Bishops and Communities of Consecrated Life in the Church: Communion and Mission
Joseph W. Tobin, C.Ss.R. Archbishop Secretary CIVCSVA
Introduction
The content of this presentation is limited by the time allotted. I recognize that I will be able to treat only a few issues regarding the identity and mission of the consecrated life in the Church. In preparing this modest contribution, I have tried to develop some themes that I hope will be of interest to diocesan bishops. I am also aware that I am addressing bishops who come from the diocesan clergy as well as those who are members of religious orders and congregations. While it would be appropriate to offer separate conferences to each of these groups in recognition of the differing needs, obviously, this is not possible and I ask your patience with the presumption of a "one size fits all" presentation. I hope to develop the following themes against the background communion and mission: 1. Consecrated life and the diocesan bishop in the Church; 2. Recent developments in consecrated life; 3. Some key concepts of consecrated life today; 4. Some concrete issues a. Consecrated life and the local Church b. The autonomy of religious men and women c. The nature of Institutes of diocesan right and their creation; d. The incardination of religious priests into a diocese e. Religious who help the local Church in another country. I am delighted that, following these remarks, there will be time for discussion and dialogue. I hope you will feel free to raise any important points that I fail to treat in this presentation.
The Diocesan Bishop and Consecrated Life Consecrated Life and the Diocesan Bishop in the Church
As a point of departure, it is useful to review some recent proclamations of the pontifical Magisterium that highlight the meaning of consecrated life in the Church and inform the attitude that the diocesan Bishop should maintain before this particular vocation. In his apostolic exhortation Vita Consecrata1 that followed the Synod on Consecrated Life, celebrated in October 1994, Blessed John Paul II taught: The consecrated life is at the very heart of the Church as a decisive element for her mission, since it "manifests the inner nature of the Christian calling" [AG 18] and "the striving of the whole Church as Bride towards union with her one Spouse. [LG 44]" (VC 3) In that same number, the Holy Father states: At the Synod it was stated on several occasions that the consecrated life has not only proved a help and support for the Church in the past, but is also a precious and necessary gift for the present and future of the People of God, since it is an intimate part of her life, her holiness and her mission [cf. LG 44] . Regarding the relationship between the diocesan Bishop and members of the consecrated life, the post-synodal apostolic exhortation, Pastores gregis teaches: ...during this last Synod, the Fathers stated that in the Church as communion the Bishop must esteem and promote the specific vocation and mission of the consecrated life, which belongs stably and solidly to the Church's life and sanctity.2 VC48 encourages the diocesan Bishop to welcome the consecrated life as a gift of God to the local Church, a gift that is crucial for the discipleship of all members of the Diocese. A Diocese which lacked the consecrated life would not only be deprived of many spiritual gifts, of suitable places for people to seek God, of specific apostolic activities and pastoral approaches, but it would also risk a great weakening of that missionary spirit which is characteristic of the majority of Institutes. There is a duty then to respond to the gift of the consecrated life which the Spirit awakens in the particular Churches, by welcoming it with generosity and thanksgiving. Hence, the recent pontifical Magisterium proposes two basic principles to guide the relationship between the diocesan Bishop and members of the consecrated life: a) First, consecrated life is recognized as a gift that enriches both the universal and particular Church; this is true, even if, as happens with other vocations in the Church,
1 2
John Paul II, Apostolic Exhortation, Vita Consecrata (25 March 1996); henceforward VC. John Paul II, Apostolic Exhortation, Pastores Gregis (16 October 2003); henceforward PG, n. 50
The Diocesan Bishop and Consecrated Life
consecrated people may evidence defects and weariness. The text just cited from VC reminds us of the ways that consecrated life should enrich the local Church by providing i. Spiritual gifts; ii. Suitable places for people to seek God iii. "Specific" apostolic activities and pastoral approaches, that is, pastoral strategies and methods that are not normally found in the institutions of the Diocese, especially, its parishes; b) The diocesan Bishop is called to have a particular pastoral care for consecrated persons. You might be asking yourselves: in practical terms, what forms of consecrated life have a claim for the pastoral care of the Bishop? Here it is important to note a fact about which you are probably already very aware: today the consecrated life in the western Church displays a vast array of expressions, from its most ancient models of male and female monastic life and canons regular, the mendicant Orders, the relatively modern forms of apostolic congregations of men or women, to the even more recent expressions of secular institutes and the new so-called "new forms" of consecrated life. Today the consecrated life witnesses to a revival of classical forms of consecration that appeared in the first centuries of Christianity, such as the Ordo virginum and hermits. Blessed John Paul II recognized with gratitude the diversity of consecrated life, writing in VC5: How can we not recall with gratitude to the Spirit the many different forms of consecrated life which he has raised up throughout history and which still exist in the Church today? They can be compared to a plant with many branches, which sinks its roots into the Gospel and brings forth abundant fruit in every season of the Church's life. What an extraordinary richness! The Bishop, then, is called to care for all forms of consecrated life in the Diocese, but always respecting the unique character of each form. For example, he would not normally ask monks to assume the pastoral responsibility of a parish, an activity that seems incompatible with essential elements of monastic life. Consecrated life presents a vast spectrum of expressions. I like to think of it as a sort of tropical rain forest, made up of all sorts of species, some strong and vital, others fragile because of their extreme youth or advanced age. Together, these forms produce an evangelical witness that acts as "spiritual oxygen", allowing the whole Church to breathe. The complexity of consecrated life should caution against facile or superficial judgments, which today more than ever, risk being unfounded or incomplete.
