Who We Are

Our Mission

The Institute on Religious Life (IRL) promotes and supports the growth, development, and renewal of the consecrated life—particularly vowed religious life—as a gift to the Church and an evangelical witness to the world. We include and engage bishops, clergy, religious, consecrated and lay faithful in a collaborative apostolate of prayer and service, guided by the magisterial teachings and rich heritage of the Church.

Our Guiding Principles

• Fidelity & Obedience: We are always guided and animated by the magisterial and pastoral teachings of the Church on religious and consecrated life.
• Unity & Solidarity: We are a lived expression of the principle of solidarity taught by Vatican II, bringing together Catholic faithful of all vocations and states of life for a common purpose.
• Witness & Example: The profession of the evangelical counsels by some can inspire, enrich, and sanctify all. Visible religious in distinctive garb are a powerful witness to the world.
• Tradition & Progress: We stand on the shoulders of giants, accepting and building upon what is good from the past, in accordance with the Holy See and the inspirations of the IRL founders.
• Prayer & Service: It is in prayer and service that the consecrated imitate Christ and lead others to Him. Our prayers and works unite us.

Our Heritage

Rev. John A. Hardon, S.J., established the IRL in 1974, and inspired its work, in response to the Holy See’s plea to help save religious life in the United States. He was aided by outstanding co-founders and by early collaborators, including Blessed Mother Teresa, Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen, and many others. While others were resigned to a generation of turmoil in religious life, the IRL’s founders persevered in hope. They weren’t content to sit back and watch the dire predictions come true. They rolled up their sleeves and began to build and prepare for a much brighter future. Today, the IRL has expanded to meet the needs of established orders and a growing number of emerging religious communities and other institutes of consecrated life. The supernatural hope of the IRL’s founders—which, to many, seemed foolhardy at the start—is beginning to come to fulfillment.

Our Potential

Is vowed religious life in America at the threshold of an unprecedented resurgence? We believe the answer is a resounding Yes! But the outcome will depend on whether the Catholic faithful do their part. That’s why Father Hardon founded the IRL at the request of Pope Paul VI. Religious orders and communities faithful to the Church and their charism are enjoying new growth and they’re attracting a remarkably increased response from new generations. Whether this will be a short-lived trend or a great new beginning will depend on whether faithful Catholics seize the unparalleled opportunity that the present moment offers. The IRL is poised to play a significant, even decisive role in shaping the future . . . and so are you! Together, our success will help to determine what sort of Church and world future generations will have.

What We Do

Sowing & Cultivating: Formation

Reaping the Harvest: Vocations

Turning the growing interest in consecrated life among youth into a wildfire will require a nationwide effort among institutes of consecrated life and the rest of the Church. The IRL has become a conduit for this common effort.

Grinding the Wheat: Unity

The good news about the rebirth of authentic consecrated life must be proclaimed throughout the Church and the world, teaching everyone its value and significance, and uniting all of the Church with it and behind it. We bring all parts of the Church together in fellowship and knowledge, and seek to reach all corners of the earth together.