Just after Christmas we hold our annual Dominican Seminar, with a gathering of about ninety members of the Dominican Family. We come to London Colney Pastoral Centre to hear and discuss some splendid lectures, and to pray and chat informally. Such gatherings help to bind together the different branches of the Dominican family. So, let me introduce them to you, and say something about the work we do, as far as possible, together.
At these gathering there are men and women, both religious and lay. We have all been inspired by Dominic's approach to life, his particular spirituality, which we try to follow in the way most appropriate to our mode of life. As I have already suggested, this consists in contemplation and handing on to others the fruits of our contemplation. This is inspired by our love for the Truth, which is Christ himself. He is the way to life and happiness with our heavenly Father. In him we find the 'glorious liberty of the children of God,' as we try to live the truth we proclaim. This is the Good News we are called to share with the world, We are all inspired by Dominic's sense of the goodness of the physical world, which Christ has hallowed by becoming a part of it, and by enabling it to become the means, with God's help, for us to express our love for him and each other. Our Dominican life proclaims the glory of the creator and redeemer of heaven and earth. At the same time we react against the materialistic paganism of our age, with the social injustices this causes.
At the Seminar there were Dominican priests and a cooperator brother. Together they make up what is known as the 'Dominican First Order'. They all take the same vows and are bound by the same Rule and Constitutions. Sadly, no one from the Second Order was present. These are enclosed contemplative nuns, who support the active members of the Order with their prayers. They play a vital role in our preaching apostolate. Next, there were Dominican sisters involved in the active apostolate, who far out-number the men. These women are known as the 'Third Order Conventual.' They are inspired by the Dominican mystic and Doctor of the Church, St. Catherine of Siena, who worked for Church unity.
The sisters' apostolate is very varied, and includes teaching in schools, in universities and our study house at Oxford. Our sisters are responsible for a number of schools, one of them being for handicapped children. Many of the sisters work abroad, as far apart as Bodo, within the arctic circle, and S. Africa. Recently one of our sisters drove a lorry with food and medicine for the people of Bosnia. There are plans to see how we can co-operate in Jamaica. We are always looking for new ways of sharing the Good News, with greater co-operation between the friars and sisters. As we seek new ways of spreading the Gospel we sometimes have to give up old ones. This can be painful.
One of our brethren, a member of the English province, is heading a new mission to Russia and the Ukraine. Another goes regularly to Poland to teach Dominicans there to speak English, another teaches biblical archaeology in Israel. One of our sisters teaches in a seminary, another is a speech therapist, while another works with the deaf. Other Dominicans work with the victims of AIDS and drug addiction. At Oxford our brothers and a sister teach in our study house and the university.
Our work is very varied, as we pursue different ways of sharing the Good News. During our life in the Order each one of us will probably, be involved in several kinds of apostolate.
Parish work forms an important part of our Dominican apostolate, enabling us to share the Good News with a large number of people, meeting them at the key moments of their life, birth, marriage and death. Our parishes do have a distinctive quality, in being community based, and also in our offering the special insights of Dominican spirituality. We are able to exercise a team ministry, impossible for the solitary parish priest. Our parishioners can hear a variety of preachers. Some of us can specialise in various kinds of chaplaincy work - in universities, hospitals or prisons. Our life-style gives us a good opportunity to study, so that together we can provide study courses not only for the parish, but for elsewhere. The shortage of priests means that we are increasingly being asked to assist the secular clergy.
From the earliest days of the Order Dominicans have been closely associated with universities, as students, lecturers and chaplains. Many, but by no means all, of our vocations come from the universities. We share their enthusiasm in searching for the truth, revealing in so many different ways, something of the glory of God, the source of all truth. Dominicans try to witness to one of the basic facets of our spirituality - secular knowledge and revealed truth throw light on each other, and can never be opposed. Our task is to throw the light of the Gospel on human wisdom, which, in turn, can enrich our understanding of the Good News. This is yet another way in which we see grace perfecting, not undermining, nature. University chaplains have an important ministry to both graduates and undergraduates. A number of members of the English province are involved in this work.
Each of our priories provides a base from which some of us go out to give talks, days of recollection and retreats, as well as putting on various courses for the local people. One of our sisters organises series of lectures, which a team of Dominicans gives in different parts of the country. As far as possible the brethren and sisters try to work together in these various apostolates. We see this as the way ahead for us.
These are but a few examples of Dominican life and work, which can take us all over the world. It also gives scope for Dominicans of varying talents and abilities. This, of course, is subject to the commitments of the Order and what our superiors judge to be the needs of the Church. It can be hard to have to give up our pet projects or be moved to another house; but that is part of the meaning of obedience, and also of poverty of spirit, in our being prepared to let go of a particular apostolate.
