COLLEGIAL ASSISTANCE TO THE SECULAR FRANCISCAN
ORDER
Fr. Martín Pablo Bitzer, OFMConv
INTRODUCTION
I would like to
introduce the theme of collegial assistance to the Secular Franciscan Order according
to the Statutes for Spiritual and
Pastoral Assistance to the Secular Franciscan Order.
1. THE
STATUTES AND COLLEGIALITY
The first statement that we
find in the Statutes concerning the collegiality
of the assistance to the SFO is the following:
“The spiritual and
pastoral care” (Art. 2) to the SFO “is
exercised according to these present Statutes, common to the four religious
Orders (OFM, OFMConv, OFMCap, TOR) and must be performed collegially at all
levels above the local level (Art. 3.2)[1].”
Let us dwell for a moment upon this
text.
1.1. A “twofold” care
The first element
concerns spiritual and pastoral care.
This means a twofold attention: “spiritual and pastoral”.
It is “spiritual”
in so far as it deals with the Holy Spirit, who gave rise to the
Franciscan Family in the Church (among the “spiritual families” in its bosom)[2],
which has its specific spirituality, that is Franciscan.
Here is our first
duty with regard to the Secular Franciscans: “to foster a deeper insight into
Franciscan spirituality”[3],
“animating spiritually”[4]
and offering suitable spiritual reflection[5].
The care is also “pastoral”, in that it deals with the office of pastor as it
is understood and exercised in the Catholic Church.
1.2. Care according to
the “Statutes, common to the four religious Orders”
The second element is this: The spiritual and
pastoral care of the SFO “is exercised according to these present Statutes,
common to the four religious Orders (OFM, OFMConv, OFMCap, TOR)”.
This is our second
commitment: to know the Statutes that were approved by the Conference of General Ministers of the First Order and the TOR on
It is an easy
reference tool for our tasks. And I say “our” because “from Franciscan history
and from the Constitutions of the First Order and the TOR, it is clearly
evident that these Orders recognize that they are committed to the spiritual
and pastoral assistance of the SFO in virtue of their common origin and charism
and by the will of the Church. See Constitutions
OFM, 60; Constitutions OFM Conv.,
116; Constitutions OFM Cap., 95; Constitutions TOR, 157; Rule of the Third Order of Pope Leo XIII,
3, 3; Rule approved by Paul VI, 26”.[6]
1.3. A
collegial care
The third element
rightly refers to collegiality, in so far as the spiritual and pastoral care must be performed collegially at all levels
above the local level, that is to say, at the regional,[7]
national and international level.
The main agents of
this spiritual and pastoral care to the SFO are, in the first place, Major
Superiors, and in the second place Spiritual Assistants.
2. THE
MAJOR SUPERIORS
2.1. A duty
to perform
When dealing with
this subject we have to keep in mind that “the spiritual and pastoral care of
the SFO is the duty above all of the Major Superiors of the First Order and the
TOR” [8].
It is a matter of a
“duty”[9].
It is not optional: “The Franciscan major superiors remain responsible for the
quality of spiritual assistance and pastoral care”[10].
“Therefore, as a concrete sign of communion and co-responsibility, religious
superiors must assure spiritual assistance to all the fraternities of the SFO”[11].
“They should also foster the formation and the interest of their own religious
in the SFO and ensure a specific preparation for the Assistants so that they
will be suitable and well-prepared”[12].
“They may exercise this office personally or through a delegate”[13].
2.2. The way
in which Major Superiors exercise their office
In what
way do Major Superiors exercise their office?
According to the
Statutes, General Ministers, Provincial Ministers and Major superiors “exercise
their office through:
- the establishment of local fraternities;
- pastoral visits;
- spiritual assistance.”[14]
2.3. The
collegiality of the Ministers general
Besides “the
Ministers general exercise collegially the altius
moderamen and the pastoral assistance in regard to the SFO as a whole” (Art. 8.1)[15].
