A letter addressed to:
To the delegates for the Extraordinary General Chapter,
the delegates for the General Assembly of the Consecrated Women,
the delegates for the General Assembly of the Lay Consecrated Men
and the lay delegates for the Extraordinary General Assembly
Forwarded to all members of Regnum Christi in the North American Territory
October 10, 2018
Dear friends in Christ:
I send you all warm greetings this October during the celebration of the Synod of Bishops here in Rome.
I write to you all on behalf of Fr. Eduardo Robles-Gil, Gloria Rodríguez and Jorge López, together with their Councils, and the General Directive Committee of Regnum Christi to present some documents and observations for the next General Chapter and the General Assemblies of November.
- Third version of Draft Statutes of the Regnum Christi Federation (cf. Prot. DG-RC 355-2018)
These Draft Statutes will be the base text for the next Chapter and branch Assemblies and, with future amendments, the base text for the General Assembly. It was prepared in the following way (See Message from Fr. Jaime Rodríguez on May 14, 2018, Prot. DG-RC 184-2018):
- A drafting commission was established in April and May, composed of Fr. Sylvester Heereman, Fr Andreas Schöggl, Fr Gabriel Sotres, Jorge López, Mari Carmen Ávila, Viviana Limón, Javier Bendek (secretary) and Br. Seth Sabata (secretary) (see Prot. DG-RC 183-2018).
- In the same months, the General Directive Committee of Regnum Christi decided to pass the direction of the Statutes process and the approval of documents to the general moderators of the branches with their respective councils.
- This text was revised and amended by the three general governments of the consecrated branches in July. At the end of these meetings, the three general directors, with the consent of their respective councils and having heard the opinion of Francisco Gámez (lay member of the General Directive Committee), approved the sending of the Working Document for the preparation of the third edition of the Draft Statutes (see Prot. DG-RC 270-2018) to the delegates for the Chapter and branch Assemblies and the lay delegates to the Extraordinary General Assembly.
- Between July and August, the delegates to the Chapter and Assemblies had time to respond to a survey on the working document (see Letter to Legionary Delegates Prot. DG-LC 3300-2018; Letter to Delegates of the Consecrated Women Prot. DG-CRC 1252/2018; Letter to Delegates of the Lay Consecrated Men Prot. DG-LCRC 104-2018; Letter to the Lay Delegates Prot. DG-RC 272-2018). These contributions were considered in the amendments made to the draft Statutes.
- In September, the three general governments met for the second time and reviewed the draft Statutes with the adjustments made by the drafting Commission. At the end of these meetings, the three general moderators, with the consent of their respective Council and having heard the opinion of Francisco Gámez, approved the present draft (see Prot. DG-RC 0350-2018) as the base text for the second session of the General Chapter and General Assemblies. The General Council of the Legion of Christ did not offer its consent to number 42 §1. The explanation and an expanded alternative text of this number can be found in the presentation of the draft.
- This text, which included the amendments made by the drafting commission, was revised by the three general governments of the consecrated branches in a second meeting in September. At the end of these meetings, the three general directors, with the consent of their respective councils and having heard the opinion of Francisco Gámez, approved the present draft (see Prot. DG-RC 350-2018) as the base text for the second session of the General Chapter and Assemblies. The General Council of the Legion of Christ did not offer its consent to number 42 §1; the reason is explained in the presentation of the draft text and an alternative is presented.
This text is presented in two versions in Spanish: the first has three columns (Draft 2.0 - July Working Document - Draft 3.0) with all the changes highlighted, and the second one is simply the final text. There is also an English translation of the final text.
- Draft Regulations of the Associated Faithful in the Regnum Christi Federation (see Prot. DG-RC 354-2018)
The present draft of the Regulations was approved by the three general directors this October after following the process that is explained in the introduction to the Draft Statutes.
In view of the long drafting process of this document and the short time available at the Extraordinary General Assembly in November, all delegates are asked to prepare written proposals for any change they see necessary in these Regulations. These proposals must be in the form of alternative texts to the numbers presented here, and should be sent to the secretariat of the Joint General Assembly (rcstatutes_cc@regnumchristi.net) before November 12, 2018. In the General Assembly, unless decided otherwise by the Assembly, only the written proposals received in this time frame will be reviewed and voted on.
When the Joint Assembly votes these Regulations in November, lay members and branch members will both participate with a deliberative vote as established by Draft 3.0 no. 55 §3 and Regulations of the Associated Faithful no. 39§2.
- Regarding the assignation of apostolic activity
In the July and September meetings, the three general governments analyzed the progress of the study carried out by the Technical Commission (See Prot. DG-RC 183-2018). Although the Commission has not yet finished its work, the status is the following:
- Broad consensus has been reached among the general governments to propose to the supreme governing bodies that each branch be the owner of their own houses and fully responsible for ensuring the sustenance of their own branch. There is also agreement in considering that the governing bodies of the Federation, in addition to being responsible for the life of the sections, should assume the direction of the evangelization works linked to the life of the sections and the direction of the work teams in the Federation which offer common services for the life of Regnum Christi.
- Agreement has not yet been reached on a proposed model for the assignment of educational works. The commission is still working on the development of the three possible models (full assignment, full assignment and co-direction, co-ownership). These models will be presented to the Chapter and Assemblies for their opinion. It is foreseen that this will imply a prolonged time of implementation, while taking into account the specific conditions in each territory.
- With regard to this matter, it is worth remembering that the Chapter and the Assemblies of November, by their nature, have the task of establishing a legislative framework, not of making particular decisions or carrying out specific governmental acts.
- There are still issues under discussion and it is probable that not everything related to apostolic works will come to final agreement and decision in November. Even so, the three general governments consider that the constitution and implementation of the Federation, with the characteristics and attributions presented in the current draft, is a possible and convenient step for the good of all of Regnum Christi and the three consecrated branches.
- Appendixes to the Rules of Procedure for the branch Assemblies and Extraordinary General Assembly
With this explanation of the documents, I invite you to read them, starting with the presentation and the glossary. In his speech on the opening of the Synod, the Holy Father said: “Courage in speaking must correspond to humility in listening” (see Discourse of October 3, 2018). We, the Chapter fathers and delegates of the Assemblies, must prepare ourselves in an attitude of listening and discernment in prayer. The Chapter fathers and delegates will also be available to receive contributions and reflections from those who will not participate. As of October 10, all Regnum Christi members will be able to read the Draft 3.0 at www.rcstatutes.org.
On behalf of Fr. Eduardo, Gloria and Jorge, their councils and the General Committee, I encourage all of us to place the path still before us in the hands of our Heavenly Mother, whom we invoke with special fervor this month. May we all be able to offer a mystery of the rosary every day for this intention and not cease to pray for all the intentions of the Holy Father and the Church.
Yours in Christ,
Fr. Andreas Schöggl, LC