CHAPTER II

THE MISSION OF THE ORDER

Prologue

Free for Mission

33.
The ministry of preaching was given to our Order from the very beginning. In the service of the Gospel and in union with the whole Church, our Order received the mission to proclaim the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ by following in his footsteps. "Being appointed entirely for the complete evangelisation of the Word of God" (Primitive Constitutions, Prologue), we are, through our profession freed to live an apostolic life "in which preaching and teaching must proceed from an abundance of contemplation." (Fundamental Constitutions, I, IV).

Sent forth to preach to all nations, working with the Church as a whole, the Order fulfills a universal mission. This mission calls the Order to go courageously beyond those frontiers that separate today the poor from the rich, women from men, diverse Christian faith communities and other religions.

Situated at the "fault-lines" ("lignes de fracture" Fr. Pierre Claverie, O.P.) of humanity, which go across our globalized world so often marked by injustice and the violence of racial, social and religious conflicts, our Order seeks to discover the truth of the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ in encounters with "the other". Our mission in the service of "the whole truth" towards which only the Spirit sent from the Father through the risen Christ can lead us, requires of us an attitude, characterised by dialogue, by which we place ourselves at the service of "the other", ready to listen to him and to let ourselves be transformed by him - and to give our lives so that our brothers, our sisters, may live.

The mission of the Order receives its freedom from the vow of obedience which makes us available and responsive to confront new challenges together.

It is a mission shared with our brothers and sisters of the Order who live the same common priesthood through their baptism and who are consecrated by their religious profession and commitment to the same mission. This mission is realised according to the richness of our charism and the priorities of our Order; it expresses itself in a pluriform service of the Word and the Sacrament.

It is a mission which seeks dialogue with different cultures and religions on all the continents. In Eastern Europe and especially on the Asian continent the Order is aware that it belongs to its mission to seek dialogue and to promote conditions for dialogue. This presupposes great coherence in all the actions of the mission.

It is finally an intellectual mission which is rooted in the study and the contemplation of the Word of God and which receives its dynamism from compassion. Without pretence, and in a humble way, it gives account of the hope that is in us. It proclaims and teaches the intelligence of the Word as a force for reconciliation, forgiveness and joy.

MEN AND WOMEN IN MISSION TOGETHER

34.
1. The Order of Preachers is proud of its tradition and legacy which includes Friars, Cloistered Nuns, vowed religious women, and lay men and women. While other Chapters have referred to the dignity of women and our collaboration both with the laity and our sisters, this Chapter believes it is important to say more at this time in our history. Our Order reflects an understanding of mission that has its origin in the life of the Triune God. As a sharing in the divine mission, our Order, in all its unique branches, is both to manifest communion and collaborate in the mission of leading all creation towards communion in the divine life. The friars do not monopolise the vocation, nor the charism, nor do they hold 'pride of place' in the Order founded by St. Dominic. The mission holds the 'pride of place,' while every branch realizes this vocation in the manner proper to it. We, together, constitute the Order and together realize its whole mission.

2. Thus, the most complete manifestation of our total identity is in our collaboration together. This collaboration includes praying together, mutual planning, decision making, and the execution of projects in mutual and equal complementarity. These projects include such fields as ministries of prayer, preaching, teaching, pastoral leadership, justice and peace, mass media, research and writing, as well as in the promotion of vocations and formation.

3. We are aware that this consciousness calls for a conversion of mentalities on the part of everyone, and will be only gradually realised. Often friars of the Order have treated the sisters and the laity solely as objects of their pastoral care rather than as peers in their apostolic mission. Failure to listen to the laity has created a dependency of the lay chapters on a friar, thereby impeding the development of their own self-responsibility. Failure to recognise the apostolic capacities of Dominican Sisters has negatively affected the mission of the friars as well. Further, we believe it is important for the friars to examine their image of women and what is conveyed to others by our speech and behaviour. If we listened to the brothers and analysed attitudes, reactions, spontaneous reflections of speech, we would be surprised to note that our masculine and ecclesiastical world carries strongly contrasting images of women. We ask pardon for all the instances of condescending and destructive attitudes and action on the part of the friars. For many Chapters now, the Order has called us to this conversion.

