1616 JournalJournal of ofSpirituality Spirituality ServiceService to to Neighbour Neighbour asas a a Testimony Testimony of of Faith Faith Service to Neighbour as a Testimony of Faith Service to Neighbour as a Testimony of Faith 1616 Journal of Spirituality Journal of Spirituality SOVEREIGNSOVEREIGN MILITARY MILITARY HOSPITALLER HOSPITALLER ORDER ORDER OF OF SAINTSAINT JOHN JOHN OF OF JERUSALEM JERUSALEM OF OF RHODES RHODES AND AND OF OF MALTA MALTA 20172017 Journal of Spirituality 16 Director of the Series ✠ Jean Laffitte Translations Sarah Jane Nodes Cover Graphics Vertigo Design Printer Co.Art srl Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta Magistral Palace Via dei Condotti, 68 I – 00187 ROME E-mail: [email protected] www.orderofmalta.int © Office of the Prelate Cover Image “Blessed Gerard” Founder and First Grand Master of the Order, XI° Century Fresco in the chapel of the Magistral Palace, Rome Service to Neighbour as a Testimony of Faith SOVEREIGN MILITARY HOSPITALLER ORDER OF SAINT JOHN OF JERUSALEM OF RHODES AND OF MALTA INDEX 1. Foreword (H.E. Fra’ Ludwig Hoffmann von Rumerstein) .... 7 2. Introduction ..................................................11 3. The Role of Chaplains in the Priories and Associations (H.E. Msgr. Jean Laffitte) ........15 4. Tuitio Fidei in the Order of Malta (Msgr. Natale Loda) .......................................31 5. The Spirituality of the Order of Saint John (Msgr. Luigi Michele de Palma) .......................59 6. Regulations and Commentary: Instrument of Formation and Path of Spiritual Progress (Fr. Bruno Martin) ......................................101 7. Chaplains and the Liturgical Life of the Order (H.Em.ce Raymond Leo Cardinal Burke) .....129 8. The Role of the Order Chaplains with Young Volunteers (Msgr. John Armitage) ...187 9. The Christian Sense of Voluntary Work (H.E. Msgr. Jean Laffitte) ............................205 10. Promoting Vocations for Knights of Justice (H.E. Fra’ Duncan Gallie) ...........................231 11. Obsequium Pauperum: The Works of the Order (H.E. Dominique Prince de La Rochefoucauld- Montbel) .......................................................247 Past Issue of “Journal of Spirituality” ............254 FOREWORD Dear Consoeurs and Confreres, Dear Friends and Volunteers of the Order, After a period in which the Sovereign Order of Malta and some of its leaders have been featured in the newspapers of most of the central European countries and even some US papers and magazines - with both positive and negative comments - it is now important for us to concentrate on the mission indicated by our Order’s twofold charism [tuitio fidei et obsequium pauperum]. The path towards a spiritual renaissance should remind members of the Order of Malta that ours is a lay-religious order. A more deeply rooted spirituality must be the basis for a true moral and ethical renewal to combat the increasingly evident dechristianization of the lay world. Do members of the Order actively honour their duty to participate in Mass on Sunday and on the 7 holy days of obligation, or in the annual Confession at least for Holy Easter? I would also add to these obligations the importance of personal prayer and participation in Eucharistic adoration. We must es- pecially pray to the Madonna of Mount Philermos for her to bless her people and all the works they perform, as well as His Holiness Pope Francis. Are all members of the Order zealous in offering their service, according to the means they possess, to the poor, the needy, the sick and the disabled? The Holy Father Francis constantly reminds us of the mercy of Our Lord Jesus Christ. This does not necessarily mean that we have to give something to every beggar we meet in the street or those asking for alms on the steps of churches. We must instead be present where there is the harshest poverty and need and help this presence by giving. I am think- ing in particular of the Christians and refugees ar- riving from the Near East and North Africa, as well as the many, too many, people who were hit by last year’s repeated earthquakes in the Marche and who still need help. Finally, no activity carried out in the Order and for the Order must be done for financial profit. The 8 members must serve the Order and not receive per- sonal gain from their membership. I thank all the authors for their contribution to this journal in the hope that it, and its new graphic design, will be well received. H.E. il Venerable Bailiff Fra’ Ludwig Hoffmann – Rumerstein Lieutenant ad Interim of the Sovereign Order of Malta 9 INTRODUCTION After two years of interruption, we are very pleased to offer a new issue of the “Journal of Spirituality” to all Members of the Sovereign Order of Malta. We recall, for new readers, that this series was con- ceived in 2001 by the Prelate of the Order Archbish- op Angelo Acerbi, and continued to be published yearly until 2014. The first fifteen numbers of the series have