in academia have discovered, with such people as Benedict and Søren Kierkegaard, that knowledge can further our faith but ultimately cannot ground it. However, in the spirit of Ss. Isidore and Maria, it is important that we do not in any way assume that mental work is superior to physical work. Thus, following the example of St. Benedict, our daily lives are to be lived in community and, in order to make possible the self-sufficient support of our community, physical labor is to be undertaken and not place a burden on anyone else. In solidarity with those who produce food the world over and under the special patronage of Ss. Isidore and Maria we strive to produce our own sustenance in all aspects of life.
It has often been remarked that all renewal in the Church has taken place as a result of a fuller understanding of the duty and right we have as baptized persons. And through the last four decades since the Second Vatican Council, which indeed was a council about the baptized, a deeper understanding of our baptism has been fostered. Moreover, this has fostered a great deal of what has come to be known as lay ecclesial ministry. We, therefore, seek to live our lives out as lay ecclesial ministers, living out our baptismal promises and our promises of marriage, which further calls us to the service to the Church. I invite all those who are interested in such a life to join the discussion of the shape our community ought to take and perhaps, guided by the Spirit, we may be able to create the Community of Ss. Isidore and Maria.
