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The
Confraternity of |
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The Confraternity of Ss. Peter & Paul was established for the purpose of inviting the Christian faithful throughout the world to give glory to God by uniting themselves with the Catholic clergy in that public prayer and liturgy which is the Divine Office. In these current unhappy times when so many of our churches are no longer the sacred repository of faith and prayer, the Confraternity of Ss. Peter & Paul wishes to restore to the faithful a means by which the praises of God may continue undefiled. It is therefore one of the chief objectives of this Confraternity to provide its members with the full text of the Roman Breviary in Latin and English, the bulk of which is now published on the Confraternity website, www.breviary.net. In addition, rubrics and other instructions will be included on this website so that the faithful may be instructed in the right manner of reciting the Breviary, wherefore the private and public recitation of the Divine Office may be conducted according to the traditional rites and practices of the Church. |
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The
Constitutions
of the 1. Name 1.1 The Name of the Confraternity shall be the Confraternity of Ss. Peter & Paul, hereinafter referred to as the Confraternity. 1.2 The Confraternity places itself under the patronage of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul. Its secondary patron is Pope St. Pius X, who combated the errors of modernism during his lifetime, and who revised the rubrics of the Divine Office to that form which we use today.
2. Membership 2.1 Membership of the Confraternity shall be open to all who wish to recite part or all of the Divine Office of the Catholic Church, either in Latin or the vernacular. 2.2 Membership of the Confraternity is not otherwise restricted in any way. It is equally open to the clergy who are already obliged to recite the Divine Office daily, as to the laity, both men, women and children who have attained the age of reason. 2.3 Members are not required to pay a membership fee or dues. However, they are asked to donate to the Confraternity within their means. The Confraternity suggests a monthly donation of $10.00 (U.S. dollars), or an annual donation of $100.00; however, this is a guideline only, and members may contribute a smaller or greater donation as they are able. Additional donations are welcome, and are tax deductible according to the pertinent civil laws, since the Confraternity is a not-for-profit corporation. Dues and other donations may be paid by credit card at our secure PayPal link, or by mailing a check made payable to the Confraternity of Ss. Peter & Paul to the following address:
2.4 Anyone who applies for membership may be placed on the Confraternity e-mail network. 2.5 There are four types of Members:
3. Aims and Objectives The General Aims and Objectives of the Confraternity shall be to :
The Specific Aims and Objectives of the Confraternity shall be to:
4. Liturgy 4.1 The Confraternity will follow all rubrics and instructions for the recitation of the Divine Liturgy as set forth in the Bull Divino Afflatu of Pope St. Pius X in November 1911. In Choir and common recitation of the Divine Office by the Confraternity, these rubrics are the only ones permitted. 4.2 The Confraternity accepts the use by its members in private recitation of any other traditional Breviary permitted by the Church. Members may recite the Benedictine Divine Office for example. Members are permitted to substitute the rites and practices of another congregation when they have the occasion to be present at the public recitation of their Divine Office. 4.3 The Confraternity holds abhorrent the liturgical reforms that have taken place since the Second Vatican Council, as well as those earlier reforms which can now be seen as leading to the present disastrous situation. 4.4 The Confraternity will incorporate all Feastdays added to the Universal Kalendar during the Papacies of Benedict XV and Pius XI, and most of those of Pius XII. However, none of the liturgical reforms of Pius XII are to be followed, including the new Psalter, the revisions to Holy Week, or the suppression of feastdays (such as the replacement of the Solemnity of St. Joseph, Patron of the Universal Church with the Feast of St. Joseph the Worker). 4.5 Conscious of its objective to foster the recitation of the Divine Office by the laity, the Confraternity will permit the private and even public recitation of the Office in English or other vernacular tongue, while always encouraging the use of Latin. If the vernacular is to be used, it must be in a form which does not detract from the dignity of the Divine Office. The translation of the Office used on this website is encouraged for the sake of universality in English-speaking countries. Other translations must be approved by Chapter. NOTE, that this permission to recite the Office in the vernacular is in no way to be construed as overriding any Church law governing the recitation of the Divine Office in Latin by those bound by the clerical state.
5. Practice 5.1 Members are not bound to recite the Office at certain specific times of the day. However, it is praiseworthy and in the spirit of the Confraternity and the Church to recite the Hours as follows:
5.2 Members are encouraged where possible to recite each Hour separately, and not in aggregation. 5.3 Matins and Lauds, however, and as instructed in the rubrics, may not be separated if recited in Choir, except on the Feast of Christmas. Members should endeavour where possible not to separate Matins and Lauds even in private recitation. 5.4 Members should not reverse the order of any Hours unless obliged to do so by circumstances beyond their control. 5.5 If attending evening Mass, members should take care that the Office corresponds to the Mass. Thus, if Vespers is of the following day, it should be recited after Mass. 5.6 In addition to the recitation of the Divine Office, the Confraternity recommends that its members recite the devotions for the Chair of Unity Octave, which extends from the Feast of the Chair of St. Peter at Rome (January 18) until the Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul (January 25), which prayers are prescribed for each separate day of the Octave and posted elsewhere on this website. The chief aim of the Confraternity's prayers in this regard is the return to the true Church of its brethren separated by the heresy of modernism.
