Augustinian Charism
A Tree Watered by Three Springs
Today, the Augustinian Order is the fruit of more than 750 years of history. In the course of time, a school of spirituality was formed that contributed to the formation of Christian life in close unity with the Church. The spirituality of the Augustinian Order can be compared to a large tree whose branches spread to various countries over the years. Its peak still wanders up high in order to acquire new meadows where to roam. At the same time its solid roots are deep and draw life from three springs: the hermitic movement, the mendicant religious life and the experience of Saint Augustine.
Purpose and Testimony
The purpose of the Order consists in this: that united in harmony in brotherly love and spiritual friendship, we seek to worship God and work in the service of His people. In this way we share in the Church the work of evangelisation and carry the Good News to the whole world “so that we can transform the world from its heart. This is our testimony.”
In order to achieve all this:
- Priority is given to our consecration to God by means of our religious vows from which spring pour out our community life and our apostolic work.
- To participate in the worship of God as an expression of faith that we share with those who are seeking God.
- To live a perfect community life.
- To promote the experience of God through an internal life of study.
- To carry out our apostolic work according to the needs of the Church and society.
- We dedicate ourselves to our work, both intellectual and manual for the good of the community (OSA Constitution 14.)
“The foundations of the Augustinian life lie in community life, where all the brothers share everything with all the others, build a road to God through the service of others and seek perfection by means of divine grace.
Thus in their life the show the ministry of the Trinity and the Church, while showing from now on this earth the reality of the future hope for the House of the Father” (Constitutions OSA, 6)
St Augustine
To the whole world St. Augustine remains known as the great thinker where one finds a mine of Christian teaching. He is also known as the saint that lived the ideal of community life that made it as the fulfilment of the path to holiness: a life based on the unity among brothers in the search for God.
Witness of Sainthood
The legacy left by St. Augustine is not limited solely to his wisdom and writings, but above all to the example his life and spirituality. This powerful experience of God’s presence in his life was converted into a powerful experience of communion with those that he lived within the monasteries that he founded.