4. Lay men and women offer a unique vision of preaching and living the Gospel because of their total insertion into society with all of its secular, economic, and political realities. They are able to live shoulder to shoulder with men and women with whom our religious brothers and sisters will hardly have contact. The friars and sisters need their vision and expertise. In addition, women bring a distinctive vision and sensibility which we can learn from and which is essential to save the soul of an age in risk of losing its soul. Women are the principal educators and nurturers of the children of the world, so their critical formative role needs to be acknowledged and valued more highly. In a world characterised by social and religious fragmentation, women are often models of solidarity in families and society, transcending forces that create division.

5. Our contemplative nuns are at the heart of the mission of the Order. By their way of life they proclaim to all that God is capable of totally captivating the human heart. At the same time their prayer is a cry that the word proclaimed by the preachers may be received by the world. Their hospitality to their brothers and sisters of the Order strengthens fraternal bonds and stirs up a deeper faith and more fervent prayer. Sharing their liturgical prayer with God's people and offering an oasis of peaceful retreat and study is fundamental to the mission of the Order.

6. We encourage Dominicans from all branches of the Order to claim their identity as preachers. Furthermore, we ask all members to prepare themselves for this preaching and to take advantage of every opportunity. We are aware that the exclusion of women from ordained ministry and consequently from preaching the homily at the Eucharist is a painful experience for many. At the same time we are also aware that the debate itself on the ordination of women is painful for many. While remaining respectful of the Church's Magisterium, we are convinced that our Order is called to find creative ways to release the fullness of our preaching charism. We owe it to Veritas--the Dominican goal of truth--to advance the theological and ecclesiological dimensions of this question.

7. It is crucial for us to note that, through our baptism and in a special manner through our Dominican commitment, all members of the Order participate without distinction in the common priesthood of the faithful. We ask all our brothers who exercise an ordained ministry in the Church to understand it as a service to this common priesthood lived in charity and without claims to power.

8. While we Friars desire to do all we can to collaborate with other branches of the Order, we encourage, in so far as is financially possible, all branches to be formed deeply in the theological traditions of the Church and the Order. Otherwise collaboration will remain unbalanced.

9. Having said all this, the great challenge that lies before us is addressing in our concrete situation the many injustices that are still major issues for all of society, but which cause particular burdens for women and children: economic issues, health care services, violence, discrimination, disempowerment, and lack of fundamental dignity, equality, resources, and opportunity. Addressing those issues requires that we stand in solidarity with our sisters, that we listen to their voices, concerns, and challenges, and that we engage in genuine dialogue with an open spirit so that together we can understand, address, and change attitudes and structures of male dominance, lingering feudalism, and systematic discounting of women's gifts and leadership.

Declaration-Exhortation

35.
We recognise and appreciate the role of our nuns, sisters and the laity in promoting vocations to the friars. We exhort the friars to work together with the sisters and lay members in promoting vocations to the whole Order.

Commendation-Recommendation

36.
We commend all those entities of the friars that have developed projects of preaching with the sisters and laity together. We recommend that, where possible, all entities of the friars invite our sisters and the laity to plan, decide and evaluate such preaching projects.

Commendation-Recommendation

37.
We commend those friars, sisters and lay members who work together in centres for human rights and in solidarity with the poor and oppressed. We recommend that in all entities of friars such collaboration be encouraged.

Commendation-Recommendation

38.
We commend the establishment of the International Franciscan and Dominican Office for Human Rights in Geneva. We recommend that all the brothers, sisters, and laity use this resource wisely in their international work on human rights.

Recommendation

39.
We recommend that the friars, nuns, sisters, and laity who live and work in a common location invite one another to share their particular projects and from them to develop priorities and directions for a common mission in that area. In turn, Dominican leaders could gather periodically in each place to evaluate the common plan and its realisation.