The Diocesan Bishop and Consecrated Life Recent developments in consecrated life
If one wishes to understand better the reality of consecrated life today, it is important to call to mind some of the changes that this particular vocation has experienced in the last four or five decades. The point of departure for a consideration of these changes is certainly the Second Vatican Council. The doctrine of the Council offered two fundamental contributions to consecrated life: A renewed concept of consecrated life. Lumen Gentium better situates consecrated life in the Church, getting beyond the notion of it as a status perfectionis. As a matter of fact, all are called to holiness, that is, to perfect charity: haec sanctitas...multiformiter exprimitus apud singulos, qui in suo vitae ordine ad perfectionem caritatis...tendunt (LG 39). Consecrated life is one vocation among others, but a vocation with its own specific characteristics; A call for o a greater connection between consecrated life and the Gospel 3 as well as the original charism of each Institute (the "founders' spirit and special aims they set before them as well as their sound traditions"4, and o an "adaptation [of religious life] to the changed conditions of our time."5 One can see how the Council, after establishing the basis for a new theology of religious life, called for a renewal to be guided by special attention to two factors: the original charism as well as the present historical moment, but always with the basic aim of living the Gospel and following Jesus Christ. Vatican II provoked a flurry of renewal in most Institutes of consecrated life. At the risk of oversimplification, we can say that the Council and the years that followed brought about some fundamental transitions: a passage from the Rule to the Gospel: a realization that consecrated life is, first and foremost, the sequel Christi and the Gospel is the norma normans of each and every particular Rule; a passage from a predominantly juridical-ascetical vision to a more theological understanding of consecrated life; a passage from a negative relationship with the world (the result of a fundamental misunderstanding about the notion of fuga mundi6) to a dialogue with the world and an immersion in it;
3
"Since the ultimate norm of the religious life is the following of Christ set forth in the Gospels, let this be held by all institutes as the highest rule." Perfectae Caritatis, 2. 4 Ibid. 5 Ibid. 6 The world is one thing; worldliness is something quite different. The fuga mundi cannot become a flight from humanity and history.
The Diocesan Bishop and Consecrated Life
a passage from a spirituality that was nourished principally by a certain devotionalism to a spirituality that is anchored in the Word of God and the Liturgy; a passage from a religious community that was constructed essentially on discipline and observance, to a true Gospel fraternity that is characterized by corresponsibility, subsidiarity and more participative forms of government.