As you can see, our preaching vocation is not confined to sermons, but includes any means of sharing the Good News. Some Dominicans write books and articles, and we produce a monthly theological periodical known as New Blackfriars. This is printed by one of our Dominican sisters, while the present pamphlet has been produced by one of the brethren, using sophisticated computer technology. In the W. Indies the brethren produce an regular pamphlet, reflecting on their mission to the Caribbean, while in Grenada they provide many of the contributions to a monthly Catholic news paper. Most of us see our role as popularisers of the insights of scholars. We believe that everyone has the right to receive the Gospel in all its richness, not a watered down version. Like all communicators, we must learn to adapt our method and language, but not our message, to our audience. Some of us, especially in the Third World, have the opportunity of preaching through TV, the radio and press.
Last, but certainly not least, two groups of lay men and women belong to the Dominican Family, both of which try to follow the spirit of our founder in their secular lives. This means sharing his outlook on life, the stress he places on reflecting on sacred truth and our being united in prayer, especially in spreading of the Good News. The first group includes both married and single people who commit themselves to living according to the spirit of St. Dominic in their secular lives. They are known as 'Lay Dominicans.' The second Group of lay people belong to the 'Dominican Secular Institute'. Such institutes are a comparatively recent development in the life of the Church, which recognises that the single life of a lay person is a positive vocation, in which he or she can follow Christ. This has always been acknowledged by the Church, but has now been formally recognised and consecrated by the three vows of poverty, chastity and obedience. Both the Lay Dominicans and the Dominican Secular Institute follow a rule appropriate to their particular way of life, and inspired by the spirit of the Dominican Order. Through both these groups the Word becomes flesh in the secular world. That in itself is an important witness, apart from any apostolic work they may be able to do. Lay Dominicans usually belong to chapters associated with one of our convents or priories. They are able to hold monthly meetings. Members of the Secular Institute are scattered around the country and come together several times a year to pray and study.
As you would expect, travelling preachers, committed to spreading the Word of God, are involved in the foreign missions. Members of the English Province work in S. Africa and the W. Indies. Our work there is parish based, and until recently that meant each of us living in isolation, without the community life which is normal for Dominicans. But, thanks to local vocations and re-organisation, we have been able to open a priory novitiate. Already we have a number of W. Indian Dominicans, and more young men are showing an interest in joining the Order. Eventually we may be able to form a West Indian province out of the Caribbean islands in which Dominicans already work. A missionary works for the day when the locals take over and he is no longer needed there. That produces the paradox of being totally committed, and yet being willing to let go and hand over to others. That's a dimension of being poor in spirit.
Our brethren in Grenada have been through a revolution and the American invasion, or intervention. Before the invasion they had to preach against the right wing abuses of human rights, and during the revolution against those of the left. To both governments' surprise the brethren were not aligned with any particular party, but simply on the side of justice. As is usually the case in such situations their sermons were monitored and reported to the government, and attempts were made to silence them. But government documents, captured after the revolution, feared that our brethren were distributing a deadly weapon - not guns or explosives, but the Jerusalem Bible, written in a language which people could understand. The communist government realised that the word of God was, indeed, alive and active - a force to be reckoned with!
The defence of human rights has long played an important part in Dominican preaching. Missionaries, including Dominicans, accompanied those who discovered and colonised the New World. Bartolom de las Casas preached and argued against the cruel exploitation of the local Amerindians. Both in the W. Indies and the court of Spain he had to defend the basic humanity of these people. The cause of his canonisation is now being promoted. Another Dominican, Vitoria, wrote the first treatise, defending the human dignity and rights of the inhabitants of the Americas and the Caribbean islands. In this context there's a good example of how our community life works at its best. In Hispaniola Montesino preached against the cruel way in which the Spaniards forced the people to work for them. One of them asked the prior to silence this outspoken, head-strong friar. To which the prior replied that the offending sermon was the result of much community discussion, and that Montesino was simply the spokesman for all the brethren. Much later, our brethren in Grenada adopted the same communal approach to preaching, during the revolution.