care- fully analyzed the spirituality of the Order of St. John of Jerusalem. Thanks to the dedicated work of the scholars who have contributed to the series, the spir- itual history of our Order and its seminal founding insights have helped many Knights and Dames of the Three Classes to improve their awareness of belong- ing to a true spiritual family, rich in centuries-old traditions. At the same time, Archbishop Acerbi had, as some of our Confreres, the conscience of the urgency to convey a true formation to our Members, not only 11 in the history but also in the spirituality of the Order of Malta. During the interval of the past two years, an important book has been published, written con- junctly by some scholars of Order: it is called “From Jerusalem to Rome. An Historical – Spiritual Journey”, published in Italian in 2015. The book in translation into several languages ​​(English, French, Spanish ...). This literary initiative had an enthusiastic welcome (in fact the Italian edition was sold out by the end of the year 2015); we are now thinking to publish a second edition. The need for formation for all Members of the Order has become a common conviction: various ini- tiatives have already been taken in this direction such as, for example, the recent Meeting of the Principal Chaplains of Europe, which took place in Rome at the Magistral Villa on the Aventine, on January 24 to 26, 2017. Other similar events have been scheduled in the forthcoming months. Among its priorities for the oncoming years, the Government of the Order has recommended to in- crease formation and training programs. An initia- tive, in this direction, has been the regular meetings of the Prelate with the National Associations in the 12 various continents, as well as the meetings with the Chaplains serving in those territorial entities of the Order. In this context, it was decided to resume the publi- cation of the “Journal of Spirituality”, on the basis of one issue per year, as in the past. The publication will continue to be directed by the Prelate of the Order. This issue, which is the 16th of the series, offers the readers a well-balanced set of essays in order to focus on the theme: “Service to Neighbour as a Testimo- ny of Faith”. Besides the articles of some well-known contributors, such as Msgrs. Natale Loda and Luigi Michele de Palma, and Fr. Bruno Martin, you will find the addresses offered by Msgr. John Armitage, H.E. Fra’ Duncan Gallie, the Cardinal Patronus Ray- mond Leo Burke, and the Prelate on the occasion of the aforementioned training session for the Principal Chaplains of Europe; as well as on the occasion of the past two International Hospitallers’ Conferences of the Order of Malta, held in in Malta in 2016 and in Paris in 2017. To encourage our initiative, H.E. the Venerable Bailiff Fra’ Ludwig Hoffmann von Rumerstein, Lieu- tenant ad Interim, has offered a welcome address; 13 and we also deemed appropriate to present, by way of conclusion, the most recent humanitarian activi- ties of the Order, as set out in the contribution of the Grand Hospitaller, H.E. Dominique Prince de la Rochefoucauld-Montbel. In order to emphasize continuity with the work edited by Archbishop Acerbi, we chose to keep the format of the previous editions, while proposing a revamped cover with the beautiful portrait of our founder, Blessed Gerard, which is in the Chapel of the Grand Magistry. Finally , we would like to express our gratitude to Mr Robert Halley and his family for their generous support in the publication of this volume. J.L. 14 THE ROLE OF THE CHAPLAINS IN THE PRIORIES AND ASSOCIATIONS The occasion of our meeting is reason for great joy; it is not very frequent that chaplains of the Or- der from different nations have the opportunity to meet, if we except the annual pilgrimage in Lourdes. I would like to express my gratitude to our Grand Master Fra’ Matthew to have encouraged this ini- tiative, demonstrating once more how the role of the chaplains is important in his eyes for the entire Order of Malta. I thank also HE Fra’ Duncan Gal- lie for the work he did to prepare this meeting, the program that is proposed and all the material assis- tance he gave to the Secretariat of the Prelate. And thank you very much to all of you for your presence these three days. This session is the first step of different initia- tives that will develop in the context of the Forma- tion Project, which was decided two years ago by His Highness and the Sovereign Council. As you know, 15 there are already different occasions for the Knights and Dames to meet and receive some teachings dur- ing small sessions of formation: for instance, Interna- tional Regional Meetings for the Presidents of Asso- ciations, as it was in Panama last February (Meeting of the Presidents and Chaplains of Central America and Caribbean); or Meeting of the Hospitallers like it was in Malta in March 2016 or like the one that will be held next March in Paris.