NationStates Jolt Archive

My friend just told me about this thing called a cilice.

He's telling me the members of Opus Dei wear one for two hours a day, I don't think they do.. I mean.. come on..

<Friend> Opus Dei members are required to wear a cilice at least 2 hours a day except on Sunday or certain holidays, and they're required to use a Discpline at least once a week
<Me> this is from the book yes?
<Friend> actually, it's real
<Friend> Opus Dei is a real part of the Catholic Church, and it requires that stuff, and a few more things
<Friend> and women are treated even worse because of "original sin"
<Friend> according to the founder of Opus Dei, humans are sinning by being alive, basically, their bodies are a sin against God, and women are even moreso original sinners because of Eve eating the apple, so every day, the members have to punish themselves for having a body, and women have to punish themselves even more to punish themselves for Eve eating the apple
So my question is: What are the real Opus Dei tradition.. thingys..?

My friend just told me about this thing called a cilice.

He's telling me the members of Opus Dei wear one for two hours a day, I don't think they do.. I mean.. come on..


So my question is: What are the real Opus Dei tradition.. thingys..?
I believe they wear it because it is meant to be a permanent reminder of the painful sacrifice J to the C made.

And it's not meant to be tight, or draw blood like the movie. Just enough for you to know its there. It no big deal really.

Ever seen the flagellation the really devout Catholics do at Easter?!

Yep. Makes me happy that I'm not part of them

I think one of the "dos and don'ts" should be to not use apostrophes to pluralise, however funny it might look when done properly... ;)

IEver seen the flagellation the really devout Catholics do at Easter?!

You mean visiting in-laws?

according to the founder of Opus Dei, humans are sinning by being alive, basically, their bodies are a sin against God

So God creates us (apparently) and then by living we offend him?... Well it's his own daft fault for making us in the first place then! Why should people have to whip themselves for being born? If he didn't want us to exist then he didn't have to create us.

You mean visiting in-laws?
zing!

I saw an article on Opus Dei in Time- I'll try to find it.

*searches through mass magazine graves*

Here it is.

Yep, the cilice thing is real, but I'm not sure if every member wears it. The more committed members apparently do discipline themselves.
Heh heh. The Labour education secretary in Britain has received "spiritual support" from Opus Dei.

So God creates us (apparently) and then by living we offend him?... Well it's his own daft fault for making us in the first place then! Why should people have to whip themselves for being born? If he didn't want us to exist then he didn't have to create us.
Don't worry honey. Let the fools make hypocrites out of themselves.

Don't worry honey. Let the fools make hypocrites out of themselves.
I think that saying existence is a sin is an incorrect interpretation of their beliefs. I don't know exactly what their beliefs are, but it is much more likely that they want to be penitant for human's original sin.
I've heard interviews of an author who had observed an Opus Dei run church (I don't know exactly what to call it) and he said that it was mostly just a place where devout Catholics prayed and practiced traditional Christian rituals. Nothing drastic or sinister, but old-school.

My friend just told me about this thing called a cilice.

He's telling me the members of Opus Dei wear one for two hours a day, I don't think they do.. I mean.. come on..


So my question is: What are the real Opus Dei tradition.. thingys..?

It is true that opus dei members wear a cilice, although I'm not sure about them being required to wear them.

Everything else you mentioned would actually be considered heretical by the Catholic Church. So, though I don't really know much about opus dei, I doubt they believe that.

Believing that the body is bad is considered a heresy by the Catholic Church. It originates from gnostics who believed that the body was bad and that Jesus Christ was fully divine but wasn't human and didn't have a human body. This is opposed to Church teaching that the body is good (and a gift from God) and that Jesus was was fully divine and fully human.

As far as I know, the cilice is meant to help the members prevent themselves from sinning, or to remind them of Jesus' suffering. I'm not really sure, though.