Letter of convocation of the XVII General Chapter

Missionari Comboniani del Cuore di Gesù
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DIREZIONE GENERALE

LETTER OF CONVOCATION OF THE XVII GENERAL CHAPTER

Dear Confreres

On behalf of the General Direction we intend to thank you for the missionary spirit and love of the mission we have seen and felt in these five years. We may truly thank God, because the mission is loved with that same kind of passion Comboni taught us. Let us thank God, especially for the witnessing to faithfulness and love towards the people of God by the confreres who live in difficult situations of tension and frequent uneasiness.
As we thank the Lord, we recall to mind the words of Comboni: “The Institute is the work of God and He wants it as an instrument for his missionary plans and work of evangelisation”.

b>1. Convocation of the General Chapter
In accordance with n. 147 of the Rule of Life, with joy and trust in God we officially convoke the XVII General Chapter of the Institute. This act calls all of us to set ourselves on this journey in unity of prayer and the enthusiasm of Comboni, so that the upcoming Chapter may be a grace-filled event, an occasion of renewal and, above all, of communion with God for our missionary family.
The XVII General Chapter will take place in Rome, at the General Curia. It will open on Sunday 6 September 2009 with a solemn Eucharist at 9 a.m. The Chapter Delegates, however, will have to be in Rome by 12 noon of 31 August 2009 for a week of immediate preparation for the Chapter.
The theme for the General Chapter 2009, chosen during the Intercapitular Assembly, is: “From the Plan of Comboni to the plan of the Comboni Missionaries: to re-qualify the mission, formation and government”. The theme includes particular attention to redesigning our manner of being present so as to balance commitments and personnel.

2. Chapter DelegatesAccording to what is established by the Rule of Life (n. 148-149), the following confreres will be called to be members of the XVII General Chapter:
2.1 The de jure Capitulars: the members of the General Council, the Provincial Superiors (see list).
2.2 The delegate Capitulars: priests and brothers elected according to what is established by the Rule of Life 149-150 (see the list of electoral colleges).

3. Election of Delegates
We wish to call to mind the importance of what is established by the Rule of Life (n. 150) for the election of Delegates to the Chapter:
3.1 The Provincial/Delegation Superiors must follow the norms established by the Rule of Life (n. 150, 1-10) for the election of Priests Delegates. They will arrange it so as to complete the process by 31 October 2008.
3.2 For the Brothers Delegates, the election will be organized by the Secretary General who, following the Rule of Life (n. 149.2 and 150.9) will send the electoral lists to those concerned and “establish the norms for the return, the counting of votes and the announcement of the results”.
The process of election of the Brothers Delegates will need to be completed by 31 October 2008. In the consultation, only the Brothers vote. In the actual election of the Brothers Delegates, both the priests and the brothers vote (RL 150.5).
3.3 The Secretary General will send to the Province/Delegation Superiors the lists of confreres with right to active and passive vote updated to 1 July 2008 (RL 149.3).
3.4 In the election of Delegates to the Chapter, both priests and brothers will follow what is established by the Rule of Life n. 150, 1-10. Particular attention needs to be given to what the Chapter of 1991 established and added to n. 150.7 of the Rule of Life: “Are elected the members who receive the relative majority of at least one third of the votes. Should the candidates, or some of them, not receive the required majority, voting is repeated until this is obtained” (CA ’91, 58.3).
3.5 All confreres, except those exclaustrated and those living outside the community, have the right to active vote, according to what is established by the Rule of Life n. 160.4. All the confreres in perpetual vows by 1 July 2008 have right to passive vote (RL 150).
3.6 For information on the electoral process please refer to the Secretary General. The results must also be sent to him.
3.7 In order to ensure the right to privacy and the authenticity of the vote, the use of electronic mail is not allowed in the process of consultation and election.
3.8 To expedite the process, the results of the consultations and elections may be communicated by electronic mail or by fax. The original document will then be sent by ordinary mail.
3.9 At the proper time the Superior General and his Council will announce the names of the Observers who will be invited to attend the XVII General Chapter (RL 148.1).

Dear Confreres,
The General Chapter 2009 will be an event of the Spirit. We have, therefore, to leave all the space to the Spirit, so that He may enlighten, guide and speak to us. May the prayer in preparation to the Chapter open the gates to that same Spirit of God which “inspired, enlightened and strengthened” the mission of Daniel Comboni. “Filled with the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:4), like the apostles at Pentecost, we will always know how to put God and the mission in the first place.