Recommendations

40.
We recommend that some sisters and lay members be invited to provincial chapters of friars and friars would welcome an invitation to chapters of sisters. In this way, there would be a reciprocal exchange of knowledge and mutual collaboration.
41.
We recommend that friars study theology together with the nuns, sisters, and lay members of the Order and where possible find financial assistance to those in need. In addition, our faculties of theology should both include competent professors from other entities of the Order and provide creative ways to make the study of theology more accessible to all members of the Order.

Petition

42.
We petition the Master of the Order to constitute a commission of highly competent theologian brothers and sisters of the Order whose task will be to examine the question of the charism of preaching for men and women of the Order and its relation to ordained ministry, and to advance the theological and ecclesiological dimensions of the question. In addition, other related issues of the priestly and prophetic roles ought to be explored.

MISSION IN ASIA

The Context - The face of Asia

43.
1. Asia is big and young. It occupies 30 percent of the world's land area and hosts three fifths of the world's 5.5 billion population. Over 60 percent of Asians are young people.

2. Asia is multi-religious. It is home to major religions of the world: Buddhism, Hinduism, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Taoism, Sikhism, Shintoism, Jainism, and numerous primal or traditional religions thrive also in the region. Christianity is but a minor religion in Asia. The only countries where Christians are a majority are the Philippines and East Timor. Due to the strong influence of religions on cultures, Asians are very religious.

3. Asia is multi-cultural. Rich and diverse traditional cultures abound in Asia. To some extent many Asian societies have been influenced by the cultures of the West, made possible in the past by colonisation, trade, and commerce. In more recent history, the inroads of industrialisation, modernisation, tourism, and mass media have fostered the values of materialism, consumerism, secularism, individualism, and hedonism among many Asian communities to the point of undermining their traditional religious and cultural values. Asia is where traditional and modern cultural values meet in creative and at times destructive tension.

4. Asia is predominantly poor. However a few rich countries are found in the region: Japan, Taiwan, Singapore, South Korea and Hong Kong. From the end of the colonial period, most of the Asian countries have been struggling to stand up on their own feet in their respective socio-economic-political life, but not without the strong influence of the powerful rich nations of the world to the great disadvantage of the Asian countries themselves. In effect, the new economic prosperity in many of our Asian societies has typically benefited only the foreign investors and the few local elite, with very little benefits to the majority. The plight of the poor masses is made worse by the pervasive practice of graft and corruption and by ineffective government resulting in dismal delivery of basic social services. The lack of planning and monitoring of development programs in many Asian countries has led to ecological devastation and disasters.

5. On the bright side, however, Asia is re-awakening. There is a renewed consciousness among Asian peoples of their respective identity and autonomy. In each nation, there is a growing sense of appreciation and affirmation of one's ethnic, political, and national identity. Asian peoples are increasingly conscious of their human dignity and human rights. There is a renewed affirmation among Asians of their rich and life-giving cultural and religious values. There is a renewed confidence in their power and right to change the unjust structures and overcome the death-dealing realities of society.

The Church of Asia

44.
1. Since the end of the colonial period and more so with the advent of Vatican II, the local churches in Asia have been struggling to build themselves into authentically Asian faith communities. They have by and large begun to walk closely with the peoples of Asia in their concrete and total life-realities. Such a thrust paved the way for the local Churches to renew themselves in their faith-life and mission.

2. As "small flocks" of Christ in the midst of highly multicultural and multi-religious milieux and varied and complex socio-political-economic contexts, the local Churches have in time seen dialogue as the preferred mode of doing mission or evangelisation work in Asia. As articulated by the Federation of Asian Bishops' Conferences in its First Plenary Assembly in 1974, such dialogue is three-fold: dialogue with the religions, with the cultures, and with the poor multitudes of Asia. It is primarily by walking on this three-fold path of dialogue that the local Churches can most effectively build themselves up as authentically Christian and Asian.

