Part 8: Formation of the Members

CHAPTER 1: DIMENSIONS OF THE FORMATION
189 We want to form the members of our Institute in great human and Christian maturity so that they reach the extent of the full stature of Christ (Eph 4:13).

They should manifest with their works that they have God in their hearts because every tree is known by its own fruit (Lk 6:44), and faith without works is dead (Jas 2:17).

We can group this work into four sections.

- Human formation

- Spiritual formation

- Intellectual formation

- Apostolic and pastoral formation.

Nothing is better on this topic than the teachings of John Paul II,[190] which we make our own.

Article 1: Human formation
190 Human formation is the basis of religious and priestly formation. A wrong understanding of the relationship between nature and grace is the root of many evils. Grace does not destroy nature, but rather heals it, raises it, perfects it, dignifies it, and ennobles it. Nature is not only the support of grace, like a mere external condition, but it belongs to the very essence of Christian identity, and remains perfected. At the same time, grace transcends nature. Nature is subordinate to grace, as the dependent potency to its perfective act. Thus the natural has a relative autonomy in subordination to the supernatural.

191 In the priest, because of the greater demands of his vocation, should be reflected – as in every Christian – the Incarnation of the Word, in whom shines human perfection and divine perfection, without mixture but in an intimate union. Moreover, the priest, taken from among men and made their representative before God (Heb 5:1), must serve as a bridge and not as an obstacle for others, and he should make his ministry something most humanly credible and acceptable.

192 He “should be able to know the depths of the human heart, to perceive difficulties and problems, to make meeting and dialogue easy, to create trust and cooperation, to express serene and objective judgments.” Therefore it is “needed for them to be balanced people, strong and free.”[191]

- Balanced: who remain focused on the whole and not become captive to a single part; who do not get humanly excited with that part that they consider the whole; who they do not let themselves be carried away by a depressive attitude that sees more evil than good; who make room in their soul for all things, without despising or minimizing anything, but with hierarchy and order.

- Strong: who do not allow themselves to be carried away by every wind of doctrine and novelty; who move themselves and judge by principles; who are neither soft and sentimental, nor hard and aloof.

- Free: who do everything out of love; who do good even when no one is looking, neither because the Superior is watching, nor for commendations or prizes; who are not obsequious with the Superiors, trying to obtain advantages; who know how to make a fraternal correction, without caring about what others think of them; who understand with Saint Teresa of Jesus “the nothingness of the world and how it would soon come to an end.”[192]

193 “They need to be educated to love the truth, to be loyal, to respect every person, to have a sense of justice, to be true to their word, to be genuinely compassionate, to be men of integrity and, especially, to be balanced in judgment and behavior.”[193] Education for the love of truth must be realized by way of an extensive intellectual formation, which is ordered to the truth and is not satisfied with knowing the mere opinions of theologians. It must be a philosophical formation, in the way Saint Justin understood it. This formation will include theorizing, intellectual leisure, and sincere debating – which is a shared search for truth. Classes need to be moments where true teaching and learning take place. “A simple and demanding program for this human formation can be found in the words of the apostle Paul to the Philippians: “Whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things (Phil 4:8).”[194]

194 Along with the intellectual formation it is necessary to form the will appropriately – through constant practice of all the virtues and the control of the passions – in such a way that always and everywhere we are seeking and choosing only the better good. We want to form men who are authentically free and self-possessed; who by that self-possession can give themselves totally. We consider the practice of sports, camping, community vacations, etc. to be of great importance in this formation of the will.

Article 2: Spiritual Formation
195 The supernatural end of man corresponds to the natural end, but at the same time, transcends it – man’s desires are completely brought to rest in the beatific vision.[195] In the formation stage period we must keep in mind this correspondence and transcendence. Pius XI teaches that, “The Christian education encompasses the entire human life… to elevate, regulate, and perfect it according to the example and doctrine of Christ.”[196]

196 Spiritual life must be understood, “as a relationship and communion with God.”[197] “The spiritual training …should be imparted in such a way that the students might learn to live in an intimate and unceasing union with the Father through His Son Jesus Christ in the Holy Spirit.”[198] Therefore, spiritual life is a form of friendship: I no longer call you slaves, because a slave does not know what his master is doing. I have called you friends, because I have told you everything I have heard from my Father. (Jn 15:15) This friendship has the characteristics of a true search:[199] the priest must have an unquenchable thirst for God. He must never oppose “the search for the truth and the certainty of already knowing the fountain of this truth.”[200] This search is possible because in some way we have already found the truth; however we have to make our relationship ever more intimate. For this encounter there is a triple path:[201]

- Meditation on the Word of God

- Participation in the Sacred Mysteries

- Fraternal charity, especially with those most in need.

