The Family of Saint John
The Family of Saint John brings together men and women—religious and lay—who seek to follow Christ in the spirit of the Apostle John, the disciple “whom Jesus loved.”
Born in 1975 with the foundation of the Brothers of Saint John, the Family now includes four branches: the Brothers of Saint John, the Contemplative Sisters of Saint John, the Apostolic Sisters of Saint John, and the Oblates of the Family of Saint John.
Together, they form one spiritual family, united by a shared charism:
“Following in the footsteps of Saint John, living together as friends of Christ and bearing witness to His light and His love.”
Each branch lives this same charism according to its own vocation and mission in the Church.
Brothers of Saint John
The Brothers of Saint John are a community of religious priests and brothers. They live a life of prayer, fraternal life, study, and apostolic service, rooted in the contemplative love of Christ. Their mission is to bear witness to the light of the Gospel through preaching, spiritual accompaniment, education, and the formation of young people and families.
They live in small priories throughout the world, serving local churches and communities.
Apostolic Sisters
The Apostolic Sisters of Saint John share the contemplative spirit of the Family while living an apostolic life in the world. Through their presence in schools, missions, and parishes, they seek to bring the love and truth of Christ to all those they meet.
Their life unites contemplation and apostolic action, with a deep emphasis on prayer, community life, and service.
Contemplative Sisters
The Contemplative Sisters of Saint John live a hidden life of silence, adoration, and intercession.
In union with the Blessed Virgin Mary, they offer their lives to God in prayer for the Church and the world.
Their daily life is marked by the Divine Office, Eucharistic adoration, study of the Word, and manual work, in the solitude and joy of communion with God.
Oblates of Saint John
The Oblates of the Family of Saint John are lay men and women, or diocesan priests, who desire to live their baptismal vocation inspired by the spirituality of Saint John.
They share in the life and mission of the Family of Saint John while remaining in their ordinary circumstances of life—family, professional, and social.
They meet in fraternities and commit themselves to live the five essentials of Christian life—prayer, fraternal life, formation, service, and mission—in communion with the Brothers and Sisters of Saint John.
Our history
Origins of the community of Saint John (1975)
The Family of Saint John traces its origins to 1975, when Father Marie-Dominique Philippe, OP, founded the Brothers of Saint John in Fribourg, Switzerland.
Rooted in the Gospel of Saint John, it proposed a way of life centered on seeking the truth, growing in friendship with Christ, and witnessing to His light. Early brothers—mostly students—were drawn to a community life uniting prayer, study, and fraternity. This spiritual intuition became the seed of what would later grow into the wider Family of Saint John.
Foundation of the contemplative and apostolic sisters (1982–1984)
As this spiritual path matured, two communities of women were born.
In 1982, the Contemplative Sisters of Saint John embraced a life of silence, adoration, and intercession.
In 1984, the Apostolic Sisters of Saint John emerged, living the same contemplative spirit while engaging in missions such as education, youth formation, and parish service.
Together with the brothers, they formed a spiritual family marked by the desire to follow Christ in the footsteps of the beloved disciple.
Birth and Development of the Oblates (from 1981)
Around the same time, lay people began asking how they might live this spirituality while remaining fully engaged in family, professional, and social life. This led to the first commitments of the Oblates of the Family of Saint John in 1981.
Oblates gathered in local fraternities, usually around a priory, where they prayed together, shared their Christian experience, and deepened their formation. Over time, the oblates multiplied in France and abroad, giving rise to a diverse and growing lay presence.
International Expansion of the Family of Saint John (1990s–2010s)
From the 1990s onward, the Family of Saint John experienced rapid international expansion. Priories were established in countries such as Italy, the United States, Brazil, Mexico, Ivory Coast, Senegal or the Philippines among others.
Alongside them, new oblate fraternities took root, each reflecting local cultures and pastoral needs.
International oblate forums were organized, fostering unity across regions and offering a space for shared reflection, prayer, and mission.
Reforms within the Brothers and Sisters (2010s–2020s)
During this time of growth, the three religious institutes entered a significant phase of renewal and clarification.
The Church invited the communities to deepen their understanding of their charism, strengthen their governance, and clarify their relationship to their founder. In response, the brothers and sisters undertook an important journey of discernment, transparency, and reform.
This process aimed to ensure that the Family of Saint John could continue its mission with integrity, clarity, and renewed fidelity to the Gospel.
Reform of the Oblates and the Charter of Life (2020–2024)
In continuity with the renewal of the brothers and sisters, the oblates began their own process of reflection. Across the world, oblates expressed the need for a unified vision of their vocation, clearer and more accessible formation paths, a more coherent organization adapted to international growth.
To answer these needs, a commission of oblates was created in 2021. After several years of consultation, listening, and work, the commission drafted a new Charter of Life. Adopted ad experimentum in 2023, the Charter introduced three main changes:
- The oblates formation, both initial and continuous is now unified and managed by the oblates themselves
- The oblates governance is created, autonomous but not independent from the religious branches of the Family
- The oblates life is centered around fraternities
Its implementation is carried forward by the International Council of Oblates, which supports each region and gathers feedback to refine the Charter in view of its final adoption.
The Family of Saint John Today
Today, the Family of Saint John consists of four branches—the brothers, the contemplative sisters, the apostolic sisters, and the oblates—present on all continents.
They are united by a common charism to follow Christ in the spirit of the Apostle John and to bear witness to His light and His love in the Church and in the world.
The oblates, as lay members of this Family, continue to form new fraternities, deepen their spiritual life, and participate in the mission of the Church through prayer, service, formation, and witness.