CARMELITE
CONSTITUTIONS
1995
TALBE OF CONTENTS
·
CARMELITE.. 1
o
COPYRIGHT. 7
o
NOTES ON THE TRANSLATION. 8
o
ABBREVIATIONS. 9
o
DOCUMENTS OF THE SECOND
VATICAN COUNCIL. 9
o
PAPAL DOCUMENTS. 9
o
OTHER DOCUMENTS OF THE HOLY
SEE. 11
o
DOCUMENTS OF THE CARMELITE
ORDER. 11
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OTHER ABBREVIATIONS. 13
o
LETTER FROM THE PRIOR GENERAL. 15
·
THE RULE OF SAINT ALBERT.. 17
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[Chapter 1]. 18
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[Chapter 2]. 18
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[Chapter 3]. 18
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[Chapter 4]. 18
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[Chapter 5]. 18
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[Chapter 6]. 18
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[Chapter 7]. 19
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[Chapter 8]. 19
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[Chapter 9]. 19
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[Chapter 10]. 19
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[Chapter 11]. 19
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[Chapter 12]. 20
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[Chapter 13]. 20
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[Chapter 14]. 20
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[Chapter 15]. 20
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[Chapter 16]. 20
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[Chapter 17]. 20
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[Chapter 18]. 21
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[Chapter 19]. 21
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[Chapter 20]. 21
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[Chapter 21]. 22
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[Chapter 22]. 22
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[Chapter 23]. 22
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[Chapter 24]. 22
·
PART ONE.. 24
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CHAPTER I 25
o
The Gift and the Mission of
the Order. 25
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CHAPTER II 31
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The Charism of the Order. 31
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1. The contemplative
dimension of our life. 32
o
2. Fraternity. 34
·
Inspired by the Word. 35
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3. Service in the midst of
the people. 36
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5. The Carmelite Family. 41
·
PART TWO.. 43
o
CHAPTER III 44
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Life in Community. 44
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CHAPTER IV. 51
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Evangelical Counsels and Vows. 51
o
1.
Obedience: hearing and discerning God’s plan. 51
o
2.
Poverty: sharing and solidarity. 54
o
3. Chastity:
celibate for the Kingdom.. 58
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CHAPTER V. 61
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Prayer. 61
o
1. Prayer in general 61
o
2.
Liturgical prayer. 63
o
3.
Personal prayer. 66
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4. Veneration of the Blessed Virgin Mary and of
the Saints. 69
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CHAPTER VI 73
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Our Apostolic Mission - General Considerations. 73
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CHAPTER VII 76
o
Our Apostolic Mission in the Local Church. 76
o
CHAPTER VIII 80
o
Concern for the Carmelite Family. 80
o
CHAPTER IX. 82
o
Our Apostolic Mission and the Promotion of
Justice and Peace throughout the
world 82
·
PART THREE.. 85
o
CHAPTER X. 86
o
The Process of Formation of the Carmelite. 86
o
CHAPTER XI 88
o
The Ministry of Formation. 88
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CHAPTER XII 91
o
The Ministry of Vocations. 91
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CHAPTER XIII 92
o
The Stages of Formation. 92
o
1.
The Pre-novitiate. 92
o
2.
The Novitiate. 93
o
3.
The Period of Simple Profession. 97
o
4.
Solemn Profession. 99
·
PART FOUR.. 107
o
CHAPTER XIV. 108
o
The Basic Structure of the Order. 108
o
CHAPTER XV. 115
o
The Law of the Order. 115
o
CHAPTER XVI 120
o
Active and Passive Voice. 120
o
CHAPTER XVII 123
o
Authority within the Order - Offices in General 123
o
CHAPTER XVIII 127
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Chapters and other Collegial Acts. 127
o
1. Chapters. 127
o
2. Offices. 129
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CHAPTER XIX. 140
o
General Government. 140
o
1. The General Chapter. 140
o
2. The Prior General 145
o
3. The General Congregation. 147
o
4. The Council of Provinces. 148
o
5. Regions. 149
o
7. The Vice Prior General 151
o
8. The General Councillors. 151
o
9. The Procurator General 153
o
10.
The Bursar General 153
o
11.
The Secretary General and the Offices of the Curia. 154
o
CHAPTER XX. 156
o
The Government of Provinces. 156
o
1. The Provincial Chapter. 156
o
2. The Prior Provincial 160
o
3. The Provincial Council 164
o
4. Provincial Officials. 167
o
5.
Government of Provincial Commissariats. 168
o
CHAPTER XXI 170
o
Government of Communities. 170
o
1. Local Chapters and Councils. 170
o
2. The Local Prior. 172
o
3. Other Local Officials. 176
o
CHAPTER XXII 179
o
The Administration of Goods. 179
o
CHAPTER XXIII 182
o
Departure and Dismissal from the Order. 182
o
EPILOGUE. 185
·
INDICES. 186
o
INDEX OF SUBJECTS. 187
o
N.B. References are to
article numbers. 187
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A.. 187
o
B. 188
o
C. 189
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D.. 193
o
E. 194
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F. 195
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G.. 196
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H.. 198
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I 199
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J. 199
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K. 200
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L. 200
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M... 201
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N.. 203
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O.. 203
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P. 204
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Q.. 213
o
R. 213
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S. 214
o
T. 216
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U.. 217
o
V.. 217
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W... 218
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INDEX OF PASSAGES FROM SCRIPTURE. 219
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Old Testament. 219
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New Testament. 219
o
INDEX OF CANONICAL SOURCES. 221
Published by
CARMELITE COMMUNICATIONS
214 Richardson Street
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ISBN 0 0000000 0 0
Printed by AGA Printer & Sons, Faversham, Kent,
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Copyright © 1996 Carmelite Communications
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may
be
reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, transmitted
in any
form or by any means, electronic, mechanical,
photocopying,
recording, or otherwise, without the
prior written permission of the publisher.
Quotations from
scripture are taken from the NRSV; those of the Second Vatican Council from Flannery. Quotations from other documents of the Holy See, various
Congregations and the Carmelite Order have been re-translated for this edition.
The General Chapter in session # 35, 27th September1995,
decreed the following:
The official
text of the Constitutions is in Italian. Translations into English and Spanish
will be prepared and approved by the Prior General, with the consent of his
Council.
This translation
was prepared by Ms Elena French and reviewed by Christopher O’Donnell,
John Keating, Patrick Mullins, Redemptus Valabek, Paul Cahill, Jerome Watt,
John Russell, Eamon Carroll and Wilfrid McGreal.
The final text
was approved by the Prior General and his Council on October dd, 1996.
AA Apostolicam actuositatem, Decree on the
Apostolate of
the Laity, 18 November 1965
AG Ad gentes, Decree on the Church’s
Missionary Activity,
7 December 1965
CD Christus Dominus, Decree on the Pastoral
Office of Bishops
in the Church, 28 October 1965
DV Dei Verbum, Dogmatic Constitution on
Divine Revelation,
19 November 1965
GS Gaudium et spes, Pastoral Constitution
on the Church
in the Modern World, 7 December 1965
LG Lumen gentium, Dogmatic Constitution on
the Church,
21 November 1964
OT Optatam totius, Decree on Priestly
Formation, 28 October
1965
PC Perfectae caritatis, Decree on the
Appropriate Renewal
of the Religious life, 28 November 1965
PO Presbyterorum ordinis, Decree on the
Ministry and Life
of Priests, 7 December 1965
SC Sacrosanctum concilium, Constitution on
the Liturgy,
4 December 1963
UR Unitatis reintegratio, Decree on Ecumenism,
21 November
1964
CL Christifideles laici, Apostolic
Exhortation of John Paul
II on the laity, 30 December 1988
EE Essential elements in the Church’s
teaching as applied
to Institutes dedicated to works of the apostolate,
Congregation for Religious and Secular Institutes,
31 May 1983
EN Evangelii nuntiandi, Apostolic
Exhortation of Paul VI on
evangelisation in the modern world, 8 December 1975
ET Evangelica testificatio, Apostolic
Exhortation of Paul VI
on the renewal of the religious life, 29 June 1971
LE Laborem exercens, Encyclical Letter of
John Paul II on
human work on the occasion of the 90th anniversary
of the encyclical Rerum novarum, 14 September
1981
MC Marialis cultus, Apostolic Exhortation
of Paul VI on Marian
devotion, 2 February 1974
PdV Pastores dabo vobis, Apostolic
Exhortation of John Paul
II on priestly formation, 25 March 1992
PP Populorum progressio, Encyclical Letter
of Paul VI on
the development of peoples, 26 March 1967
RD Redemptionis donum, Apostolic
Exhortation of John Paul
II on religious consecration, 25 March 1984
RM Redemptoris missio, Encyclical Letter of
John Paul II on
the permanent vitality of the mandate for mission,
7 December 1990
RMa Redemptoris Mater, Encyclical Letter of
John Paul II on
the Blessed Virgin Mary in the life of the pilgrim Church,
25 March 1987
SRS Sollicitudo rei socialis, Encyclical
Letter of John Paul II
on the 20th anniversary of Populorum
progressio, 30
December 1987
Can. Canon
from the Codex Iuris Canonicis, 1983
DCVR Dimensione contemplativa della vita
religiosa, Congregation
for Institutes of the Religious Life and Societies
of Apostolic Life, 12 August 1980
LH De Liturgia Horarum, General Instruction
on the Liturgy
of the Hours, Congregation for Divine Worship,
11 April 1971
MR Mutuae relationes, Congregation for
Bishops and Congregation
for Institutes of the Religious Life and Societies
of Apostolic Life, 14 May 1978
PI Potissimum Institutioni, on the
formation of religious, Congregation
for Institutes of the Religious Life and Societies
of Apostolic Life, 2 February 1990
RdU La recherche de l’unité, on
the application of the principles
and norms on ecumenism, Pontifical Council
for the unity of Christians, 25 March 1993
RPU Religiosi e promozione umana,
Congregation for Institutes
of the Religious Life and Societies of Apostolic
Life, 12 August 1980
SanP Il Santo Padre, and attached document Orientamenti e
proposte, Congregation for Divine Worship, 3 April 1987
Gen. Congr. 1974 The Carmelite Today:
Brotherhood as a Way to God, General
Congregation, Frascati, 1974, [in TPB,
pp. 38-43]
Gen. Congr. 1980 Called to Account by the Poor, General
Congregation, Rio de Janeiro, 1980, [in TPB,
pp. 82-97]
Gen.Congr. 1986 Carmel Faced with the
Vocational Challenge, General Congregation,
Niagara Falls, 1986, [Carmelite Communications
Melbourne, 1986]
Gen. Congr. 1992 Evangelisation for Carmelites
Today, General Congregation,
Caracas, 1992, [Carmelite Communications
Melbourne, 1992]
PrayComm Praying Communities at the Service of the
People, Joint
Letter of the General Superiors of the Ancient Observance
and Discalced Carmelites on the occasion
of the Vth centenary of the Evangelisation
of Latin America, 16 July 1992 [in AOC 43 (1992) 157-163]
Rule The Rule of St. Albert, ed. H. Clarke
& B. Edwards, Aylesford
& Kensington, 1973
I Prov. Pledged to the service of brotherhood,
First Council of
Provinces, Madrid, 1972 [in TPB, pp.
