Congregation of Jesus and Mary
In 1643, John Eudes, to revitalize the Christian life of all the baptized, gathered a few companions to live a double mission: to spread the Word of God to be able to live it and to form priests according to the Heart of God. The distinctive feature of the Congregation of Jesus and Mary, commonly known as the Eudists, is its twofold apostolic purpose: to collaborate in evangelization and formation of good workers for the Gospel (Constitutions, no. 10).
This international society of apostolic life brings together priests, deacons, and laypeople, incorporated or associated, who share their prayer life, experiences, and apostolic commitments. John Eudes, seized by the love of Jesus, carried in his heart the distresses and needs of the men and women of his time: following in the footsteps of their founder, the Eudists seek to open up, with audacity, ways to make the Kingdom of Jesus grow.
To this end, they propose fraternal community life as an excellent way for them to reach the perfection of charity which must be the goal of every baptized person, every priest, every disciple of Christ. The Eudists are committed to the proclamation of the Gospel and the renewal of the faith by the witness of their lives, their prayer, their teaching, and the accomplishment of various pastoral tasks (Constitutions, no. 23). The missions entrusted to them are varied: seminaries, formation of the laity, chaplaincies, accompaniment of Catholic education, parishes, spiritual centers, etc.
Today, the congregation counts nearly 500 Eudists in seventeen countries and on four continents: in France (eight communities in six dioceses), in Africa, in Latin America, in North America, and finally in the Philippines. In these very diverse places, laypeople, called associates, share with the Eudists their spiritual heritage and their own apostolic experience.
We want to show the proud and happy face of who we are as Eudists, with the great wealth of our differences between Provinces and also between generations, we want to incarnate with joy what it is to be a Eudist, as an incorporated person and as an associate, as a man and as a woman, in our diverse cultures and our diverse social situations, welcoming the other person's contribution as the revelation of our own identity.
Jean-Michel Amouriaux, Superior General
At the invitation of the General Council, Fr. Sylva Compagny, Superior of the Province of France and a biblical expert, has prepared this lectio divina, to further deepen our Eudist missionary identity. It's a proposal to be lived in community, a good subject for sharing in September or October, Mission Month. With the grace of the Spirit of Jesus, who unites us and molds us.
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The Eudist Spirituality unit contributes to the study and dissemination of Eudesian spirituality. We reproduce recent publications here. For more content, visit the UEE page.
When St. John Eudes died on August 19, 1680, the Congregation of Jesus and Mary had about forty members who would later be called "Eudists. At that time, they directed six seminaries in Normandy and Brittany and conducted parish missions. In 2022, in France, the Eudists live in 8 communities, serving in the formation of priests, education, parish missions, spiritual animation and numerous services in the dioceses.
The Eudist Province of Colombia includes 6 countries: Mexico, Honduras and the Dominican Republic in Central America; Colombia, Brazil and Ecuador in South America. The Eudists animate several spiritual centers and parishes, where they participate in the formation of lay people, missionary disciples; they are involved in the initial and ongoing formation of diocesan priests.
The Eudists played a leading role in the religious and social history of North America. Their influence was felt through the establishment of religious communities, the training of priests and parish missions, and the founding of houses and seminaries. The Eudists left a lasting imprint on the Church in Canada, and were a major force in the preservation of the French language in Quebec and Acadia.
The Eudists have been present in Africa since 1958. Today they have communities in Ivory Coast, Benin, Togo, Burkina Faso and Kenya. The missions are varied: initial and ongoing formation of priests, spiritual centers, works of mercy in the field of health and with children, higher education in the professional and agro-ecological fields, responsibility for parishes.
The Eudists have been present in Africa since 1958. Today they have communities in Ivory Coast, Benin, Togo, Burkina Faso and Kenya. The missions are varied: initial and ongoing formation of priests, spiritual centers, works of mercy in the field of health and with children, higher education in the professional and agro-ecological fields, responsibility for parishes.
The work of Minuto de Dios was founded by Eudist Father Rafael Garcia Herreros, serving multiple needs. The Eudists are involved in school and university education, in numerous solidarity actions both immediate in the case of disasters and longer term in the creation of entire neighborhoods, or the support of micro-enterprises. They run radio and television stations, evangelizing with the grace of the Charismatic Renewal; they are involved in peace and reconstruction efforts in the country. They are also in charge of parishes. The province is present in Colombia, Nicaragua and Peru.
The Vicariate of the Philippines was born from its separation from the Province of North America. From 2006 to January 2024, North American Eudists worked with Filipinos to develop this mission of evangelization and formation. The Vicariate of the Philippines now includes several incorporated members and seminarians.
