Third order
The term third order signifies, in general, lay members of
Third orders were a 12th-century adaptation of the medieval
Roman Catholic
"Associations whose members share in the spirit of some religious institute while in secular life, lead an apostolic life, and strive for Christian perfection under the higher direction of the same institute are called third orders or some other appropriate name."[3]
Name
Religious orders that arose in the 12th-13th centuries often had a first order (the male religious, who were generally the first established), the second order (nuns, established second), and then the third order of laity who were established third.
The term tertiary comes from the Latin tertiarius, meaning "third". The term has been used for centuries to denote those who belonged to a third order. Tertiaries are those persons who live according to the Third Rule of religious orders, either outside of a monastery in the world, or in a religious community. The idea which forms the basis of this institute is typically that persons who, on account of certain circumstances cannot enter a religious order, may, nevertheless, as far as possible enjoy the advantages and privileges of religious orders. This is most clearly expressed in the Rule of the Third Order of St. Francis which, although not the oldest, has, nevertheless, become the model for the rule of almost all other Third Orders. Tertiaries are divided into Regular and Secular.[5]
In some cases the members of a third order, wishing to live in a more monastic and regulated way of life, became "regulars" (
History
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The old monastic orders had attached to their
The general idea of lay people affiliated to religious orders, such as the
At that date many of the laity, impatient of the indolent and sometimes scandalous lives of the clergy in lower Europe, were seized with the idea of reforming Christendom by preaching. This admirable intention caused the rise of among others, the Fratres Humiliati. The Humiliati soon became suspect and were forbidden by Pope Lucius III to preach, until in 1207 Pope Innocent III gave a section of them permission to resume their work, provided that they limited themselves to moral questions and did not venture on doctrinal subjects. Some became priests, were gathered into a cloister, and took up religious life. Others remained outside, yet spiritually dependent on the clerical portion, and for the first time called a Third Order.[1] The Humiliati seem to have been the first to have 'tertiaries' in the twelfth century. These lived a rule of life within the world.
The name was used to a great extent in the Franciscan Order,
With the advent of the Second Vatican Council came an elaboration of the lay vocation. The lay vocation is a vocation distinct from that of the consecrated state. It involves the sanctification of ordinary life, of one's work, of family life, of all the various secular occupations. It is the leaven in the midst of the world to order the temporal world to God.
As the various third orders secular began to look at each of their houses after the Council they began to revise their Rules and Statutes. The Orders submitted their new Statutes or Rules or Constitutions to the Holy See for review and approbation. Thus the new Statutes etc. are steeped in the doctrine of the Council regarding the universal call to holiness and the theology of the lay vocation including the secular character of the laity. Various Orders have opted to change the name from "Third Order Secular" to "Secular Order" (or at least add it to usage) to emphasize the secular nature of the Order or they used the term "Lay or Laity" to the same effect. "Third order" and "tertiary" is still used but other names were added or used in a formal sense. The various documents show how the laity of the various Orders are part of the Order (or family etc.) but fully within their particular lay and secular state. They show how tertiaries are to live fully their Christian lay vocation, as well as how they are to live the charism of the Order they belong to within secular life. They also provide various means to tending towards holiness in the midst of the world, which very much is part of the vocation of the tertiary—to strive for Christian perfection (CIC 303).
Historical third orders secular of the Catholic Church (all still in existence)
- Third Order of Augustinian Recollects
- Third Order of Saint Augustine
- Oblates of Saint Benedict
- Secular Order of Discalced Carmelites
- Third Order of Saint Dominic
- Third Order of Saint Francis
- Secular Franciscan Order
- Third Order of Mercy
- Third Order of Minims
- Third Order Secular of the Most Holy Trinity
- Third Order of Saint Norbert
- Third Order of Our Lady of Mount Carmel
- Association of Salesian Cooperators
- Third Order of Servites
There also are third or secular orders in the
Organisation
Members of third orders are thus either (a) regulars, living in common under a religious rule of life, or (b) seculars, living in the world. The regulars take the three
Membership
Any Roman Catholic, Lutheran or Anglican may join a Third Order of their respective religious tradition. The laying aside of the distinctive sign or prayers for any space of time does not in itself put an end to membership with a Third Order, but the deliberate wish to dissociate oneself from it is sufficient to produce that effect (S. Cong. Indulg., 31 January 1893).[citation needed]
Roman Catholic third orders
This section needs additional citations for verification. (June 2021) |
Third Order Secular of the Most Holy Trinity
The
The first known Statutes of the Trinitarian Third Order were published in 1584, and were approved by the General of the Order, Father Bernard Dominici. The first Rule of Life for the Third Order attached to the Discalced Trinitarians was approved by Pope Leo XII on 6 June 1828.[10]
Third Order of Saint Francis
The preaching of St. Francis of Assisi, as well as his own living example and that of his first disciples, exercised such a powerful attraction on the people that many married men and women wanted to join the First or the Second Order. This being incompatible with their state of life, St. Francis found a middle way: he gave them a rule animated by the Franciscan spirit.[6]
The Third Order of St. Francis in the
Third Order of Our Lady of Mount Carmel
The
Third Order of Saint Dominic
This was one of the earliest developments of Saint Dominic's Ordo de Poenitentia. It was not indeed the primal organism from which the
Third Order of Servites
The Servite Order has had both a secular and regular Third Order. The secular Third Order was established in the United States in 1893.