Community life gives us the opportunity to use each other as sounding boards, to test the validity of our ideas. It can be very helpful to get a second opinion and spark ideas off each other. I can remember getting very excited about a particular theory I had about a passage of Scripture. In my enthusiasm I told one of the brethren about it. And he picked holes in everything I said, only for him to use some of my ideas in something he was doing. When I complained at the unfair way he had treated me, he simply said that he wanted to see whether my ideas would stand up to rigorous criticism. That's the way we Dominicans work. It requires a willingness to listen and learn before preaching - also a thick skin. Our community meetings frequently burst into spontaneous theological discussions, sometimes combustion, usually over a meal. I suppose the dogs of the Lord are a bit like scrapping puppies, testing our strength, sharpening our wits! Usually no one gets hurt. One of the great advantages of living in community is that it enables us to co-operate in providing study courses for various kinds of groups. Our community life does give us more time to study and prepare talks than the parish priest working alone.
I have spoken about the Dominican tradition of defending the rights of the oppressed. Recent Provincial and General Chapters have stressed the importance of this work. In this country we have a Justice and Peace commission, in which both lay and religious Dominicans are involved. They train and provide speakers, as well as producing appropriate literature. They are mainly concerned with social justice, race relations, the rights of women and the conditions for a just war. You may well have heard of Dominicans taking part in CND demonstrations. From the earliest days of ecumenism, before it became respectable, Dominicans have worked for Church Unity. Some specialise in Inter Faith work, between Jews, Christians and Moslems. Our Dominican life enables us to reach out to groups which do not fall within the established structures of the Church. These different apostolates are directed not only to the academic world, but to the general public, as we strive to make ourselves and others sensitive to each others dignity and rights. All this falls within the general theme of Dominican spirituality. Jesus loves and respects each one of us as a unique individual, and his grace helps us to find him in the particular situation in which we find ourselves. He heals us and raises each of us in a special way to share in God's own life and happiness. That is what it means for the Word to become flesh and dwell among us.
All this reflects a quality which has been stressed by the Vatican Council, and underlined by our General Chapters. Before anyone can teach, he or she must first be willing to listen and learn - to discover truth, wherever it is to be found. This means much more than studying scripture and theology - reading books - which of course is very important. The Church as a whole and the preacher in particular must 'read the signs of the times.' This means knowing and understanding the world and culture in which we live, its sense of values, hopes and fears. Reading papers, hearing and seeing the news are all part of our contemplation. Above all we must meet and get to know people, their way of thinking and speaking, the needs of their daily lives. The task of the preacher today is to discover and proclaim God's will for people of the twentieth century. That was the task of the Old Testament prophets for their contemporaries. We must listen not only to God but to his people, before we can dare to preach. This means discovering how the Good News can enrich a particular culture, not undermine or destroy it. The Gospel, must not, for example be an alien European import thrust upon Third World cultures, which are very different from ours. They have a value of their own, which we must respect, as does our own culture. The Good News must take root in the local soil. This approach has been called 'inculturisation' - an ugly word! Reading the signs of the times means us being able both to encourage what is good in the world and the people we meet, and also distinguishing what needs to be corrected, with the courage and love to do so. This is yet another expression of our Dominican conviction that grace builds upon nature, and does not destroy it. That is at the heart of our Dominican preaching and spirituality.
I have tried to give a general idea of Dominican spirituality, and some of the work in which this is expressed. This appeals to both religious and lay members of our Dominican family. But, hopefully, everyone can benefit from Dominic's approach to life - his appreciation of the goodness of the world in which we live, and of our human nature, which Christ heals and raises to share in God's own life and happiness. Dominic's love for God and people filled him with joy and enthusiasm to share the Good News with all whom he met. That is the vocation of the preacher. Our spirituality consists precisely in this love and in this sharing. The preacher draws close to God through helping others to find him. All this is true not only for Dominicans, but forms an essential part of the life of every Christian. Through our baptism and confirmation we have all been commissioned as apostles, sent out in the power of the Spirit to share the hope we have received in Jesus Christ. For us Dominicans this preaching takes many forms. The same is true for all Christians in their different walks of life, as they witness to the Good News by the way they live and by what they say. A flame gives no light and soon becomes extinguished if it is placed under a tub. But when shared with others there's a great blaze of light. Our faith and our Christian commitment grows through sharing. Our life as Christians becomes dim and dies out if it is kept to ourselves and fails to proclaim that we believe in Christ and his way of life.
The vocation of the preacher can be summed up in the simple exercise of breathing. Through contemplation we breath in the truth of God - 'inspiration' means 'breathing in'; through preaching we breath out God's truth. That is the rhythm of our Dominican lives. For anyone called to be a Dominican it is a challenging, difficult, fulfilling and happy life. That should be true for every walk of Christian life. All our lives should be enriched by breathing in and breathing out God's saving truth - by contemplating and handing on to others the fruits of our contemplation, obviously in the way most appropriate to each of us. Together let us rejoice in the creator and saviour of heaven and earth, and share the Good News which Jesus came to bring us.