Faithful meditation on the Word of God, by which we know the divine mysteries and make its values our own.
197 This is particularly related to the prophetic ministry.[202] We take as our own the teaching of the Second Vatican Council: “All clerics, particularly priests of Christ and others who, as deacons or catechists, are officially engaged in the ministry of the Word, should immerse themselves in the Scriptures by constant sacred reading and diligent study. For it must not happen that anyone becomes an empty preacher of the Word of God to others, not being a hearer of the Word in his own heart.”[203] The response to lectio divina is prayer, “which is without any doubt a primary value and demand of spiritual formation…”, because “The priest is the man of God, the one who belongs to God and makes people think about God…”, therefore, “the priest needs to be trained to have a deep intimacy with God.”[204] Fruit of this intimacy with God and of the work of the Holy Spirit in the soul of the priest is discernment, tasting, accepting, and rightly judging matters.[205]

Active participation in the Sacred Mysteries, especially in the Eucharist, which is “is the summit of Christian prayer.”[206]
198 For this participation, an authentic liturgical education is necessary, which brings one more and more to a “full, conscious, and active”[207] participation in it. Priests are above all the ministers of the Sacrifice of the Mass,[208] because of their condition as ministers of the sacred things: his “role is utterly irreplaceable, because without the priest there can be no Eucharistic offering.”[209] Therefore it is necessary that the seminarians participate daily in the Eucharistic celebration. They must consider it the most essential moment of the day, when they identify themselves with the same sacrificed Christ.

199 Furthermore, they must discover the beauty and joy of the Sacrament of Penance, amid a world that has lost a sense of sin and of divine mercy.[210] In addition to this and in order to practice “the ‘radical self-giving’ proper to the priest following the example of Christ the good shepherd… it is necessary to inculcate the meaning of the cross, which is at the heart of the paschal mystery.”[211]

Fraternal charity, especially with those most in need
200 We have to teach them to looking for Christ in all men. “The priest is a man of charity and is called to educate others according to Christ’s example and the new commandment of brotherly love.[212] But this demands that he allow himself to be constantly trained by the Spirit in the charity of Christ. In this sense preparation for the priesthood must necessarily involve a proper training in charity and particularly in the preferential love for the “poor” in whom our faith discovers Jesus[213] and a merciful love for sinners.”[214] This charity of the priest springs forth from prayer and from the contemplation of the mystery of divine mercy.

201 In this perspective of charity, “which consists in the loving gift of oneself, is to be found, in the program of spiritual formation of the future priest, education in obedience, celibacy and poverty.”[215] “The students should understand most clearly that they are not destined for domination or for honors but are given over totally to the service of God and to the pastoral ministry. With a particular concern should they be so formed in priestly obedience, in a simple way of life and in the spirit of self-denial that they are accustomed to giving up willingly even those things which are permitted but are not expedient, and to conform themselves to Christ crucified.”[216]

202 Furthermore, it must be instilled in them to live the proper charism of the Institute.[217]

203 Jesus Christ, Son of God and of the Blessed Virgin, must be the center of our entire spiritual life, No one comes to the Father except through me (Jn 14:6). In the temple, in the cloister, in the cell, in the dining room, in the recreations, we must always be crying out for Christ. The song and laughter of the members of our religious Family must be to cry for Jesus Christ. This is our duty. The sweeter the melody they sing in the choir, the better they will manifest the profound and interior sigh of their souls crying out for Jesus Christ. The memory and recollection of Him must never be separated from our hearts. It must come when we sleep and when we dream. Our heart is always falling in love, and our memory never occupied on anything else but Him.[218]

204 He became flesh in order that we might have life and have it more abundantly” (Jn 10:10). To have this life in Jesus Christ,[219] it is absolutely essential to be united with his Person, have his Spirit, assimilate his doctrine, frequent his sacraments, imitate his example, profoundly love his Mother, be in perfect communion with the hierarchy of the Church by a double bond – the same faith and charity, and the governance of one alone, Peter, over all.

205 Our motto is “with Peter and under Peter.”[220]

206 We want to form virtuous men, (from vir and from vis: that have the strength of the man) according to the doctrine of the great teachers of the spiritual life, especially Saint Augustine, Saint Thomas, Saint John of the Cross, Saint Teresa of Jesus, Saint Ignatius of Loyola, Saint Louis-Marie Grignion de Montfort, Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus; and from the example of all the saints of all times that the Church proposes as examples of virtue for us to imitate.

207 In this way, following the Holy Father in belief and following the saints in practice, we will never err, since neither the Holy Father can err in his teachings about faith and morals, nor did the saints err in their practice of virtues.

208 We want to form priestly souls of priests who are not “tributaries”,[221] who will live fully the Christian and priestly kingship and lordship. Since they have Jesus Christ may they feel this resounding in their ears: “I am your Father because I am God, I am your first-born brother because I am man. I am your payment and ransom, what do you fear in owing, if you with penance and confession are absolved? I am your reconciliation, why do you fear wrath? I am the tie of friendship, why fear the anger of God? I am your defender, why fear adversaries? I am your friend, why are you afraid to lack what I have, if you do not separate from me?”[222]

209 Religious that are convinced that: “Mine are the heavens and mine is the earth. Mine are the nations, the just are mine, and mine the sinners. The angels are mine, and the Mother of God, and all things are mine; and God himself is mine and for me, because Christ is mine and all for me.”[223] Who definitely understand and live that vibrant expression of Saint Paul: everything belongs to you, Paul or Apollos or Kephas, or the world or life or death, or the present or the future: all belong to you, and you to Christ, and Christ to God (1 Cor 3:21-23).

210 One aspect of spiritual formation should be to acquire discipline of life, which goal is no other than to grasp the “style” of our Lord Jesus Christ, which in Him is no other than the attitudes that He has as the Son next to the Father. Discipline in our relationship to Him as disciples consists in considering Him as our “path” to the Father. The discipline is the fundamental attitude of the disciple. It is the submission to the rules of life in order that the truth may be incarnate in the life of the disciples. For us, the truth is Christ and to be docile to the discipline means to let Him be our Lord.

