General Chapter Biên Hoà 2019 – 08 July
THE 290th GENERAL CHAPTER OF THE DOMINICAN ORDER KICKS OFF
As usual, the Brothers and Sisters in service began the day with 5:30am Mass and Prayers. Some of the Capitulars and Guests also joined in. Other capitular brothers and guests celebrated 7:00am Mass with Morning Prayers integrated. After breakfast, all Brothers were free to socialize and exchange views until the afternoon Opening Session.
The representatives of the government officials in- charge of religion paid a courtesy visit at 9:00am. They were received by the Provincial of Vietnam, former Master of the Order Brother Timothy Radcliff, present Master of the Order Brother Bruno Cadoré, and the General Secretary Joseph Ngo Si Dinh. After exchanging words of introduction and thanks, both sides gave a commitment to cooperate with one another.
At 3:30pm, all capitulars and guests met at the General Assembly, where they were to be received by Brother Bruno Cadoré, and Brother Joseph Nguyen Duc Hoa, Prior Provincial of the Province of Our Lady Queen of Martyrs in Vietnam.
After chanting “O Lumen” invoking the Holy Father St Dominic, Brother Bruno Cadoré greeted all the participants, “xin chao,” and then without delay introduced the Provincial of Vietnam to deliver opening words.
Brother Joseph Nguyen Duc Hoa welcomed all the participants and shared how happy and honored the Dominican Family in Vietnam is when the historical moment came true, despite cultural differences and difficulties in documentary procedures: the second General Chapter held in Asia and the first one in a non-Christian country! He recalled what happened in 1997 when Brother Timothy Radcliff came to Vietnam. He compared how things are getting better now, and hoped that another General Chapter would be held in the future. He also expressed his gratitude to the Bishop of Xuan Loc Diocese, the Rector of the Seminary, and those who helped to make this special event possible.
The General Secretary pronounced the names of all the capitulars to the Assembly, including guests invited by the Master of the Order: socii, nuns, apostolic sisters, lay Dominicans, and secular institutes. Two capitulars had yet to arrive.
Reference was made to the three official languages to be used in the chapter: English, Spanish, and French. For documentation, Latin could be used. The Master reminded all to speak slowly, simply and clearly to facilitate the work of the interpreters. Other than the diversity of languages, Brother Bruno also emphasized another fact that this time’s General Chapter is organized in a non-Christian country, which may offer something more important to reflect on: the dialogues with other cultures, with other religions, and with the marginalized.
The Master briefly introduced the Province of Vietnam and the missionaries of the Brothers, who have received the faith over several centuries: having many Students Brothers, having many Cooperators Brothers, being present in Canada, the United States, Thailand, Laos, etc., going to be present in Cambodia, and having Brothers serving in other provinces. “Some of the young Brothers are ready to be sent to any place where the Order needs them,” said he.
The Master also mentioned that Vietnam is a country where the Dominican family is vibrant and having the largest number of members of the Dominican laity (120,000). Likewise, there are many congregations of Sisters of Apostolic Life (about 20 different congregations).
All these present a series of things that must be addressed in the General Chapter, together with the reports of the Master, the Assistants, the Officers, the previous Provincials, the requests of the Chapters, friars and others.
The elective General Chapter must choose the new Master of the Order. For this purpose, a long explanation was given to the capitulars to help them become familiar with the process. The election machine was introduced and its usage (A for Yes; B for No; C for abstention) was tested.
In the sessions of the linguistic and regional groups, the candidates will be considered and each member of the Chapter can present a candidate. Those with the highest number of votes will be presented to the general assembly and, after a few debates, they will be sent to the groups and, finally, a list of five (5) possible candidates will be presented.
These nominated candidates and the process for interviewing them will be finalized in the Plenary Assembly before the actual votation in which the voters will enjoy the freedom to vote for their own candidate.
The work of the commissions: The seven (7) commissions previously approved by the Council of the Order are ratified by the vote of the assembly. The commissions begin their work by taking into account the report of the Master, the reports of his assistants and the officials of the Order, the information received from the Provincials and the Chapters, the regional meetings of friars, as well as of Brothers, Sisters, Lay Dominicans and others.
The conclusions can be presented for the first time in a general way to the assembly to see if the majority favors the objectives and direction foreseen by the commissions. The capitulars could listen to recommendations, suggestions, etc. to facilitate the final text that may include warnings, declarations, interpretations, ordinations, new constitutions, etc. as well as statements, exhortations, compliments, petitions, and others.
With the approval of the moderator, based on the rules of procedure, the session ended.
