The year 2005 marked the 465th anniversary of the first pontifical approval of the Formula of the Institute of the Society of Jesus by Pope Paul III in 1540. It also anticipated the Jesuit Jubilee Year in 2006 commemorating the death of St. Ignatius (1556) and the births of both St. Francis Xavier (1506) and Blessed Peter Faber (1506).
This translation of the Constitutions of the Society of Jesus in 502 pages, including the index, probably escaped the notice of many in the Church when it first came out. Most literate Catholics do not know it is available to them as easily as the Rule of St. Benedict or the documents of Vatican II. It is an English version of the official Latin text entitled Constitutiones Societatis Iesu et Normae Complementariae.
Historically, Catholic religious institutes were protective of their internal documents, and such documents were kept secret from their enemies, thus indirectly hiding them from their friends. Vernacular translations were mistrusted and restricted in the remote past. Jesuit readers were familiar with the 1970 translation of their Constitutions published by Father George E. Ganss, S.J., but it was circulated almost privately. The current translation bases itself on this one, with revisions. Here under the general editorship of John W. Padberg, S.J., we have every minute particle of Jesuit legislation made available for the entire world to read.
A General Congregation is the supreme legislative body of the Society of Jesus. These Congregations are called periodically for specific purposes, similar to what monastics and others call their ‘Chapter’ meeting. The last Jesuit General Congregation met in Rome in early 1995. It was the thirty-fourth since the first one of 1558 which originally approved the Constitutions. Because newer particular law can modify the Constitutions, this General Congregation mandated certain precise revisions of the particular law of the Society, conforming it to the requirements of universal ecclesiastical law as well as other additions decreed in 1995. The next Congregation is scheduled for January, 2008, and it will elect a new superior general.
At the conclusion of the task of revising the Constitutions, the results were published in an official Latin version in two sections. In the first is given the ‘original Ignatian text’ of the Constitutions of the Society along with notes that have been appended to that text by authority of the various General Congregations. These notes indicate which parts of the Constitutions the general law of the Church or decisions of General Congregations of the Society have abrogated, modified, augmented, refined, or clarified over the course of time. The second section of the Latin text contains the ‘norms complementary to the Constitutions,’ expressions of both the spirit of the Constitutions and the appropriate way in which the Constitutions are to be lived out.
Congregation 34 further decreed that the two parts of Jesuit law, the Constitutions and the Complementary Norms, were henceforth to be published in one and the same volume.
Unlike the Latin version, the present English translation places the texts of the ten parts of the Constitutions, and the texts of the ten parts of the complementary norms corresponding to them, on facing pages. This eliminates the need to turn from one section of the book to a different one in order to consult both the Constitutions and the Norms. It is left to you the reader to explore the contents of the Constitutions and the Norms to see what they contain. What we have is for reference, but it may also be a narrative for some readers.
One of the organizational difficulties of trying to match the Constitutions with the Norms is that there are various lengths to the sections. Sometimes a section of the one is longer, and sometimes a section of the other is shorter. Again relating to the visual setup of this book, and enhancing its physical appeal, is a system of thick and thin lines, borders, boldface and lightface type, and efficient numbering. The Constitutions are on the left, and the Norms are on the right, and regardless of the uneven lengths, there are no blank pages. It is a successful effort. The footnotes are numerous but not obtrusive.
The work of uniting the Constitutions and the Complementary Norms was quickly completed. The Constitutiones Societatis Iesu et Normae Complementariae were published in Rome in 1995. The publisher is simply given as ‘at the Curia of the Superior General of the Society of Jesus’. We can be grateful for the quick publication of the official text because this facilitated an early production of the English version. All the translators were from the Midwest, and unfortunately, it would seem, none of them came from parts of the English-speaking world outside the United States.
Perhaps it may not be the usual thing to say in a book notice, but the ‘look’ of this work is striking. It has a pleasing appearance and there is indeed a dignified aura about it. The subject matter of such official books makes them ponderous enough, but the blue and gold cover of this one is reminiscent of the ‘noble simplicity’ suggested by the Second Vatican Council for the liturgy.
Contemporary books which do not have an index, or which have an inadequate one, soon develop a bad reputation. Researchers are familiar with this situation. Happily, the index of this work from the Institute of Jesuit Sources in St. Louis has an Index of Topics which begins on page 409 and ends on page 502. By itself it is an admirable research tool, full of cross-references and very detailed in its presentation of the subject. The vocabulary is contemporary so that the translation will remain clear in the future. This index is an advantage.
Possibly the most important part of this review is not a review at all, but an announcement. It is important to be aware of this book, and to be able to recommend it as a resource. Now the world knows what to expect, and with precision, from the Jesuits who attempt to live out the vocation enshrined in the Constitutions and Complementary Norms. Those attempting to found new religious communities may consult the wisdom tradition of the Jesuits to see if elements drawn from it are useful to their own endeavours.
A final note on the question of the Norms themselves. In the effervescence following the Second Vatican Council, there was a type of antinomianism which is now legendary. However, more sober historians know that the lofty texts inspired ‘from the top’ must take concrete form if their goals are to survive. Real people and real institutions need a mode d’emploi that is practical and capable of affecting daily life. Spirit must be guarded by law. Thus, the role and the utility of Norms may be said to have been rediscovered. For those who have yet to make such a discovery, the book at hand may prove to be surprisingly educational reading.