6. Chapter 6.1 The Confraternity shall have a Chapter consisting of at least the following:
(a) Provost General 6.2 The role of the Chapter is to manage all aspects of the Confraternity's administration. The Chapter shall work autonomously to achieve each of the aims of the Confraternity. 6.3 Members of the Chapter are not elected but appointed. The Confraternity will appoint members to serve on the Chapter on an annual basis from the day following the Octave Day of the Feast of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul (July 7) until the Octave Day of Ss. Peter and Paul (July 6) of the following year.
7. Duties of Chapter Members 7.1 The Provost General shall: (a) be responsible for the constitutional running of the Confraternity (b) preside over the Annual Chapter and any other relevant chapter meetings (c) be responsible for the administration and co-ordination of all Confraternity activities and to ensure that the activities of the Confraternity continue to meet its objectives (d) attend all Confraternity Councils. However if unavailable to attend, the Provost may delegate this responsibility to another member 7.2 The Dean shall: (a) oversee the ordo, kalendar, and rubrics as published on the Confraternity website, taking care to ensure that they do not contravene the liturgical rules, rubrics or regulations of the Catholic Church or the Confraternity’s own constitution (b) answer questions by members and others concerning the ordo, kalendar, and rubrics (c) provide information to members and District Deans concerning the ordo, kalendar and rubrics pertaining to a particular nation or diocese 7.3 The Secretary General shall: (a) keep a full list of membership (b) keep a record of all chapter meetings, which shall be made available to all members of the Confraternity via the e-mail network (c) be responsible for ensuring regular monitoring of the Confraternity website and e-mail folders and ensuring that all information is dealt with correctly by the other Chapter members (d) keep an up-to-date inventory of equipment and reference material owned by the Confraternity (e) keep a file of all correspondence for the current year and the previous two years (h) supervise members' requests for prayer, and post them on the website 7.4 The Bursar General shall: (a) keep a record of and oversee all financial transactions of the Confraternity (b) present a report on the Confraternity's finances to the Annual Chapter 7.5 Each District Provost shall: (a) be responsible for the administration of the Confraternity within his district (b) be responsible for the appointment of a District Dean, who shall oversee the ordo, kalendar and rubrics particular to his District (c) be responsible for the appointment of a District Secretary, who shall keep records of membership of his District, maintain records of all Regional Chapters held in his District, keep inventory of equipment and reference material held by his District Chapter, and oversee the finances of the District Chapter
8. Chapter Meetings 8.1 The Chapter shall hold meetings to administer the Confraternity's activities. At least two General Chapter meetings will be held during the year, one to fall during the Chair of Unity Octave, and the other (Annual General Chapter) within the Octave of the Feast of Ss. Peter & Paul. Any member of the Confraternity is entitled to attend any chapter meeting, unless a closed meeting has been agreed in advance with the Provost and Dean. Only plenary and secondary members may vote at a General Chapter. 8.2 The Confraternity shall hold an Annual General Chapter at some time during the Octave of Ss. Peter and Paul, during which the following will take place:
All registered members must be given at least two weeks notice of this meeting. 8.3 An extraordinary General Chapter must be held if requested by at least 10% of the registered membership, or if called by the Provost General. 8.4 Regional Chapters may be held at the discretion of District Provosts. However, the District Provost is responsible for informing the Provost at least one week in advance of such a Chapter, and advising him of the nature and purpose of the meeting.
9. Discipline 9.1 The discipline of the Confraternity is self-imposed, and is that by which a member pledges to recite on a daily basis a part or the whole of the Divine Office as permitted by his state in life, and/or to uphold the Constitutions of the Confraternity and promote its aims. There is absolutely no obligation on the internal forum, and no sin is committed by the failure of a member to fulfill his pledge. 9.2 In the case of a serious breach of trust, or deliberate failure of a Confraternity member to adhere to the Confraternity Constitutions, the Dean and Chapter may take one of the following actions :
(a)
A written caution
10 Declaration 10.1 The members of the Confraternity and the Confraternity Chapter shall abide at all times by the Constitution of the Confraternity, and all liturgical rules laid down by the Catholic Church as duly noted above.
10.2
All activities conducted by
its members are a reflection upon the
Confraternity, and all activities conducted by the Confraternity
are
similarly
a reflection upon
the Catholic Church.
Ever mindful of this, members of the Confraternity
shall
always conduct the public recitation of the Divine Office in an edifying and
dignified manner, never giving offence or scandal through disrespect towards
the liturgy or towards the place where the liturgical office is being
conducted. Nor shall the Confraternity conduct any activity that
has not been approved by Chapter. |