211 We want to be men docile to the great discipline of the Church, which is expressed in the Code of Canon Law and in all the ecclesiastical rules and laws; and docile to the particular discipline of our Institute, remembering the teaching apprehendite disciplinam, Love the discipline lest God be angry (Ps 2:12);[224] as well as that of the Apostle, Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up with the training and instruction of the Lord (Eph 6:4). In this way, the members of the Institute will become suitable for the Lord (2 Tim 2:21). To educate them in discipline is nothing but to induce them to good.[225] In this way, the brothers “show their own style of life.”[226]

212 The discipline of the Institute is contained:

- in general: in the collection of regulations of our own right that regulate the life of the members and communities, as well in the good customs and traditions. These make concrete the spirit of the Institute in everyday life.

- in particular, it is the collection of practical norms contained in the Directories and Regulations.

Article 3: Intellectual Formation
213 The intellectual formation of future priests is presented as an urgent issue facing the New Evangelization and modern challenges. This formation “is a fundamental demand of the human intelligence by which one “participates in the light of God’s mind” and seeks to acquire a wisdom, which in turn opens to and is directed toward knowing and adhering to God.”[227] This formation includes two phases, one ordered to the other: the study of philosophy, and the study of sacred science.

214 “A crucial stage of intellectual formation is the study of philosophy, which leads to a deeper understanding and interpretation of the person, and of the person’s freedom and relationships with the world and with God.”[228] This study is urgent, not only in view of the later theological studies, but also facing a particular cultural situation that exalts subjectivism as the criteria and measure of the truth.[229] A “certainty of the truth” is necessary which is given only by a sound philosophy, founded in the objective reality of things, since “the intelligence… is able to arrive at what is.”[230]

215 The intellectual formation of the future priest “is based and built above all on the study of the sacred doctrine and theology”[231] that comes from faith and tries to lead us to faith, as the Magisterium of the Church and Catholic theologians have always taught. So also teaches St. Thomas that faith is the habitus of theology, that is to say, its permanent operative principle,[232] and that all theology is ordained to nourish the faith.[233] How we should enter into the mysteries of the faith, by means of the theological studies, if we are called to be men of faith that should bring and strengthen their brethren in the faith!

216 Theological reflection “has its center on adherence to Jesus Christ, the wisdom of God... [It] helps develop, besides scientific rigorousness, a great and living love for Jesus Christ and for his Church.“[234] That love nourishes the spiritual life and serves as a pattern for a generous exercise of ministry. Therefore, theology must be nourished in prayer and in the love of Jesus Christ. Saint Bonaventure points out, “May no one believe that reading without unction is enough, nor speculation without devotion, searching without amazement, observation without joy, activity without piety, science without charity, intelligence without humility, studies without divine grace, investigation without wisdom coming from supernatural inspiration.”[235]

217 This study must bring to “a complete and unified vision of the truths which God has revealed in Jesus Christ and of the Church’s experience of faith. Hence the need both to know all the Christian truths, without arbitrarily selecting among them, and to know them in an orderly fashion.”[236]

218 In its reflection about faith, theology moves in two directions.

1. First is the study of the word of God, written in the Sacred Book, celebrated and transmitted in the living Tradition of the Church, and authentically interpreted by the Magisterium. This study of Sacred Scriptures includes no only the Fathers of the Church who that explained the recorded deeds and words of God,[237] but also Liturgy, Church History, and magisterial declarations.

2. The second direction is that of man, “interlocutor of God,” called to live, believe and communicate the Christian Faith. From this comes the study of Dogmatic, Moral, Pastoral, and Spiritual Theology, and of Canon Law.[238]

219 We will give preference to the works of Saint Thomas Aquinas, because we have to be formed “under his magisterium,”[239] and hold him “principally as teacher”[240] for the following reasons:

1. He “illumined the Church more than all the other doctors. In his books, one profits more in only one year than in the study of all the others during his whole life.”[241]

2. He “most venerated the ancient doctors of the Church, in a certain way he seems to have inherited the intellect of all.”[242]

3. The “Church has proclaimed that the doctrine of Saint Thomas is her own.”[243]

4. God has willed that by the strength and truth of the doctrine of the Angelic Doctor “all the heresies and error that would follow will be driven away, confounded and condemned.”[244]

5. His knowledge is of undeniable and fundamental importance for the right interpretation of Sacred Scriptures, so to transcend the sensible and to reach union with God; to build the edifice of Sacred Theology upon the solid basis provided by a profound knowledge of the philosophy of being – “a philosophical patrimony perennially valid”[245]. We also need to keep in mind all the advances of philosophical investigation.

Article 4: Pastoral Formation
220 Here also, Jesus Christ is the end, Shepherd of the shepherds (1 Pt 5:4), as much as He is the Supreme Model and as much as the flock is His: feed my sheep (Jn 21:16). That is why “the whole formation imparted to candidates for the priesthood aims at preparing them to enter into communion with the charity of Christ the good shepherd.”[246] Since our Institute has apostolic branches, pastoral endeavors are essential to it. We must never forget that there is no authentic Catholic pastoral work without a profound spiritual life, without a solid doctrinal formation, and without a virile discipline.

