Amendments in the General Constitutions - Part II

The amended Constitutions

invite us

• to be close (art.24.2) to people who are experiencing any type of difficulty, doing everything possible to support them humanely and spiritually, showing them our solidarity and affection, offering them any help they may need;
• to be open (art. 53.5) also to those who wish to know us and to take part in the life of our Fraternity without belonging to it, but sharing its life and activities;
• to dialogue (art. 31.3, 50.2 b, 58.1-3., 84.1-3), which - as the Holy Father states in the Apostolic Exhortation on consecrated life - "is the new name for charity" and to which leaders of the Order are particularly obliged to;

insist on

collegiality in animating and guiding a Fraternity at any level (art. 31.1). The Constitutions are "purified" and return to the words of the Rule: "At different levels, every Fraternity is animated and guided by a Council and a Minister" (Rule 21). Only responsibility not personalized, but shared by all elected members of the Council can offer an adequate service of animation and guidance, for which all members of the Council were duly elected in the Chapter;

introduce

dispositions which will guarantee transparency in the management of the funds entrusted by the brothers and in the administration and care of the Fraternity’s patrimony at any level.

• Before celebrating the elective Chapter, the regional, national and international Council has to "verify...the financial and patrimonial situation of the Fraternity". This assessment must be made by an expert, who is not a member of the Council, or by a college of auditors of accounts, where this exists (art. 62.2 l; 66.2 n; 74.2 m). The reason for this requirement is also not to leave any unclear situation to the new Council.
  
• It is advisable that this regulation be introduced also into the national Statutes for those local Fraternities who have a patrimony or considerable financial resources (54.3);

change

some aspects regarding

1. the celebration of elective Chapters, indicating in particular

• who has the right to vote (active or passive) in the elective Chapters (art. 77, 1-2). Spiritual Assistants, who are full-right members of the corresponding level of the Councils and Chapters, do not vote in the elections and in financial matters;
• that the national Statutes may establish objective election criteria (art. 77,3). For example: request a minimum number of years of Profession before being able to be elected Minister, actively participate in the life of the Fraternity, etc.;
• the "quorum" required for the celebration of the Chapter (art. 77,4). The national Statutes may establish a different "quorum" for certain local Fraternities which for example count a high number of elderly or disabled members who, remain full-right members of the Fraternity, but cannot take part in the meetings;
  
• the requisites for the re-election of the Minister and Vice-Minister (art 79.1);
• that the retiring Minister can not be elected Vice-Minister (art. 79.2);
• the requisites for the re-election of the Councillors (art. 79.3). After two consecutive three-year periods a qualified 2/3 majority is required for a third mandate, which must be obtained on the first ballot and regardless of the office covered as Councillor. As an example: to establish the required majority, the consecutive periods in which the person was elected are added up, regardless of whether in one triennium he acted as secretary and in another as treasurer or responsible of formation, etc.

2. Vacant offices (art. 81). The novelty consists in the fact that:

• if the office of the Minister is vacant, the Vice Minister automatically replaces the Minister until the end of the mandate for which the latter was originally elected,
• if the office of the Vice Minister is vacant, the Council of the corresponding level (with the exception of the Spiritual Assistant) elects the Vice-Minister, with secret votation, amongst the members of the same Council.

3. Dismissal (art.84). The Council itself or the Council of the higher level may provide for the dismissal of:

• the Minister (art. 84.1-2 and 6),
• a Councillor (art. 84.3),
• the entire Council (art. 84.6);

reaffirm

the importance of fraternal and pastoral visits:
The relevant articles were re-elaborated to make them more comprehensible without making substantial changes to their contents;

establish

important changes regarding Spiritual Assistance.

By virtue of the "altius moderamen" on the SFO, entrusted to them by the Church, it is the concern of the Provincial Ministers and the other Major Superiors of the First Order and TOR (art. 88):

• guarantee spiritual assistance to the local Fraternities in their jurisdiction;
• make sure that their religious take an interest in the SFO;
  
• appoint suitable and prepared persons for the service of spiritual assistance;
  
• keep themselves updated on the spiritual assistance given to the SFO;
• agree with the other Major Superiors with jurisdiction in the same territory on the most convenient way to provide spiritual assistance to those local Fraternities, who for reasons due to force majeure were left without assistance.

Who is the Spiritual Assistant (art. 89.2):

• he or she is the person whom the competent Major Superior considers suitable and prepared to offer the service of spiritual assistance to a given Fraternity;
• preferably a Franciscan religious belonging to the First Order or TOR. Formerly he had to be "a Franciscan religious priest". We call your attention to this point because what counts most is being a Franciscan to be able to offer and share, in reciprocal vital communion, the spirituality of Francis of Assisi.
• when this is not possible, the Major Superior, amongst other options, may entrust this service to other people (priests or lay people) belonging to the SFO who are, in his opinion, suitable and specifically prepared. In this case the Major Superior will have to take care that the person he chooses is not a member of the Fraternity to be assisted. Also in this case, the Major Superior will remain responsible for the quality of the assistance and pastoral service offered to the Fraternity.

The General Constitutions insist that the Council (and we underline the term Council) of the Fraternity at any level must ask the Major Superior of the First Order and TOR, responsible for the nomination of the Assistant, for a suitable and prepared assistant (art. 91.1-2).

• Ask for, and not supply names or a list of names;
  
• ask to be heard before the nomination in order to indicate the concrete necessities of the Fraternity. At this stage of dialogue, when opinions are exchanged, it may also be possible to make some suggestions on the person to nominate.

Rome, June 21, 2001