Who are the Trinitarians?

One charism, two ends

The Order exists for two ends that belong together: the glorification of the Most Holy Trinity and the redemption, or ransom, of captives. The second is not a merely historical memory. It continues in the Order’s service of mercy to the persecuted, the poor, the imprisoned, and all who are deprived of freedom or dignity.

The Order’s motto sums up this double commitment: Gloria Tibi Trinitas et Captivis Libertas, “Glory to you, O Trinity, and freedom to the captives.” The two ends are also written into the Order’s name. Its members are called Trinitarians.

The Order and the Trinitarian Family

The Order strictly refers to the male religious institute of priests and brothers. The Trinitarian Family is wider. It includes the Order, the contemplative Trinitarian nuns, the Hermitesses of the Most Holy Trinity, the sister congregations, the lay Trinitarians of the Third Order, the Oblates of the Most Holy Trinity, and the confraternities and hermandades that grew up around the Order.

These are distinct vocations, not branches of the male Order. A page about the Order should not describe nuns or lay people as members of the Order itself. The common bond is the Trinitarian charism, the cross of red and blue, and the recognition of St. John de Matha as father of the family.

Explore the Trinitarian Family →

The Cross of the Two Colors

The white Trinitarian habit bears a Greek cross with a red vertical bar over a blue horizontal bar. The three colors are commonly read as a confession of the Trinity: the white field recalls God the Father, the blue bar God the Son as Redeemer, and the red bar God the Holy Spirit, who is charity.

According to the Order’s tradition, the cross comes from the vision granted to St. John de Matha at his first Mass on 28 January 1193. He saw Christ the Redeemer between two captives, one white and one black, and understood that he was called to ransom Christians held in slavery. The vision is depicted in the early thirteenth-century mosaic over the entrance of the old hospital of San Tommaso in Formis in Rome. Its inscription reads Signum Ordinis Sanctae Trinitatis et Captivorum, “Sign of the Order of the Holy Trinity and of the Captives.”

The equal-armed form displays the two bars symmetrically on the breast. Christian tradition also reads the four arms as a sign of the cross reaching out in every direction, a symbolism often linked to Ephesians 3:18.

The Trinitarian Way

On this site, The Trinitarian Way means the Order’s English-language handbook (last published in 2010), not a separate organization or website. It is a formation and prayer book for Trinitarians, especially for the lay Third Order.

The lay rule of life that it serves was approved by the Holy See in 2000; the 2010 book is the English edition cited here. It gathers practical guidance for living the Trinitarian charism: consecration to the Most Holy Trinity, the daily Trisagion, the Order’s proper feast calendar, and related prayers and instructions.

The cover mosaic shows Christ the Redeemer between two captives, with the Latin legend Signum Ordinis Sanctae Trinitatis et Captivorum.

The Order today

The Order is present in Europe, the Americas, Africa, and Asia. The Curia Generalizia is in Rome, near the ancient Trinitarian church of San Tommaso in Formis on the Caelian Hill. The U.S. Province of the Immaculate Heart of Mary serves in parishes, schools, missions, and social ministries.

The Order’s ministry today includes care for persecuted Christians, immigrants, prisoners, the sick, and the poor, as well as parish work, education, and missions. The International Trinitarian Solidarity (SIT) supports Christians at risk and coordinates emergency and advocacy projects.

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