Leonine Union of the Order of Friars Minor, 1897, The

Chapter Six. The Controversy over Precedence

Chapter Six The Controversy over Precedence Preparations for a General Chapter of the Order had actually begun in February of the previous year, 1894. According to legislation enacted by Pius IX in 1862, the Minister General was obliged to convoke such a gathering at the mid-point of his twelve-year term of office. He was to provide the assembled friars with an account of his administration and the state of the Order. His report was then to be handed on to the Sacred Congregation for Bishops and Regulars for further consideration. In compliance with this law, Luigi da Parma had summoned his Definitory to a meeting so that they might initiate the process of convoking a General Chapter. This process had been completed on March 8, 1894, and two major items were placed on the agenda: the election of Procurators and Definitors General, and a revision of the 1889 General Constitutions. They chose Assisi as the place for the Chapter. It would have been too difficult to assemble in Rome, given the political situation and the problems associated with re-locating the students at the Antonianum for the duration of the gathering. Luigi da Parma had then written to the Provincials and Custodes of the Order. He asked them to undertake a thorough revision of the General Constitutions and to send their results to the General Curia. By November 1894 most of the Provinces had complied, and two committees were appointed to deal with the problem of the Order's legislation. One group was directed to concentrate on the material which had been sent in by the Provinces, and the other to undertake a comparison of the so-called Barcelona Constitutions with those of 1889. Preparations for the General Chapter had begun in earnest. Reading the minutes of the Definitory meetings which took place in the months before the gathering, one might get the impression that the 118 / The Leonine Union preparations were peacefully carried out, without undue stress or difficulty. Unfortunately, this was not the case. The distrust and rivalry inherent in the debates over the formulation of the 1889 General Constitutions, the future of the Antonianum, and the rights of the Italian Observants in the Holy Land were responsible for a lingering animosity between the friars of the Regular Observance and those of the Stricter Observance. Calm, objective discussion appeared to be an impossibility. Serious disagreement marred the Definitory's discussion about the number and distribution of the Definitory at this time.1 Simultaneously, they were embroiled in an argument over the precedence to be observed among the delegates at General Chapters of the Order. To the modern reader, this might appear to be of marginal interest, but the debate was an integral part of the campaign waged by the members of the Stricter Observance to prevent what they perceived as a persistent attempt by the Regular Observance to dominate and absorb them. This debate over precedence gave them an opportunity to assert their equality and, in consequence, their right to independence. This particular controversy had its origins in a protest lodged at the Chapter of 1889 by the Discalced friars against being allocated last place among the four families.2 Their rightful place, they claimed, was immediately following the Regular Observance. This had been established in deference to their date of origin by Leo X in the 1517 Bull of Union, Ite vos. The Discalced requested that the Chapter recognize the justice of their claim and, furthermore, agree to the appointment of a separate Secretary General to deal with their affairs in Rome. They no longer wished to share a secretary in common with the Recollects. The vocales of that Chapter had left the matter in the hands of the newly elected General Definitory, but the problem had remained unresolved. The matter was raised again in November 1894, and Luigi da Parma requested that the members of the Definitory express a written opinion on the point. Tempers ran hot when the issue was eventually discussed on December 20, 1894. In order to bring the lengthy and tempestuous session to a close, the Minister General suggested the 1 See chapter 5. 2 Acta, General Chapter, 1889, no. 50, p. 29 & no. 90, p. 49. The Controversy over Precedence / 119 establishment of a mixed commission representing the four families. Its aim would be to summarize the various points of view prior to another discussion. This was done...