Community of Sant'Egidio

Community of Sant'Egidio
Comunità di Sant'Egidio
Named afterSaint Giles
Formation1968; 56 years ago (1968)
FounderAndrea Riccardi
Founded atVirgil High School, Rome
TypeInternational association of the faithful of pontifical right; NGO
PurposeCare for the needy; arbitrate conflicts
HeadquartersSant'Egidio, Rome
Location
  • 73 countries
Region
Europe, Africa, America, Asia
Membership
Worldwide
President
Marco Impagliazzo
Parent organization
Catholic Church
Volunteers
50,000 (estimate)
Websitesantegidio.org
Church of Sant'Egidio, Rome, seat of the Community

The Community of Sant'Egidio (Italian: Comunità di Sant'Egidio) is a lay Catholic association dedicated to social service, founded in 1968 under the leadership of Andrea Riccardi. The group grew and in 1973 was given a home at the former Carmelite monastery and church of Sant'Egidio in Rome, Italy. In 1986, it received recognition from the Roman Curia of the Holy See as an international association of the faithful. Its activities include the Church's evening prayer together daily as a stimulus for lending assistance to a whole spectrum of needy persons: "lonely and non-self-sufficient elderly, immigrants and homeless people, terminally ill and HIV/AIDS patients, children at risk of deviance and marginalization, nomads and the physically and mentally handicapped, drug addicts, victims of war, and prisoners."[1] The community also has a high profile in the area of peace negotiations, in addressing the AIDS epidemic in Africa, and in its opposition to capital punishment. It takes an ecumenical approach in all of its work.

Sant'Egidio is a network of small communities of fraternal life, currently present in 73 countries distributed as follows: Europe (23), Africa (29), Asia (7), North America (8),[2] South America (5), Australia (2).[3] There are an estimated 50,000 members.[1]

  1. ^ a b "Associazioni Internazionali di fedeli, Repertorio - Pontificio Consiglio per i Laici". www.vatican.va. Retrieved 17 May 2019.
  2. ^ "Sant'Egidio at 40: Sant'Egidio: Linking friendship and service in world-changing ways". National Catholic Reporter. 16 May 2008. Archived from the original on 14 April 2010.
  3. ^ "Facebook - Sant'Egidio Australia". Retrieved 29 September 2024.