221 A thirst for souls must be a dimension from the very beginning of religious life that gradually and prudently becomes concrete in the life of the candidate, of the novice and of the professed. For this reason, pastoral formation should include a harmonious pastoral training throughout the initial and progressive experience in the exercise of ministry.[247]

222 Here, formation ends in Christ alone, Christ always, Christ in everything, Christ in all, and All Christ, until the religious can truly say, Be imitators of me as I am of Christ (1 Cor 11:1) and, yet I live, no longer I, but Christ lives in me (Gal 2:20). In such a way Jesus Christ will defend us before the Father on Judgment Day, “See that he is my member and he is me.”[248]

223 We aspire to form priests for the Catholic Church according to the Heart of Christ: who nourish their spirit with the Word of God; who serve their neighbor in solidarity with all in need; who promote the laity; who have a great capability for dialogue, without suffering any crisis of identity; desirous of ongoing formation; abandoned to Providence; lovers of Catholic liturgy; tireless preachers; “rich in spirit;”[249] “with tongue, lips, and wisdom, which the enemies of truth cannot resist;”[250] of exceptional apostolic and vocational fecundity; with missionary and ecumenical impetus; open to any particle of truth wherever it is found; with preferential love for the poor without exclusivism and without exclusions; who live in transparent and contagious joy, in unperturbed peace even amidst the most arduous battles, in absolute and unrestricted ecclesiastical communion; relentless evangelizers and catechists; and lovers of the cross. To sum up, men with common sense, with that Christian common sense, which is none other than a holy familiarity with the Word made flesh.

CHAPTER 2: Stages OF FORMATION
Article 1: Minor Seminary
224 Within the diverse periods that are distinguished in the formative process of the members, we find, situated in first place, the Minor Seminary, for all those who at an early age manifest a desire to devote themselves to God. “The goal of the Minor Seminary is to help adolescents who have manifested the seed of a vocation, to discern more easily and to be able to respond to it.”[251] This also makes possible that at the end of his studies at the Minor Seminary, “having a clear conscience of the divine call, the candidate may have reached the human and spiritual maturity to permit him to make the decision to respond to the call with sufficient responsibility and freedom.”[252]

225 “As long experience shows, a priestly vocation tends to show itself in the preadolescent years or in the earliest years of youth. Even in people who decide to enter the seminary later on, it is not infrequent to find that God’s call had been perceived much earlier.”[253] Saint Thomas teaches, when considering the predilection of Jesus for the apostle John, “this gives us understanding on how God loves in a special way those that give themselves to his service from an early age.”[254]

226 In the Minor Seminary the Superiors must instill in the one who desire to consecrate himself to God a “special religious formation that disposes him to follow Christ the Redeemer, poor, chaste, and obedient, with the spirit of generosity and purity of intention,”[255] particularly by way of “adequate spiritual direction.”[256] We have to ensure, therefore, that the seminarians “mature harmoniously in their physical, moral, and intellectual qualities and in their affections.”[257] The same formative work of the Superiors does not exclude the “appropriate cooperation of the parents.”[258]

227 In this way, for the convenient formation of the seminarians, it is necessary to teach them to value and love

- the mystery of the Holy Eucharist, which must be the center of their whole life, particularly in the Holy Mass;

- the Sacrament of Reconciliation;

- prompt and joyous obedience;

- the Holy Virgin Mary and the Saints – intercessors and models of life;

- Holy Scripture, from infancy you have known the Sacred Scriptures, which are capable of giving you wisdom for salvation through faith in Jesus Christ (2 Tim 3:15); “Christ known, searched for, and loved more every time through the studies, personal sacrifices, victories over one’s self, in the slow conquest of the virtues of justice, fortitude, temperance and prudence; Christ contemplated with fervent and patient perseverance in order that… there will be imprinted in them the same face of Christ.[259]”[260]

Article 2: Postulancy
228 The Postulancy is realized in the previous contacts that the candidate has with members of the Institute, with the purpose of being informed of its charism and the obligations of the Novitiate. This contact will be in charge of one or several priests, designated by the Superior General, who must know the candidate, his vocation, his suitability, in order to present him to the Novitiate.

229 The duration of the Postulancy is not fixed but depends on the preparation of the candidate, of the level of Christian and human maturity, of his basic general culture, of his balance of affections and his capacity to live in community, etc.,[261] because “the largest number of difficulties found nowadays in the formation of the novices comes from the fact that they don’t have at the time of their admission to the novitiate the minimum of necessary maturity.”[262] For this reason, this period is required, so that “nobody will be admitted without adequate preparation.”[263] The Postulancy will not last more than two years.

Article 3: Novitiate
230 Life in the Institute begins in the Novitiate. The Novitiate lasts for one year. “The purpose of the novitiate… is to give the novices a greater understanding of their divine vocation, and of their vocation to … [our] institute. During the novitiate the novices are to experience the manner of life of the institute and form their minds and hearts in its spirit. At the same time their resolution and suitability are to be tested.”[264]

231 The Provincial Superior of the candidate is the one who admits him into the Novitiate. In it the novices[265] must duly prepare themselves to make their profession according to the demands of religious life. The Institute scrutinizes the candidate to receive him in its bosom.

232 The following are invalidly admitted to the novitiate:

- one who has not yet completed the seventeenth year of age;

- a spouse, while the marriage lasts;

- one who is currently bound by a sacred bond to some institute of consecrated life, or is incorporated in some society of apostolic life;

- one who enters the institute through force, fear or deceit, or whom the Superior accepts under the same influences;

- one who has concealed his or her incorporation in an institute of consecrated life or society of apostolic life.

233

- Before candidates are admitted to the novitiate they must produce proof of baptism and confirmation, and of their free status.

