Opus Dei

The Prelature of the Holy Cross and Opus Dei, commonly known as Opus Dei (Latin for "The Work of God") or the Work, is an international prelature of the Roman Catholic Church, comprising ordinary lay people and secular priests headed by a prelate, whose mission contributes to spreading the Catholic teaching that everyone is called to become a saint and an apostle of Jesus Christ, and that ordinary life is a path to sanctity. Founded in 1928 by a Roman Catholic priest, St. Josemaría Escrivá, Opus Dei was established as a personal prelature by Pope John Paul II in 1982 through the Apostolic Constitution Ut Sit, making it an integral part of the Church's institutional structures.