The realities of the Order in Asia

45
1. The presence of Dominican men in Asia is very small; 591 professed brothers. There are 3 indigenous provinces, 1 vice-province, 1 general vicariate, and 5 regional vicariates. Three of these regional vicariates belong to the Province of the Holy Rosary which has its provincial house in Hong Kong. New projects of presence have been initiated in Korea, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Macao, and Iran.

2. To date, the friars are present only in 12 countries: Iran, Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, Philippines, Hong Kong (China), Macao, Taiwan, Japan, Korea, and Indonesia. However, there are in the region 2,300 sisters and 175 nuns. The biggest group of the Order in Asia are the lay Dominicans: 52,500.

3. The Order administers important centres of education and formation, the most notable of which are: the University of Santo Tomas (UST) Manila, Philippines; St. Charles Seminary, Nagpur, India; and the Pastoral Institute, Multan, Pakistan. More than a hundred other educational institutions are run by the brothers and the sisters in the region.

4. There is a growing collaboration among the entities in the region. The major superiors meet together every two years. There is collaboration both in formation and ministry between the Philippine Province and the Holy Rosary Province, and also with the Chinese General Vicariate. In India, Pakistan, Philippines, Korea, Vietnam, and Taiwan, the members of the Dominican Family come together for their annual or biennial gatherings or conventions. In the same countries, there are local on-going collaborative projects in formation and mission by the members of the Family. The foundation in 1993 of the Asia-Pacific Dominican Formation Centre in the Philippines is proving to be a potent and excellent centre of training Dominican men and women in the region for formation ministry.

5. It is noteworthy that the presence of the Order in Asia is growing. Among the brothers, 23% (142 out of 591 professed members) are in their initial stages of formation. The Order has 42 novices in the region and many more pre-novices offering great hope for the future.

Asia: Its challenges to the Order

46.
In the face of the above realities, Asia poses to the whole Order great challenges to actualise and develop further its vocation of preaching the Gospel in the third millennium.

1. With a population of more than three billion people who are mostly religious in character and are generally open to hear the word of God, Asia presents a vast area for the preaching of the Gospel.

2. With only two percent of its 3.3 billion population Christian, Asia poses to the Order the greatest challenge to its missionary vocation to non-Christian situations.

3. It is Asia's singular distinction to be the home of the world's major religions. The challenge of entering into dialogue with these religions can best be addressed by the Order in Asia, nowhere else.

4. There are multitudes of poor people in Asia caught up in the throes of ambivalent socio-economic-political realities. The challenge to the Order of justice and peace is immense in Asia.

5. Christianity in Asia continues to be alien in its expressions. The same can be said of Dominican life and mission in Asia. But, Asia is a region of ancient cultures and rich values, like simplicity, hospitality, silence, sense of the sacred, contemplation, and community, which can easily become indigenous expressions of Christian spirituality. The Order is called to respond actively to the challenge of inculturating Dominican life and mission and to contribute to the larger task of inculturating Christianity in Asia.

6. Since sixty percent of Asians are young people, there is a great challenge to minister to the youth of the region.

Commendation-Recommendation

47. . . . . . . . . .

Recommendations:

48.
We recommend to the Master of the Order that he organise a meeting among the leadership of the different entities of the region for the purpose of formulating a common vision and concerted development plan for the Order's mission to places in Asia where it is not yet present.
49.
We recommend the expansion of the formation programme offered at the Asia-Pacific Dominican Formation Centre in the Philippines to include a renewal program catering to the continuing formation needs of the brothers and sisters in Asia.

Exhortations:

50.
We exhort the Dominican entities in Asia:

1. To re-examine and take seriously their apostolic commitments to the priorities of inter-religious dialogue, inculturation, and justice and peace.