- The admission of clerics or others who had been admitted to another institute of consecrated life, to a society of apostolic life, or to a seminary, requires in addition the testimony of, respectively, the local Ordinary, or the major Superior of the institute or society, or the rector of the seminary.

- The Superiors can seek other information, even under secrecy, if this seems necessary to them.

234

- The establishment, transfer and suppression of a novitiate house are to take place by a written decree of the supreme Moderator of the institute, given with the consent of the council.

- To be valid, a novitiate must take place in a house which is duly designated for this purpose. In particular cases and by way of exception and with the permission of the supreme Moderator given with the consent of the council, a candidate can make the novitiate in another house of the institute, under the direction of an approved religious who takes the place of the director of novices.

- The Provincial Superior can allow a group of novices to reside, for a certain period of time, in another specified house of the institute.

235

- For validity, the novitiate must comprise twelve months spent in the novitiate community.

- To complete the formation of the novices, we establish one or more periods of apostolic activity, to be performed outside the novitiate community.

- A novitiate is invalidated by an absence from the novitiate house of more than three months, continuous or broken. Any absence of more than fifteen days must be made good.

- With the permission of the Provincial, first profession may be anticipated, though not by more than fifteen days.

236 “A novice may freely leave the institute. The competent authority of the institute may also dismiss a novice,”[266] without prejudice to what is said in can. 653 §2.

237 In the Novitiate spiritual formation must prevail. However, pastoral experiences, especially those of the missionary kind, can also be carried out according to the proper charism of the Institute.

238 The novices are under the care of a Master, named by the Superior General with the deliberative vote of the Council, to whom another priest can be added as Vice-Master according to necessities.[267]

239 The government of the novices is reserved solely to the Master of Novices, under the authority of the Provincial Superior.

240 Dialogue with the Master of Novices. The dialogue with the Master of Novices is a privileged time in the formation period. It benefits the novice as well as the temporally professed members. It favors the good course of the community. In this trust-filled dialogue, the religious informs his superior about all the activities he is carrying out. If he wishes, he may reveal the state of his conscience as well. It is advisable to do the dialogue twice a month during the Novitiate. (This practice is also advisable after profession once a month until perpetual profession, and then frequently).

241 The Master of Novices must stimulate the novices to live the human and Christian virtues, bringing them by a path of greater perfection by means of prayer and self-denial; instructing them in the contemplation of the mystery of salvation and in the reading and meditation of the Sacred Scriptures; preparing them for the celebration of God’s worship in the Sacred Liturgy; forming them to live a consecrated life to God and to all men in Christ through the evangelical counsels; instructing them in the character, spirit, purpose, discipline, history and life of the Institute; he will strive to infuse in them love for the Church and her holy pastors.[268]

242 After a period of proof the novices will receive the religious habit.

Article 4: Profession
a. Temporary Profession
243 The validity of temporary profession requires:

- that the person making it has completed at least the eighteenth year of age;

- that the novitiate has been made validly;

- that admission has been granted, freely and in accordance with the norms of law, by the competent Superior, after a vote of his or her council;

- that the profession be explicit and made without force, fear or deceit;

- that the profession be received by the lawful Superior, personally or through another.

244 On completion of the novitiate, a novice is to be admitted to temporary profession. The admission is decided by the Provincial Superior with the deliberative vote of the Council. When there are doubts concerning the vocation, either from the candidate or the Institute, the time of Novitiate may be prolonged, but for a period not exceeding six months.[269]

245 The temporal profession will be made, during the first three years for a period of one year each, and then for a two-year period, according to the Constitutions of the Institute.

246 The formula of temporary consecration is as follows:

For love
of the Father, first source and supreme end of consecrated life;
of Christ, who calls us to his intimacy;
of the Holy Spirit, who disposes our soul
to receive his inspirations.

I, N., freely, make an oblation of my entire being to God:
to deepen, each time with a love more sincere and intense,
the gift of the evangelical counsels in a Trinitarian dimension;
to be a concrete footprint that the Trinity leaves in history
so in this way, all mankind will discover the attraction and
longing for the divine beauty;
so that my life may be a living memory of the way that Jesus,
the Word made flesh (Cf. Jn 1:14) lived and behaved
before the Father and mankind.

Therefore, I commit all my strengths
so as to not be elusive to the missionary adventure,
to inculturate the gospel in the diversity of all cultures,
to prolong the Incarnation of the Word
“in every man, in all of man and in all human manifestations,”
assuming all that is authentically human,
in order to be like another humanity of Christ,
to carry out, with greater perfection, the service of God and men.

Therefore, in the presence of God our Lord and all his saints,
before N., Superior General
of the Institute of the Incarnate Word
(or before N., which takes the place of the
Superior General of the Institute of the Incarnate Word)

and in the presence of all the members of this Institute
and of the Servants of the Lord and of the Virgin of Matara,
I take the vow to live for … year/s
chaste, for the sake of the kingdom of heaven,
poor, manifesting that God
is the only true richness of mankind,
and obedient, until the death of the cross,
to follow more intimately the Incarnate Word in his chastity,
poverty and obedience,
in accordance to the evangelical way traced in the Constitutions
of the Institute of the Incarnate Word and to do it better, I
consecrate myself to Mary in maternal slavery of love.

I request of Our Lady, of the Twelve Apostles
and of the other patron saints to intercede for me,
and I also ask for the prayers
of my Brothers in the Incarnate Word
and the Sisters of the Institute
of the Servants of the Lord and the Virgin of Matara.

