About the Society of St. John

Many people realize that life today is far different from what it ought to be. Our frantic pace has driven us away from what is most important. As a society we have become shallow and unfocused. Somewhere along the road, we have lost our way—we have forgotten God.

What is to be done? Many people are awakening to the only possible solution: a return to the faith of our fathers. These people are neither nostalgic nor reactionary. They are a new generation starved for the real thing, strong in spirit and progressive in thought. Not long ago they pushed Gregorian chant into the Top 40. Now they are forming new groups with classical tendencies. In the end, they want to build a society filled with the mystery and the splendor of Christ.

As part of this new attitude, the Society of Saint John is offering a holistic and traditional answer. Following Pope John Paul II’s call for a New Evangelization, the Society seeks a renewal of faith through a return to the sources of that faith: tradition and Catholic worship. Its members have already established their first house and a bold plan of action that will put the Church at the center of our lives.

Liturgy. Priesthood. Education. Peace. These are the principles and goals of the Society of St. John, an association of priests, clerics, religious, and laity, working under the leadership of the Pope and bishops of the Church to revive holiness of life and Catholic civilization in the third millennium.

The charism of the Society is fourfold: the solemn use of the traditional Roman rite; the renewal of priestly life; a classical education that opens the mind and heart to universal truths; and the formation of small cities with a true culture, where all can live in the peace of Christ. There was a time when the faith was not found wanting, but found everywhere. The Society of St. John will bring us back to the sources of that faith.

The first decisive step of this work was taken in May of 1998. On the feast of Our Lady, Help of Christians, Bishop James Timlin of the Diocese of Scranton, Pennsylvania, gave canonical approval to the Society of St. John with the blessing of the Holy See. In September of 1999 we acquired property in Shohola, Pennsylvania, where our members are already sharing a life of solemn worship and serious study of God. Some families have already moved into the area to take part in this new experience of faith and culture. Our next goal is to establish of the College of St. Justin Martyr, where we will undertake the classical liberal education of the many priestly and religious vocations that God is sending us in numbers greater than we are currently able to house. The College will also be open to many young people who are looking for a serious academic formation crowned by a life of worship according to the traditional liturgy of the Roman Church. Many also are the faithful who, from afar, are encouraging and supporting us in fulfilling our mission to build—around and from the altar—a renewed Christian society. With God’s blessing and your help, the Society of St. John will carry its mission to other parts of the United States and the world.

Essential to our mission is the formation of a strong and vibrant community of life centered on the altar and directed to the worship of the living God. The Acts of the Apostles teach us that, prior to transforming the world, the Apostles were constantly in the temple, praising God. Because God is no longer at the center of our lives—because divine worship is no longer the principal source of our civilization—the Catholic society built by the Apostles now seems ready to crumble.

Hence, the Society of Saint John’s primary objective is the deliberate restoration of the liturgy in its fullness, with sacred music and architecture reflecting the splendor of Our Lord, the Blessed Virgin, and the Saints. Because it is the reenactment of the mystery of Christ, the liturgy is not only the source of grace and of the Church’s life, but also the end of all we are and all we do—that which requires the most and deserves the best.

Imagine fulfilling your mission in life by rediscovering your faith through worship! Even now the Society of Saint John is forming its members around the altar of God. Even now many people like you are joining us in the worship and culture of the Blessed Trinity.

Integral to a transcendentally reverent and beautiful liturgy is a holy and educated clergy, steeped in Church tradition and formed in virtue, both intellectual and moral. Christ taught the Church from the beginning to consecrate clerics to be the dispensers of the divine mysteries and to preach the Gospel of life.

In order to provide for the full glory of the liturgy and the proper shepherding of the faithful, we are forming a new generation of priests. We will prepare our members for the various degrees of Sacred Orders and have each of them experience those ancient Orders and their corresponding ministries in their fullness. As a crown and strengthening of our priestly ministry, we are living in common, sharing divine and human things in the joys and tears of everyday life.

Daily we hear from men and women, young and old, interested in a priestly or religious life that stresses a special consecration to the divine mysteries. They want to join a praying and faith-filled community with strong and clear goals. With the proper support and education, holy priests and religious men and women will be something not only necessary but possible for the Church of today .

We are seriously committed to an educational ideal that flows from and culminates in the sacred liturgy. The truth of God is preached and re-enacted in the celebration of the divine mysteries. But this truth must be grasped by human minds and handed on to others in human language. If the centuries of studious attention to the word of God are to be handed on to the future, a serious education is indispensable.

We are currently giving our members the foundations of a demanding classical education that opens the mind to all things of universal value. We do not desire a mere return to the Greco-Roman and Medieval education, but a recapturing of the perennial. Our Great Books program begins with the study of the classical languages (Greek, Latin, Hebrew) and the liberal arts, among them grammar, logic, rhetoric, mathematics, and music, because they prepare our spirit for true philosophy. Beyond a rigorous philosophical formation, the study and understanding of Scripture and sacred theology are the climax towards which all else is oriented.

This education belongs by right to Christian society and is necessary, that our charity may more and more abound in knowledge. We desire to share it with all and hence part of our vision is the establishment of elementary schools, secondary schools, and colleges that are not only intellectually rigorous but also highly successful in meeting the requirements of today’s society. We are already working to found the first of our educational institutions: the College of St. Justin Martyr.