2. To live out the values expressed by the vows, prayer, community life, and ministry in forms typically Asian.
51.
We exhort the enhancing of collaboration between Dominicans in Asia and other Dominicans in the world, and to co-operate especially in areas of exchange of resources for study, research, mission, and spirituality.

MIDDLE EAST

Recommendation
52.
We recommend to the provincials and vicars of the entities which have common borders on the Mediterranean Sea and also to the brothers and sisters who are concerned with the presence of the Order in Islamic territories of the region that they continue the collaboration begun during the meeting in Istanbul October 1996, and which has already started to bear fruit. In this context, we encourage provinces to continue the efforts which they have already undertaken in order to assure the future of our presence in Istanbul, as well as in Cairo where the Dominican Institute for Oriental Studies (IDEO) is located. We encourage also the creation in Palermo of another centre and we ask that this creation be done in close collaboration with the institutions which already exist.

MELANESIA

Recommendation
53.
The Chapter recognises the difficulties of the Order taking root in Melanesia. It also realises that many young men and women are eager to follow the Dominican way of life. We recommend that as many entities as possible in the Order collaborate with the Provincial Vicariate of Solomon Islands and Papua-New Guinea, especially in the work of formation, both in our own institutions and the seminaries there, to help the Order find a firm footing in the region.
MISSION OF THE ORDER
IN THE COUNTRIES OF THE FORMER SOVIET UNION
54.
After the fall of the Soviet Union, the Order finds itself in very diverse situations in Russia, Ukraine, Belarus and the three Baltic countries of Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia. In all countries but one (Lithuania), Roman Catholics are a minority. We are in these countries because of 1) the need for evangelising the vast majority of the population who are unchurched; 2) the need for the intellectual mission of the Order in providing professors for seminaries and universities, teachers, catechists, establishing institutes of higher learning, as well as writing and publishing; and 3) our compassion for the poor and powerless people of the region.

The Order has many opportunities to exercise its mission in these countries. Many are thirsting for the Word of God. Many are interested in inter-religious dialogue and philosophical and theological research and discussion. But the Order faces many challenges.

Especially in Russia, it is important to be concerned about the perception which the Russian Orthodox faith has of us. By trying to convert peoples who traditionally and canonically fall under the care of the Orthodox Church, a great number of Christian organisations from the West create ecclesial entities that, whether wishing to or not, compete with the evangelising efforts the Orthodox Church itself is making. Since the Catholic Church recognises the apostolic responsibility of her Orthodox sister Church, we think that she cannot behave in the same way as these organisations. In any case, if some groups within the Catholic Church were tempted to behave in this way, we, the Order of Preachers, refuse to do so. Our preaching in Russia should be ordered towards a radically different mission. This mission should be in harmony with the charism of the Order and in tune with the spiritual aspirations of men and women whose culture is formed by Orthodoxy. We must avoid creating counter-productive antagonism through proselytising.

For all of these reasons, we must reflect further on a coherent strategy for the region, and how the Order is to structure itself in these countries.

Commendation

55.
We commend the spirit of generosity, self-sacrifice, and courage which the Polish province has shown in providing brethren for the mission in the two vicariates in the countries of the former Soviet Union. We recognise the valuable work these brethren have done in helping to re-establish and promote the mission of the Order .

Declaration

56.
The spirit of Dominican presence in the countries of the former Soviet Union is one of witnessing to Jesus Christ to all people of the region - Catholics, Orthodox, Protestants, and non-believers - through harmonious co-existence by refraining from proselytism, through dialogue on the intellectual level, and through collaboration with non-Catholic brothers and sisters in direct works of compassion among the poor and powerless.

Ordinations

57.
We ordain that the Master of the Order form a commission to study the common vision of the Order's mission in the countries of the former Soviet Union.