There are few ecclesial institutions that have expended such energy putting into practice the renewal that was mandated by the Council Fathers as has the various Institutes of consecrated life. This renewal had also a juridical and institutional dimension. Many special General Chapters, having previously revisited the original charism of their respective Institutes, strove to reformulate the Constitutions and other legislative texts. While this was a profitable exercise, it must also be admitted that one does not change the life of an Institute simply by altering its norms and structures. We should not overlook that fact that, during the period of post-conciliar renewal, consecrated life has profited enormously from the direction of the Magisterium, which offered it valuable guidance, beginning with the apostolic exhortation Evangelica testificatio of Paul VI7- a text which retains its freshness and utility, to the Instruction on "The Service of Authority and Obedience Faciem tuam, Domine, requiram", which was published by our dicastery three years ago.8 But it is necessary also to point out, even rapidly and in synthetic form, some problematic phenomena that have appeared in consecrated life during the creative and decades that followed the Second Vatican Council. 1. There is a broad anxiety among consecrated people concerning their identity. In an age that is characterized by rapid and fundamental changes in both the Church and society, consecrated persons ask who are we? What really distinguishes our vocation? 2. More than in former epochs, the consecrated life has to negotiate its relationship to the local Church. Previously, religious men and women tended to think almost exclusively in terms of the Church universal. 3. The notion and exercise of authority presents another challenging theme. Logically, this issue also touches on the question of obedience. One can see two extremes in consecrated life: one is an attitude that proclaims "we are all brothers/sisters", but is lived essentially as a sort of anarchy; another is type of paternalism or maternalism that keeps members in an infantile dependency.
7 8
Paul VI, apostolic exhortation Evangelica Testificatio (29 June 1971). Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, 11 May 2008.
The Diocesan Bishop and Consecrated Life
4. The question about charism is essential for the different families of consecrated men and women. There are charisms that retain their unique character and spiritual energy, and are thus capable of inspiring new generations of religious. On the other hand, there are charisms that seem to have been substantially conditioned by particular historical circumstances or connected with a concrete apostolate. If the need for that apostolate disappears, the religious may sense a fundamental rootlessness or anomie. 5. The question of mission preoccupies many institutes of consecrated life. There is an effort to overcome a certain dichotomy, insofar as the mission is not something over and above one's consecration; rather, what one does is, in the deepest sense, an essential element of one's special dedication to God. VC teaches "...it can be said that consecrated persons are 'in mission' by virtue of their very consecration, to which they bear witness in accordance with the ideal of their Institute."9 That same paragraph of the apostolic exhortation affirms: "It can therefore be said that a sense of mission is essential to every Institute, not only those dedicated to the active apostolic life, but also those dedicated to the contemplative life." Earlier in the document Blessed John Paul II teaches that "it can be said that the sense of mission is at the very heart of every form of consecrated life."10
6. In the post-conciliar years there has been great concern for the issue of evangelical poverty, a characteristic of consecrated life that was introduced during the Middle Ages by the mendicant Orders. Allied with this issue has been the notion of a preferential option for the poor. The ideal of institutional poverty has provoked a number of crises among religious families which, at their origin, were established for the poorest of the poor, but now find themselves working among the wealthy. 7. An ever increasing problem for consecrated life in the West is the decreasing number of religious. In some areas, such as Western Europe, North American and Australia/New Zealand, the crisis has reached dramatic proportions and casts doubt on the future of this vocation in local and national Churches.
8. At the same time, consecrated life enjoys steady, even explosive growth in the younger Churches. This increase carries with it certain challenges, such as that of living communion in a multicultural setting or questions regarding the proper manner of inculturating the charism of an Institute.
For consecrated life, the most important ecclesial event after the Second Vatican Council was the IX Ordinary Assembly of the Synod of Bishops that met from 2 to 29 October 1994 and led to the publication of the Apostolic Exhortation, Vita Consecrata a year and a half later. The limitations of this conference do not permit me to enter significantly into this crucial document. I
9
10
VC 72 VC 25.
The Diocesan Bishop and Consecrated Life
simply point out that the exhortation projects a tripartite character for consecrated life, which in fact is a reflection of the triple dimension of the Church, and thus dimensions that necessarily condition consecrated life. These are i) the relationship with God or consecration, ii) the fraternal life or communion, and iii) mission. Following a Magisterial interest in religious life as discipleship as well as a reflection on its charismatic dimension, the apostolic exhortation of Blessed John Paul II emphasized the notion of consecration as the constitutive element of religious life. Consecrated life, then, exists not primarily to do something but to belong to Someone.
Some crucial issues for consecrated life today
I would like to highlight rapidly some crucial issues for consecrated life as well as some of the challenges it faces. These are aspects that can help the diocesan Bishop to understand different situations he may encounter and to offer more effectively his pastoral service to the religious of his particular Church.
