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THE AUGUSTINIANS The most outstanding legacy left to the Church by St. Augustine of Hippo was the founding of the monastic form of life. His style of monasticism, which he put into practice after his conversion, influenced the whole western Church. Before Augustine's death in 430, there were several monasteries established in North Africa and by the end of the 13th century, the Augustinian form on monasticism had spread to Europe. The founding chapter of the Order of Brothers of St. Augustine was held in Rome in 1244 because the Pope, Innocent IV, said he did not wish to see these hermits "wandering about without a shepherd like sheep lost among the mass of the flock." Thus came into being the Order known as "The Hermit of St. Augustine" or the "Augustinians." During the pontificates of Innocent IV and Alexander IV, the order was placed under papal protection. In the year 1256 an event known as the "Great Union" occurred and many more communities were added to the order. Through the centuries, Augustinians have served the Church as theologians, teachers, preachers, missionaries, parish priests and even as navigators. In modern times much work has been done in secondary schools by Augustinians in various countries of the world. The Augustinian Friars serving in the Midwest section of the United States are members of the Province of Our Lady of Good Counsel with headquarters in Chicago, Illinois. The two other provinces in the United States are the Province of St. Thomas of Villanova in Pennsylvania and the Province of St. Augustine in California. St. Matthew parish, along with these other communities, is only one corner of the Lord's vineyard; but to us, its cultivators, it is an important corner because the Lord has given it to us. |
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