We are faced here
with three issues: a) the need to consider the SFO as a whole; b) the altius
moderamen; and c) the collegial
way to exercise this fraternal office. It is important to underline the latter
expression: “fraternal office”, that appears for the first time in our own
legislation (Art. 2.1).
a) “The SFO as a whole”
This expression
alludes to the present configuration of the SFO, “not so much as a spiritual
confederation or of communion”[16],
or of a “federal union”, but as “an organic union of all Catholic fraternities
scattered throughout the world”[17].
Secondly, the Fraternities on all levels, local, regional, national and
international, which make up the SFO, are coordinated and united among
themselves[18]. Thirdly, “the councils
on various levels shall ask for suitable and well-prepared religious for
spiritual assistance of the superiors of the four religious Franciscan
families, to whom the Secular Fraternity has been united for centuries”[19].
“The union, therefore, is established by the Supreme Pontiff, not with one or
other Order, but with the entire Franciscan Family, through an implicit
abolition of the prescription in can. 702 § 1 of the CIC17, where a
union was foreseen only with a concrete religious Order”[20].
b) What
is the altius moderamen?
Altius moderamen is a Latin juridical
expression[21]
found in canon 303 of the Code of Canon Law (CIC):
“Associations whose members live in the world but share in the spirit of
some religious institute, under the overall direction of the same institute,
and who lead an apostolic life and strive for Christian perfection, are known
as third orders, or are called by some other suitable title”[22].
The juridical relationship between a religious institute and the
association of faithful called a third order (or other suitable title) with
which it shares a spirituality is called altius moderamen or
“higher direction”[23]. The juridical relationship of the altius
moderamen existing between the First Order, TOR and SFO, in contrast to
other associations of faithful and of other religious institutes, has its own
characteristics (because of what we have already said)[24] in virtue of the apostolic
privilege granted by the Church to the SFO[25]. This privilege
directly commits the First Order and the TOR. In what way? Let us go
from the general to the particular.
“The purpose
of the altius
moderamen is to guarantee the fidelity of the SFO to the
Franciscan charism, communion with the Church and union with the Franciscan
family ”[27].
It is a question of
a triple fidelity[28]
which is important not to ignore. On the other hand, it must not be forgotten
that the altius moderamen is “a
fraternal service”, which, together with spiritual assistance to the
fraternities and their Councils, constitutes a double service which
“completes but does not substitute for the secular councils and ministers whose
responsibility it is to guide, coordinate, and animate the fraternities at the
various levels”[29].
Here I would like
to recall that all the associations of faithful have a right to self-government
as is established by the CIC in can. 215: “Christ’s faithful may freely establish
and direct [moderentur] associations which serve charitable or pious
purposes or which foster the Christian vocation in the world...” In the SFO also,
governance is not the competence of others but of its own moderators,
legitimately elected. So, for example, no. 21 of the Rule, says: “On
various levels, each fraternity is animated and guided [animatur ac
ducitur] by a council and minister (or president) who are elected by
the professed according to the Constitutions”. Further on, the same no. 21
says: “Within themselves the fraternities are structured in different ways
according to the norm of the constitutions, according to the various needs of
their members and their regions, and under the guidance [sub
moderamine] of their respective council”. It is a question of the autonomy
of the SFO which has always to be lived in “a life-giving union” with the First
Order and TOR.
c) The collegial exercise of the altius moderamen
The way General
Ministers exercise collegially the altius moderamen and the pastoral
assistance with regard to SFO as a whole is described concretely in Art. 8.2:
“It belongs specifically to the Conference of General
Ministers of the First Order and the TOR:
-- to conduct relations with the Holy See concerning legislative or
liturgical texts requiring the approval of the Holy See;
-- to visit the Presidency of the International Council of the SFO[30];
-- to preside over and to confirm the election of the Presidency of
the International Council of the SFO[31];
-- if the case arises, to accept the resignation of the general
Minister of the SFO”[32].
