A vowed religious community in the monastic tradition of the Episcopal Church
Our History
Long before there was a religious habit for this community, our history was already being lived. It is still being lived as we seek to respond to the call of Christ at work in our hearts. We strive, in the words of St. Paul “to clothe ourselves with Christ.”
On May 31, 2006 our founder went to Fr. John David van Dooren with the call to start the CMJ. Our founder, Brother Stephen C. Wetmore, CMJ titled this call a “stirring in my soul.” Over the next three years this stirring was the matter for more prayer and spiritual direction, which included the writing of the Marian Message from our founder, and the writing of Mary’s Way of Discipleship.
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In the summer of 2009 Stephen consulted with many individuals of many faith traditions about the wisdom of beginning a new religious community. In the Fall of 2009 a small group of those who were interested in seeing the Community of the Mother of Jesus come into existence, began to meet as a Nazareth Committee to pull together the documents and plans for making this foundation.
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In May of 2010 The Nazareth Committee wrote Bishop Jeffrey Lee of the Diocese of Chicago to ask his permission to make the foundation of the CMJ in the Diocese of Chicago. The Bishop gave his permission and the Nazareth Committee elected the Rt. Reverend William Gregg to be the Bishop Visitor to this new community. Bishop Gregg came to the Church of the Atonement on April 1st, 2011. He celebrated the Inauguration of the Community of the Mother of Jesus, and received the perpetual profession of our four vows by our founder.
