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CAPUCHINS-CHAPTER Aug-30-2006 (830 words) With photos. xxxi
At general chapter, Capuchins look at reviving order's European roots
By John Thavis
Catholic News Service
ROME (CNS) -- After years of substantial growth in Asia and Africa, Capuchin Franciscans are turning new attention to reviving the order's European roots.
More than 170 representatives of the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin began a three-week general chapter in Rome Aug. 27 to elect a new head of the order and set objectives for the next six years. The meeting brought together representatives from the nearly 11,000 Capuchins working in 101 countries around the world.
Cardinal Sean P. O'Malley of Boston, the only Capuchin cardinal, celebrated the chapter's opening Mass. He said in a homily that the Capuchins of today must continue to be inspired by St. Francis' example of "love taken to the extreme."
The Capuchin vocation, Cardinal O'Malley said, is to be "on fire with love for Christ and zeal for souls, willing to take the last place, the worst job, the most dangerous position."
Canadian Father John Corriveau, who is leaving as Capuchin minister-general after 12 years, gave a lengthy report Aug. 28 detailing the state of the order and suggesting future strategies.
In terms of numbers, Father Corriveau's report had good news and bad news. Over the last 12 years, the Capuchin order has grown 44 percent in Asia and Oceania, 34 percent in Africa, 14 percent in Eastern Europe and 5 percent in Latin America.
These four areas now make up more than 55 percent of the order's professed friars, Father Corriveau said. They are also the regions where the friars' average age is youngest.
On the other hand, Capuchin numbers in Western Europe and North America are down about 20 percent over the same period.
Father Corriveau said the order wants to keep expanding in the developing world, particularly Asia, and is taking the first steps to building a presence in China and Vietnam. But he said the order needs to focus attention on the traditional areas that are suffering from numerical loss and advanced age.
In an interview, Father Corriveau said finding ways to reinvigorate the order in Europe and North America was one of the main challenges of the chapter.
Already, he said, the Capuchins have tried different ways to promote new vocations, including what he called a "no fault" one-year trial period for new members. At the same time, he said, the order does not want to extend initial formation for so long that people think the commitment to a religious life is open-ended.
One of the reasons for the fall in vocations in the West, Father Corriveau said, is that many people today feel they are not free unless they keep their options open.
"In religious life, too, there's a danger that one makes a commitment until a better offer comes along," he said.
In his sermon, Cardinal O'Malley said he thought that if the order deepens its commitment to the Franciscan ideals of prayer, austerity, poverty, fraternity and service to the church, it will strengthen its own identity and attract new generations of Capuchins.
Father Corriveau said a constant challenge was to take a new look at the Franciscan vision in the light of global developments.
For example, he said, Franciscan poverty has traditionally been lived as an individual, ascetic experience. But now there is a new dimension, he said, which seeks to create a more fraternal economy in the world.
Essentially, he said, it's an extension of St. Francis' teachings into the real world, to promote an economy built on human relationships and not wealth.
In his report, Father Corriveau said the Capuchins were also discussing how to look at the Franciscan vision in the context of the "spirituality of communion" in the modern church. He said this has implications at every level, from local parishes to evangelization efforts around the world.
At the center of the Franciscan mission, he said, is contemplation that leads to witness. A witness, he said, is not simply a specialized instructor but someone who has lived the Gospel personally and intimately.
He said Capuchins would remain committed to various works in favor of peace, justice and ecology, but added that it was important for Capuchins to rediscover the spirit of personal prayer, balancing apostolic activity with time for reflection.
Father Corriveau highlighted one particular Capuchin project called the Damietta Initiative, which aims to build "dialogue cells" between Christians and Muslims across Africa. Rather than discussing theological or religious issues, the cells would be designed to address local practical problems and tensions, in order to promote nonviolent problem solving, he said.
Father Corriveau also briefly underlined the need for all Capuchins to remain true to their vow of chastity, an issue he raised at length at the last general chapter in 2000. He said there remained a lack of clarity about this vow in some local areas. He urged vigilance and said one resource was a special report prepared by the order, "An Ethical Code for Vowed Chastity."
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