May God bless us.


30 May 2008
Feast of the Sacred Heart

Fr. Teresino Serra, mccj
Fr. Fabio Carlo Baldan, mccj
Fr. Odelir José Magri, mccj
Fr. Tesfamariam Ghebrecristos Woldeghebriel, mccj
Br. Umberto Martinuzzo, mccj

DELEGATES TO THE XVII GENERAL CHAPTER
1. DE JURE DELEGATES

Members of the General Council
1. Fr. Teresino Serra
Superiore Generale
2. Fr. Baldan Fabio Carlo
Vicario Generale
3. Fr. Odelir José Magri
Assistente Generale
4. Fr. Tesfamariam Ghebrecristos
Woldeghebriel
Assistente Generale
5. Bro. Martinuzzo Umberto
Assistente Generale
Provincial Superiors
6. Fr. Codianni Luigi Fernando
(Brasil Nordeste)
7. Fr. Alcides Costa
(Brasil Do Sul)
8. Fr. Zaffanelli Giovanni
(Centrafrique)
9. Fr. Tacchella Eliseo
(Congo)
10. Fr. Altenburger Josef
(Deutschsprachige Provinz)
11. Fr. Zendron Claudio
(Ecuador)
12. Fr. Tesfaye Tadesse Gebresilasie
(Ethiopia)
13. Fr. Cerezo Ruiz Daniel
(España)

14. Fr. Pelucchi Alberto
(Italia)
15. Fr. Tibaldo Mariano
(Kenya)
16. Fr. Pacifico Salvatore
(Khartoum)
17. Fr. Felix Paul Neri Augustine
(London Province)
18. Fr. Dário Balula Chaves
(Malawi-Zambia)
19. Fr. González Ponce Rafael
(México)
20. Fr. Robol Massimo
(Moçambique)
21. Fr. Gasparini Luigi
(North American Province)
22. Fr. Bustos Juárez Rogelio
(Perú-Chile)
23. Fr. Alberto de Oliveira Silva
(Portugal)
24. Fr. Sandri Giuseppe
(South Africa)
25. Fr. Perina Luciano
(South Sudan)
26. Fr. Navarrete Arceo Miguel
(Tchad)
27. Fr. Manuel João Pereira Correia
(Togo-Ghana-Bénin)
28. Fr. Filippi Giuseppe
(Uganda)

2. PRIESTS DELEGATES
Asia (Delegation): 1 / Brasil Nordeste: 1 / Brasil do Sul: 1 / Centrafrique: 1 / Colombia (Delegación): 1
Congo: 1 / Curia (Roma-Parigi-Polonia): 2* / Delegación de Centro América: 2*
Deutschsprachige Provinz: 1 / Ecuador: 1 / Egypte: 1 / Eritrea (Delegation): 1 / España: 1 / Ethiopia: 1
Italia: 3 / Kenya: 1 / Khartoum: 1 / London Province: 1 / Malawi-Zambia: 1 / México: 2
Moçambique: 1 / North American Province: 1 / Perú-Chile: 1 / Portugal: 1 / South Africa: 1
South Sudan: 1 / Tchad: 1 / Togo-Ghana-Bénin: 1 / Uganda: 2.
* The General Council, aware that it has not implemented the capitular mandate which had asked to erect the DCA to a Province and Poland to a Delegation, has decided to recognise the state of these two circumscriptions at least at the level of Chapter Delegates: the DCA will then have two delegates and Poland one.
Total Priests Delegates: 35
3. BROTHERS DELEGATES
Curia-España-Portugal: 1 / Italia: 1 / Egypt-Eritrea-Ethiopia-Khartoum-South Sudan: 1
Asia-Delegación de Centro América-México-North American Province: 1 / Kenya-Uganda: 1
Centrafrique-Tchad-Togo-Ghana-Bénin-Congo: 1 / Malawi-Zambia-Moçambique-South Africa: 1
DSP-London Province: 1 / Brasil Nordeste-Brasil do Sul-Ecuador-Perú-Chile-Colombia: 1.
Total Brothers Delegates: 9
TOTAL CHAPTER DELEGATES: 72