The Sisters of the Third Order of Servites was founded by St.
Third Order of Saint Augustine
These are the men and women who follow the spirit of the
Secular Augustinian Recollects
The Secular Augustinian Recollects (Spanish: Agustinos Recoletos Seglares) is the official Third Order of the Order of Augustinian Recollects. Today, the SAR is present in 19 countries in 111 Local Chapters with at least 3,500 members.
Lutheran Churches
There are in the Lutheran Church,
Lutheran Franciscan Tertiaries
In Germany, the Lutheran Franciscan Tertiaries, officially known as the Evangelische Franziskanerbruderschaft der Nachfolge Christi, were founded in 1927; the emphasize the Rule of Saint Francis and pray daily from their breviary.[11]
Franciskus Tredje Orden
The Franciskus Tredje Orden is a Lutheran third order of the Church of Sweden. [12]
Anglican Communion
Third orders in the Anglican Communion have in common that they are composed of both men and women, single and married, who are living and working in the world in their various life callings.
Franciscan tradition
Third Order, Society of St. Francis
The Third Order (TSSF) of the
Third Order, Franciscan Order of the Divine Compassion
The Franciscan Order of the Divine Compassion (FODC) was founded in the United States in 1981. Its third order is also known as the Brothers and Sisters of Penance.
Dominican tradition
Anglican Order of Preachers
The Anglican Order of Preachers is the primary manifestation of Dominican spirituality within the Anglican Communion, which has no primary
Other traditions
Third Order of St. Andrew
The Order of Saint Andrew is an Anglican ecumenical order. Any member in good standing of any Christian Church in apostolic succession may make application to join.[16]
See also
References
Citations
- ^ a b c One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain: Jarrett, Bede, Ferdinand Heckmann, Benedict Zimmerman, Livarius Oliger, Odoric Jouve, Lawrence Hess, and John Doyle. "Third Orders." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 14. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1912. 28 July 2019
- ISBN 9780814658567), p. 1363
- ^ a b "Code of Canon Law - IntraText". www.vatican.va.
- ^ Brady, Ignatius Charles; Cunningham, Lawrence (29 September 2020). "St. Francis of Assisi". Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
- ^ One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain: Heckmann, Ferdinand. "Tertiaries." The Catholic Encyclopedia Vol. 14. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1912. 28 July 2019
- ^ a b c public domain: Baber, Edward Cresswell (1911). "Tertiaries". In Chisholm, Hugh (ed.). Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 26 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 660–661. This article incorporates text from a publication now in the
- ISBN 0819908312.
- ^ "Code of Canon Law - IntraText". www.vatican.va.
- ^ Cf. Angelus a S.S. Corde, O.C.D., "Manuale juris communis Regularium", Ghent, 1899, q. 1067
- ^ a b "Trinitarian laity", Order of the Most Holy Trinity and of the Captives
- ISBN 978-94-017-9376-6.
- ^ Mike, Chaplain (8 November 2019). "Franciscan Friday: Franciscan and Lutheran | internetmonk.com". Internet Monk. Retrieved 1 September 2020.
- Society of St. Francis
- ^ "Third Order of Franciscans". Third Order of Franciscans.
- ^ "Brothers & Sisters". Anglican Order of Preachers. Retrieved 15 May 2018.
- ^ "The Order of Saint Andrew: An Anglican ecumenical religious order of both men and women, single and married". www.osa-anglican.org. Retrieved 5 September 2019.
Sources
- public domain: Baber, Edward Cresswell (1911). "Tertiaries". In Chisholm, Hugh (ed.). Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 26 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 660–661. This article incorporates text from a publication now in the
- Catholic Encyclopedia: Third Orders & Tertiaries
External links
Roman Catholic
- Pope John Paul II, Christifedelis Laici, Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 30 December 1988
- National Fraternity of the Secular Franciscan Order in the U.S.A.
- Third Order Secular of the Most Holy Trinity Archived 27 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine
- Secular Trinitarian Way -Third Order of the Holy Trinity Archived 5 June 2010 at the Wayback Machine
- VocationNetwork.org Information about various Catholic religious vocations, including Third Order.
- International Fellowship of St. Bruno A De Facto Association whose members are Carthusian Oblates in spirit, the Order has yet to approve an official Third Order