May the love and grace of the Most Holy Trinity
help me to be faithful in the work that He has begun.

The one who is taking the vows replies:

In the name of the Church
and the Institute of the Incarnate Word,
I welcome with great joy to our religious family
these brothers with temporary vows,
who manifested the explicit desire of a total conformation
with Christ, the Incarnate Word.

b. Perpetual Profession
247 In addition to the conditions stated in paragraph 243 , for the validity of the perpetual profession it is required to be older than 20 years of age.

248 After five years of temporary profession, the religious will make the perpetual profession with the admission of the Provincial Superior and the deliberative vote of his Council. If there are doubts about the suitability, or the candidate himself asks for it, there can be an additional waiting time of one year, with temporal vows, during which the final decision is definitively made. At the end of this one-year period, the candidate will be admitted to the perpetual profession or dismissed.

249 The formula for perpetual profession will be the following:

For love
of the Father, first source and supreme end of consecrated life;
of Christ, who calls us to his intimacy;
of the Holy Spirit, who disposes our soul
to receive his inspirations.

I, N., freely, make an oblation of my entire being to God:
to deepen, each time with a love more sincere and intense,
the gift of the evangelical counsels in a Trinitarian dimension;
to be a concrete footprint that the Trinity leaves in history
so in this way, all mankind will discover the attraction and
longing for the divine beauty;
so that my life may be a living memory of the way that Jesus,
the Word made flesh (Cf. Jn 1:14) lived and behaved
before the Father and mankind.

Therefore, I commit all my strengths
so as to not be elusive to the missionary adventure,
to inculturate the gospel in the diversity of all cultures,
to prolong the Incarnation of the Word
“in every man, in all of man and in all human manifestations,”
assuming all that is authentically human,
in order to be like another humanity of Christ,
to carry out, with greater perfection, the service of God and men.

Therefore, in the presence of God our Lord and all his saints,
before N., Superior General
of the Institute of the Incarnate Word
(or before N., which takes the place of the
Superior General of the Institute of the Incarnate Word)

and in the presence of all the members of this Institute
and of the Servants of the Lord and of the Virgin of Matara,
I take the vow to live forever
chaste, for the sake of the kingdom of heaven,
poor, manifesting that God
is the only true richness of mankind, and
obedient, until the death of the cross,
to follow more intimately the Incarnate Word in his chastity,
poverty and obedience,
in accordance to the evangelical way traced in the Constitutions
of the Institute of the Incarnate Word and to do it better, I
consecrate myself to Mary in maternal slavery of love.

I request of Our Lady, of the Twelve Apostles
and of the other patron saints to intercede for me,
and I also ask for the prayers
of my Brothers in the Incarnate Word
and the Sisters of the Institute
of the Servants of the Lord and the Virgin of Matara.

May the love and grace of the Most Holy Trinity
help me to be faithful in the work that He has begun.

The one who is taking the vows replies:

In the name of the Church
and the Institute of the Incarnate Word,
I welcome with great joy to our religious family
these brothers with perpetual vows,
who manifested the explicit desire of a total conformation
with Christ, the Incarnate Word.

Article 5: Juniorate
a. Juniorate for religious who are candidates to the priesthood
250 The Institute of the Incarnate Word is a clerical institute, where the majority of its members are priests. Upon finishing the novitiate, there begins a new period of priestly formation, carried out under the norms of the Holy See and the Bishops’ Conference of the country where the house of formation is located, and always in accordance with the spirituality and mission of the Institute.

251 The philosophical studies should last two years and the theological four. Both periods together will be carried out over a span of six years. The aspirants to priesthood can be promoted to diaconate only after finishing the fifth year of the philosophical-theological cycle of studies.[270] Prior to their priestly ordination, the deacons will practice the diaconal order by undertaking pastoral work for some established time that should be arranged with the local Bishop.

Then the new priests will have a post-graduate year (convictorium). During this time they will reside in the Juniorate house under the guidance of an experienced priest, and they will habitually dedicate themselves to the study of pastoral theology and the practice of the priestly pastoral ministry. Later, when the superiors deem it convenient, they will do two more years of study, preferably in the Pontifical Universities in Rome, as part of the ongoing formation.[271]

252

1. Since the Institute of the Incarnate Word is of diocesan right, the ordinations are ruled by the right of the secular priests.[272] The Bishop of the See where the formation house is located, watches over the formation of the aspirants to priesthood.

2. The Institute incardinates the deacons. The Bishop of the see where the ordinand resides will grant the dimissorial letters.[273]

3. For the priestly ordination of members of the Institute, the proper Bishop is the one of the diocese where the deacon resides.[274]

4. The norms stated in can. 1018 will be followed in the dealing of dimissorial letters.

5. The superiors of the Institute of the Incarnate Word must keep in contact with the Bishop in whose Diocese its members are being formed. They must inform him and facilitate him in the fulfillment of his duties. When a member has been recently transferred to a new place, the superior will request the ordination only after a convenient period of time, so that the Bishop may have a personal judgment about the suitability, formation and right intention of the candidate.

253 According to our own charism, we strive to orient all our studies for the evangelization of the culture, for which we will spare no efforts or ways. We do not content ourselves with a superficial knowledge of philosophy and theology incapable of understanding in all its depth the contemporary drama of atheism and therefore incapable of giving remedy.

b. Juniorate of the Coadjutor Brothers
254 In the Institute there will be also religious called “Coadjutor Brothers”. They will dedicate themselves to the service of the houses and to give spiritual services that do not require the sacramental grace of Holy Orders.