Imagine a small city or a village with winding streets scattered with Christian homes, fields with children playing, an amphitheater busy with drama and music, markets and small shops, schools and a small university. Imagine your office or industry—the one you own or the one for which you work—adjacent to a vibrant community. Employees live nearby and can walk or bike to work. The city is also close enough to allow commuting to work in a major city, but is itself surrounded by farms and preserved woodlands. Parks with athletic fields and nature trails, as well as a unique waterfront walkway, are a stone’s throw away. Imagine a small city or a village where every day, from the towers of a magnificent church, the bells call the families to amble up the hill to sing Mass, Vespers, or simply to gather in the Town Square for merriment and celebration. What you imagine, the Society is starting in Shohola, Pennsylvania, in a central position between New York City, Philadelphia, and Scranton. While this planned community reflects the past, the vision is distinctly futuristic and employment friendly. The result will be a Christian mixed-use village and small city, self-sustaining, pedestrian, high on convenience yet low on congestion, where life is permeated by a rich divine liturgy and a rich human culture.

Life in our modern cities has become more and more impoverished and difficult. Small cities and the natural landscape once shared a complementary relationship. Moreover, all social classes lived united by sharing in a common culture. Today, these relationships have been all but eliminated. Standard zoning policy and modern traffic guidelines are the cause of negative environmental impacts and traffic congestion—they prohibit the compact densities, street standards and mix of uses that promote vibrant and efficient community growth. In addition, a culture of individualistic materialism has divorced our communities, making them unsafe and ugly.

The Church and the modern world can cooperate with each other in providing a lasting and realistic urban model where all ages and all social classes can live together by sharing in Christian culture and respecting the surrounding ecology. This is the conviction of the Society of Saint John, seeking a holistic answer to the problems we face by harmonizing contemporary resources and research with the perennial wisdom of our tradition.

We draw our idea of promoting small cities centered in the faith from the lessons of both the crisis of the ancient world and the monastic tradition of the Middle Ages, parallels we think valid for our declining society. This idea is a response to our problems, not a mere reaction or a socially irresponsible escapism. A blind return to the past is impossible. To ignore the present is foolish. We want to return to the best of the past to ensure the best for the future.

The goal is to offer individuals and families with an alternative to the modern crisis, that is, the opportunity to live a truly Christian way of life as an apostolic model for all: a beautiful and simple home in the midst of a larger community of believers, where all spiritual, intellectual, and bodily talents can be developed as they should—respecting God, neighbors, and nature. This is the life of peace that all men seek and only Christ can offer.

At the dawning of this new millennium, with all its hopes and troubles, a place like this is not utopian, but absolutely pressing. We cannot merely defend the little that is left: we must rebuild and develop our human city in order to guarantee a future worthy of the Gospel’s newness. With your help and support, we will start building soon in Shohola this new model of development at the service of all. You won’t find another place like this—but not for long, we hope.

How do you fit into the plans of a community dedicated to the restoration of the traditional Catholic liturgy and civilization? By planning to live a vibrant and fuller life in our city, where you can raise a young family or spend your retirement in peace, prayer, and joy. By giving your talent in planning for this future, or by fulfilling in the Society your vocation of service to the Church. Or by making a contribution to help us build a new foundation for Catholic culture, first here in Shohola, PA, and soon in a place closer to you. The Society of St. John, entrusted by the Lord to build and plant, depends upon you to grow and prosper. We invite you to join us in our journey and live the new millennium with a more certain hope. We invite you to worship God with us at the altar, to break bread with us at table, and to live with us a life worthy of Christ and of the mysteries we celebrate in communion with the whole Church: the Church of Jesus Christ, yesterday, today, and the same forever.

More information on the tremendous growth of Traditionalist Catholic Communities. The site www.ssjohn.com is really great. I wrote my thesis on the Society of St. John and stayed with them for a few days in March and it was quite inspiring.

A "Catholic" city? A village composed only of "Christians?" What happens to the "infidels?"

No not only Catholics or even Christians...indeed, some Orthodox Jews have contacted the Society and St. Joseph's Enterprises about purchasing land in the developing town. The point is that this would be a city/town along new urbanism principles--a genuinely people-friendly town and its focus of course would be the Church being built by the Society but it would not be an Amish type settlement.

</marquee up></marquee up></marquee up></marquee up> Bishop Timlin is terrific. He is very supportive of the Latin Mass and is so adamantly pro-life the media excoriates him constantly.

Well if they can sing the Divine Office and brush up on their Latin, then even Prods will be allowed into this beautiful as yet unbuilt town/city. I am kidding, as there probably will be no mandatory Latin examination to buy a house, property here...I thought that I should make that clear, lest I upset the Free Republic overlords....

bold off (try again)

...I thought that I should make that clear, lest I upset the Free Republic overlords....

Probably a bit late for that, Watson. Actually, I don't think they particularly care but, unfortunately, there are always a bunch of do-gooders who will hit the 'abuse' button. Happy to say I would never do that, as I like the debate to flow...

Yes, isn't it? Never mind. Perhaps one day when the Nambies are out pambying you can start that religious war on your computer screen. Good luck.

JJ. Good to see you again. Really missed you on the other thread where you were ripping on American's rights to own firearms. Shall we continue?

No, this is a religious thread. My remarks about guns, which are not relevant here, were in response to some inflamatory hate messages from you.

"No, this is a religious thread."

Oh! I didn't take you for a particularly religious fellow. Well, then how do you feel about abortion? Or is that not relevant to you?

I am anti-abortion. You really haven't got the hang of sticking to the thread have you? Use the 'private reply' option to save bandwidth or post a gun story.

"You really haven't got the hang of sticking to the thread have you?"

We Americans believe in freedom of speech. Except when it comes to military secrets. Don't tell me you have a problem with the first amendment as well as the second.

Does anyone know if these priest are still Suspended because of the allegations of fraud, misapporiation of funds and claims of pedephilia?

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