Trinitarians

Trinitarians

Order of the Most Holy Trinity and of the Captives
Latin: Ordo Sanctissimae Trinitatis et Captivorum
Flag of the Trinitarians
Mosaic of Jesus Christ used as the emblem of the Trinitarians
Abbreviation	OSsT
Nickname	Trinitarians
Formation	17 December 1198; 825 years ago (17 December 1198)
Founders	John of Matha and Felix of Valois
Type	Mendicant order
Purpose	To ransom Christian captives
Headquarters	Rome, Italy
Membership (2018)	610 (415 priests)[1]
Minister General	Luigi Buccarello, OSsT
Parent organization	Catholic Church
Website	trinitari.org

The Trinitarians, formally known as the Order of the Most Holy Trinity and of the Captives (Latin: Ordo Sanctissimae Trinitatis et Captivorum; abbreviated OSsT), is a mendicant order of the Catholic Church for men founded in Cerfroid, outside Paris, in the late 12th century. From the very outset, a special dedication to the mystery of the Holy Trinity has been a constitutive element of the order's life.

Papal documents refer to the founder only as Brother John, but tradition identifies him as John de Matha, whose feast day is celebrated on 17 December. The founding-intention for the order was the ransom of Christians held captive by Muslims, a consequence of crusading and of piracy along the Mediterranean coast of Europe.^[2]