Christian Brothers of Ireland
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| Abbreviation | CFC |
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| Motto |
Facere et docere (to do and to teach) |
| Formation | 1802 (214 years ago) |
| Founder | Edmund Ignatius Rice (1762-1844) |
| Type | Roman Catholic religious order |
| Location |
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The Congregation of Christian Brothers (officially, in Latin: Congregatio Fratrum Christianorum; members of the order use the post-nominal "CFC") is a worldwide religious community within the Catholic Church, founded by Edmund Rice (later beatified). The Christian Brothers, as they are commonly known, chiefly work for the evangelisation and education of youth, but are involved in many ministries, especially with the poor. Their first school was opened in Waterford, Ireland, in 1802. At the time of its foundation, though much relieved from the harshest of the Penal Laws by the Irish Parliament's Relief Acts, much discrimination against Catholics remained throughout the newly created United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland pending full Catholic Emancipation in 1829.
This congregation is sometimes confused with the De La Salle Brothers – also known as the Christian Brothers, Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools and Lasallians – founded by Jean-Baptiste de la Salle (later canonised) in France. Rice's congregation is sometimes called the Irish Christian Brothers or the Edmund Rice Christian Brothers to differentiate the two teaching orders.
At the turn of the nineteenth century, Waterford merchant Edmund Rice considered travelling to Rome to join a religious institute, possibly the Augustinians. Instead, with the support of Dr. Thomas Hussey, Catholic bishop of the Diocese of Waterford and Lismore, he decided to found a religious community dedicated to teaching disadvantaged youth.
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