ST. DOMINIC’S WORK: THE ORDER OF PREACHERS
A great person, a famous writer is defined by his/her life and works, which are an extension of his/her life. The work of St Dominic is the Dominican Family he founded. The Order of Preachers is like Dominic living through the ages, the incarnation of Dominic. The Order of Preachers is a prolongation of Dominic. (The Dominican Family is composed of priests and brothers-cooperators, nuns, apostolic sisters, secular Institutes, and lay and priestly fraternities).
There is a Chinese saying that goes like this: “When” drinking water, remember the fountain.” When we write OP after our name and family names, we remember the fountain: Saint Dominic and, with our Father Dominic, we remember his work: the Order of Preachers. And we question ourselves: Who is a Dominican?
1. THE DOMINICANS ARE THE FOLLOWERS OF ST. DOMINIC
Unorthodox etymology of the Dominicans: “Domini cani”, that is, the Lord’s dogs. Orthodox origin: “Dominic’s,” that is, we belong to Dominic, our Father and Founder.
Still our connection with “dogs of the Lord” has a popular ring: when Dominic’s mother, Blessed Juana de Aza, was on the way with Dominic, shee had the vision that she bore in her womb a puppy with a lighted torch in its mouth; coming out of her womb: the puppy puts the whole world on fire. Indeed, St. Dominic was called by God to be an itinerant preacher of his word and inflame the world with the fire of Christ, the Spirit of Love.
The Dominicans are followers of St. Dominic. Dominicans are apostles: preachers in the classroom, in the pulpit, in common prayer and life, in the streets…
The Dominicans Are followers Of Dominic The Dominican Order is an apostolic, missionary and intellectual Order. Apostolic: the Dominicans follow the way of life of the apostles. Missionary: they are sent. Intellectual: they search and explain the Truth that makes us truly free – free to love.
The Dominicans’ basic rule is St. Augustine’s and not St. Benedict’s or St. Basil’s. Dominic selected it not only because he knew it well as a canon regular, but mainly by reason of Augustine’s stress on community and apostolic life – on fraternal love and mission
In 1216, when Dominic founded the first Dominican community (a local diocesan community)., there were 17 members. By 1221, the year Dominic died, there were 25 houses of the Order established in Europe and 5 Provinces. By the year 1223 there were 120 members of the Order in Paris alone (Vito-Tomás Gómez). Today there are arpund 5.340 Dominican prists and brothers-cooperators.
2. MOTTOS AND DEVOTIONS OF DOMINICANSS
MOTTOS
· Veritas, not poverty or prayer: passion for truth. This motto was given to the Dominicans by the people.
- Contemplari et contemplata aliis tradere: to contemplate and give to others the fruits of their contemplation. Not active only or contemplative only but both: active/contemplative.
· Laudare, benedicere and praedicare: to praise, to bless and to preach.
DEVOTIONS
Dominicans have three main devotions: to the Holy Eucharist, Sacrament of Sacraments; to the Virgin Mary, Patroness and Mother of Preachers; to Saint Dominic, our Father and Founder, with the other Dominican saints in particular Saint Thomas Aquinas and Saint Catherine of Siena. (Cf. LCO, no. 67, 3 III).
3. KEY ELEMENTS OF DOMINICAN CHARISM
· Community life - Dominic learned and lived community life with the family of canon regulars and also in the Rule of Saint Augustine. Our vocation is convocation to form a true family: “With one mind and one soul” (Rule of St. Augustine).
· Prayer – Our Father Dominic learned the practice of common and contemplative prayer at Osma, and later on in his encounters with Cistercian and Premonstratensian monks. Our Father Dominic was “persistent in prayer and said Mass every day” (Canonization Witness Bro. Ventura). Both communitarian and private prayer fertilize each other in Dominic’s life – and in ours, too (cf. ACGTr, 2013) no. 65).(Cf. St. Dominic’s Nine ways of Prayer)
· Study – Study is another essential element of the Dominican charism and it is geared to preaching and teaching. Study is a Dominican task for life: study of the word of God, of the Fathers of the Church, of Saint Thomas Aquinas, of the magisterium of the Church, of other theologians and doctors of the Church, and the interpretation of the signs of the times, which are messengers of the Word of God..