14-23]
II Prov. “Lord, Teach us to Pray”,
Second Council of Provinces,
Aylesford, 1973, [in TPB, pp. 24-37]
III Prov. In the midst of the people: small religious communities
and basic communities, Third Council of
Provinces, Dublin, 1975, [in TPB, pp.
44-55]
V Prov. A Return to the Sources: an examination of
the biblical
significance of Mary and Elijah, Fifth Council of
Provinces, Mount Carmel, 1979, [in TPB,
pp. 68- 81]
VI Prov. Growing in Brotherhood, Sixth Council of
Provinces, Heerlen,
1981, [in TPB, pp. 110-129]
VII Prov. Enchanted by the Mysteries of God, Seventh Council of Provinces,
Aylesford, 1982,
[in TPB, pp. 157-161]
IX Prov. Our International Dimension, Ninth
Council of Provinces, Fatima, 1985, [Whitefriars Street, Carmelite Priory,
Dublin, 1985]
X Prov. Message to the Order, Tenth Council of
Provinces, Manila,
1987, [Carmelite Communications Melbourne,
1987]
XI Prov. Letter to the Carmelite Family, Eleventh
Council of Provinces,
Dublin, 1988, [Carmelite Communications
Melbourne, 1988]
XII Prov. Carmelite Charism: Journey into God,
Following the Word,
Twelfth Council of Province, Salamanca, 1991,
[Carmelite Communications Melbourne, 1991]
XIII Prov. Message to the Carmelite Family,
Thirteenth Council of
Provinces, Nantes, 1994, [Carmelite Communications
Melbourne, 1994]
AOC Analecta Ordinis Carmelitarum, Rome,
1910-
Bull.
Carm. Bullarium Carmelitanum, ed. E.
Monsignani and J. A.
Ximénez, 4 vols., Rome, 1715-1768
RIVC Ratio institutionis vitae carmelitanae,
Forming Prophetic
Brotherhood, The Carmelite Guide to Formation,
General Curia of the Carmelite Order, Rome,
1988
TPB Towards a Prophetic Brotherhood, Documents
of the Carmelite
Order 1971-1982, The Carmelite Centre, Melbourne,
1984
25th March 1996
Dear Brothers,
It gives me great joy to present the text of our new
constitutions to you. These were approved at the General Chapter celebrated in
September 1995. They are the fruit of all our contributions, of the work of
various experts over a period of some nine years, as well as of the study and
the evaluation of the chapter delegates themselves.
The first part outlines our charism and mission as a
contemplative fraternity in the midst of the people.
The second part is dedicated to the fraternal life and it
invites our communities to be a place of communion, of prayer and of service.
In this way, they will become ever more a visible and credible image of the
Holy Trinity.
The process of formation, in its various phases, is treated in
the third part not so much as a list of things to do, but as a way of life.
Finally the fourth part is devoted to government, considered as a function of service,
guidance and inspiration.
Our lives and apostolates today as Carmelites will be enriched
and animated by this text. For this reason it must not be simply left on the
shelf as decoration. We must find the appropriate ways to deepen our
appreciation of these constitutions and to live them out at a personal level.
We must also make them known (at least the fundamental elements of them) to all
the members of the Carmelite Family.
One way of achieving this goal will be to use aids prepared by
the Order’s experts. Let us thank God that we have people well able to
carry out this task. We wish to encourage them so that through study and
reflection they will help us to appreciate, love and give flesh to the spirit
of Carmel. On the eve of the third millennium this will make us feel heirs to a
glorious past which is not to be belittled, but made living and active through
the life and commitment to the Church and world of today.
Let us open ourselves to the Spirit of the Lord and welcome
with gratitude the assistance of Mary, our mother and our sister. In this way
we will be enthusiastic in considering and accepting this text as a humble but
precious aid in our journey in the consecrated life.
Fraternally,
Joseph Chalmers
O.Carm.
(Prior General)
(Translation
by Fr. Bede Edwards, originally published in The Rule of Saint Albert,
ed. Hugh Clarke & Bede Edwards, Aylesford and Kensington, 1973)
Albert, called by God's favour to
be patriarch of the church of Jerusalem, bids health in the Lord and the
blessing of the Holy Spirit to his beloved sons in Christ, B. and the other
hermits under obedience to him, who live near the spring on Mount Carmel.
Many and varied are the ways in
which our saintly forefathers laid down how everyone, whatever his station or
the kind of religious observance he has chosen, should live a life of alegiance
to Jesus Christ -- how, pure in heart and stout in conscience, he must be
unswerving in the service of his Master.
It is to me, however, that you
have come for a rule of life in keeping with your avowed purpose, a rule you
may hold fast to henceforward; and therefore:
The first thing I require is for you
to have a prior, one of yourselves, who is to be chosen for the office by
common consent, or that of the greater and maturer part of you; each of the
others must promise him obedience -- of which, once promised, he must try to
make his deeds the true reflection -- and also chastity and the renunciation
of ownership.
If the prior and
brothers see fit, you may have foundations in solitary places, or where you are
given a site that is suitable and convenient for the observance proper to your
Order.
Next, each one of you is to have a
separate cell, situated as the lie of the land you propose to occupy may
dictate, and allotted by disposition of the prior with the agreement of the
other brothers, or the more mature among them.
However, you are to eat whatever
may have been given you in a common refectory, listening together meanwhile to
a reading from Holy Scripture where that can be done without difficulty.
None of the brothers is to occupy a
cell other than that allotted to him or to exchange cells with another, without
leave or whoever is prior at the time.
The prior's cell should stand near
the entrance to your property, so that he may be the first to meet those who
approach, and whatever has to be done in consequence may all be carried out as
he may decide and order.
Each one of you is to stay in his
own cell or nearby, pondering the Lord's law day and night and keeping watch at
his prayers unless attending to some other duty.
Those who know how to say the
canonical hours with those in orders should do so, in the way those holy
forefathers of ours laid down, and according to the Church's approved custom.
Those who do not know the hours must say twenty-five Our Fathers for the night
office, except on Sundays and solemnities when that number is to be doubled so
that the Our Father is said fifty times; the same prayer must be said seven
times in the morining in place of Lauds, and seven times too for each of the
other hours, except for Vespers when it must be said fifteen times.
None of the brothers must lay
claim to anything as his own, but you are to possess everything in common; and
each is to receive from the prior -- that is from the brother he appoints for
the purpose -- whatever befits his age and needs.
You may have as many asses and
mules as you need, however, and may keep a certain amount of livestock or
poultry.
An oratory should be built as conveniently
as possible among the cells, where, if it can be done without difficulty, you
are to gather each morning to hear Mass.
On Sundays too, or other days if
necessary, you should discuss matters of discipline and your spiritual welfare;
and on this occasion the indiscretions and failings of the brothers, if any be
found at fault, should be lovingly corrected.
You are to fast every day, except
Sundays, from the feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross until Easter Day,
unless bodily sickness or feebleness, or some other good reason, demand a
dispensation from the fast; for necessity overrides every law.
You are to abstain from meat,
except as a remedy for sickness or feebleness. But as, when you are on a journey,
you more often than not have to beg your way; outside your own houses you may
eat foodstuffs that have been cooked with meat, so as to avoid giving trouble
to your hosts. At sea, however, meat may be eaten.
Since man's life on earth is a
time of trial, and all who would live devotedly in Christ must undergo
persecution, and the devil your foe is on the prowl like a roaring lion looking
for prey to devour, you must use every care to clothe yourselves in God's
armour so that you may be ready to withstand the enemy's ambush.
Your loins are to be girt with
chastity, your breast fortified by holy meditations, for, as Scripture has it,
holy meditation will save you. Put on holiness as your breastplate, and it will
enable you to love the Lord your God with all your heart and soul and strength,
and your neighbour as yourself. Faith must be your shield on all occasions, and
with it you will be able to quench all the flaming missiles of the wicked one:
there can be no pleasing God without faith; [and the victory lies in this --
your faith]. On your head set the helmet of salvation, and so be sure of
deliverance by our only Saviour, who sets his own free from their sins. The
sword of the spirit, the word of God, must abound in your mouths and hearts.
Let all you do have the Lord's word for accompaniment.
You must give yourselves to work
of some kind, so that the devil may always find you busy; no idleness on your
part must give him a chance to pierce the defences of your souls. In this
respect you have both the teaching and the example of Saint Paul the Apostle,
into whose mouth Christ put his own words. God made him preacher and teacher of
faith and truth to the nations: with him as your leader you cannot go astray.
We lived among you, he said, labouring and wary, toiling night and day so as
not to be a burden to any of you; not because we had no power to do otherwise
but so as to give you, in your own selves, an example you might imitate. For
the charge we gave you when we were with you was this: that woever is not
willing to work should not be allowed to eat either. For we have heard that
there are certain restless idlers among you. We charge people of this kind, and
implore them in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that they earn their own
bread by silent toil. This is the way of holiness and goodness: see that you
follow it.
The Apostle would have us keep
silence, for in silence he tells us to work. As the Prophet also makes known to
us: Silence is the way to foster holiness. Elsewhere he says: Your strength
will lie in silence and hope. For this reason I lay down that you are to keep
silence from after Compline until after Prime the next day. At other times,
although you need not keep silence so strictly, be careful not to indulge in a
great deal of talk, for, as Scripture has it -- and experience teaches us no
less -- sin will not be wanting where there is much talk, and he wo is careless
in speech will come to harm; and elsewhere: The use of many words brings harm
to the speaker's soul. And our Lord says in the Gospel: Every rash word uttered
will have to be accounted for on judgement day. Make a balance then, each of
you, to weigh his words in; keep a tight rein on your mouths, lest you should
stumble and fall in speech, and your fall be irreparable and prove mortal. Like
the Prophet, watch your step lest your tongue give offence, and employ every
care in keeping silent, which is the way to foster holiness.
