On December 3, the feast of St. Francis Xavier, the General Board of Directors of Regnum Christi, having heard the favorable opinion of the General Plenary, approved the following ad experimentum the Regulations of the Permanent Missionaries of Regnum Christi, who respond to a particular call of God to missionary availability.
The permanent missionaries form a unique community of faithful associates who come together in a network in order to support each other in the various areas of their vocation and apostolate (without prejudice to their integration into the teams of the local sections), and remain under the ordinary authorities of the Federation of Regnum Christi in order to better carry out their missionary service. As foreseen in these regulations, the General Board of Directors appointed Alicia Orozco Garza as the general responsible of the network for a period of three years. In the performance of her duties, she will be supported by the coordinating team made up of Marco Antonio Gracia, David Vegue, Gustavo Castañón, Iliano Piccolo and Andrés Jiménez.
Since 1979, Regnum Christi has counted on lay members who, in order to serve God by dedicating all their abilities to evangelization, have offered themselves to the directors of Regnum Christi, falling within what was called the second degree third nuance, to be sent to the apostolic tasks that were required wherever it was necessary. In most cases, they are married people, married couples who have felt called to serve the Church together unconditionally through Regnum Christi. They are available to be sent, leaving their social environment, city and even country. Iliano and Luciana Piccolo were the first members to leave their own country, Italy, to serve Regnum Christi outside their homeland, in Mexico.
Similar experiences are found in other charismatic families and new ecclesial communities. It has not been easy, however, to establish normative frameworks to regulate a full and lifelong dedication to evangelization of married lay people with families. Regnum Christi, moreover, has had a particularly difficult history that has also affected some members who have followed this path of dedication.
Its process of reflection and renewal has gone through several important moments in these years. In June 2013, the representatives of the lay members of Regnum Christi gathered in Rome at the request of the Pontifical Delegate suggested that a meeting be convened for members of the second degree third nuance so that they could deepen their identity and prepare a specific proposal on their particular form of life in Regnum Christi. This meeting was held in Amecameca (Edo. de Mexico) in September 2013, with the participation of thirty-nine members under the direction of Fr. Sylvester Heereman L.C., who was then exercising the functions of the Director General of Regnum Christi. Sylvester Heereman, L.C., who was then serving as the Director General of Regnum Christi. While the Central Commission for the revision of the statutes was underway, a sub-commission for the members of the second degree third nuance was instituted in January 2015 and charged with this further reflection.
At the International Convention of lay members held in Rome in May-June 2016, the distinction between the first and second degree was discussed and the Central Commission was asked to formulate a proposal for a solution that would take into account what was expressed therein. The result was the proposal presented in the first draft of the statutes of a promise of availability for members who felt called to offer Regnum Christi a special availability (May 2017); this proposal was favorably received and would end up maturing in the General Assembly of Regnum Christi in 2018 in the promise of dedication that is contained in the Regulations of the faithful associated with the Regnum Federation Christi in numbers 24-28.
In a letter dated May 23, 2017, the director general of Regnum Christi, Fr. Eduardo Robles-Gil, LC, informed that the proposal of the promise of availability would make it possible to live the form of dedication that the subcommission of members of the second degree third nuance described in the definition it had presented; but, knowing the diversity of visions that existed among the members of this nuance, he provided that those who considered «that the proposal of the promise of availability does not sufficiently satisfy what they feel God is asking of them» could make a proposal by common agreement, «clearly expressing the identity proper to this way of living the charism of Regnum Christi and the basic norms that would regulate it. Indeed, several members of the second degree third nuance felt the need to seek a proposal different from that of the promise of availability and, through Iliano Piccolo, gave a first prompt response to this invitation of the Director General in August of the same 2017. Fr. Eduardo Robles-Gil encouraged them in the letter of October 1 to continue reflecting together and to meet for this purpose, assuring them of his support and that of the General Committee in this journey of discernment. Thus, eighteen second degree third nuance members from different countries met in March 2018 in Mexico City. At this meeting, they deepened their identity, discovering in the missionary character their specific note, wrote a letter to the General Assembly of Regnum Christi and chose a representative in the person of Andrés Jiménez, to whom they assigned Alicia Orozco, Marco Antonio Gracia and Iliano Piccolo as advisors and Maria Fiães as secretary. These five members, plus David Vegue and Marcelo Fiães, formed a commission to continue the preparation of a more detailed regulatory proposal.
Having asked the Director General to be better guided and accompanied, Fr. Eduardo Robles-Gil, in agreement with the directors general of the consecrated women and consecrated laity and having heard the opinion of the General Steering Committee, gave them some orientations in the letter of February 26, 2019 and appointed Emilio Martínez Albesa, consecrated lay person, as delegate of the director general to accompany and guide the journey of the members of the former second degree third nuance in discernment and Fr. Jaime Rodríguez, LC, as consultant in this discernment process in decrees of March 18; both would depend on the General Directing College once the statute of the Regnum Christi Federation comes into force.
From November 15 to 18, 2019, the international meeting of thirteen members of the former second degree third nuance was held in Amecameca (Edo. de Mexico) to finalize the preparation of a consensus proposal of regulations for its form of delivery within the charismatic and juridical framework of the Regnum Christi Federation. It was presided over by Emilio Martínez Albesa, as delegate of the General College. Fr. Jaime Rodríguez, LC, participated as a consultant and moderated the sessions. Perla González accompanied, representing the consecrated women. The meeting began with a retreat on number 8 of the Federation Statutes, preached by Father Jaime Rodríguez. The sessions took place in an atmosphere of prayer, charity, listening, freedom and discernment. Particularly helpful were the moments of prayer in common, such as the guided meditations and the daily Eucharistic Celebration, as well as the life testimonies of the participants offered during the fraternal sharing after supper. There was no lack of strong and emotional moments, in which the Holy Spirit usually manifests himself during these meetings of common discernment. The result was a draft of regulations unanimously approved by the participants. At the conclusion of the meeting, the members made a pilgrimage to the Villa de Guadalupe to give thanks to Our Lady and place in her hands the outcome of the meeting, the rules of procedure and the future of their vocation. The meeting ended with dinner and a free forum at the home of Marco Antonio and Rita Gracia.
Having approved the regulations ad experimentum, It will be up to the next General Government of the Federation and to the first ordinary General Convention of Regnum Christi to evaluate the experience that will result from these regulations in the coming years and then decide what is most appropriate.
In the letter that the participants of the international meeting wrote to the General Direction College we read: «We feel the call of God to give ourselves for life to the evangelizing mission of the Church through the Movement», and, because of this «call of God to missionary availability», «we ratify before you our willingness and disposition to give ourselves to the service of the mission of Regnum Christi in communion with the other vocations of the Movement and to be leaven in the sections and localities in which we participate».
The text of the Regulations of the Permanent Missionaries of Regnum Christi can be read here.