· Poverty - Not only as a vow, but as a pervading attitude of Dominican life (cf. LCO, Fundamental Constitution, 1, I). Our Father Dominic “had a supreme love for poverty for himself and for his Order” (Canonization Witness Bro. Paul of Venice in Early Dominicans). Just before dying, Father Dominic asked the brothers to practice, charity, humility and voluntary poverty. (Cf. Leo XIV, Dilexi Te, 63 snd 66).
The four key elements are directed to Preaching, which is the priority of priorities: preaching with our tongue, with our hearts ad with our witnessing. Preaching to all: to Christians (evangelization), former Christians (new evangelization) and non-Christians (evangelization ad gentes). For its part, Dominican preaching is original (“distinctive Dominican preaching”- ACG Rome, 2010, 185), that is original preaching in the combination of the basic elements of the Dominican charism, namely, proclamation of the truth as grounded on community life, prayer, study and poverty. Dominican peaching is not better than other kinds, but just different.
Preaching for the salvation of Souls. The end of preaching is the salvation of humanity. Witness Brother Rudolph of Faenza says that our Father Dominic “longed for the salvation of all men, including Christians and Saracens, and especially the Cumans, to whom he wanted to go” (In Early Dominicans, 77).
St. Dominic sent his first disciples to the great capitals of Europe. They asked him: “What should we do in Paris, Bolonia, Madrid, and Roma?” Dominic answered them: “Preach, study, found houses.” Today the peripheries are calling us to serve, too; the peripheries understood as places of the poor and marginalized and also of non-Christians.
4. THE DOMINICANS MISSIONARIES OF THE PROVINCE OF OUR LADY OF THE ROSARY
On July 21, 1587, a galleon arrived in Cavite (Philippines) from Acapulco (Mexico). Among the passengers, there were 15 Dominicans: first members of the Province of the Holy Rosary who were previously in one of the three Spanish Dominican Provinces, namely the ones of Castilla, Andalucía and Aragón. The 15 went freely and had committed themselves in Mexico to fulfill strictly the Dominican Constitutions and the Primordial Ordinations they had all promised to carry out to the letter. (Other three brothers went also from Acapulco to Macau [China] and arrived there around one month later).
The first 15 missionaries were substantially successful because they were faithful to their commitment. The civil and ecclesiastical authorities were so happy with the first group of Dominicans that they – the Cabildo of Manila- asked the King of Spain to send them more, many (muchos). Why? “Because they live in these lands very much as sons of their Father Dominic.”
Similarly, and in general, our brothers and sisters (and later) the fraternities in the different countries of Asia lived -and try to live today - as true sons and daughters of our Father Dominic.
The first Dominicans in the Philippines were told in Spain of the hardships that they would certainly encounter:
In times of great hardships and trials, they will remember that they offered themselves freely to this service for the love they have to Our Lord Jesus Christ and the zeal of souls and as penance for their sins.
They were substantially successful because they were faithful to their commitment. The civil and ecclesiastical authorities were so happy with the first group of Dominicans that they – the Cabildo of Manila- asked the King of Spain to send them more, many (muchos). Why? “Because they live in these lands very much as sons of their Father Dominic.”
Similarly, and in general, our brothers and sisters (and later) the fraternities in the different countries of Asia lived and live as true sons and daughters of our Father Dominic.
From Spain, through Mexico, to the Philippines. From the Philippines to different Asian countries: missionaries in the Philippines, China. Vietnam, Japan, Taiwan, and later in Korea and Singapore, and recently in Myanmar and East Timor. There are also missionaries of the Province in Venezuela, and, from the beginning up to now, in Spain, from where missionaries – from the beginning and up to the first half of the 20th century - were sent to Asia and all other places.
We are a cog in the long and wonderful chain of missionaries of our Province – of the whole Order of Preachers - and of our nuns and sisters and lay faithful on the wave-length of St. Dominic.
As the first missionaries of the Province, we try hard to be faithful and creative – always renewing. Vatican II tells us that true renewal consisits in “an increase of fidelity to our calling (Vatican II, Unitatis Redintegratio, UR, 6).
And to close. Who is a Dominican? A Dominican is a man or woman of Dominic! The painter Matisse made a few drawings of Dominic. In them, Dominic has no face (only the siluette). When the great French painter was asked why, he answered: “Every Dominican must place his/her face over the one of Dominic; he/she must identify himself/herself with the figure of Dominic.” (FGB)