Identity
The first crucial issue concerns the identity of the consecrated man or woman and his or her relationship to other vocations in the Church. Let us recall an essential element of the doctrine of Vatican II, already cited in this presentation: that all are called to holiness or the perfection of love. Hence, religious life is one manner of living the baptismal consecration, albeit a vocation that possess an "objective excellence".11 One of the questions that was debated during the Synod of 1994 asked whether religious profession represents a new consecration with respect to the consecration that all receive in baptism. The apostolic exhortation responded affirmatively: profession signifies a new and special call and a new and special gift of the Spirit: In the consecrated life, then, it is not only a matter of following Christ with one's whole heart, of loving him "more than father or mother, more than son or daughter" (cf. Mt 10:37) for this is required of every disciple but of living and expressing this by conforming one's whole existence to Christ in an all-encompassing commitment which foreshadows the eschatological perfection, to the extent that this is possible in time and in accordance with the different charisms.12 In a subsequent section, significantly entitled New and special consecration, the exhortation teaches:
11 12
cf. vc, 18 VC 16.
The Diocesan Bishop and Consecrated Life
In the Church's tradition religious profession is considered to be a special and fruitful deepening of the consecration received in Baptism, inasmuch as it is the means by which the close union with Christ already begun in Baptism develops in the gift of a fuller, more explicit and authentic configuration to him through the profession of the evangelical counsels.13 There clearly is a need for theologians of consecrated life to help us better understand the nature of the identity and specificity of this vocation. It should be kept in mind, however, that, in the past, some concrete elements contributed to a clearer identity of religious men and women, and today are less decisive. Some of these might be the missionary engagement, attention to spirituality, the creation and management of important social projects, even a particular attention to theological research. These fields, once areas that were reserved almost exclusively for religious, are now open also to the laity. What is more, an interest in the original forms of religious life, such as the monasticism of Saint Anthony of the Desert, reveals that this vocation was essentially the Christian life lived in a radical manner but, nevertheless, the Christian life. Hence, a Bishop should understand and assist the efforts that the members of the consecrated life are exerting to redefine themselves better within a renewed ecclesiology. Such assistance means a respect for this search, which can, at times, present a troubling ambiguity, as well as a particular attention not to identify some religious simply with the clerical state, as often happens in relations with religious priests. It should be added that, related to the search for identity, one senses a growing need for communion between the consecrated life and other vocations in the Church. The apostolic exhortation, which followed the Synod on the Laity, affirms: In Church-Communion, the states of life by being ordered one to the other are thus bound together among themselves. They all share in a deeply basic meaning: that of being the manner of living out the commonly shored Christian dignity and the universal call to holiness in the perfection of love. They are different yet complementary, in the sense that each of them has a basic and unmistakable character which sets each apart, while at the same time each of them is seen in relation to the other and placed at each other's service.14 There is little doubt that a serious responsibility of the Bishop is to favor and promote this complementarity, so that it may become a resource for the Diocese instead of a cause for useless competition, for example, between the diocesan and religious clergy.
13 14
VC 30. John Paul II, apostolic exhortation Christifideles Laici, (30 December 1988), 55.
The Diocesan Bishop and Consecrated Life
Primacy of God This second issue is directly related to the question of identity. Religious life was born as an affirmation of the absolute claim of God on human beings and, as historians point out, at the time in history when martyrdom ceased to be a feature of Christian communities, leading to a diminishing appreciation for the radical character of the Gospel. Thus, an affirmation of the primacy of God, the One who is to be loved with an undivided heart, represents the first and most essential quality of the consecrated life. God is the One who gives reason to and motivation for the conduct of consecrated men and women. There is a danger that, because of their dedication to pastoral activity or works of service, consecrated persons inordinately sacrifice their witness to a radically Christian life, that is, to an effort towards being, first and foremost, seekers of God and true Christians. Without such an effort, there cannot be a truly consecrated life. Without this dimension that touches on the being of consecrated people, all their activity can lose its fundamental raison d'etre. Hence, the Bishop should have a pastoral concern for this fundamental dimension of consecrated life and help the clergy and faithful not to lose sight of this profound and irreplaceable spirit of consecrated life by simply asking pastoral or charitable service from religious men and women. As Pastor also of consecrated