Oratorians

The original Oratory grew out of the community of priests that had gathered around St. Philip Neri (1515-1595), son of a Florentine notary, who went to Rome in 1533. In 1548 he became the cofounder of the Confraternity of the Most Holy Trinity for the care of pilgrims and convalescents, which in the year of the Jubilee (1575) assisted 145,000 people. From these activities the Congregation of the Oratory was born, probably so called from the room at San Girolamo where their meetings were held. St. Philip's Oratory is a congregation of secular priests living in community without vows, those with private means supporting themselves. Their chief task is to lead men to God through prayer, popular preaching, and the sacraments. They lay stress not only on liturgy but also on attractive services, and especially on good music. The modern "oratorio" grew out of the laudi spirituali sung in their devotional exercises, many of which were composed by Palestrina. The individual oratories, or houses, were independent until 1942 when they were consolidated into a confederation. They received papal approval in 1612 and were confirmed in 1942.

From the description of Filippini, 1628-1805. (University of Michigan). WorldCat record id: 145567959