You, brother B., and whoever may
succeed you as prior, must always keep in mind and put into practice what our
Lord said in the Gospel: Whoever has a mind to become a leader among you must
make himself servant to the rest, and whichever of you would be first must
become your bondsman.
You, other brothers too, hold your
prior in humble reverence, your minds not on him but on Christ who has placed
him over you, and who, to those who rule the Churches, addressed the words:
Whoever pays you heed pays heed to me, and whoever treats you with dishonour
dishonours me; if you remain so minded you will not be found guilty of
contempt, but will merit life eternal as fit reward for your obedience.
Here then are the few points I
have written down to provide you with a standard of counduct to live up to; but
our Lord, at his second coming will reward anyone who does more than he is
obliged to do. See that the bounds of common sense are not exceeded, however,
for common sense is the guide of the virtues.
From Constitutions of the
Order of the Brothers of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel. Approved by
the General Chapter celebrated in September, 1995 and published by the order of
the Most Reverend Father Joseph Chalmers, Prior General.
Chapters have been renumbered since
the Rule was published in 1995. The Chapter numbers used aboveare the result of
a joint meeting of the General Councils of the Carmelites and the Discalced
Carmelites in January, 1999.
Innocentian additions are given in
italics.
Our
Life as Brothers
The
Mission and Charism of the Carmelite Order
and
its basic characteristics
1.
Through Jesus Christ,
Son of the Father
and “firstborn of all creation”,
we live in union with God
and with our neighbours
in a new way.
And so, we share in the mission of the Incarnate Word
in this world,
and we form the Church,
which is in Christ “as a sacrament - a sign and
instrument
of communion with God, and of the unity of the whole
human race.”
2.
Living in allegiance to Jesus Christ,
and embracing his Gospel as the supreme norm of our
lives,
by the power of his Spirit
who distributes his gifts to each according to his
will,
we seek to live together in mutual service of one
another
and of all people.
In this way, we co-operate in God’s plan
to gather all men and women into one Holy People.
3.
Among the gifts of the Spirit is the evangelical
life,
which we profess as religious,
called by Christ to live and to spread
his transforming and liberating power,
and even evangelical life itself,
in a manner that is specific to us,
effective, and contemporary.
This life is characterised by an intense search for
God,
in total adherence to Christ,
finding expression in fraternal life and apostolic
zeal.
4.
Inherent in this vocation
is the full acceptance of the conditions
which Christ sets
for those who wish to follow him in this kind of
life.
It involves acceptance of God’s will,
as sharing in Christ’s obedience.
It also includes the life of poverty
and community of goods,
as an expression of our unity in Christ
and of mutual gospel-inspired union with our
brothers.
Finally, it is consecrated chastity,
as an expression of our love of God
and of our brothers and sisters.
5.
We look upon our consecrated life above all as an
invitation
and a great gift from God,
by which he consecrates us to himself,
that we may serve our brothers and sisters
following Christ’s example.
This vocation perfects in us, through our shared
brotherhood,
the power, which is also charismatic, a gift of the
Spirit,
received at baptism and at confirmation,
binding us in a special way to the Church
and making us ready to serve God and humanity,
“to implant and strengthen the Kingdom of
Christ in souls,
and to spread it to the four corners of the
earth.”
6.
In this context,
we the Brothers of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount
Carmel
are engaged in a process of self-examination
and seek to define the characteristics
among the many existing charisms and vocations
which give our religious family its particular
identity
within the Church.
7.
At the time of the Crusades to the Holy Land,
hermits settled in various places throughout
Palestine.
Some of these, “following the example of
Elijah,
a holy man and a lover of solitude,
adopted a solitary life-style on Mount Carmel,
near a spring called Elijah’s Fountain.
In small cells, similar to the cells of a beehive,
they lived as God’s bees,
gathering the divine honey of spiritual
consolation.”
8.
Later, St. Albert, Patriarch of Jerusalem brought the
hermits together,
at their request, into a single “collegium”;
he gave them a formula for living
which expressed their own eremetical ideals (“propositum”)
and reflected the spirit of the so-called pilgrimage
to the Holy Land
and of the early community of Jerusalem.
Moved by “their love of the Holy Land”,
these hermits “consecrated themselves in this
Land
to the One who had paid for it by the shedding of his
blood,
in order that they might serve him,
clothed in the habit of religious poverty,”
persevering “in holy penance”
and forming a fraternal community.
9.
This way of life was approved successively by
Honorius III in 1226, by Gregory IX in 1229,
and by Innocent IV in 1245.
In 1247, Innocent IV approved it definitively
as an authentic rule of life,
amending it to suit Western conditions.
These adaptations became necessary
when the Carmelites began to migrate to the West
to escape persecution, and expressed a desire to lead
a life
“in which, with the help of God,
they would have the joy of working for their own
salvation
and that of their neighbour.”
10.
As a result of the approval of the Rule by Innocent
IV,
the Carmelites placed themselves at the service of
the Church,
according to the common ideal of the Mendicant
Orders,
also known as the Orders of Apostolic Brotherhood.
However, they retained the distinctive features
of their original charism;
and over the centuries the Order and the Church
found these features to belong to Carmelites,
especially because of the teachers of spiritual life
whom God raised up in the Order.
11.
The Rule outlines the guiding thrust of Carmelite
life
in allegiance to Christ,
according to the spirit of the Order.
We are to ponder the law of the Lord, by day and by
night,
in silence and in solitude,
so that the word of God
may dwell abundantly in the hearts
and on the lips of those who profess it.
We are to pray with perseverance,
especially by keeping vigil and praying the psalms.
We are also to be clothed in spiritual armour;
to live in fraternal communion,
expressed through the daily celebration of the
Eucharist,
through fraternal meetings in chapters,
through shared ownership of all material goods,
through fraternal and loving correction of failings,
and through a life of austerity, with work and
penance,
rooted in faith, hope and love,
always conforming one’s own will to
God’s,
sought in faith through dialogue
and through the prior’s service to his
brothers.
12.
Carmelite spirituality is characterised by two features.
The first is its Elijan trait
which the Carmelites developed living as they did on Mount Carmel,
the scene of the great prophet’s deeds.
Its second feature is an intimacy with Mary in our spiritual life,
eloquently witnessed by the title of being her brothers and
the dedication of the first Church on Mount Carmel in her honour.
13.
As the human race enters into a new period of its
history,
we seek, as Carmelites inspired by the Spirit at work
in the Church,
to adapt our way of life to new conditions.
We seek to understand the signs of the times
and to examine them in the light of the Gospel,
of our charism, and of our spiritual heritage,
so that we may incarnate this way of life in
different cultures.
14.
“To live a life of allegiance to Jesus Christ
and to serve him faithfully
with a pure heart
and a clear conscience”:
these words, inspired by St. Paul,
are the basis for all the elements of our charism;
they are the foundation upon which Albert constructed
our way of life.
The particular Palestinian context in which the Order
originated,
and the approval bestowed by the Holy See
at the various stages of the Order’s historical evolution,
gave new meaning and inspiration
to the way of life set out in the Rule.
Carmelites live their life of allegiance to Christ
through a commitment to seek the face of the living
God
(the contemplative dimension of life),
through fraternity,
and through service (diakonia)
in the midst of the people.
15.
The spiritual tradition of the Order has stressed
that these three fundamental elements of the charism
are not distinct and unrelated values,
but closely interwoven.
Down the ages the Carmelites have emphasised the dynamic
of the desert experience as a crucial factor in unifying these
values.
The desert experience is a Carmelite commitment
to make the crucified Christ - stripped and emptied -
the very foundation of their lives;
to channel their energies entirely towards him in
faith,
tearing down any obstacles which may stand in the way
of perfect dependence on him
or impede perfect charity towards God
and towards others.
This process of detachment which leads to union with
God
- the ultimate goal of all human growth -
is found in our spirituality in the expressions
“purity of heart” (“puritas cordis”)
and “total availability to God (“vacare Deo”)
These indicate a total openness to God
and a gradual self-emptying.
Through this process, when we come to see reality
with God’s eyes,
our attitude towards the world is transformed
according to his love,
and the contemplation of the loving presence of God
will be seen in our lives of fraternity and of
service.
16.
From its earliest days,
the community of Carmelites adopted a contemplative
style,
both in its structures and in its basic values.
This is clearly reflected in the Rule,
which describes a community of brothers,
totally dedicated to a prayerful attention to the
Word,
celebrating and
praising the Lord with zeal.
The Rule speaks of a community
whose members are open to the indwelling of the
Spirit
and formed by the Spirit’s values:
chastity, holy thoughts, justice,
love, faith, the expectation of salvation,
work accomplished in peace,
silence which, as the Prophet tells us,
is the cult of justice and brings wisdom to word and
action;
and discernment, “the guide and moderator of
all virtues.”
17.
The tradition of the Order
has always interpreted the Rule
and the founding charism
as expressions of the contemplative dimension of
life,
and the great spiritual teachers of the Carmelite
Family
have always returned to this contemplative vocation.
Contemplation begins when we entrust ourselves to
God,
in whatever way he chooses to approach us;
it is an attitude of openness to God,
whose presence we discover in all things.
Thus, contemplation is the inner journey of
Carmelites,
arising out of the free initiative of God,
who touches and transforms us,
leading us towards unity of love with him,
raising us up so that we may enjoy this gratuitous love
and live in his loving presence.
It is a transforming experience
of the overpowering love of God.
This love empties us
of our limited and imperfect human ways of
thinking, loving, and behaving,
transforming them into divine ways.
18.
Contemplation also has a gospel and an ecclesial
value.
The practice of contemplation
is not only the source of our spiritual life;
it also determines the quality of our fraternal life
and of our service in the midst of the people of God.
The values of contemplation
- when lived faithfully in the midst of the complex
events of daily life -
make Carmelite brotherhood a witness
to the living and mysterious presence of God among
his people.
The search for the face of God,
and openness to the gifts of the Spirit,
make us more attentive to the signs of the times
and more sensitive to the seeds of the Word in
history,
seeing and evaluating facts and events
within the Church and within society.
Through living like Christ,
in solidarity with the events
and the hopes of the human race,
Carmelites will be able to make appropriate decisions
to transform life, making it conform more closely
to the will of the Father.