people, the Bishop ought to be mindful that the primacy of God above all demands that religious a) live a deeply personal relationship with Jesus Christ: the consecrated person needs to be in love with Christ; consecrated life is above all a "passion for Christ", a fascination with His person and His way of life; b) Live radically in faith: the choice for consecrated life is a confident and demanding profession of faith in God. The Bishop should ask consecrated persons and their communities to cultivate seriously such faith and become models who are not content with simply following the external manifestations of religiosity. Before anything else, consecrated people should be in the Church "specialists in faith", while, at the same time, knowing how to wisely accompany believers who are look for a more demanding way to live their faith. c) Nurture their faith by drawing on the authentic sources for a spiritual life (a forceful demand of the Second Vatican Council), namely the Word of God and the Liturgy. Here again the Bishop should ask consecrated people to be examples, demonstrating to all that their spiritual life is nourished regularly and substantially by the Word and the Liturgy instead of a steady diet of devotional practices or even, esoteric "revelations".... When speaking of consecrated life as radical faith, it is useful to underscore a problem that afflicts religious in many countries: a marked decrease in numbers and their advancing age, together with some unavoidable consequences. Even this particular situation is an invitation for
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The Diocesan Bishop and Consecrated Life
religious to live with an attitude of faith. As the Pastor of consecrated men and women, the Bishop should have a real sensitivity that leads him to lend his support in these difficult situations. A beautiful text of the apostolic exhortation Vita consecrate can inspire us: The various difficulties stemming from the decline in personnel and apostolates must in no way lead to a loss of confidence in the evangelical vitality of the consecrated life, which will always be present and active in the Church. (...) New situations of difficulty are therefore to be faced with the serenity of those who know that what is required of each individual is not success, but commitment to faithfulness. What must be avoided at all costs is the actual breakdown of the consecrated life, a collapse which is not measured by a decrease in numbers but by a failure to cling steadfastly to the Lord and to one's personal vocation and mission.15 Bishops must confront these critical situations with paternal care and spiritual direction, instead of simply concluding that the consecrated life is bankrupt and destined to disappear. What is more, the Bishop should not be misled by circumstances where the consecrated life abounds numerically, since large numbers are not themselves indicators of evangelical authenticity.
Gospel-based fraternity
I would like to emphasize this third challenge, even if this issue usually is not evident to those who are not members of the consecrated life. In reality, fraternal life that is lived in community demands a great deal of spiritual energy as well as time and space that is dedicated intelligently and with love. The rediscovery of the fraternal life as a sort of schola amoris, based on a common following of Christ and interlaced each day by a rigorous self-discipline, has been one of the great achievements of recent years. The way religious live together, which has been an essential element from the very beginning of consecrated life, is itself a gift of the Spirit and a way of radically fulfilling the commandment of love. A beautiful Instruction from our dicastery, Fraternal love in community,16 offers a number of valuable suggestions for carrying out this commitment; these might be useful also for the Bishop in his dealings with communities of religious. Fraternity needs to be continuously rediscovered as the vital space, the indispensable "habitat" for this vocation as well as the point of departure for its mission and the place to which it constantly returns. The Bishop should care for this essential dimension of the life of consecrated persons, even if this means that they must decline a particular pastoral service to the Diocese. Here it is helpful to recall a portion of the Instruction Fraternal Life in Community: All must be reminded that fraternal communion, as such, is already an apostolate; in other words, it contributes directly to the work of evangelization. The sign par
15 16
VC 63. CIVCSVA, Fraternal Life in Community, (2 February 1994).
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The Diocesan Bishop and Consecrated Life
excellence left us by Our Lord is that of lived fraternity. (...) For this reason, "the effectiveness of religious life depends on the quality of the fraternal life in common".17 In summary, these three issues, identity, the primacy of God and fraternal life in community, are challenges for consecrated life. To these we might also add mission. I believe, however, that the issue of mission is widely acknowledged, especially among congregations of men or women religious that are dedicated to apostolic or diaconal service. As the Magisterium on consecrated life has affirmed, a clear emphasis on the primacy of God - making it an effective priority rather than merely theoretical - together with a truly fraternal life that is lived in the spirit of the Gospel is already a "mission" for religious men and women. The Bishop should care that his Diocese might benefit from this resource for mission.
