In 1984, a group of seminarians in Madrid, Spain, decided to
take a leap of faith in their vocation. Inspired by their
mutual devotion to Mary and by the papacy of Pope John Paul
II, these five young men together formed the Disciples of the
Hearts of Jesus and Mary. The new order was approved by the
bishop of Cuenca Jan. 1, 1987, and has been faithfully and
energetically serving the church for nearly three decades.
Within the order’s title can be found the sources of
inspiration for their three charisms, according to Father
Ignacio de Ribera, professor of philosophy at Catholic
University in Washington. The first of these charisms is
discipleship, the desire to learn from Christ and also from
Mary. The second is their contemplation of the cross in an
effort to be one with Christ. The Disciples’ third source of
inspiration comes from the idea of the heart as the
centrality of the person, which according to Father Ignacio,
is that inner place where God speaks to us. The order’s
primary focus is on the enrichment of families, education and
parishes.
Over the years, the community has steadily grown, gaining new
vocations, starting schools and building missions in Rome,
Spain and the United States.
In 2005, Arlington Bishop Paul S. Loverde became the first
American bishop to welcome the young community to the New
World. The Disciples served in the diocese for five years and
then left to minister to St. Mary Parish in Littleton, Colo.
They returned in 2013 at the invitation of Bishop Loverde to
assume
responsibility for Queen of Apostles Parish in
Alexandria. Father Leopoldo M. Vives was named pastor, and
Father Javier J. Nieva is parochial vicar.
“We are very grateful to Bishop Loverde for the opportunity
to serve here in the diocese,” said Father Vives. “Here we
work with the parish and the school to make education one of
the focuses of our life.”
Father Vives considers it their first ministry to witness the
gift of religious life.
“This year of consecrated life has been a great opportunity
to give witness to our religious life and help the parish
family to understand that they live with a religious family
that shares their life and follows Jesus in that special way
with vows of poverty, chastity and obedience.”
Together with parish staff, the Disciples at Queen of
Apostles work to create a welcoming family environment in the
parish that can support all its members.
“We understand the parish as the family of families …
an environment where they feel at home,” said Father Vives.
“On our own it is difficult because the world (can be) far
from our ideal of life following Jesus.”
The parish also offers concrete programs that focus on the
family’s spiritual formation.
“We meet once a month and discuss what can enrich the family
life,” said Father Vives. “We share best practices and we see
how families just sharing their lives can really enrich one
another.”
The order’s devotion to the family comes from the influence
Pope John Paul II and his vision of the human person. It is
an influence that permeates the whole of the order and drives
their mission.
“For us it is providential the role of St. John Paul II as
the pope of the family because I think that is what the
church needs,” said Father Ribera. “It needs a lot of
understanding of how the family, the marriage as God has
planned it, is essential to the holiness of its singular
people.”
