Among the many forms of associated life within the Catholic Church, there are “Societies of Apostolic Life.” As the Code of Canon Law states, the members of a Society of Apostolic Life pursue the particular apostolic goal of the society, striving to reach the perfection of charity by the observance of the society’s constitutions (CIC 731). Another characteristic of a Society of Apostolic life is that its members live in fraternal community.
The Sodalitium is a Lay Society of Apostolic Life with pontifical approval whose members call themselves Sodalits. Because the Sodalitium is a lay society, most Sodalits are laymen, including the Superior General and the superiors of each region and community, but there are also Sodalit priests.