Some concrete questions
a) Consecrated life and the particular Church
In the wake of the Second Vatican Council, both the theology of the particular Church as well as that of consecrated life have developed significantly. However, such development has not been accompanied by a successful integration of the two. Here I would simply note two matters which call for further reflection, even experimentation: On the one hand, consecrated life needs to be inserted adequately within the particular Church, since it is within a local Church that it lives and where the universal Church is made present; in quibus et ex quibus [Ecclesiis particularibus] unica et una Ecclesia catholica exsistit.18 On the other hand, it should not be forgotten that consecrated life is called to witness to the universal Church within the reality of a particular Church. The apostolic exhortation, Vita consecrate, clearly affirms this mission: All this brings out the character of universality and communion proper to Institutes of Consecrated Life and to Societies of Apostolic Life. Because of their supradiocesan character, grounded in their special relation to the Petrine ministry, they are also at the service of cooperation between the particular Churches, since they can effectively promote an "exchange of gifts" among them, and thus contribute to an inculturation of the Gospel which purifies, strengthens and ennobles the treasures found in the cultures of all peoples.19
17 18
Ibid., 54. Lumen Gentium 23. 19 VC 47,
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The Diocesan Bishop and Consecrated Life
In effect, different particular Churches, especially in Asia and Africa, have directly experienced the contribution of religious men and women, who came from other Dioceses and were present at the birth and growing years of these young Churches. And frequently religious bring to their Diocese of origin the requests for help to these young Churches and thus can favor a real "exchange of gifts." Hence, the Bishop should avoid - if I might use a neologism - an excessive diocesization of consecrated life, that is, acting as if a religious Institute, which is, by nature, international, instead is perceived only in function of a particular Church. It is interesting to note that Propositio 29 of the Synod of Bishops on Consecrated Life (1994) recommended that religious give greater attention to the particular Church and that bishops value and welcome the charism of consecrated life, making room for religious within the pastoral plan of the diocese. What does this mean, in practical terms? First, there is a need for mutual respect and effective communication between the diocesan Bishop and the major superiors of religious who serve in the Diocese. A Bishop should treat serious matters with the major superior instead of limiting his communication to the local superior, pastor, school director, etc. The diocesan Bishop will want to create with major superiors different occasions for regular communication as well as promote extraordinary celebrations, such as the annual commemoration of consecrated life the second of February). Reciprocal visits have also proven to be helpful in fostering communion between the diocesan Bishop and religious. The Bishop ought to appreciate persons and structures that will enhance his pastoral care for religious, such as the diocesan vicar or delegate for consecrated life. The Bishop may wish to include religious in some of the diocesan offices or organisms, such as presbyteral or pastoral councils. Special attention should be given to the inclusion of women religious, who make up nearly 80% of the consecrated life. Speaking about the relationship between the Bishop and women religious, the Directory for the pastoral ministry of bishops recommends: The Bishop should also be vigilant that consecrated women are given sufficient opportunities for participation in different diocesan structures, such as diocesan and parish pastoral councils, where these exist, in the various diocesan commissions and delegations, and in the direction of apostolic and educational initiatives in the diocese. They should also be involved in the decision-making processes, especially in matters directly affecting them. In this way they can bring to the service of God's people their particular sensitivities and their missionary fervor, their unique gifts and the fruits of their experience (cf. Vita Consecrata,104).20
20
Congregation for Bishops, Directory for the pastoral ministry of bishops (Vatican City: Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 2004), n. 104.