500
Today, the Congregation numbers almost 500 Eudists in 20 countries, including 120 in formation. 800 associates, lay people, priests and permanent deacons, share in the spiritual heritage, fraternal life and apostolic experience of the Congregation.
100 000
Minuto de Dios University (UNIMINUTO), founded in 1992 by Fr. Rafael Garcia-Herreros, today has over 100,000 students, and is present in almost every department of Colombia, with a foundation in Côte d'Ivoire and projects in Togo and Peru.
72
The Congregation comprises 72 local communities where it executes its mission in unison, as incorporated members, probationers, or associates, in the service of the formation of seminarians, priests, and lay people, either through its own institutions or in collaboration with dioceses.
50 000
By 2005, Minuto de Dios had already built over 50,000 houses. Minuto de Dios had also rebuilt 154,622 other houses, sponsored 641 children, and supported 60,000 small businesses by 2017.
Congregation of Our Lady of Charity of the Good Shepherd
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Little sisters of the poor
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Fieles Siervas de Jesus
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Missionary Sisters of Mercy
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Missionary Sisters of the Gospel
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Sisters of the Holy Hearts of Jesus and Mary
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The Eudist Servants of the 11th Hour
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FOR A CULTURE OF PROTECTION FOR CHILDREN AND VULNERABLE PEOPLE
Sexual crimes were committed by Eudists against minors and vulnerable people. The Congregation has reacted so that this does not happen again and sets up structures for listening to victims, prevention and formation.
INFORMATION (click on the links)
Lettre de présentation des Normes (Supérieur Général, Rome, 02.04 2021)
Normes applicables dans la Congrégation de Jésus et Marie dans le domaines des abus sexuel
DOCTORATE OF
SAINT JEAN EUDES
The Congregation of Jesus and Mary and the Congregation of Our Lady of Charity of the Good Shepherd, aware that they have received a spiritual treasure for the whole Church, have presented the Cause of the Doctorate of their founder, Saint John Eudes (1601-1680).
Major recent events at the Congregation. Click the image to view the page.
During this assembly, we experienced a special moment: the election of the team that will beat the service of our Congregation for the next five years. We trust in the mercy of God and believe in faith that the election was illuminated by the light of the Holy Spirit.
July 2022
The General Council and the Superior General, together with all the provincials and, this time, a representative of the associates, are meeting in Bogotá, at the Valmaría house in the province of Colombia, to deal with all the important issues of the Congregation and to hear the different reports from each of the provinces and the projects that have been developed since the last General Assembly.
February 2024
Listen to the following speakers:
- Sister Nidia Stella Quimbayo Garrido
- Fr Diego Jaramillo
- Fr Edem Afoutou
- Fr Daniel Doré
- Fr Higinio Lopera
March to November 2024
In July 2021, it was announced that the Congregation for the Causes of Saints had decreed the legal validity of the process advanced in the Diocese of Engativá for the cause of beatification of the servant of God Rafael García Herreros Unda.
July 2021
2025, a year to commemorate important anniversaries in the life of the Church, in the life of the Congregation of Jesus and Mary
2025, Jubilee Year of the Universal Church, Pilgrims of Hope
2025, Centenary of the canonization of Saint John Eudes
2025, International gathering of Eudist Associates with burning heart, in the footsteps of Saint John Eudes
March 2025
Together with a few companions, St. John Eudes founded the congregation on March 25, 1643. During his missions, he renewed the life of the Christian people and emphasized the formation of good workers of the Gospel, in order to give the Church a new evangelizing impetus in the France of the time.
March 25, 2023
Congregation files. Click on the image to view the page.
This section contains Cahiers Eudistes, CJM News and Former Jésus documents.
This section is reserved for people to whom access has been provided by the congregation.
Find all the audio productions including the letters of Saint John Eudes and the prayers.
Click the image to listen to the prayer. Recordings by Steve Marshall.
In imitation of this heavenly Father whom we are to follow and imitate as our Father, Jesus is to be the sole object of our mind and heart. We are to look to and love all things in him, and we are to look to and love nothing but him in all things.
Jesus, God and man together, being all in all, according to the divine oracle of his great Apostle [...] that he may be our life, our sanctification, our power, our treasure, our glory and our all.
The three divine Persons are present in Holy Baptism in a special way. The Father is there, begetting his Son in us, and begetting us in his Son, that is, giving new being and new life to his Son in us, and giving us new being and new life in his Son.
