Schola Fratrum

Schola Fratrum

To learn to be brothers to all

Preparation for the Ratio Formationis Localis - CCMSI - India 2021

Preparing a text with the participation of all the brothers, listening to the challenges of one's own geographical and cultural context, and trying to understand the relevance of our charism is truly an art. Only moments of prayer, listening, deep reflection, sharing and fraternal discernment can make the document of the Ratio Formationis Localis (RFL) credible.

From December 6 to 21, 2021, the formators, the delegates of JPIC (Justice, Peace, and Integrity of Creation - about 41 friars) and the Major Superiors of CCMSI (Capuchin Conference of Major Superiors in India), together with their respective councils (about 65 friars), had an interactive seminar at the Anugraha Counselling Centre (Tamilnadu - India), to prepare the Ratio Formationis Localis and update themselves on some relevant themes of our spirituality, charism, interculturality and formation.

Various experts enlightened us on the theological foundations of our "charismatic proprium", on the dialogue between the richness of our Franciscan spirituality and the values of the local cultures, on the experience of our identity in the different latitudes of the Indian subcontinent. We also reflected together on the challenges of interprovincial collaboration, the need for a new look at our human formation, especially psychosexual maturity, the responsibility of being close to the poor, and also the importance of celebrating the joy of living together as Capuchin brothers.

Addressing the participants by on-line connection from Rome, our General Minister, Br Roberto Genuin, said the following:

There is no Capuchin life if there is no fraternal life - Fraternity is one of the strong elements of our identity. There should be at least three members in each fraternity, but a larger number is encouraged if possible. The Ratio Formationis is designed not only for initial formation, but also for ongoing formation (the mother of initial formation) and for all the stages of formation in our lives. Do not forget the importance of taking care of the vocation promotion. The spirit of the Ratio formationis Localis must enter into the mentality of the local cultures of your circumscriptions. It will take time and energy but you must focus your work as a CCMSI conference on these points.  

Every morning, Fra. John Baptist, the General Councillor of CCMSI, began the work with a beautiful biblical meditation to enlighten the different realities of formation in the Indian context. At the same time, Fra Waldheim, the President of CCMSI, invited all participants to be focused on the practical work of RFL in their own Conference.

The report of the academic visit made to our academic centres, presented by the General Secretariat of Formation, and the other contributions of the participants, highlighted some important challenges: the compression and personalization of the insights of the RFL, inter-provincial collaboration, providing sufficient personnel to the formation centres, the need to collaborate to find new models for vocation promotion, the creation of some common formation fraternities at the CCMSI level and the involvement of the Secretaries of Formation of each circumscription to evaluate and animate the formation fraternities according to the spirit of the Ratio.

The presence of JPIC members added strength to the meeting and reflections. Thinking about the future, both groups agreed on the need to deepen the spirit of fraternal collaboration between formation projects and JPIC projects: peace, justice, interreligious dialogue, care for creation and proximity to the poor are the soul of our formation. The participants brought concrete proposals for connecting and accompanying formation experiences in the peripheries, recognising the need to have an enlightened vision of the current social reality.

It was a blessing to have all the Major Superiors with their respective councils for three days: they were able to update themselves on some relevant themes and reflect on the Ratio Formationis Localis. To this end they decided to appoint a commission to coordinate the drafting of the document before it is presented to the General Council for approval. The commission will be in close contact with the SGF.

With pleasure we share with you this video which is a small presentation of the beauty of our meeting: Come and celebrate...!