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The Diocesan Bishop and Consecrated Life
b) The autonomy of religious
Canon 586, 1 of the CJC recognizes a "just autonomy of life, especially of governance21 for Institutes of consecrated life; canon 732 makes a similar concession in the case of Societies of Apostolic Life.22 This autonomy is the means by which a single Institute of consecrated life or Society of Apostolic Life can enjoy in the Church its own internal discipline and preserve intact its own charism and identity. It is in this sense that one should read the word "patrimony" in the final phrase of canon 586, 1: and can preserve whole and entire the patrimony described in Can. 578, since the word "charism" is not used in the Code. With regard to their proper bishop, a "just autonomy" is attributed also to Institutes and Societies of diocesan right by canon 594, which judges as illegitimate any interference by the Bishop in the internal life of the Institute. The local Ordinary is charged with safeguarding and protecting the just autonomy of Institutes of either pontifical or diocesan right that are present in the Diocese.23 Hence, the Bishop is never considered to as the Superior of an Institute. Even in the case of Institutes of diocesan right, the Code never applies to the Bishop any title that is proper of a religious Superior, such as "Moderator". The preferred phrase is typically something like (the Institute) remains under the special care of the Diocesan Bishop.24 The just autonomy of Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life should not be understood simply as respect for their freedom but rather as a requirement of the Church herself, for whom the variety of charisms in the individual Institutes represents a rich source of evangelical witness and pastoral activity. In canon 586, 1, the use of the verb agnoscitur is significant.25 The formulation indicates that a just autonomy is not the fruit of a concession by canon law, but rather a natural right of each Institute which the Legislator recognizes by the act of giving juridical approval to Institutes of consecrated life and Societies of apostolic life. Obviously, the just autonomy we are speaking about does not signify in any way a total independence from legitimate authority; for example, that of the Pope 26, as well as that of the Diocesan bishop.27
21
"Singulis institutis iusta autonomia vitae, praesertim regiminis, agnoscitur, qua gaudeant in Ecclesia propria disciplina atque integrum servare valeant suum patrimonium, de quo in can. 578." 22 "Quae in cann. 5 78-597, et 606 statuuntur, societatibus vitae apostolicae applicantur, salva tamen uniuscuiusque societatis natura societatibus vero, de quibus in can. 731, 2, etiam cann. 598-602 applicantur." 23 Cf. CJC canon 586, 2. 24 CJC can. 594: "Institutum Juris dioecesani, firmo can. 586, permanet sub special! cura Episcopi dioecesani." 25 "Singulis institutis iusta autonomia vitae, praesertim regiminis, agnoscitur..." 26 CJC can. 590, 1. 27 Cf. Christus Dominus, n. 35, 4.
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The Diocesan Bishop and Consecrated Life
c) Institutes of Diocesan right and their erection
This third question calls for a careful explanation. It must be remembered that forty-six years ago the Second Vatican Council warned against the foundation of an excessive number of Institutes;28 thirteen years later the Instruction Mutae Relationes repeated the same caveat.29 The praxis of our dicastery is based on n. 51 of Mutuae Relationes, which, exhorts against a proliferation of institutes that "'may be imprudently brought into being [and] which are useless or lacking in sufficient resources' (PC 19)". Given the limits of this presentation, it is not possible to outline in a detailed manner the iter of a group of the faithful, who hope to become one day a religious Institute or Society of apostolic life. Our dicastery is happy to furnish such information on request, offering as well the experience of the Church across the world. Here it is important to underscore at least a few points which I take from an information sheet, provided by our dicastery, which offers several practical points. 1. According to the practice of this Dicastery, before arriving at the canonical erection of an Institute of consecrated life, interested diocesan Ordinaries are invited to begin by establishing a Public Association of the faithful, according to canon 312, 1, 3. 2. In erecting the Public Association, it is important to insert in the decree the phrase "in view of becoming a religious Institute of diocesan right". 3. Considering the object that is expressed by the above phrase, the members can live as if they were already religious. 4. From the very beginning, the juridical structure of the Association should be the one that the members intend to live when it is eventually erected as a religious Institute and follow the norms of the section of the Code that regards religious, recognizing at the same time the present number of members as well as providing for the growth of the Institute. 5. It is vital to clearly define the charism, spirituality and apostolic work proper to the Association. 6. The members may make private vows (i.e., not public vows that characterize the members of a religious Institute), which are pronounced according to the formula included in the Constitutions; they may also wear a proper religious habit and establish their own novitiate and government. The members can be accepted in other Dioceses. 7. This way of living will ease the passage from a Public Association to status as fullfledged religious Institute.
28
Vatican II, Decree on the adaptation and renewal of religious life Perfectae caritatis (28 October 1965), 19 Sacred Congregation for Religious and for Secular Institutes, Sacred Congregation for Bishops, Directives for the mutual relations between bishops and religious in the Church, (14 May 1978), 51
29
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The Diocesan Bishop and Consecrated Life
8. The Bishop who erects the Association has the right of approving the Constitutions. In doing so, it is prudent that he seek the service of canonical experts. 9. Should the Association show concrete evidence of a healthy and stable development, after a prolonged period of experimentation and having consulted the Holy See, the diocesan Bishop of the principal house of the Association can proceed to its erection as a religious Institute of diocesan right.30 To this end, it is necessary that there be at least forty members of the Association who have professed vows and, in the case of a clerical Association, that there be a sufficient number of priests. It is crucial that an Association not be erected as an Institute of consecrated life too facilely. The lack of a solid foundation of persons, structures, formation and finances can create very problematic situations and put people in grave human and spiritual peril.