Recommendations

58.
We recommend that the Master of the Order with the provincials and general vicars establish a list of brothers suitable for the mission to the countries of the former Soviet Union and that all efforts be made to facilitate their assignment. We further recommend that stable Dominican communities be maintained in Moscow and in Tallinn (Estonia) while promoting collaboration with Dominican nuns, sisters, and laity.
59.
We recommend the establishment in Moscow of an institute for the comparative study of Christian thought in the Eastern and Western traditions, in collaboration with institutions of higher learning in Moscow and entities of the Order working in this field.
ESPACES

Commendation

60.
We congratulate ESPACES (Dominican reflection group on the current spiritual, cultural, social and economic realities of Europe) for having organised the meeting between Dominicans of Eastern and Western Europe, as well as the Fourth Congress in collaboration with the Institute, San Nicola de Bari, and the colloquium at the Angelicum on the dialogue with Orthodoxy.

Recommendation

61.
In order to accompany the activity of ESPACES at a moment when the European Union is opening itself to the countries of central and eastern Europe, we recommend that the provinces and general vicariates of the countries of central and eastern Europe assign brothers for service to the Order in the work of ESPACES in Europe.
INTELLECTUAL MISSION OF THE ORDER
62.
490 years ago, the newly elected Master of the Order, Thomas de Vio Cajetan, wrote to the Chapter of Rome in 1508 to say that he hoped he would be able to carry out his new functions with the generous help of his brethren, on condition that they apply themselves to poverty and study: "praesertim paupertati ac litterarum studiis omnes simul insisterimus." Five years later, at the Chapter of Genoa in 1513, he presented his plan for reform in the Order. For Cajetan, the key, or root of this reform is common life. Common life is what supports the Order's mission in which all are invited to participate, each according to his capabilities.

However diversified studies might be, their orientation and finality come from the mission of the Order: proclaiming the Word of Truth. Cajetan concludes his letter with this pithy observation: let others take pride in their privileges - if theology doesn't recommend us, then our Order has had it ("Gaudeant alii · suis prerogativis, nos nisi sacra doctrina commendet, de nostro ordine actum est"). Two years later, he comes back again to the same issues of his programme for reform - common life in poverty and studies: "nobis autem vix imminet, nisi studeamus, ut evangelizemus. Haec duo sunt, quibus servatis, ordo noster facile reformabitur ."

Cajetan's austere programme has lost nothing of its pertinence for our day, and it's more than a stroke of luck that Fr. Timothy Radcliffe's first letter to the Order after the Chapter of Caleruega spoke about study as an essential part of apostolic and community renewal today. That letter's title was: The Wellspring of Hope. Study and the Annunciation of the Good News.

A number of provinces have become aware of the fact that a Dominican centre for intellectual formation, whether at an institutional level, or as a centre for adult education, or as a place for specialisation and research, represents a challenge and a responsibility which adds spirit to common life and creates a new apostolic impetus in the province. The Order is in the process of rediscovering the importance of studies as a wellspring of hope and an essential part of renewal.

The Houses of Studies under the immediate jurisdiction of the Master of the Order

Recommendations

63.
The Pontifical University of St. Thomas of Rome (Italy), the Ecole Biblique of Jerusalem, and the team of Dominican professors at the Faculty of Theology of Fribourg, depend directly on the Master of the Order and need the support of the whole Order in the recruitment of new professors. While recalling the recommendations of recent General Chapters and while thanking the provinces which responded to these appeals, we recommend also to these institutions to continue to envisage new forms of collaboration with the other branches of the Order, especially with female branches.
64.
The Chapter has taken note of the report of the commission for the development and the renewal of the Angelicum, which was set up by the General Chapter of Caleruega (Acts 117). It recognises the importance of the role which the Directorium has as a link of union between the University and the General Chapter of the brothers. According to the Statutes of the University we propose to the Master of the Order. fr. Michel Van Aerde from the Province of Toulouse, fr. Maciej Zieba from the Province of Poland. fr. Quirico Jr. Pedregosa T. from the Province of the Philippines, as members of the Directorium. We ask the Master of the Order together with the Directorium, the academic authorities and the community of the Angelicum to examine and put into practice the proposals which were made by the commission, relative to the functioning of the Directorium, the autonomy of the University, the responsibility of its direction and administration. It recognises that, thanks to the generosity of benefactors and to the fruitful effort put into fund-raising, the economic situation of the Angelicum has been improved. It thanks the rector and the professors for their commitment to keeping the Angelicum going as an institute of intellectual formation confided to the responsibility of the whole Order and we encourage all in the effort to provide the appropriate conditions for professors and students to live a truly Dominican life.

