History of the Rule of Life

On 11 October 1962 Pope John XXIII inaugurated the Council Vatican II in St Peter’s Basilica.

For our Congregation this was the beginning of a period of renewal requested by the very same Council and extending to the present day. Here are some of the outstanding events: as a preparation for the Council Fr Joseph Mirande, Superior General, was summoned to Rome to be part of the Commission of Religious preparing the Council: (See NEF 94, 20/11/1960, pg 161-162). In 1963 the Congregation celebrated the centenary of the death of our Father, St Michael Garicoits with all due solemnity. It was of great importance not only at Betharram but in the whole Congregation.

In 1964 the XVIII ordinary General Chapter took place. Amongst the documents was the letter from Fr Mirande to all the religious inviting each one for his contribution to the renewal of the Congregation. The motu proprio Ecclesiae Sanctae requested the summoning of an extraordinary Chapter for the revision of the Constitutions in the light of the Council. At Bel Sito an Interprovincial Commission with representatives of all the Provinces of the Congregation met to study the answers to the Questionnaire and to prepare the General Chapter dedicated to the Renewal of the Congregation: (see the Commission Document Nef 187-188).

This extraordinary General Chapter took place in 1969 and it was during it that the new Rule of Life was drawn up with all the notes from the Commission. This Rule of Life was approved ad experimentum for 10 years. During this same Chapter Fr Giovanni Trameri was elected Superior General.

The 1969 Rule of life was noteworthy on several points: The Manifesto of the Founder was placed in the introduction but there was no mention of the fact that “human beings are cold before God” and that priests were unable to say yes. It is to be noted also the quotes from the Bible plus those from the Council and the writings of the Founder that weren’t to be found in the 1947 Constitutions. The first five chapters introduce the spirituality; this was something new since the Ecce Venio had been lost sight of in the 1901 Constitutions. Next came the chapters on formation (6); apostolic works (7); government (8); the temporal administration (9); and leaving the Congregation (10).

The first chapter Nature and Spirit of the Congregation explains very clearly the identity of the Congregation and which we would call the Charism today. This latter is composed of three important dimensions: spirituality, community and mission. The Charism is defined as a gift from the Holy Spirit given to St Michael Garicoits which consists of “reproducing and manifesting the impulse of the Incarnate Word saying to his Father: Ecce Venio, and surrending himself to all his wishes for the redemption of mankind” (Rule of Life 1969, art 2). The important figures in the presentation of the charism as it appears in the Rule were Father Joseph Mirande for the style of the text, Father Mateo and Fr Duvignau even though the latter wasn’t member of the Chapter.

The second chapter Our Apostolic Life introduced what we would call today the mission of the Congregation, by clearly distinguishing it from the contents of Chapter 7, namely the apostolic works.

In 1981 the XXI General Chapter completed the revision of the Rule of Life before submitting it to a vote. Father Pierre Grech who had been elected Superior General in 1975, was re-elected in 1981 for a second mandate. It was he who would submit the Rule to the Sacred Congregation for final approval.

On 25 March 1983, on the feast of the “Ecce Venio” and the “Ecce Ancilla,” Cardinal Eduardo Pironio, Prefect of the Sacred Congregation, signed the decree approving our Rule of Life.

In July 1985 a conference was held at Betharram on the Charism of St Michael. This was to mark the beginning of a deepening of the charismatic identity at the heart of the Congregation; as point of reference there was the Manifesto of the Founder, preface to the 1838 Constitutions, the text of which was to be found in Father Cassou’s notes.

In 1989, in reply to a letter from the CIVCSVA, the Rule of Life was adapted to the new Code of Canon Law, promulgated by Pope John Paul II in 1983.

Gaspar Fernández Pérez, scj