In the course of their seventeen-day pilgrimage
with the Master of the Order, the pilgrim studentbrothers
were asked by Br. Bruno Cadoré, OP, to gather
and present their concerns and thoughts as young
Dominicans to the capitulars of the General Chapter of
Priors Provincial in Bologna. The following is the position
paper of one of the four linguistic groups. Br. Hilario V.
Sicat Jr., OP, and Br. Matthew Farrell, OP, of the Irish
Province drafted it. Br. Sicat served as the relator of the
group before the capitulars.
In this section we will address the following issues:
1) Prayer and contemplation;
2) New questions in a dynamic world;
3) The internationality dimension of the Order;
4) Co-operator brothers and contemplative sisters;
5) Visible identity
1. Prayer and Contemplation. The Dominican vocation starts with contemplation.
During our pilgrimage, we have seen many places
where Dominic prayed to discover what God was
asking of him. Because of this experience, prayer
became a fundamental pillar of the mendicant life.
Preachers cannot speak about God, if they have not
themselves experienced the power of turning to God in
contemplation. It seems that those in formation have
a need for more help and encouragement to develop
a healthy prayer life to be ready for the mission. Here,
a specific introduction to and emphasis on the rich
Dominican tradition could be very helpful.
2. New Questions in a dynamic world. Our world is in flux. Permanent change in society asks
for permanent study of all the brethren. We have a good
reputation for helping people find the answers in their
lives, but are we living up to this reputation, especially
when it comes to the interaction between theology and
other fields of knowledge? Can we anticipate better
the people’s questions and be prepared in answering
them? What could we learn from Dominic’s encounter with the innkeeper? Is it just a case of spending a night
persuading someone to the truths of the Gospel? Does
it start with attentive listening to the experience of the
person we encounter? Are we really prepared to become
good listeners before we become good speakers?
3. Internationality of the Order. Our Order is international before it is local. This
has been the case from the early days of our mission.
However, it seems that we struggle to keep this essential
international dimension of our vocation. Local provincial
concerns at times demand so much energy of the
brethren that international concerns are not adequately
addressed. Yet, if our world is interconnected in many
ways, so we should be, in order to preach the Word to
the world. This lapse may be remedied by beginning with
formation. Brothers in formation could be encouraged
more to serve our international institutions through
study, teaching, and pastoral engagements. During the
pilgrimage, we have experienced that an intensification
of the study of the languages of the Order is urgently
needed.
4. Co-operator brothers and the contemplative
sisters. Both the co-operator brothers and the contemplative
sisters are vital to the success of our mission. Much
thought has already been put to both vocations
(General Chapter of Trogir). How can we, as brothers,
help promote these vocations to the Order through our
preaching, our parishes, and educational institutions?
5. Visibility of the Dominican identity. The pilgrimage has presented us with a rich tapestry
of art and impressions of our Dominican heritage. We
have seen many representations of St. Dominic, St.
Thomas, St. Catherine, and many other saints. But we
have also seen other demonstrations of our identity
through the symbols of our crest and the dog with the
flaming torch.
However, it seems that today this rich heritage
is under-utilized in our day-to-day mission. Thus,the Dominican presence is often not visible in the
public square. How do we make ourselves visible and
recognizable again? Can we better utilize new forms of
social communication for our mission?
Conclusion
Our vocation as preachers faces several questions
today:
(a) How do we see prayer as means to enrich our
vocation?
(b) Do we anticipate the questions of the mondern day
innkeeper and are we equipped to answer them?
(c) How have we been faithful to the international
character of the Order?
(d) How do we promote the vocation of the cooperator
brothers and the nuns?
(e) How can we make our Dominican identity more
visible today?
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