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______THE ORDER TODAY
The Order exists all over the world and consists of an estimated 40,000 Knights and Dames.
The Order’s aims are:
- To strengthen in its members the practice of Christian life, in absolute fidelity to the Supreme Pontiff and according to the teachings of the Church, observing as its foundation the principles of charity which make the Order a fundamental means of assistance to the Holy Land;
- To sustain and aid the charitable, cultural and social works and institutions of the Catholic Church in the Holy Land, particularly those of and in the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, with which the Order maintains traditional ties;
- To support the preservation and propagation of the Faith in those lands, and promote interest in this work not only among Catholics scattered throughout the world, who are united in charity by the symbol of the Order, but also among all other Christians;
- To uphold the rights of the Catholic Church in the Holy Land.
The Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem is the only lay institution of the Vatican State charged with the task of providing for the needs of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem and of all the activities and initiatives to support the Christian presence in the Holy Land. The contributions made by its members are therefore the Patriarchal institutions’ main source of funding.
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HISTORY
The origins of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem are accepted by historians and scholars as dating back to the First Crusade, when the First Crusade's leader, Godfrey de Bouillon, liberated Jerusalem in 1099 A.D. After the end of the First Crusade, the Canons Regular of the Holy Sepulchre were established to care for and protect the Church of the Holy Sepulchre containing the sites of the crucifixion and the tomb of the resurrection. The men in charge of securing its protection and its commun-ity of canons were given the name: Milites Sancti Sepulcri. ("Soldiers of the Holy Sepulchre.")
According to most accounts, the first King of Jerusalem, Baldwin I, assumed the leadership of this canonical order in 1103 after the death of his brother Godfrey, and reserved the right for himself and his successors (as agents of the Patriarch of Jerusalem) to appoint Knights to it, should the Patriarch be absent or unable to do so himself. Adopting the rule of Saint Augustine, and with recognition in 1113 by Papal Bull of Pope Paschal II, the Milites Sancti Sepulcri included not only the Regular Canons (Fratres) but also the Secular Canons (Confratres) and the Sergentes. The latter were armed knights chosen from the crusader troops for their qualities of valour and dedication; they vowed to obey the Augustinian Rule of poverty and obedience and undertook specifically to defend the Holy Sepulchre and the Holy Places under the command of the King of Jerusalem. Together, the canons and the milites formed part of the structure which evolved into the modern Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem.
The Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem has always benefited from the protection of the Popes who, over the centuries, have reorganized it, augmenting and enriching its privileges. Clement VI entrusted custody of the Holy Sepulchre to the Franciscan friars in 1342, but that was still during an era when Knights alone had the right to create other members of the Order. Pope Alexander VI declared himself the supreme moderator of the Order in 1496 and delegated to the Franciscans the power to bestow a knighthood upon nobles and gentlemen pilgrims on pilgrimage to the Holy Land (power of investiture). Confirmation of this Franciscan privilege, either verbally or by papal Bull, was renewed by Pope Leo X in 1516, by Benedict XIV in 1746, until the restoration of by Pius IX in 1847.
In 1847, when the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem was restored by Pope Pius IX, the Order was reestablished and modernized. Pius IX issued a new Constitution which placed it under the direct protection of the Holy See and assigned its government to the Latin Patriarch in Jerusalem. The Order’s fundamental role was also redefined: to uphold the works of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem for the care and support of the Christians of the Holy land, while preserving the spiritual duty of propagating the Faith. The Order of Knights opened up the appointment of Dames of the Holy Sepulcher in 1888, thanks to Leo XIII. Moreover, in 1907 Pius X decided that the title of Grand Master of the Order would be reserved to the Pope himself.
In 1932, Pope Pius XI approved a new Constitution and permitted Knights and Dames to receive their investiture in their places of origin and not be required to come to Jerusalem. In 1949, Pius XII decreed that the Grand Master of the Order should be a Cardinal of the Holy Roman Church and assigned the position of Grand Prior to the Patriarch of Jerusalem. In 1962 Pope John XXIII and, in 1967, Pope Paul VI respectively, revitalised the Order by adding more specific regulations to the Constitution with the intention of making the Order’s activities more co-ordinated and more effective.
With the renewal of the Second Vatican Council, a new Constitution was approved by Paul VI in 1977. Following this, John Paul II made the Order a legal canonical and public personality constituted by the Holy See. Today, the Order seeks to garner the commitment of its members in local churches hopeful for their sanctification. This is the essential and profound reason that motivated the revision of the Constitution during the "Consulta" that took place in 2013. |
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COVINGTON-LEXINGTON
The Covington-Lexington Section is one of twenty-two Sections that make up the North Central Lieutenancy of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre, with an assigned territory comprising the Dioceses of Covington and Lexington, Kentucky. Currently, we have about 30 members, which include Bishops, diocesan priests, and lay members.
In addition to our primary mission of providing care and support for the Christians in the Holy land, we contribute substantially to the life of the Diocese of Covington supporting seminarian education, conducting First Friday veneration of the True Cross at the Cathedral Basilica, and offering the opportun-ity for spiritual develop- ment and growth to young Catholics through the Fellowship of Squires auxiliary.
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_________THE NAME
The official name of the Order is "The Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem (Lat. Ordo Equestris Sancti Sepulchri Hierosolymitani). The name of the Order has varied over the centuries, but it began in the 12th century with the designation Milites Sancti Sepulcri (Military Order of the Holy Sepulchre). The current name was determined by decree of the Sacred Congregation of Ceremonies of the Holy See in 1931 as the "Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem". The term Equestrian in this context, is taken from the Latin Equites, and is consistent with its use for Orders of Knighthood conferred by the Holy See. It is by sovereign prerogative of the Pope with the endorsement of the Secretary of State of the Vatican State, that knighthood (and damehood) is conferred upon a recipient. This is a perogative that can be traced back to the historical tradition of equestrians in ancient Rome, where a social class of knights called the Praetorian Guards (cohortēs praetōriae) pledged their lives to protect the Emperor and guard the gates of Rome.
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