d) The incardination of religious priests into the Diocese
I mention this question because it is one the frequently presents itself in a Diocese. It is useful to recall briefly the juridic notion of incardination. Canon 265 of the Code establishes that every cleric must be incardinated; such a link may be a) with a particular Church (diocese, prelature and territorial abbey, vicariate or apostolic prefecture...); b) with a personal prelature; c) with an Institute of consecrate life (religious or secular) or a Society of apostolic life that have the faculty to incardinate. Acephalous or 'wandering' clergy are never to be permitted. It is customary to distinguish between original incardination and derived incardination. Original incardination is the bond that is first acquired through ordination to the diaconate (cf. CJC c. 266), while derived incardination is a bond that can be acquired later through a legitimate act of inscription. Derived incardination is further subdivided into formal and ipso jure: a) according to the norm of canon 267, formal incardination comes about through a particular administrative procedure that includes two distinct and complimentary acts, excardination and incardination; b) incardination ipso jure comes about by dint of the law itself when certain necessary conditions are fulfilled.31 Among the conditions for incardination ipso jure are:
30 31
CJC, canon 579. CIC, canons 268, 1 and 693.
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The Diocesan Bishop and Consecrated Life
the cleric should manifest his desire to be incardinated into a new particular Church; this intention should be submitted in writing to both the excardinating and incardinating Bishops; the cleric can remain for up to five years in the new diocese; neither of the two interested Bishops has expressed in writing a contrary opinion within four months of receiving the letter from the cleric. Now we come to our case: that of a cleric who has professed perpetual vows in a religious Institute or a secular Institute and is therefore incardinated into that Institute,32 and now desires to leave that Institute. The relative indult cannot be given before he has found a benevolent Bishop who is willing to incardinate him immediately (i.e. pure et simpliciter) or at least, ad experimentum. In the latter case, a professed cleric who has been received ad experimentum, is incardinated ipso jure into a diocese if, after five years, the incardinating Bishop has not formally refused him. It happens that Bishops are not always aware that after five years of probation, the "mechanism" of incardination becomes automatic, unless the Bishop has formally refused it. If, at any time during the five year period the Bishop refuses the religious cleric, he remains incardinated in his proper Institute and should return to it.
e) Vocations from one country that help others
I would simply like to touch on this matter, which may concern some of the Dioceses present today. If in the past may men and women religious served as missionaries in Asian or African countries, today it is increasingly common, especially in Europe and North America, that religious Institutes with declining numbers and an advanced average age, seek the help of young Asian or African religious in order to sustain their foundations in the West. Such cooperation may well be the result of intelligent and careful planning that brings about a valid "exchange of gifts" among different nations and cultures. However, at times this cooperation happens without sufficient attention to potential problems that are inherent to multicultural living and ministry and, consequently there is little preparation of the religious themselves. The result is a risk of a sort of trafficking of women - or men religious and the results can be sadly antithetical to the ideals of consecrated life. Such problems are particularly troublesome when we speak of cloistered monasteries of contemplative nuns. It is very appropriate that Bishops exercise a certain vigilance to ensure that the help offered to local Churches and religious Institutes in areas experiencing a shortage of vocations comes about with a necessary attention to the persons involved and their proper formation. Otherwise, these situations will almost certainly produce new problems for the local Church and for our dicastery!
32
Cf. CJC, canons 266, 2 and 727, 2, respectively
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The Diocesan Bishop and Consecrated Life
I briefly touch upon some other questions or problems that demand special attention by the Bishop in his dealings with Institutes of consecrated life: contracts and agreements that should be established between the Bishop and major superior before entrusting a parish or other works to a religious community; the question of alienation of the temporal goods of a religious community; the erection and suppression of religious houses; the special care to be afforded to cloistered monasteries; the attention to be given to Secular Institutes and their specific identity.
Conclusion
By virtue of their pastoral service, Bishops should help the Church to grow in all her splendor. They are thus called to help Institutes of consecrated life find their proper place in the Church as indispensable parts of the whole and assist them in living the new ecclesiology with their own unique character, which should be recognized and appreciated.
Roma, 14 September 2011
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