255 These brothers should complete the Juniorate, in which they will take some courses of philosophy and theology, “attending to the needs of the Church and the circumstances of men and the times, according to the end and the character of the Institute.”[275] The coadjutor brothers will continue their formation until their perpetual profession, in the houses where they are assigned and under the direct authority of the local superior. Their ongoing formation must be attended.

Article 6: Ongoing Formation
256 Religious life is a process of continual conversion that does not finish in the years of formation, but must be maintained and must grow more everyday.[276] Regarding our pastoral work, this formation is an act of true and proper justice for the people of God, who always demand from us the most appropriate answer.[277]

257 Ongoing formation – which knows no limit of age or situation – possesses four dimensions: human, spiritual, intellectual, and pastoral.

258 We consider as fundamental that formation is permanently ongoing. For this, besides the ordinary means, like conferences, retreats, courses, exams, etc., the extraordinary means should be provided whenever possible, for example: spiritual exercises of one month every ten years, pilgrimages to the Holy Land and to the great shrines of Christianity, etc.

259 In order to fulfill this ongoing formation we desire that all the members of our Institute, according to their capacities and talents, take ecclesiastical or civil courses after the Juniorate. These will be taken preferably in the pontifical Universities of Rome or in those recognized by the Holy See, to receive the qualifying title of Doctor or Licentiate.[278] We already have a priestly community in Rome in which normally two years are spent for this reason.[279] The formation in Rome implies the attainment of a Roman spirit, which entails a “crown of virtues: universal openness, fidelity to the Magisterium, a missionary spirit, longanimity and magnanimity.”[280] “Your situation permits you to live the supernatural reality of communion with the Church of Rome and with the Bishop of Rome. In the ecclesiastical experience you enter into the field of a new reality: you experience the communion with all who are in communion with the Church of Rome.”[281] Therefore, the opportunity to study in the Eternal City has a double advantage: “It means to have access to an academic formation in or through the Roman universities. It means to be witnesses day by day of the living tradition of the faith, such as it is proclaimed by the See of Peter.”[282]

260 Therefore the Church of Rome is the best place for this formation: “there is no other place with such an opportunity to form suitable priests as there is in the center of Christianity, next to the tombs of the two great Apostles, under the paternal solicitude of the Supreme Pontiff, who by his function as Vicar of Christ, is the common Father of all people and guardian and interpreter of the Catholic faith.”[283]

Roman-ness is “understood as the special spirit of communion with the Successor of Peter, visible Head of the Church of Christ, by means of unity of faith, and charity”[284]

These studies can also be done in any civil university, prominent for its level of studies, according to the judgment of the Superior General and his Council.

261 Every local superior should use all the necessary means so that all the members of the community may obtain this ongoing formation: conferences, retreats, courses and exams, etc. We must spend our whole life searching for the full truth: “if truth is not longed for with all the strengths of one’s soul, it cannot be found in any way.”[285]

Article 7: Formation-givers
262 We will have a special care in the preparation and choosing of formation-givers, on which the future of the Institute depends. In the work of the Evangelization of the culture individual efforts are not sufficient, nor those of one generation, but rather a great movement is necessary, one that will increase and grow evermore in extension and depth. This is the work of those responsible for formation. That is why it is necessary to form those in charge of formation, men of proper discernment and rich in spirit, so that they will form a “school of disciples” and not be “loners.”

263 The task of forming others demands certain conditions, besides a sufficient knowledge of Catholic doctrine on faith and morals, certain conditions. These are: human capacity of intuition and welcome; experience of God and of prayer; wisdom; love for liturgy; necessary cultural competence; availability of time; and willingness to dedicate personal care to each of his subjects, not merely to the group. For this it is necessary to have interior serenity, availability, patience, comprehension, and a true affection toward those who have been commended to him.[286]

Article 8: Re-admission
264 One who may have legitimately left the Institute upon completing the Novitiate, or even after profession, may be re-admitted by the Superior General with the consent of his Council, with no obligation to repeat the Novitiate. The Superior General will determine the appropriate test prior to the temporary profession, as well as the duration of the vows prior to perpetual profession.[287]

[190] PDV 42-59.

[191] PDV 43.

[192] Book of her Life, 3, 5.

[193] PDV 43.

[194] PDV 43; cf. Congregation for Institutes of Consecrates Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, Directives on Formation in Religious Institutes, 29.

[195] Cf. CG, III, 63.

[196] Pius XI, Divini illius Magistri, 102.

[197] PDV 45.

[198] OT 8.

[199] Cf. PDV 46.

[200] John Paul II, Discourse to the Professors and Students of the Catholic Institute, June 1, 1980.

[201] Cf. OT 8; PDV 46ff.

[202] Cf. PDV 47.

[203] Saint Augustine, Sermon 179, 1; DV 25.

[204] PDV 47.

[205] Cf. Congregation for Institutes of Consecrates Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, Directives on Formation in Religious Institutes, 19.

[206] Cf. SC 14.

[207] SC 14.

[208] Cf. PO 13.

[209] PDV 48.

[210] Cf. PDV 48.

[211] PDV 48.

[212] Cf. Jn 15:12.

[213] Cf. Mt 25:40.

[214] PDV 49.

[215] PDV 49.

[216] OT 9.