One must note that the
General Ministers in these cases act as a “Conference”.
2.4. The
collegiality of Provincial Ministers
This theme is dealt
with in Art. 10, 2, that reads:
“Where more than
one major
The text says “they establish together”, that is they
reach an agreement (both verbal and written, such as a short set of rules)
concerning certain norms to be adopted that take into account the following:
“They are likewise
to jointly draw up procedures for the appointment of the national and regional
Assistants and also to establish from which Superiors the national and regional
Councils of the SFO should request an Assistant” (Art. 10.3)[34].
There are two elements that must be considered in this
respect: a) the dialogue of Major Superiors with national and regional SFO
councils so that they are able to identify whom to ask for the Assistant; and
b) the appointment of national and regional Assistants and its procedure, for
example establishing which Superior has to make the appointment and for how
long it will last. This latter point is
dealt with in Art. 15.2; 19.1 e 21.1.
3. THE
SPIRITUAL ASSISTANTS
This theme deals
with the spiritual assistance to fraternities and their councils. It is the
responsibility mainly of Assistants at the different levels.
3.1. Purpose
of spiritual assistance
Art. 2.3 reads:
“The purpose of
spiritual assistance is to foster communion with the Church and with the
Franciscan Family through witness and sharing of Franciscan spirituality, to
cooperate in initial and ongoing formation of secular Franciscans and to
express the fraternal affection of the religious towards the SFO”[35].
We already found
some of these elements when dealing with the issue of the altius moderamen:
1.
communion with the Church;
2.
union with the Franciscan family.
These two elements
have now to be translated, through the work of the Assistants, into practice:
1.
through witness and sharing of Franciscan spirituality;
2.
to cooperate in initial and on-going formation of
secular Franciscans;
3.
to express the fraternal affection of the religious
towards the SFO.
3.2. Collegial
service for the spiritual assistance
Art. 16.1 reads:
“At the international,
national, and regional level, the Assistants, if there are more than one, form
a Conference and give their service collegially to the SFO and to the Franciscan
Youth”[36].
The collegiality of Assistants at the different levels
depends on the possibility of forming a Conference, that is to say, if there are more than one. The same
idea applies when dealing with the theme of national (Art. 19.2) and regional
(Art. 21.2) Assistants.
Point 2 of the same Art. 16, reads:
“Each
Conference of Assistants functions according to its own internal by-laws”.
These by-laws
do not have to be very long and complex. Quite the contrary, being an internal by-law it can easily be
contained in one page provided it covers the following points:
1.
The fundamental principle upon which the Conference of
Spiritual Assistants (CSA) is grounded (for example: what the Statutes say in
this regard);
2.
The responsibilities of the CSA;
3.
The place where the Conference is located, that might
correspond with that of the national of regional Conference;
4.
The quorum that has to be reached in order for it to
function;
5.
The procedures to be followed to take decisions;
6.
The duration in office of the CSA President and
Secretary;
7.
The procedures for calling and presiding over the
meetings, as well as for establishing the agenda;
8.
The responsibilities of the Secretary;
9.
The criteria to designate the Visitor and who can participate
in the national Chapters of the SFO;
10.
The representation
of CSA (the President or a spokesperson);
11.
Any other task that
might be performed.
Point 2, concerning the tasks of the CSA, it must not
repeat what the Statutes already say on the subject: “the responsibility of the
Conference of national Assistants [or to the national Assistant if there is
only one]:
-- to collaborate with the national Council in the task of spiritual
and apostolic animation of the secular Franciscans in the life of the Church
and the society of the country, and in a special way in the formation of the
leaders;
-- to provide for the pastoral visits of the regional Councils of
the SFO[37]
and to ensure a presence at the regional elective Chapters[38];
-- to coordinate, at the national level, the service of spiritual
assistance, the formation of the assistants, and the fraternal union among
them;
-- to foster the interest of the friars in the SFO and in the
Franciscan Youth”.
