THE SITUATION OF THE FRANCISCANS OF THE IMMACULATE AND THE LEGIONARIES OF CHRIST

Vatican City, 25 June 2014 (VIS) – The director of the Holy See Press Office, Fr. Federico Lombardi, S.J., has made public the answers received from the secretary of the Congregation for the Institutes of Consecrated Life and the Societies of Apostolic Life in relation to various questions on the Franciscans of the Immaculate and the Legionaries of Christ, published in full below:

“The Franciscans of the Immaculate: both the commissioner, Fr. Volpi, and all the seminarians of the Franciscans of the Immaculate were received by the Holy Father on 10 June at the Domus Sanctae Marthae, a gesture that demonstrates the interest with which Pope Francis follows the situation of the Franciscans of the Immaculate and his closeness to the work that the commissioner is carrying out in the name of the Congregation for the Institutes of Consecrated Life and the Societies of Apostolic Life. The Holy Father is punctually informed of all the steps as they taken. At the moment a house in Rome is being sought to accommodate the Friars, brothers of the aforementioned Institute, who attend a Pontifical university in Rome to pursue their studies.

The Legionaries: as anticipated, with the celebration of the General Chapter the Institute has returned to the competence of the Congregation for the Institutes of Consecrated Life and the Societies of Apostolic Life. This progression has ended the work of the Apostolic delegate. As a gesture of fraternal closeness, the prefect and the secretary of the dicastery will meet on 3 July at the Legionaries' central seat to comment personally on various corrections that need to be made to the text of the Constitutions presented to the dicastery, and to communicate the name of the Pontifical assistant. The corrections to the text of the Constitutions are very few in number. With regard to the assistant, the role will be assumed by a consecrated person, as anticipated, who knows the Legionaries and will be able to be of help to the general Council on legal and other themes, according to need. It is to be noted that this figure is an assistant, not a visitator, commissioner or delegate. The assistant has neither a voice nor a vote, and is merely an assessor, and was agreed upon before the general Chapter.

The governor general of the Legionaries attended the Congregation following the Chapter to meet the prefect and the secretary. On that occasion, the director general had expressed the wish to receive the prefect and secretary of the dicastery at the seat of the Legionaries. For this reason Cardinal Joao Braz de Aviz and Archbishop Jose Rodriguez Carballo will make their visit on 3 July.