Commendation

65.
We praise the academic work of the ecumenical-theological institute San Nicola de Bari (Italy), which is incorporated in the Angelicum, and has the complete confidence of the Order in this dialogue with oriental Christianity. This confidence is shared by our brothers and sisters of the Orthodox Churches. We also thank the Institute for the effort involved in giving four scholarships to Dominican students.

Recommendations

66.
We thank the brothers of the Priory of St. Albert at Fribourg (Switzerland) as well as the brothers of the Province of the Annunciation to the Blessed Virgin in Switzerland for their involvement in the heart of the Faculty of Theology of the University of Fribourg. Thanks to their generosity, Fribourg is a place of intellectual formation at the service of the Order and of the whole Church. We encourage the European Provincials (IEOP) to develop together a plan for providing professors. We ask the Master of the Order, who is the Grand Chancellor of the faculty, to take serious care of its German branch in order to make it more attractive for teachers and students from the German-speaking countries.
67.
We congratulate the brothers and the professors of the Ecole Biblique of Jerusalem, as well as the Editions du Cerf, for the publication of the third revised edition of the Jerusalem Bible.

In order to improve the link between the Ecole, the Order and its provinces, and in order better to ensure its future from the point of view of its professorial body and students, we recommend the creation of an Expert Council (Conseil scientifique) for the Ecole, comprising the director of the school, two provincials, the assistant to the Master of the Order for the intellectual life, and experts. The statute of the Ecole should, as a result, be changed according to the procedures established.

The fund-raising for the renovation and enlarging of the library of the Ecole Biblique, after a beginning which was made difficult - due in part to the political situation - is now more promising. We thank the provinces and the other entities of the Order for the generous aid which was given, and we invite all to support the associations of friends of the Ecole in France, Canada and the United States.
The Intellectual Mission of the Order in Asia

Recommendations

68.
We recommend the strengthening of: The Pastoral Institute, Multan, Pakistan; St. Charles Seminary, Nagpur, India, and the UST Ecclesiastical Pontifical Faculties, Manila, Philippines, especially along the thrust of Asian contextual theology, philosophy and pastoral praxis. We also recommend that these centres enter into greater collaboration among themselves in the sharing of personnel and resources.

69.
We recommend the renewal and strengthening of the UST Institute of Oriental Religions and Cultures in collaboration with both Dominicans and non-Dominicans experts. We also exhort the other entities of the region to train personnel and establish such centres for inter-religious dialogue, especially in countries where non-Christian religions are predominant.
70.
We recommend to the Master to organize a congress for the whole Order on the theme of dialogue with the major world religions, to be held somewhere in Asia before the next General Chapter.

The Intellectual Mission in Africa

71.
The friars in sub-Saharan Africa are among the young children of the Order, full of life and growing rapidly but at times also under-equipped owing to geographical isolation and the lack of material resources. About half of the three hundred twenty five friars in Africa are still in basic formation.

The Dominican Institute of Philosophy and Theology in Ibadan (Nigeria), the centres of study in Kinshasa (Democratic Republic of Congo), Pietermaritzburg (South Africa), Abidjan (Ivory Coast), Mosaiko (Angola) and others, are important new centres for the intellectual formation of young Dominicans in Africa. In particular, the Dominican Institute in Ibadan urgently needs other provinces and entities of the Order to collaborate with them by providing teachers, especially in theological areas. The support of the whole Order is also needed in gaining scholarships for complementary studies for young brothers preparing to be teachers.