Moreover, for the good of the Church,
the contemplative dimension
will encourage those who feel called to an eremetical
life.
19.
A contemplative attitude towards the world around us
allows us to discover the presence of God
in the events of ordinary daily life
and especially, to see him in our brothers and
sisters.
Thus we are led to appreciate the mystery
of those with whom we share our lives.
Our Rule requires us to be essentially
“brothers”,
and reminds us that the quality of interpersonal
relationships
within the Carmelite community
needs to be constantly developed
and enhanced, following the inspiring example
of the first community in Jerusalem.
For us to be brothers
means to grow in communion
and in unity,
overcoming privileges and distinctions,
in a spirit of participation and co-responsibility,
in sharing material possessions,
a common programme of life, and personal charisms;
to be brothers also means to care for one
another’s spiritual
and psychological well-being,
through walking in the way of dialogue and
reconciliation.
20.
These fraternal values find expression and
nourishment
in the Word,
in the Eucharist,
and in prayer.
Hearing, praying and living the Word
- in silence, in solitude and in community,
especially in the form of lectio divina -
Carmelites are led, day by day,
to know and experience the mystery of Jesus Christ.
Inspired
by the Spirit and rooted in Christ Jesus,
abiding in him by day and by night,
Carmelites allow every choice and every action
to be guided by his Word.
Inspired
by the Word
and in communion with the whole Church,
the brothers come together to praise the Lord,
and invite others to share in their experience of
prayer.
Every day, if possible, the brothers are called,
from solitude and from their apostolic work,
to the Eucharist
- source and culmination of their lives-
so that, gathered together around the Lord’s table,
they may be “united, heart and soul,”
living true, fraternal koinonia in unselfishness,
in mutual service,
in faithfulness to a common goal
and in a spirit of reconciliation inspired by
Christ’s love.
As a contemplative fraternity,
we seek the face of God and we serve the Church
in the world or possibly in eremetical solitude.
21.
As a contemplative brotherhood,
we seek the face of God also in the heart of the
world.
We believe that God has established his dwelling
place
among his people,
and for this reason, the Carmelite brotherhood knows
itself to be
a living part of the Church and of history
- an open fraternity, able to listen to the world it
lives in,
and willing to be questioned by it;
ready both to meet life’s challenges
and to give an authentic, evangelical response
based on our own charism.
Carmelites will show solidarity and will be eager to
collaborate
with all who suffer, who hope,
and who commit themselves to the search for the
Kingdom of God.
22.
The notion of travelling, hinted at in the Rule,
is an expression of the evangelical and apostolic
style
of the mendicant orders.
It is a call to the Carmelite brotherhood to discern
and to follow the ways marked out by the Lord’s
Spirit
for communities and individuals;
it is a sign of solidarity and of generous service
- both to the Universal and local Church,
and to the world of today.
23.
The community residence is where the community
“gathers” and lives;
for Carmelites, it is also a place of welcome and hospitality,
so that people share in a common spirit,
in fraternal reconciliation,
and in the experience of God lived in the community.
24.
Finally, this way of being “in the midst of the
people”
is a sign and a prophetic witness of new
relationships
of fraternity and friendship
among men and women everywhere.
It is a prophetic message of justice and peace in society
and among peoples.
As an integral part of the Good News,
this prophecy must be fulfilled through active
commitment
to the transformation of sinful systems and
structures
into grace-filled systems and structures.
It is also an expression of
“the choice to share in the lives
of “the little ones” (“minores”) of history,
so that we may speak a word of hope
and of salvation from their midst
- more by our life than by our words.”
This option flows naturally from our profession of
poverty
in a mendicant fraternity,
and is in keeping with our allegiance to Christ
Jesus,
lived out also through allegiance to the poor
and to those in whom the face of our Lord is
reflected
in a preferential way.
4. Elijah and Mary, our inspirations
25.
All that we desire and all that we wish to be today
was fulfilled
in the lives of the Prophet Elijah
and of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
In their own way, both had “the same spirit,
... the same formation, and the same teacher
- the Holy Spirit.”
By looking to Mary and to Elijah,
we can more easily understand and internalise,
live out and proclaim
the truth which makes us free.
26.
In Elijah we see the solitary prophet
who nurtured his thirst for the one and only God,
and lived in his presence.
He is the contemplative,
burning with passionate love for the Absolute who is
God,
“his word flaring like a torch.”
He is the mystic who,
after a long and wearisome journey,
learned to read the new signs of God’s
presence.
He is the prophet who became involved in the lives of
the people,
and who, by battling against false idols,
brought them back to faithfulness to their Covenant
with the One God.
He is the prophet
who was in solidarity with the poor and the
forgotten,
and who defended those who endured violence and
injustice.
From Elijah, Carmelites learn to be people of the
desert,
with heart undivided, standing before God
and entirely dedicated to his service,
uncompromising in the choice to serve God’s
cause,
aflame with a passionate love for God.
Like Elijah, they believe in God
and allow themselves to be led by the Spirit
and by the Word that has taken root in their hearts,
in order to bear witness to the divine presence in
the world,
allowing God to be truly God in their lives.
Finally, in Elijah they see, not only prophetic
wisdom,
but also brotherhood lived in community;
and
with Elijah they learn to be
channels of God’s tender love
for the poor and the humble.
27.
Mary, overshadowed by the Spirit of God,
is the Virgin of a new heart,
who gave a human face to the Word made flesh.
She is the Virgin of wise and contemplative listening
who kept and pondered in her heart
the events and the words of the Lord.
She is the faithful disciple of wisdom,
who sought Jesus - God’s Wisdom -
and allowed herself to be formed and moulded by his
Spirit,
so that in faith she might be conformed to his ways
and choices.
Thus enlightened, Mary is presented to us
as one able to read “the great wonders”
which God accomplished in her
for the salvation of the humble and of the poor.
Mary was not only the Mother of Our Lord;
she also became his perfect disciple, the woman of
faith.
She followed Jesus, walking with the disciples,
sharing their demanding and wearisome journey
- a journey which required, above all, fraternal love
and mutual service.
At the marriage feast in Cana, Mary taught us to
believe in her Son;
at the foot of the Cross, she became Mother to all who
believe;
with them she experiences the joy of the
Resurrection.
United with the other disciples “in constant
prayer,”
she received the first gifts of the Spirit,
who filled the earliest Christian community with
apostolic zeal.
Mary brings the good news of salvation to all men and
women.
She is the woman who built relationships,
not only within the inner circle of Jesus’
disciples,
but, beyond that, with the people:
with Elizabeth, with the bride and bridegroom in
Cana,
with the other women, and with Jesus’
“brothers”.
Carmelites see in the Virgin Mary, Mother of God
and archetype of the Church,
the perfect image of all that they want and hope to
be.
For this reason, Carmelites have always thought of
Mary
as the Patron of the Order,
its Mother and Splendour;
she is constantly before their eyes and in their
hearts
as “the Virgin Most Pure.”
Looking to her, and living in spiritual intimacy with
her,
we learn to stand before God,
and with one another,
as the Lord’s brothers.
Mary lives among us, as mother and sister,
attentive to our needs;
along with us she waits and hopes,
suffers and rejoices.
The scapular is a sign of Mary’s permanent
and constant motherly love for Carmelite brothers and
sisters.
By their devotion to the scapular,
faithful to a tradition in the Order, especially
since the 16th century,
Carmelites express the loving closeness of Mary to
the people of God;
it is a sign of consecration to Mary,
a means of uniting the faithful to the Order,
and an effective and popular means of evangelisation.
28.
The many and various embodiments of the Carmelite
charism
are for us a source of joy;
they confirm the rich and creative fruitfulness of
our charism,
lived under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit
- a fruitfulness to be welcomed with gratitude
and discernment.
All individuals and groups, whether institutional or
not,
which draw their inspiration from the Rule of St.
Albert,
from its tradition and from the values
expressed in Carmelite spirituality,
constitute the Carmelite Family within the Church
today.
This Family includes ourselves
and our brothers of the Teresian Reform;
the women religious of both branches;
affiliated religious congregations;
the Third Orders Secular;
secular institutes;
individuals affiliated with the Order through the
sacred scapular;
and those who by whatever title or bond are
affiliated with the Order;
those movements which, though juridically not part of
the Order,
seek inspiration and support from its spirituality;
and any man or woman who is drawn to the values of
Carmel.
Our
Life as Brothers
29.
The Holy
Trinity, source and model of the Church,
is also the source
and the model of our life as brothers.
The Trinitarian
communion (koinonia) of knowledge
and love in
which we share
comes to us as
gift,
and urges us to
open ourselves to knowledge and love of God
and of our
neighbours.
Thus, growth in knowledge
and in love within each local community,
open to the
entire Order, to the Church and to the whole human race,
manifests ever
more perfectly this fundamental element
of our identity
as brothers of Blessed Mary of Mount Carmel.
30.
Fraternal life
modelled on the Jerusalem community
is an
incarnation of God’s gratuitous love,
internalised
through an ongoing process
by which we
empty ourselves of all egocentricity
- which can
affect groups as much as individuals -
as we move
towards authentic centering in God.
In this way we
express the charismatic and prophetic nature
of the
consecrated Carmelite life,
weaving
harmoniously into it the personal charisms of each member,
in the service
of the Church and of the world.
We are therefore
called to renew ourselves,
as brothers in
dialogue with one another,
open to the
signs of the times
- and therefore
to all people -
welcoming those
who are involved in our ministry,
especially the
young and the poor.
We are also open
to developing new forms of community
and new
ministries,
that they may
have a decisive impact on the Church and on society,
inviting all
people to conversion.
Community life,
lived in the spirit of Elijah
and under the
protection of Mary, Mother of God and our Sister,
is thus the
expression and the test of our fraternal love.
31.
Communal life
must tend towards deeper union,
in mutual
knowledge and love.
To this end, our life in common
has moments of particular intensity and importance:
a) in the shared participation in
the Eucharist, through which we become
one body, and which is the source and the summit of our lives, and
therefore the sacrament of brotherhood;
b) in communal celebration of the
Liturgy of the Hours;
c) in prayerful listening to the
Word;
d) in meetings to be held
periodically, according to the Provincial
Statutes, to discuss issues which concern the life of the community;
e) in other community meetings, to
be held periodically according
to the Provincial Statutes, where - in a spirit of dialogue and discernment -
-
we study the Rule, the writings of our mystics, and the official
documents of the Church and of the Order;
-
we examine our faithfulness to the charism and to the mission
of the Order;
-
we share our experiences;
-
we develop our aims for community life; (progetto
comunitario)
-
we learn to read the signs of the times;
-
we make pastoral choices in the context of the local Church;
f) in the
common table and recreation together;
g) in common work,
manual and other, whether within the community
or elsewhere on behalf of the community;
h) in the
sharing of joys, anxieties and friendships,.
