February 14: A Special Day

On February 14, we remember two important events from the life of St. Josemaria Escriva—the day God showed him that women and priests would also be members in Opus Dei, the institution that he founded.

 
A Short History

St. Josemaria Escriva Opens a New Path for Women:

"On February 14, 1930, Escriva went to say Mass in a private chapel. His personal notes record what happened during the Mass. 'Immediately after Communion: the entire women’s branch of the Work [Opus Dei]! I cannot say that I saw, but yes I grasped intellectually, in detail, what the women’s branch of Opus Dei was to be. Later I added other elements, developing the intellectual vision.'

Like the events of October 2, 1928, the foundation of the women’s section of Opus Dei caught Escriva by surprise. Escriva saw in this a sign of God’s providence. “Our Lord manipulated me in such a way as to give an external objective proof that the Work is his. I said, ‘I don’t want women in Opus Dei.’ God said, ‘But I want them.’”

John Coverdale
Uncommon Faith: The Early Years of Opus Dei (1928-1943), page 68

St. Josemaria Escriva and the Priestly Society of the Holy Cross:

"As Opus Dei grew, its need for priests became more urgent. Escriva’s prewar experience with priests who had come into contact with Opus Dei after their ordination convinced him that Opus Dei had to have priests drawn from among its lay members-priests who could convey the spirit of Opus Dei because they had been living it themselves for years before they were ordained.

Escriva was pondering the situation on the morning of February 14, 1943, when he went to the center on Jorge Manrique Street to celebrate Mass for his daughters on the anniversary of the foundation of the women’s branch. In Escriva’s own words, 'I began the Mass searching for the juridical solution that would permit incardinating priests in the Work [Opus Dei]. I had been looking for it for a long time without results. At that day, intra missam [within the Mass], after Holy Communion, our Lord wanted to give it to me: the Priestly Society of the Holy Cross. He even gave me the seal: the sphere of the world with the cross inscribed in it.'

The seal Escriva referred to-the cross in the world…ties into the locution Escriva received on August 7, 1931, in which he understood Christ’s words, 'If I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw all things to myself,' to mean that Christ wants to be placed at the summit of all human activities in order to transform the world. Additionally, in the context of what Escriva saw on February 14, 1943, the cross inscribed in the world symbolizes the presence of a group priests nailed to the cross of Christ…”

John Coverdale
Uncommon Faith: The Early Years of Opus Dei (1928-1943), pages 366-368

All texts and images of St. Josemaria Escriva © Studium Foundation