[217] Cf. Congregation for Institutes of Consecrates Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, Directives on Formation in Religious Institutes, 16.

[218] Cf. Saint John of Avila, Talk to the nuns of Saint Claire of Montilla.

[219] 1 Cor 15:21-22; passim.

[220] Cum Petro et sub Petro; AG 38.

[221] Cf. Nm 18:24; Gn 47:26; Saint John of Avila, Sermons, quoted from Saint Vincent Ferrer, Opusculum de fine mundi.

[222] Saint John de Avila, Letter 20.

[223] Saint John of the Cross, Sayings of Light and Love, 26.

[224] In the Vulgate Version.

[225] Saint Thomas Aquinas, Commentary on the Letter to the Ephesians, 6, 4.

[226] Letter to Diognetus, 5, 4.

[227] PDV 51.

[228] PDV 52.

[229] Cf. PDV 52.

[230] Paul VI, Creed of the People of God, 5.

[231] PDV 56.

[232] Cf. In Lib. Boetii de Trinitate, 5, 4, ad 8; cf. PDV 53.

[233] Cf. In I Sent. d.1, q.1, a.1.

[234] PDV 53.

[235] Itinerary of the Mind into God, Prologue, 4.

[236] PDV 54.

[237] Cf. AG 22.

[238] Cf. PDV 54.

[239] Cf. OT 16.

[240] CIC, can. 252 § 3.

[241] John XXII, Allocution in the Consistory, June 14, 1323.

[242] Cajetan, Commentary on Summa Theologiae, II-II, 148, 9, 4. Quoted by Leo XIII, Aeterni Patris, 10.

[243] Benedict XV, Fausto Appetente Die, 4b.

[244] Saint Pius V, Mirabilis Deus; cf. Leo XIII, Aeterni Patris, 13.

[245] CIC, can. 251.

[246] PDV 57; cf. OT 4.

[247] Cf. PDV 58.

[248] Saint John of Avila, Sermons, Sunday III after Pentecost.

[249] Cf. Saint John of Avila, Sermons, Feast of Saint Nicholas.

[250] Saint Louis-Marie Grignion de Montfort, Ardent Prayer, 22.

[251]Sacred Congregation for Catholic Education, Ratio Fundamentalis institutionis sacerdotalis, 11.

[252] Sacred Congregation for Religious and Secular Institutes, Instruction on the Renewal of Religious Life, Renovationis Causam, 4.

[253] PDV, 63.

[254] Exposition of the Gospel of John, 21, 5, 2; PDV 63.

[255] OT 3.

[256] OT 3.

[257]Sacred Congregation for Catholic Education, Ratio Fundamentalis institutionis sacerdotalis, 14.

[258] OT 3.

[259] Cf. 2 Cor 3:18.

[260] Sacred Congregation for Catholic Education, Circular Letter on Some of the More Urgent Aspects of the Spiritual Formation of Seminarians, 1, f.

[261] Cf. Sacred Congregation for Catholic Education, Circular Letter on Some of the More Urgent Aspects of the Spiritual Formation of Seminarians, 42-44.

[262] Sacred Congregation for Catholic Education, Circular Letter on Some of the More Urgent Aspects of the Spiritual Formation of Seminarians, 1, f.

[263] CIC, can. 597, § 2.

[264] At the same time they have to keep in mind the universal norms of Canon Law; cf. cc. 641-645.

[265] Cf. the universal norms of the Code of Canon Law, cc. 641-645.

[266] CIC, can. 653, § 1.

[267] Cf. CIC, can. 651, § 2.

[268] Cf. CIC, cc. 646, 652; Congregation for Institutes of Consecrates Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, Directives on Formation in Religious Institutes, 45-53.

[269] CIC, can. 653, § 2.

[270] CIC, can. 1032, § 1.

[271] Since the Convictorium (post-graduate studies) and the academic studies in Rome or other universities are studies of supererogation, the Provincial Superior may exempt from them with a reasonable cause.

[272] Cf. CIC, can. 1019, § 2.

[273] Cf. CIC, can. 1016.

[274] Cf. Congregation for Institutes of Consecrates Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, Directives on Formation in Religious Institutes, 66-68; CIC, can. 661.

[275] Cf. CIC, can. 659, §§ 1-2.

[276] Cf. Congregation for Institutes of Consecrates Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, Directives on Formation in Religious Institutes, 66-68; CIC, can. 661.

[277] Cf. PDV 41.

[278] Cf. CIC, can. 253, § 1.

[279] Cf. CIC, can. 253, § 1.

[280] John Paul II, Homily during Vespers in the Capranica College of Rome, 5; January 21, 1992.

[281] John Paul II, Discourse at the North American Pontifical College of Rome, October 15, 1984.

[282] John Paul II, Discourse at the North American Pontifical College of Rome, October 15, 1984.

[283] Cf. Leo XIII, Benigna hominum parens, quoted by John Paul II, Discourse to the Armenian Pontifical College of Rome, July 7, 1984.

[284] John Paul II, Speech to the Students and Alumni of the Capranica College of Rome, January 21, 1983.

[285] Saint Augustine, The Gift of Perseverance, 20, 53.

[286] Cf. Congregation for Institutes of Consecrates Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, Directives on Formation in Religious Institutes, 32.

[287] Cf. CIC, can. 690, § 1.


Note: This English translation of the Constitutions of Institute of the Incarnate Word and the Directory of Spirituality is a draft version and is subject to further revision and improvement.