Instituto Pedro de Cordoba

Commendation-Petition

72.
The Chapter recognises the efforts which - since the nomination of a new director, Fr. Gabriel Napoli - have been undertaken to give a new orientation to the Instituto Pedro de Cordoba and which will make possible the offering of courses. It asks, with insistence, the entities of Latin America to assume the responsibilities which were undertaken at the last meetings of CIDAL and CODAL (1998), in a consistent and generous manner, by placing financial means and professors at the disposal of the Institute and by sending students to it. The existence of the Institute is an essential element of the intellectual policy of the Order in the whole of Latin America. As a project of the Dominican Family, the Institute aims to offer a Dominican community to students and teachers, in which study and prayer contribute to the creation of a suitable milieu and the conditions necessary for dealing with the various challenges which are linked to the meeting of theology with the social and cultural problems of the American continent.

New Religious Movements

73.
The existence of new religious movements and the temptation to syncretism among Christians have become major challenges for Dominican preaching.

Recommendations

74.
We recommend to the provinces that they take good account of this phenomenon both in their program of basic formation and in permanent formation.

75.
We recommend to the Master of the Order that the commission De Missione Ordinis create a network of people in the Order who are already concerned with this problem, and that it study the possibility of the creation of a research institute in liaison with one of the centres of teaching of the Order.

Internet Mission

76.
The presence of the Order of Preachers on the world-wide Internet system is a pastoral response to the needs and questions of the modern world. The Internet is a "new country" to be evangelised, and is a way to extend our preaching mission and to help our existing ministries. The already existing Internet Commission established by the Master of the Order needs to be augmented and supported. New forms of ministry through the Internet need to be explored and developed. The chapter encourages the formation of forums and Internet seminars so as to extend and intensify research and debates on the subjects which concern us.

Petition

77.
The development of our preaching through the Internet should be a priority of the Order. We ask the Master to name a brother who will have full-time responsibility for helping the development and co-ordination of this mission.

Recommendation

78.
We recommend that the Promoter of Mass Media encourage that official texts of the Order such as the Analecta, the Archivum and IDI be made available on the Internet to ensure wider availability to readers and academics.

Internet University

79.
The Chapter encourages the creation of an Internet university in the humanities and theology. It thanks the provinces who are helping to bring it into existence, especially the Province of Toulouse which has given initial impetus and supervision for this project.

Recommendation

80.
The Chapter recommends to the brothers to take part in the realization of this project through teaching the use of the new media, which will enable them to put themselves at the service of numerous students. The brothers are called, also, to make this project known so that it may grow through collaboration of many inside or outside the Order, and so that it may be widely proposed to students who may be interested.

Network of Dominican Centres of Study

Recommendation

81.
Because of the needs we have in general and especially in Africa and Asia, the Chapter recommends to use Internet in order to engage in the best way our resources. The Chapter recommends the Master of the Order to organize the various centres of study of the Dominican Family (institutional centres of study, centres of specialized studies, universities etc.) into a network, so as to promote the mobility and exchange of professors, students and information (library catalogues, publications) with, where possible, reciprocal recognition of university degrees. A general agreement of association could be signed to establish specific concrete agreements between these institutes.

Petition

82.
In the same context, the Chapter asks the Internet commission to set up, for the General Curia and at the service of institutes of intellectual formation in the Order, a data-base of people available or prepared for one or other form of specialised teaching.

Historical Research

Recommendation

83.
The Order of Preachers regretfully remembers the role of some members of the Order in the injustices of the Inquisition. We recommend that the Historical Institute of the Order and the group of historians working on a new redaction of a history of the Order examine the role played by some of its members in the injustices of the past in order to help to purify our memory and to involve the Order in a quest for truth leaving the judgement of people to God alone.

According to the Order's authentic orientation, we renew our commitment to deal with issues of justice and peace, freedom of conscience and human dignity as in Chiapas, Rwanda-Burundi, Pakistan, etc.

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