Sorting Out Catholicism: A Brief History of the New Ecclesial Movements

Opus Dei, Focolare, Community of Sant'Egidio, Neocatechumenals, Legionaries of Christ, Communion and Liberation. These are but a few of the most recognizable names in the broader context of the so-called ecclesial movements. Their history goes back to the period following the First Vatican Council, crossed Vatican II, and develops throughout the twentieth century. It is a history that prepares the movements' rise in the last three decades, from John Paul II to Benedict XVI. To learn more about this new face of Catholicism means to grasp the intersection of church, politics, and society as well as the potential development of Catholic evangelicalism in the church of the "New Evangelization."