Paraclete, Servants of the

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PARACLETE, SERVANTS OF THE

(SP, Official Catholic Directory, #1230); a clerical congregation, was founded by Gerald M. C. Fitzgerald at Jemez Springs, New Mexico, in January 1947. Father Fitzgerald considered Cardinal Francis Spellman, of New York; Abp. Edwin V. Byrne, of Santa Fe; and Abp. William D. O'Brien, of the Extension Society, as cofounders because of their vital interest and support. The specific purpose of the congregation is the care of priests, especially those on temporary retirement from active duty. At Jemez Springs, where the first monastery, Via Coeli, was opened in what had formerly been a mountain inn, priests quickly gave support to the work in a spirit epitomized by the motto of the congregation: "For Christ in His priests." The constitutions were approved in May of 1952, and the congregation was formally erected by Archbishop Byrne on June 1, 1952. The generalate is Jemez Springs, N.M.

[g. fitzgerald/eds.]

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