32.
All our activities outside the
house
shall be closely related to our
life within the house,
and shall form with it a
seamless whole.
It is the very purpose of
houses of apostolic Brotherhood
to be present among the people:
to be open and closely joined
with them,
stimulating a critical
reflection on their human needs.
In this way, our communities
will be authentic expressions of faith,
hope and charity,
and will become places
conducive to full human development.
33.
By its very
nature, community life must promote human,
intellectual,
spiritual and pastoral growth of all religious,
so that they may
be fully integrated into the community
and into its
mission, according to personal qualities and aptitudes.
Thus, the
expression of unity is to be sought in organic diversity
- not in
shapeless uniformity.
Discernment at all levels must precede
both the appropriate distribution of work
and the
community’s choice of particular activities.
In some cases,
experts and facilitators may be called upon
to assist us in
community dialogue.
Moreover, communities shall
ensure that no member is so overloaded with work
- be it
apostolic or other -
that community
life and religious exercises become impossible
or too
difficult.
Provincial Statutes shall
stipulate the length of the annual vacation for each religious.
34.
§ 1. In order to promote
the growth
of the contemplative and
fraternal dimensions of our lives,
both excessive activity and
undisciplined behaviour
should be avoided,
and likewise any life-style
which is contrary
to the deepest aspirations of
the consecrated life.
§ 2. Carmelites are to be
aware of the growing importance
of world-wide communication in
present-day society,
and of the major technological
innovations in this field.
There is no doubt that the mass
media can play
an important role in
evangelisation;
the abuse and manipulative use
of the media, however,
can endanger human dignity and
freedom.
Our communities shall therefore
evaluate the best ways
to make use of the mass media,
with a view both to
safeguarding the contemplative
and fraternal dimensions
of our lives, and to increasing
the effectiveness of our apostolate.
35.
Each community
shall comprise a sufficient number of friars
to create an
appropriate environment
in which a truly
fraternal life can develop.
Any friar who,
for reasons of health, study, or apostolate,
or for some
other legitimate motive, must live outside his house,
shall be
attached to a well-established community,
whose members
shall encourage a fraternal relationship,
assisting him in
his activities.
For his part, as far as he can,
he shall visit the community on a regular basis,
and shall willingly take part
in some of the community’s meetings,
in order to benefit more fully
from the advantages of brotherhood.
36.
Hospitality is a
characteristic of the fraternal life,
and it is to be
extended not only to the brothers within the Order
and to members
of their families,
but also to
others, insofar as possible.
37.
To ensure that
the economic structure of our religious life
does not
resemble existing global systems of unjust inequality,
fraternity
within the Carmelite family should find expression
in concern for
and sharing with communities throughout the Order,
in particular
the poorer among them.
38.
It is necessary to foster
attitudes of respect and gratitude
towards the elderly who have
spent their energies
labouring for the Order
and for the Church.
The community shall welcome
their contribution to its activities,
according to their abilities,
and shall avoid evaluating individuals
on the basis of such
anti-evangelical criteria as efficiency
and productivity.
Communities shall welcome as a
gift the presence of sick brothers,
seeing in them the suffering
Christ.
Our brotherhood must be
expressed in a very special way
in the loving consideration
with which we care
for our sick or infirm
brothers.
Communities shall ensure that
these brothers lack nothing
that might help them to regain
their health;
they shall be sent, if
necessary, to clinics or places of health care,
and shall have the support of
every spiritual help.
39.
To pray for the dead “is
a holy and pious thought”;
we shall therefore devoutly
remember in the Lord our dead brothers,
by offering Masses on their
behalf and praying for them,
so that we may remain in
spiritual union with them.
Provincial Statutes must define
the particular intercessions
for the Supreme Pontiff,
for dead confreres within the
Province or the house,
for members of the General
Council who die in office,
for former Generals, and for
the nuns of our Order.
The Prior General shall
designate intercessions for religious
who are not attached to a
particular Province.
On the death of
a confrere, the local Prior
shall notify the
Provincial Prior,
who, in turn,
shall notify the Prior General
and every house
within the Province,
providing a
brief biography of the deceased,
to be published
as soon as possible
in the official
publication of the Order.
40.
Daily conversion
to the Gospel is essential
if we are to remain
faithful to our vocation to fraternal life.
“Religious
communities must be seen in the Church as prayerful
and in a
constant process of conversion.”
We must seek
concrete forms of conversion,
above all through a constant
discernment of life
in the light of the Gospel,
of the signs of
the times, and the experience of the poor;
and through the
faithful fulfilment of our ministries,
taking into
account the circumstances and traditions
of the local
Church.
It is left to
individual communities,
in accordance
with their Provincial Statutes,
to develop the
most appropriate ways to practise the spirit of penance.
Provided they do
not contradict the prescriptions of canon law
or of the
Bishops’ Conference of the country concerned,
norms concerning fast and
abstinence
will be determined by
Provincial Statutes,
in keeping with the Rule,
taking into account the customs
and circumstances
of the local Church.
41.
Our religious
habit is “a sign of consecration,”
and consists of a
brown or dark tunic, a scapular
and a cappuce of
the same colour;
a leather belt
shall be worn over the tunic.
Provincial
Statutes may decide on a different colour,
if this is
necessary for a particular reason (for example, climate).
On more solemn occasions,
a white cloak shall be worn,
which is shorter
than the tunic
and has a white
cappuce of the same shape as the dark one.
Wearing of the
habit inside or outside the house
is a matter to
be decided by the Provincial Statutes,
with due regard
for the rights of the local Ordinary.
42.
In every house,
there shall be an area for the brethren.
Its extent shall
be determined by the community.
All friars shall respect the
rules which apply
to this reserved area of the
house;
for a just
reason, the Prior may allow exceptions to these rules.
43.
The essence and foundation of
consecrated life
is the radical following of
Jesus Christ.
The evangelical counsels of
obedience, poverty and chastity,
publicly professed in the
Church,
are a radical form of witness
to the following of Christ.
As we follow the obedient, poor
and chaste Christ,
we become less focused on
ourselves,
and we orient ourselves in
history to the search
for the Kingdom of God.
44.
Our consecrated
life,
configured to the life of
Christ
by means of the three
evangelical counsels
taken on by the
vows, and by other evangelical values,
is a gift from
God.
Its motivation
is not that “of the world”,”
yet it places us
in the world as witnesses to the value of life itself
as a precious
gift.
This value,
lived in the spirit of the beatitudes,
transfigures the
world according to the Father’s design.
45.
By means of religious obedience,
genuinely observed in deeds,
we surrender our will fully to
God.
Christ Jesus is the source and
the reason of our obedience.
He lived his freedom not in
self-sufficiency and personal autonomy,
but in obedience to the Father.
Christ’s obedience was
not only a commitment to do his Father's works, it was also a faithfulness to humanity
and to the salvation of all.
Jesus obeyed because he loved
his Father,
and because he loved us. Jesus
was wholly of God,
and wholly for people.
The only purpose of his life
was to bring about the Kingdom of God,
and to this goal
he remained faithful unto death.
46.
The Spirit of
Jesus lives in us;
we are not under
the law, but under grace.
Allowing the
Spirit to guide us,
we shall be taught
to discern the will of God,
and we shall be
led to the complete truth.
For us today,
following Christ in his obedience
means listening
together to the word of God,
received and
lived in the Church;
learning to read the signs of
the times
in order to discern the will of
God today,
and fulfilling
faithfully, day by day,
whatever mission
he entrusts to us.
This involves a constant and
profound process of transformation
in order to internalise the
will of God,
which is always creative and
life-giving,
so that we may not only freely
choose to act in accordance with the divine commandments,
but being purified we may
adhere more and more fully
to the God who loves us.
47.
We commit
ourselves to obey God’s will not only as individuals,
but also as a
community.
It is in
community that together we seek to know the will of God.
We engage in
this search in a spirit of mutual discipleship and co-responsibility,
as we listen to
and fulfil the Word of God,
read in the
light of the signs of the times
and in keeping
with the charism of the Order.
In this way, we
are brothers in obedience; side by side and together,
we face the
challenges of the Gospel
and the coming
of the Kingdom of God.
48.
The Prior, conscious of the
presence of Christ
and of his Gospel at the heart
of the community,
shall place himself at the
service of God’s will
and at the service of his
brethren,
guiding them to mature and
responsible obedience to Christ,
through dialogue and timely
discernment,
while remaining firm in his
authority
to decide and to command what
must be done.
In the community, the
Prior must be a stimulus
to live out our charism;
he must be a sign and a bond of
unity.
The brothers are to “hold
their prior humbly in honour,
thinking not so much of him
as of Christ who placed him
over [them].”
49.
In grave cases, a major
superior may impose a precept
(praeceptum) on a member,
by virtue of the vow of
obedience.
Such a precept shall be given
in writing
or in the presence of two witnesses.
50.
Jesus Christ the
poor man, was born and lived in lowliness.
During his life
on earth, he chose to be deprived
of all worldly
riches, power and prestige.
He took the form
of a slave, becoming as human beings are,
and identified
with the “little ones” and with the poor.
He shared all of
his life with his disciples;
he shared his
Father’s plans, his mission, his prayer.
In this way, he
became not only their master,
but their friend
and brother.
On the cross, in
keeping with the Father’s plan,
Jesus experienced absolute
nakedness and radical poverty.
From the cross he gave himself
up completely,
for the sake of
humanity.
Rich though he
was, Jesus became poor for us,
so that, through
his poverty, we might be made rich.
51.
As they followed Jesus, the
poor man,
the early Christian
communities, inspired by
fraternal communion (koinonia),
lived and pursued a sharing of
all material and spiritual goods.
52.
As we follow Jesus and take as
our model
the life of the primitive
Church,
we too wish to embrace
willingly the gift
of the evangelical counsel of
poverty,
by our vow to hold all things
in common,
and by declaring that no object
belongs to any of us personally.
We believe that all we have is
gift, and that all we have
- all the spiritual, material,
and cultural goods
that are obtained by our labour
-
must be freely returned, in
whatever way can best serve the good of
the Church and of our Order,
for the human and social
development of all.
