On November 8, 2012, the commission assigned to revise the Rule of Life of the Secular Augustinian Recollect Fraternity took up its task. The protocol letter signed by the Prior General that day in Rome also commissioned the group to draw up a common Plan of Formation for the more that 4,000 secular members distributed among 15 countries throughout the world. This was the initial step in the fulfillment of one of the ordinances approved in the last General Chapter of the Order, held in 2010.
The six religious comprising the Commission set to work immediately. Only four days later, on November 12, they gathered for their first meeting, in which they drew up a plan of work and distributed individual tasks.
The fruit of their labors was a working document for a new Rule of Life, which was sent to the 115 fraternities of the Order in January 2014. All were asked to study the document and to send opinions and suggestions for possible improvements. They were given the deadline of April 20.
A Unique Meeting
On March 27 and 28 the Commission held its fourth meeting, this time at the monastery in Monteagudo, Navarre, Spain. Their purpose was to plan an extraordinary five-day meeting to be held May 1-5. That meeting took place at Saint Augustine House of Formation in Las Rozas, Madrid. In that idyllic setting in the outskirts of the capital of Spain, sharing the Augustinian Recollect life with the twenty students in formation there, the Commission on the Fraternities found the most favorable atmosphere for going about its work.
Five of the six members of the Commission attended the meeting. What made the meeting unique, something without precedent, was that five secular members of the Fraternity, from different parts of the world, also participated. The religious were Fathers Miguel Ángel Hernández, Pablo Panedas, Sergio Sánchez, and Ismael Ojeda. They were joined by Father Rafael Mediavilla, who had coordinated the work of gathering suggestions. The secular participants, chosen by the General Council, were Ana María Vega from Peru, Tere García from Mexico, Pepita Olivas and José Antonio Lechuga from Spain, and Valerie Howard from the United Kingdom.
Their plan of activities was simple. They dedicated each morning to examining the suggestions and integrating them into the working document of the Rule of Life and spent their afternoons examining the Plan of Formation, which had already been prepared.
The New Rule of Life
The work on the Rule of Life was very intense and took more time than expected. The suggestions, coming from all over the world, numbered well over a hundred and were studied and discussed systematically. Little by little and with everyone’s cooperation, a polished text was produced which, after being reviewed one more time, will be sent once again to the fraternities in preparation for finally presenting it for approval to the General Council, who will in turn submit it to the Holy See.
Once it is approved by the respective Vatican Congregation, the Rule of Life will be the charismatic text of the Secular Augustinian Recollect Fraternity for this new era now beginning.
The Plan of Formation
The General Chapter of 2010 also requested that a common Plan of Formation be formulated for all the fraternities, and the Commission, in its last meetings, also worked at this task. The format chosen for the publication comprises several series of leaflets to be used as guides for the ordinary meetings of the fraternities. The twelve that are being presented now are those that are considered basic and necessary for candidates preparing to become members of the Fraternity. Their approach is eminently practical and spiritual, offering aids to reflecting on one’s own life and to discovering and activating the primary mechanisms of the interior life and of the Augustinian Recollect charism.
The twelve basic themes of the plan, which is entitled IARF (Itinerary of Augustinian Recollect Formation), are presented in a very practical style and with high-quality colored diagrams and illustrations. All of them follow a similar outline, and each one develops one of the classic images of Christian and Augustinian sprirtuality, that of the pilgrim.
While the working document of the Rule of Life sparked lively discussions and sometimes heated debates, the IARF was accepted by everyone with genuine enthusiasm. The representatives of the fraternities were overflowing with praise and in unison pleaded that it be translated as soon as possible and sent to all the members of the Fraternity throughout the world. They believe that when this is accomplished and all are well prepared and motivated to receive the two publications, both the Rule of Life and IARF will stir up new life in the fraternities and serve as powerful tools for a profound renewal.