Or what is written
likewise concerning “the responsibility of the Conference of regional
Assistants, or to the regional Assistant if there is only one…” (Art. 21.3).
Point 3 of the same Art.16, recalls that:
“The national and
regional Statutes of the SFO establish the number of Assistants who are members
of the national or regional Council”.
We have to keep in mind here that within certain
fraternities “at the heart of the regional [or national] Council there can be
set up an executive council (or board) whose duties are determined by those
same statutes” [39]. This means that if a
Conference is composed of four Assistants, one of them can be part of the
Executive Board and all of them can be part of the national Council. It is also
possible that the four of them are part of the national Council and also of the
Executive Board, provided it is foreseen in the national Statutes. In the case
of a regional Conference this has to be foreseen also in the Statutes of the
regions to which they belong.
Finally, since the
Assistants are responsible “for the animation of liturgical celebrations and
spiritual reflections during the meetings of the Council or of the chapter”
(Art. 13.3), these duties can be the object of a fraternal collegial service.
[1] See SFO
Const 87.1; 88.5; 90.3.
[2] Rule 1.
[3] Statutes 13.1.
[4] Statutes 11.2; 17.3; 19.3; 21.3.
[5] Statutes 13.3.
[6] SFO
Const 85.1.
[7] In those countries divided into Regions.
[8] Statutes 5.1.
[9] Cf.
F. CANGELOSI – B . LINO, L’Assistenza spirituale, 21.
[10] Statutes 5.3.
[11] Statutes 1.3.
[12] Statutes 5.4.
[13] Statutes 5.2.
[14] Statutes 5.2. The appointment of spiritual assistants
by Major Superiors is part of this last point.
[15] SFO Cons 87.1.
[16] Decision of the Signatura
Apostolica, Prot. N. 31858/00 CA, of
[17] Rule 2.
[18] Rule 20.
[19] Rule 26.
[20] Sentencia, n.14.
[21] Altius is the neuter
comparative adjective of
[22] The Code of 1917, can. 702.1,
simply said sub moderatione, ‘under the moderation’. Through the
expression sub altiore moderamine, the present Code
has determined, with greater precision, the juridical relationship which
is established between an association of faithful and a religious institute,
through which two important elements are preserved: a) the “supervision of the
competent ecclesiastical authority” in matters of faith and morals (can. 305),
on the one hand, and b) the identity, unity and autonomy of the association of
faithful, on the basis of which these have the right to self-government (can.
215), on the other (Cf. J. ZUDAIRE, El seguimiento de Cristo
con Francisco de Asís. Introducción a la Forma de Vida y Organización de
la Orden Franciscana Seglar [Madrid 1995] 230).
[23] Cf. F. QUIROZ C., OFM, L’Altius
Moderamen Colegial (of the Ministers General of the First Order and Third Order
Regular) in relation to the Secular Franciscan Order, in Cuadernos
Franciscanos (Cefepal - Chile, January-March 2002 – n. 137) 14.
[24] In point 3, on the three elements
which constitute the basis of the spiritual and pastoral assistance.
[25] Cf. F. CANGELOSI – B . LINO, L’Assistenza spirituale e pastorale all’Ordine Francescano Secolare, in Francesco, il volto secolare (
[26] Cf. Const. 1.5; 99.2.
[27] Const. 85.2; Statutes
2.2.
[28] Cf. F. CANGELOSI – B . LINO, L’Assistenza
spirituale, 21.
[29] Statutes 3.1.
[30] See SFO Const 92.2-3.
[31] See SFO Const 76.2.
[32] See SFO Const 83.1.
[33] SFO Const 88.5.
[34] See SFO Const 91.2.
[35] See SFO
Const 89.3; 90.1.
[36] See SFO Const 90.3.
[37] See SFO
Const 93.1-2.
[38] See SFO Const 76.2.
[39] Cf. SFO Const. 62.1 and 66.1-