53.
Poverty is a
complex and ambiguous reality.
When it is the
absence of the necessary means for survival,
resulting from
injustice or personal and social sin, it is an evil.
But it can also be a Gospel
form of life adopted by those
who trust in God alone, sharing
all their possessions,
identifying with the poor in a
spirit of solidarity, renouncing all desire for dominion or self-sufficiency.
In contemplation, we
internalise the authentic attitude of poverty,
which is a deep process of
inner self-emptying
through which we become less
and less in control
of our own activity and ideas,
of our virtues and of our
ambitions,
as we open ourselves to
God’s action.
In this way, we become truly poor
as Christ was poor,
even to the point of not owning
the poverty we have chosen
in this process by which
God’s love empties us.
54.
Thus, we who freely chose
poverty as our evangelical lifestyle
feel called by the Gospel and
by the Church
to awaken people’s
consciences
to the problems of destitution,
hunger and social injustice.
We shall accomplish this
purpose if
- first and foremost -
our own poverty witnesses to
the human meaning of work
as a means of sustaining life
and as service to others;
if we undertake to study and to
understand
the economic, social and moral
causes of that poverty
which stems from injustice;
if we use our possessions with
restraint and simplicity,
making them available to
others, even free of charge,
in the service of the human and
spiritual development
of our fellow men and women;
and, finally, if we engage in
healthy and balanced discernment
with regard to the ways in
which we are present among the people,
choosing ways which foster the
liberation
and the integral development of
human beings.
55.
Hence, solemnly professed
religious
shall have no personal material
possessions;
whatever they receive shall
belong to the house, to the Province,
or to the Order, according to
these Constitutions
and the Provincial Statutes.
56.
Without prejudice to the
canonical validity
of all that is set forth in
article 55,
in countries where civil law
does not recognise
the effect of solemn
profession, members may perform
certain juridical acts
(donations, wills, etc.) in civil courts
and with civil validity, in
favour of the house, the Province,
or the Order.
In those cases where civil law
does not even recognise the house,
the Province, or the Order as
juridical persons,
members may act, in civil courts,
as if they were owners,
but always without prejudice to
the canonical validity
of the laws set forth above.
57.
In our use of material goods,
it is our responsibility before God
to observe faithfully the
poverty which we have freely professed,
keeping in mind that we make
the vow of poverty
in order to live a simple life,
individually and within our communities,
avoiding whatever might offend
the sensibilities of the poor.
Provincial Statutes shall
decide what amount should be made
available to each religious for
his personal expenses,
taking into account that needs
may differ
from one country to another.
Rules concerning fasting and
abstinence, set forth in article 40,
should also encourage us to
live simply and to help the poor.
58.
Let us remember that in our
time the best way to make manifest
our vow of poverty
is to faithfully fulfil the
common law of work.
Let us, therefore, embrace with
enthusiasm the precept of the Rule,
which invites us to work
assiduously,
for we know that by our toil we
co-operate in God's work of creation
and, at the same time, develop
our own personalities;
by our active charity we assist
our confreres, and all others;
and we contribute to the good
of the Order.
Moreover, we perpetuate the
dignity Jesus gave to work
- for he never disdained manual
labour -
and we follow the example of
the Blessed Virgin Mary,
whose life on earth was full of
ordinary concerns and work.
59.
The God of the
Kingdom and the Kingdom of God
are the
essential points of reference
and the
universal framework for our celibate lives,
and for all
Christian existence.
“Only
God’s love can call us decisively to religious chastity.
This love
demands a fraternal charity so powerful
that it will
lead religious to live more deeply with
their fellow men
and women
in the heart of
Christ.
The gift of self, to God and to
others, will then be
the source of profound
peace.”
60.
Christ Jesus, the chaste man,
dedicated himself wholly to the
cause of the Kingdom.
He loved everyone, especially
the “little ones” and the poor.
His love was never possessive:it was liberating,
totally dedicated to the
service of his brothers and sisters.
His life was limpid and the
epiphany of the face of the Father.
61.
As we follow Jesus in his
chastity,
our celibacy also takes on the
quality of a full and total love for God
and for every human being.
Aware of God’s love,
which stands over every individual,
Carmelites must be continually
transformed
by this disinterested and
unconditional divine love.
Such internalisation occurs
through a process
of continuous transformation of
all our affectivity,
so that we become truly chaste
through full personal development.
Through the power of such
chaste and undivided love,
our interpersonal relationships
grow in truth and in transparency.
In a world often torn by
struggle and division,
the one who is new and chaste
in the Spirit
is the epiphany and radiance of
the liberating presence of our Lord.
62.
Love lived out
in celibacy has for us
- as it had for
Jesus -
both mystical
value and social or political value:
it is at the
same time the undivided love of God
- the only
Absolute who gives meaning to our existence -
and a
preferential, gratuitous and liberating love
for the humble
and the poor,
in order that
the values of the Kingdom of God
- equality,
solidarity, and dignity of the human person -
may take root
and spread throughout the human community.
63.
The charism of
consecrated chastity is a gift from God;
but we know that
we carry this gift in earthen vessels,
that is, in our
weak and fragile humanity.
For this reason,
we feel the need to live according to values
which promote a
balanced and mature integration of our affectivity
and of our
capacity for a tenderness with evangelical attitudes,
in a way that is
coherent with our way of living.
If our celibate
life, chosen for the Kingdom,
is to be a suitable
vehicle for our maturity as human beings
and for our
growth in faith,
we need to be
instructed,
first of all in
authentic brotherly love;
in communication
and community dialogue;
and in the
ability to love others not possessively,
but appreciating
them as persons.
We must learn
also the meaning of gift, of gratuitous service,
and of
straightforwardness in friendships.
Finally, we must
come to understand silence
as attentiveness
to the Word,
and Christian
asceticism as that which purifies our feelings
and
re-establishes our authentic relationships with others,
sharing in the
Cross of Christ,
who carried to the limit his
selfless love for his Father
and for his brothers and
sisters.
1. Prayer in general
64.
The Holy Trinity draws us into
communion with themselves
and with one another, in faith,
in hope and in charity.
These virtues are experienced,
nourished and expressed in prayer,
as we turn our attention to
God, in adoration and in love,
in obedient listening, in
sincere contrition,
and in hope-filled petition.
Prayer is the fruit of the
action of the Holy Spirit in us
and in our lives.
It is the Spirit
who gives us words when we can find no words;
who leads us to
unity with the entire Church;
who helps us to
deepen our experience of intimacy with God.
The Carmelite tradition of
prayer is built
on the concrete prayer
experience of its members throughout history.
This experience tells the story
of the loving presence of God
in the lives of Carmelites,
so that they can say, with the psalmist,
“O magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together.,”
and “O taste and see that
the LORD is good; happy are those who take refuge in him.”
From the beginning,
the Carmelite Order has taken on both
a life of prayer
and an
apostolate of prayer.
Prayer is the
centre of our lives,
and authentic
community and ministry spring from this source.
The prayer of
the Carmelite community is
a sign of the praying
Church to the world.
It recalls the
example of Mary, Mother of Jesus,
who “kept
all these things and pondered them in her heart,”
praising the
wonders that the Lord had worked in her.
By meditating
and entering ever more deeply into
the mystery of
Christ,
we become more
obedient in following him,
deepening our
commitment to work as his disciples
for the redemption of humanity.
In the Our Father, Jesus taught us to pray in a way that
unites heaven and earth.
Thus in our
spirituality we integrate our love for the world
and our sense of
the transcendent.
65.
Seeking inspiration in the
authentic sources of Christian spirituality,
we bring together our sense of
God and our human experience.
When we pray, we keep in mind
the needs and the concerns
of the world we live in,
together with an awareness of our own calling
to serve all the members of the
Church.
This may require communities to
search for new ways of praying,
such as shared meditation,
communal biblical prayer,
and also other new forms.
66.
Prayer can assume a variety of
forms,
according to the needs of the
community and of each individual;
it is nourished by the constant
search for God,
supported by lectio divina,
by study,
by meditation
and by the sacraments.
This constant search for God
must be the foundation
and the highest expression of
community life.
67.
The silence of solitude which
individuals
and communities must cultivate
makes us docile to the voice of
the Holy Spirit.
In all the houses of the Order
we must therefore create and foster
an atmosphere of silence,
recollection and solitude.
This will enable us to engage
more easily in personal prayer,
and to make our study and other
activities more fruitful.
However, specific norms on such
matters shall be decided
by local Chapters, according to
the Provincial Statutes.
68.
It is extremely desirable that
wherever possible
Provinces and Regions establish
and develop centres of spirituality, retreats and study, and to make these
available,
both to the brethren and to
others
who are drawn to the
spirituality of our Order,
for retreats and spiritual
exercises.
Moreover, regional and
international co-operation among existing
spirituality centres and houses
of study shall be promoted.
69.
As in the
primitive Church, as religious we are called
to celebrate
together the Eucharist and the Liturgy of the Hours.
Liturgical
prayer is the highest form
of communal
encounter with God,
and brings about
what it celebrates.
Personal prayeris intimately linked with
liturgical prayer;
one flows
from the other.
70.
The daily
celebration of the Eucharistic Sacrifice is to be
“the
centre and the culmination of the life of the community.”
It is our way of
expressing our desire to go with Christ to the Father.
We offer him in
total sacrifice our daily lives
intimately
united with Christ’s paschal mystery,
so that we may
be perfected daily in union with God
and with one
another,
through Christ
the Mediator,
and so that God
may finally become all in all.
In the
celebration of the Eucharist, as we share
in the table of
the Lord
and participate
in the effects of Christ’s sacrifice,
community is
built,
and our unity
with the entire family of believers
is established
and made manifest.
71.
The sacred liturgy unites us
with the apostolic witness
and with the faith of the
entire Church.
Communal liturgical
celebrations are moreover
a central characteristic of our
Rule.
In addition to a diligent
preparation of our liturgies,
we must grow in love for
liturgy and in our concern for its renewal.
In this way, we hope to deepen
our contemplative participation in the mystery which we celebrate.
72.
The public
prayer of the Church is the manifestation
of our
participation in the Church at prayer,
which, together
with Christ,
“is
ceaselessly engaged in praising the Lord
and interceding
for the salvation of the entire world.”
From its
pre-eminence as the public and official prayer of the Church,
it is a fruitful
source for the spiritual life of those who share in it.
