438
I. It is the duty of the promoter general for nuns:
- to assist the Master of the Order and the procurator general in matters concerning the nuns;
- to collect information concerning them or for them and to communicate it to them and the different provinces.
II. It also belongs to him to take care of the aggregated or aggregating secular institutions of the Order.
424
- Under the chairmanship of the Master or vicar of the Order, or of their vicar, the general council is composed of the socii to the Master of the Order and of the procurator general; their consent or advice is required according to our laws and common law.
- The Master of the Order may convoke the councillors to seek their advice and opinion whenever it seems beneficial to him even if this is not required by law.
417
A general chapter, under the presidency of the Master or vicar of the Order, shall be conducted in the following manner:
- on the day before the commencement of the chapter:
- the credentials of the voters shall be examined by three of the brothers designated by the president. Serious difficulties shall be referred to the voters of the chapter;
- at least two secretaries shall be appointed by the president and they may be assisted by other secretarial staff;
- three revisers shall be designated from the voters with the consent of the chapter. It will be their task to verify in due time the texts that have been approved;
- the president, having consulted the chapter, shall confirm the allocation already made of chapter members to the various commissions, which may be modified if he deems it opportune.
- The chapter shall begin with the celebration of the Mass of the Holy Spirit. After the homily, in the prayer of the faithful, petitions shall be made for the successful outcome of the chapter and for the living and the dead.
- In the first plenary session of the general chapter, the method of procedure shall be discussed;
- the commissions begin their work. The chairman of each commission, having heard the preference of the other members, shall appoint a secretary from among the voters or other participants who shall record accurately the minutes of the commission; a commission shall conduct and conclude all business by public or secret votes; the chairman of a commission shall report to the president of the chapter as well as to the chapter itself in plenary sessions. The written resolutions of each commission shall be distributed to all the voters as well as the other participants before the plenary sessions;
- the Master shall give a report on the state of the Order;
- the Master shall give a report on his personal receipts and expenses to the commission on economic administration which shall inform the chapter about it;
- in an elective chapter, the election of the Master of the Order shall be conducted on the fifth day from the beginning of the chapter;
- the voters with the Master shall discuss chapter matters and shall make decisions by majority vote; there shall be a secret vote when the president or a significant number of the voters request it. If the votes are equal, the matter shall be remitted for further examination and a new vote. If the voting is still equal, the president of the chapter shall break the tie with his vote. Questions shall be resolved by way of admonition, declaration, or ordination, and if a new constitution is to be formulated, this shall be done without ambiguity;
- voters may propose questions for discussion even while the chapter is under way, and they shall determine the schedule for discussing them;
- a session must be held of the voters alone if a third of the capitulars have either previously requested this, or have approved this by vote at the request of a member of the chapter.
- within two days after every session, the minutes as well as the approved texts verified by the revisers shall be set out in a suitable place so that they can be examined by all. If a doubt is raised about an approved text, the revisers shall refer the matter to the chapter as soon as possible;
- the time and place of the next chapter shall be noted in the acts;
- during the chapter, the acts shall be prepared and signed by the president, the revisers, and the secretaries.
- If the Master happens to be away from the chapter, he shall appoint a vicar from among the vocals who will take his place in all matters.
409-bis
Each province which has at least twenty brothers assigned in vicariates or houses of the province outside the boundaries of the province has the right to send to a general chapter of diffinitors or priors provincial one delegate elected from and by those brothers according to the statute of the province (see Appendix 17). The latter selection shall be made in such a way by the Master of the Order with his council that half of the provinces shall be represented in one chapter and the other half in the next.
409
The following are assembled and have votes in a general chapter of priors provincial:
- the Master of the Order;
- ex-Masters of the Order;
- each prior provincial;
- each vice-provincial and vicar general;
- delegates of the vicariates chosen from regional priors and vicars provincial in accordance with n. 409-bis;
- one delegate from among the brothers assigned to houses under the immediate jurisdiction of the Master of the Order if the total is less than one hundred, two if the total is one hundred or more, elected in accordance with n. 409-ter.
408
The following are assembled and have votes in a general chapter of diffinitors:
- the Master of the Order;
- ex-Masters of the Order;
- diffinitors elected by each province;
- delegates elected by each vice-province and general vicariate;
- delegates of other vicariates, chosen in accordance with n. 409-bis, but excluding regional priors and vicars provincial;
- one delegate from among the brothers assigned to houses under the immediate jurisdiction of the Master of the Order if the total is less than one hundred, two if the total is one hundred or more, elected in accordance with n. 409-ter.
407
The following assemble and have votes in a general elective chapter:
- In the election of a Master of the Order:
- ex-Masters of the Order;
- all priors provincial;
- from each province, the diffinitor of the general chapter;
- vice-provincials and vicars general, as provided for in n. 257, § II;
- a socius of the diffinitor of a general chapter from each province which has at least one hundred professed religious, excluding, however, those who are assigned in vicariates and those directly assigned to houses under the immediate jurisdiction of the Master of the Order;
- a socius of the prior provincial attending a general chapter from each province which has at least four hundred professed religious, excluding, however, those who are assigned in vicariates, and those directly assigned to houses under the immediate jurisdiction of the Master of the Order;
- a delegate from each province which has between twenty-five and one hundred brothers assigned in vicariates or houses of the province outside the boundaries of the province, the delegate shall be elected from among the brothers and by them according to the provincial statute; furthermore, from each province which has between 101 and 200 brothers assigned in vicariates, a second delegate shall be elected, and so on.
- from among brothers directly assigned to houses under the immediate jurisdiction of the Master of the Order, two delegates if they total fewer than one hundred, three delegates if they total one hundred or more, chosen as laid down in n. 407-bis.
- In matters to be dealt with after the election of the Master:
- the newly elected Master of the Order;
- ex-Masters of the Order;
- all those mentioned in § I, 2-8;
395
- Conferences of priors provincial and regional priors as well as vicars shall be established according to nations or regions so that fraternal collaboration is truly organized and has a permanent character. These conferences shall meet regularly according to norms drawn up by the members of the entities and approved by the Master of the Order.
- To foster these mutual relationships, the socii of the Master of the Order shall visit these regions frequently and remain there for some time. At an opportune time, they shall inform the Master of the Order and the general chapter about the activities and progress made there.
389
Where the conditions for a regional vicariate indicated in n. 384 above are lacking, a provincial chapter has power to establish a provincial vicariate and to draw up a special statute for it. If there are at least ten voters, they have the right to elect a vicar provincial; otherwise, having consulted the brothers, a vicar provincial shall be appointed by the prior provincial.