“The Liturgy of the Hours
extends praise and prayer
to the different hours of the
day,
making present the mysteries of
salvation,
the prayers of intercession,
and the foretaste of heavenly
glory
which are offered to us in the
Eucharistic Mystery.”
Together with the Eucharistic
celebration,
the Liturgy of the Hours
unfolds for us continuously
throughout the liturgical year
the mysteries of the redemption
accomplished for us by Our Lord
Jesus Christ,
so that we may encounter them
and thus be filled
with the grace of salvation.
73.
The Liturgy of
the Hours is to be celebrated in common;
provision should
therefore be made to allow
all members to
participate.
Where special
difficulties exist in a particular community,
at least Morning
and Evening Prayer shall be recited in common every day.
Those parts
which, for whatever reason, are not recited in common,
shall be said in
private.
74.
In places where we engage in
pastoral work,
it is fitting that we celebrate
some part of
the Liturgy of the Hours with
the faithful.
75.
We shall confess
our sins frequently to the Church
in the sacrament
of reconciliation,
also celebrating
it communally in keeping with the practices
of local
Churches.
We shall thus
obtain forgiveness
through
God’s mercy
for the offences
we have committed against him,
and shall at the
same time be reconciled with the Church.
76.
Every member of the Order can
confess to any priest
in full communion with the
Church;
by virtue of these
Constitutions, the priest immediately receives
the necessary jurisdiction, if
there is need of such.
77.
Christians are certainly called
to pray together;
however, they must also draw
apart and pray to the Father in secret.
The practice of the presence of
God,
which is a Carmelite tradition,
has become increasingly
difficult in these modern times.
We must therefore make special
efforts to help one another
to seek God through prayer
that is intimately linked with
ordinary daily life.
In the same way Carmelites are
called to a deeper experience
of those forms of prayer
which are most in harmony with
our own particular spirituality.
We are encouraged to seek new
forms of prayer in line with our charism.
78.
Spiritual formation shall be
closely linked with doctrinal
and pastoral formation,
and shall be presented in such
a way
that it may teach us to live in
intimate communion
and friendship with the Father,
through his Son Jesus Christ,
and in the Holy Spirit.
Let us live the paschal mystery
and seek Christ in our daily
lives;
in active participation in the
Eucharist
and in the Liturgy of the
Hours;
In people, especially the poor,
the sick, children
and those who have no faith.
Our entire lives must be imbued
with a deep religious sense,
so that we may view the events
of our own lives
and of the world around us
in the light of God.
Thus our whole life must be
deeply contemplative,
so that we may come to see all
that happens
as if with the eyes of God.
79.
Contemplation in
the Carmelite tradition
is truly a free
gift from God.
God takes the
initiative, he reaches out to us
and fills us ever
more deeply with his life and his love;
we respond to
him by allowing him to be God in our lives.
Contemplation is
an attitude of openness to God,
whose presence
we discover everywhere.
In this way we
follow the examples of the prophet Elijah,
who ceaselessly
looked for God,
and of Mary,
who pondered all
things in her heart.
80.
Silent prayer is
of great assistance
in developing a
spirit of contemplation;
we should
therefore practise it daily for an appropriate length of time.
81.
A life of prayer
also requires us
to examine our
way of life in the light of the Gospel,
so that prayer
may influence both our personal lives
and the lives of our
communities.
82.
Lectio divina is an authentic source of Christian spirituality
recommended by
our Rule.
We therefore
practise it every day,
so that we may
develop a deep and genuine love for it,
and so that we
may grow in the surpassing knowledge of Christ.
In this way we
shall put into practice
the Apostle
Paul’s commandment,
which is
mentioned in our Rule:
“Let the
sword of the spirit, the Word of God,
live abundantly
in your mouth and in your hearts;
and whatever you
must do,
do it in the
name of the Lord.”
It is suggested
that lectio divina be practised
communally
on a regular
basis,
so that the
brethren may share their experience of God
and respond
together to the challenges of his Word.
83.
The reading of
spiritual books,
especially the
works of authors of our Order,
is highly
recommended.
84.
Retreats and days
of recollection shall be decided by communities,
according to the
guidelines given in the Provincial Statutes.
The one indispensable
thing is
that prayer
permeate our lives,
so that, in
faith, hope and charity,
we may be able
to glorify the name of the Father on earth,
in union with
Christ. “We must pray at all times!”
85.
During her life
on earth,
the Blessed
Virgin Mary showed herself to be
the perfect
image for the disciple of Christ.
For this reason,
in her apostolic mission
the Church
follows the example of the Virgin Mother of God
- the perfect
model of the following of Christ-
especially in her commitment to
our redemption,
which Mary actively
participated in from her “Fiat” to the Incarnation,
to her presence
at the foot of the Cross,
and in her
solidarity with the first Christian community
gathered in
prayer.
86.
Veneration of
the Blessed Virgin Mary,
and the
obligation to spread this devotion,
are intrinsic parts
of the Order’s mission within the Church.
In keeping with
the intention of the Church itself, therefore,
let us
generously promote veneration of the Blessed Virgin,
especially in
the liturgy.
The example of
the Blessed Virgin Mary,
as it emerges
from the liturgy itself,
will inspire the
faithful to imitate their Mother
and, through
her, her Son.
This will lead
them to celebrate the mysteries of Christ
with the same
dispositions and attitudes
with which the
Virgin contemplated
her Son in Bethlehem,
in Nazareth,
and in his
self-emptying,
and exulted
together with all of her new children
at his
Resurrection.
We have great
respect for the pious practices and devotions
to Mary
recommended over the centuries
by the teaching
authority of the Church.
While
traditional forms of Marian devotion
(such as the
wearing of the scapular
and the
recitation of the Holy Rosary)
should be
preserved, new ones may also be introduced.
87.
As Carmelites,
we express our devotion to
the Blessed Virgin
Mary of Mount Carmel
by celebrating
her Commemoration every year with special solemnity.
All other Marian
feasts included in the liturgical calendar
shall also be
celebrated solemnly
and, when
liturgical law permits,
the Votive Mass
of the Blessed Virgin of Mount Carmel
and the Office
of Mary are recommended on Saturdays.
Moreover, it is
recommended
that each
community gather daily to sing
the Flos Carmeli (Flower of Carmel),
the Salve Regina (Hail Holy Queen),
or some other
Marian antiphon,
in keeping with
the liturgical season.
88.
During the
liturgical year, the Church celebrates
the paschal
mystery of Christ
realised in the
saints.
Carmelites are
called to celebrate their saints with particular devotion,
finding in them the
most intense and authentic expression
of the charism
and spirituality of the Order through the centuries.
The feast of the
prophet Elijah
and the memorial
of the prophet Elisha,
and the feasts
of the protectors of the Order
- St. Joseph, St.
Joachim and St. Anne -
are to be
celebrated with particular solemnity.
89.
The Carmelite
scapular is a sacramental of the Church;
as such, it is a
fitting symbol
to express our
devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary
and the
affiliation of the faithful to the Carmelite Family.
The scapular
calls to mind the virtues of the Blessed Virgin
with which we
are to clothe ourselves
- in particular,
intimate union with God
and humble
service to others in God’s Church,
in the hope of
eternal salvation.
90.
The Marian
shrines in which we exercise our apostolate
and to which the
faithful traditionally come in large numbers,
are to be held
in high regard.
They are to
become more and more centres
where the Word
is prayerfully heard
and where there
is liturgical life
with appropriate
celebrations (Eucharist and Reconciliation).
In particular,
our shrines shall increasingly become
centres of
reflection
on the path
taken by Mary
and centres of
evangelisation,
with special
attention to popular devotion to the one
who is Mother of
God,
of the Church, and of all
humanity.
Shrines also have an exemplary function:
they are places
of welcome, attracting vocations;
places of
solidarity, providing services to needy brothers and sisters;
places of ecumenical
commitment with meetings and
prayers.
91.
Our Carmelite
mission shares in the mission of Jesus,
who was sent to
proclaim the Good News of the Kingdom of God
and to bring
about the total liberation of humanity
from all sin and
oppression.
Our ministry as
Carmelites is, therefore an integral part
of our charism.
We are guided in
this by the teaching of the pastors of the Church;
by our tradition
and by the
values it upholds;
by the signs of
the times;
and above all,
by attentive listening to the Word,
having regard
also for its interpretation
from the
perspective of the poor.
We are to
evaluate and renew our service (diakonia)
in the Church,
so that we may
better respond to the questions raised
by the cultural,
social and religious circumstances of the people.
In our mission,
we must take into account
the talents and
charisms of the brethren,
and be aware of
the natural limitations of our contribution.
92.
We Carmelites must fulfil our
mission among the people
first and foremost through the
richness of our contemplative life.
Our prophetic action may take
many and different forms of apostolic service.
Since not all forms of
apostolic work easily fit in with our charism
or with the resources of an
individual community,
we must always discern among
the various options presented in any given situation.
93.
Inspired by the
fundamental directions of our charism
and by
present-day ecclesial and social contexts,
the following
guidelines are offered
for the
discernment of our apostolic mission:
- a life of
brotherhood and prayer in the midst of the people;
- a response
to the needs of the local and universal Church;
- a
preferential service to the poor and the marginalized;
- a special
attention to issues concerning women;
- a commitment
to justice and peace;
- a care for
those who show an interest in the spirit, the spiritual
heritage, and the life of
Carmel.
In these ways we
commit ourselves to listening to God,
as he speaks to
us in Scripture and in the history of our people.
94.
We shall
therefore study needs and demands,
both religious
and social, in every time and place
so that we may
strengthen our witness
to a spirit of community
among all the People of God,
by means of
various appropriate apostolic activities,
initiated and
implemented in a spirit of fraternal co-operation.
95.
Faithful to the
spiritual heritage of the Order,
we shall
therefore channel our diverse works
to the goal of
promoting the search for God
and the life of
prayer.
In our various
apostolates we shall be inspired by Mary:
her presence
among the Apostles;
her motherhood
of the Church,
which she
received at the foot of the Cross;
her attentiveness
to the Word of God,
and her total
obedience to the divine will.
To this end, we
shall foster and nourish among the people
the memory of
Mary and devotion to her.
96.
In the
Scriptures and in Carmelite
tradition,
the prophet
Elijah is respected as the one
who in various
ways knew how to read the new signs
of the presence
of God
and who was
able, not least,
to reconcile
those who had become strangers or enemies.
As Carmelites,
heartened by this example
and by our strong
desire to put into practice our Lord's teachings
of love and
reconciliation,
we shall take
part in the ecumenical movement
and in
inter-religious dialogue,
promoted by the
Second Vatican Council.
Through the
former we shall promote relationships
with the
Orthodox and other Christians.
Through the
latter we shall promote dialogue at various levels
with Jews and
Muslims,
with whom we
share devotion to the prophet Elijah as a man of God;
we shall enter
into dialogue also with Hindus and Buddhists
and those of
other religions.
Moreover, Carmelites are to
make themselves available
to accompany those who
genuinely desire
to experience the transcendent
in their lives
or who wish to share their
experience of God.
97.
While preserving
its universal character,
the Order shall
endeavour to be fully involved
in the life of
local Churches.
This implies
close co-operation with the various elements
of these
Churches.
Within local Churches,
we shall offer the contribution of our charism
to the task of
evangelisation
by fostering a
deeper grasp of the contemplative dimension of life,
of fraternity,
and concrete commitment to justice.
98.
To the extent that it is
possible, we shall be prepared to undertake
- in keeping with the legal and
pastoral provisions of the Church
and of our Order -
various forms of apostolate
requested by the Church,
in accordance with the needs of
time and of place.
We achieve this through parish
work,
service to the faithful in
churches,
instruction of young people in
schools and elsewhere,
preaching of retreats, study,
spiritual direction,
guidance about spiritual
problems,
and other initiatives.
99.
Guided by the Magisterium,
by the official documents of
the Order,
and by the signs of the times,
we shall willingly invite and
introduce the faithful
to our rich tradition and to
the experience of contemplation.
We shall encourage lay people
to develop
their own particular gifts and charisms
so that they may be involved in
the mission of the Church.
Let our mission,
inspired by the criteria set
forth in articles 93 and 97,
be one that both evangelises
and is evangelised within the Church
- a mission that is
particularly concerned
for those who have lost their
way.
100.
We also
accomplish our mission through the work we do in parishes
in response to
the pastoral needs of local churches.
A new parish is
accepted by means of a written agreement
which shall be
drawn up, in accordance
with the
requirements of canon law,
between the
Prior Provincial, with the express consent of his Council,
and the local
Ordinary.
Provincial
Statutes shall define the criteria to be applied
when accepting
parishes.
101.
If a parish is
erected in a church belonging to the Order,
the above
agreement must clearly define the relationship
between the
parish and the religious community,
particularly
with regard to the use of the church
and to financial
matters.
102.
§ 1. For the conferral of offices
in a diocese,
the Prior Provincial, after
consultation with his Council,
shall admit or present to the
bishop those brethren
who give sufficient evidence of
suitability.
§ 2. As religious, those friars who are
engaged in diocesan duties
in accordance with some
agreement remain subject
to the authority of their own
superiors.
In matters pertaining to their
duties,
they are subject to the
authority of those
in whose service they are
employed.
103.
Those who are
engaged in any type of ministry within a diocese
are subject to
the jurisdiction of the Bishop,
in keeping with
canon law,
in all matters
pertaining to the faithful execution
of their
pastoral duties.
104.
Provincial
Statutes may determine whether or not
the offices of
pastor and local prior may be held by the same person,
and set the
maximum time for which a religious may hold the office
of parish priest
in the same parish;
they may also
define the relationship between
the parish
priest and the community of religious,
as regards co-operation in the
apostolic activities of the parish.
105.
The mission ad gentes
- in other words, the task of
announcing the Gospel
in places where it is not known
-
is one of the fundamental
activities of the Church,
for the Church is missionary by
its very nature.
The main agent of the mission ad gentes is the Holy Spirit,
who inspires Provinces and
Commissariats
to appoint members to this
task.
It is the Spirit who gives the
missionary charism
to those who are sent.
In this work the Order
recognises “immense opportunities
in such areas as charity,
evangelical proclamation,
Christian education, culture,
and solidarity with the poor,
the marginalized, the oppressed,
and those who suffer
discrimination.”
All our
communities shall support this essential task
with their
prayers and by encouraging the faithful
to become
personally involved
and, according
to their circumstances, to provide material help.
Missionary work
requires a specific spirituality
and a process of
inculturation;
we are confident
therefore, that the mission ad gentes
will reveal the
heart of the Carmelite charism in a new way
for the good of
the Church and of the Order.
106.
The Apostle enjoins us to do
good to everyone,
especially our brothers and
sisters in the faith.
Therefore, the members of the
Order shall develop
a love and concern for those
who are inspired
by the same Carmelite ideal.
Since the Carmelite charism is
given to the whole Carmelite family,
all its members have an
important role in the formation of others
in whatever sphere these are
found,
so that the various expressions
of Carmelite life
may be mutually enriched.
107.
We shall
accompany the Carmelite nuns
and we shall
support each other as far as possible.
A Provincial
Delegate for the nuns shall be appointed in each Province
in accordance
with the Provincial Statutes,
in provinces
where there is at least one monastery of Carmelite nuns.
In addition, a
General Delegate shall be appointed,
who shall be
responsible for developing relationships
between
monasteries and exchanging information.
The General
Delegate shall work in collaboration
with the
Religious Federal Assistant, where there is one.
108.
Mutual co-operation with the
sisters of institutes affiliated with the Order
is to be promoted.
109.
The Carmelite Order is enriched
by the faithful who,
inspired by the Holy Spirit,
order their lives according to the Gospel
and in the Carmelite spirit.
The Third Order and the other
forms of Carmelite laity
influence the spirit and the
structure of the entire Carmelite family.
Let us help them to reach the
goal they have set for themselves:
of healing and developing human
society
through the leaven of the
Gospel.
A General Delegate shall be
appointed for the various forms of Carmelite laity.
Provincial Statutes shall
provide for delegates at other levels.
110.
Christ did not
bring about the salvation of the human race
as an outsider
or as a stranger to the history of the world.
On the contrary,
he identified both with his people
and with the
whole human race.
Those who
“claim to be followers of Christ must heed his call,
especially when
he says:
‘I was
hungry and you gave me to eat;
I was thirsty
and you gave me to drink;
I was a stranger
and you welcomed me;
I was naked and
you clothed me;
I was sick and you
visited me;
I was in prison
and you came to me.’”
111.
We live in a
world full of injustice and disquiet.
It is our duty
to contribute to the search for an understanding
of the causes of
these evils;
to be in
solidarity with the sufferings of those who are marginalized;
to share in
their struggle for justice and peace;
and to fight for
their total liberation,
helping them to
fulfil their desire for a decent life.
112.
The poor, the
“little ones” (minores),
constitute the
vast majority of the world population.
Their complex
problems are linked and, to a large extent,
are caused by
current international relations
and, more
directly, by the economic and political systems
which govern our
world today.
We cannot turn a
deaf ear to the cry of the oppressed
who plead for
justice.
113.
We must hear and
interpret reality from the perspective of the poor
- of those who
are oppressed by the economic and political systems
which today
govern humanity.
Their problems are
many, and we must set priorities
in responding to
them.
In this way, we
shall rediscover the Gospel as good news,
and Jesus Christ as the
liberator from all forms of oppression.
114.
Social reality
challenges us.
Attentive to the
cry of the poor, and faithful to the Gospel,
we must take our
stand with them,
making an option
for the “little ones”.
“There is
a growing desire within the Order to choose solidarity
with the
“little ones” of history,
to bring to our
brothers and sisters
a word of hope
and salvation from their midst,
more by our
lives than by our words
... We recommend
this option for the poor,
because it is in
keeping with the charism of the Order,
which can be
summarised as
‘a life in
allegiance to Jesus Christ’;
allegiance to
Jesus also means allegiance to the poor
and to those in
whom the face of Christ is mirrored preferentially.”
115.
Our Elijan
inspiration, which our prophetic charism is founded on,
calls us to walk
with the “little ones”
along the paths
the prophet travelled in his time
- along the path
of justice, opposing false ideologies
and moving
towards a concrete experience of the true living God;
along the path
of solidarity,
defending the
victims of injustice and taking their part;
along the path of
mysticism,
struggling to
restore to the poor faith in themselves
by renewing
their awareness that God is on their side.
116.
To prepare and
educate ourselves so that we may take on
“the
circumstances of the poor” in an evangelical manner,
we propose to
re-read the Bible,
also from the
perspective of the poor,
of the oppressed
and of the marginalized;
to consider the
Christian principles of justice and peace
as an integral
part of our formation at every level;
to immerse
ourselves in the circumstances of the poor;
to use the tools
of social analysis, in the light of faith,
as a means to
discover the presence of sin
incarnated in certain
political, socio-economic
and cultural
structures;
to defend and to
encourage even the smallest traces of vitality.
Formation
117.
Carmelite
formation is a specific process through which a person learns to identify fully
with the Carmelite ideal of life, which consists in contemplative fraternity
lived in the midst of the people.
Carmelites learn
to be more and more authentic disciples of Jesus Christ through their
formation, participating in the offering he makes of himself to the Father, and
sharing fully in his mission for the good of humanity, in keeping with the
specific charism of the Carmelite Order.
118.
Carmelites are
called to maturity in Jesus Christ by virtue of baptism and confirmation and
are therefore engaged in a continual process of conversion of heart and
spiritual transformation. This is a life-long process which brings them into
ever deeper communion with Jesus Christ our brother, in a spirit of solidarity
and interdependence with all those in need of liberation and with the whole of
creation which awaits redemption.
Through this
process of growth in maturity, religious are enabled to grasp objectively a
reality which is both personal and communal, to evaluate critically and then
express the difference between theory and practice, and to grow continually in
interpersonal and community relationships.
119.
Our communities
are to develop a lifestyle which will show this conversion and continual
development of life in Christ, expressed in a spirit of thanksgiving for the
vocation they have received. In this way their very existence will evangelise,
attracting and inviting new vocations.
120.
The following
guidelines are offered for candidates in initial formation. They reflect the
process of formation in which we are engaged. The relationship between
professed religious and new candidates should be based on interaction and
openness to the promptings of the Holy Spirit. Committed members personify what
the Order demands and the living charism of our tradition; new candidates
challenge and stimulate us through the personal gifts they have received from
the Holy Spirit, thereby enriching and renewing Carmelite life.
121.
The process of formation
in its various stages shall be entrusted to formators who are mature, both in
human experience and in the consecrated life, and capable of providing guidance
and of accompanying the candidates on their journey.