The Rule of the Lay Fraternities of Saint Dominic
The Dominican Laity originated in its present form with the promulgation of the First Rule (Read and download pdf here) under Munio de Zamora, Master of the Order in 1285. The spiritual origin of the Laity was in the penitential movements centered around Saint Dominic, who gathered around himself groups of the Laity for the spiritual and material defense of the Church and for apostolic work. The Laity has existed, under various names, as long as the Dominican Order itself and has always performed specific functions and collaborated closely with the other branches of the Dominican Family. There have been five Rules for the Dominican Laity since the foundation of the Order. The first was that promulgated by Munio de Zamora in 1285, for the Brothers and Sisters of Penance of Saint Dominic. The Rule of Munio, slightly amended, received papal approval in 1405. This Rule survived for centuries, serving the laity and being adopted for other branches of the Dominican Family.The Second Rule, that of 1923, (Read and download searchable MS Word version here) (Read and download pdf here) adapted to the new Code of Canon Law in 1917, was approved in 1932 under Master Louis Theissling, with the title: Rule of the Secular Third Order of Saint Dominic.
After Vatican II, the need was felt for a new Rule or an updating of the 1932 Rule; accordingly, the Third Rule was approved in 1964. This was the first Rule which separated lay clerics from laity in general.
However, the General Chapter of River Forest in 1968 proposed a Fourth Rule, which was promulgated by Master Aniceto Fernandez 1969 and approved on an experimental basis by the Sacred Congregation for Religious in 1972 under the title: Rule of the Lay Fraternities of Saint Dominic. With this title, reference to Third Order had disappeared, to be confirmed by legislation of the 1974 General Chapter at Madonna Dell ‘Arco, abolishing such terms as First, Second and Third Order.
Finally, after the promulgation of the new Code of Canon Law and the Bologna Document on the Dominican Family, the General Chapter of Rome that same year, 1983, commissioned the Master of the Order to hold an International Congress of the Dominican Laity in order to renew and adapt a further new Rule. This, the Fifth Rule (Read and download pdf here), The Rule of the Lay Chapters of Saint Dominic, was approved by the Sacred Congregation for Religious and Secular Institutes in January 1987 and promulgated by Master Damien Byrne on January 28, 1987. [Excerpted from The Dominican Laity Handbook, Province of the Assumption, Australia]
Then, in 2019, the Rule was amended and promulgated with new General Declarations (Sixth Rule)
(Download the Rule with new General Declarations (all in English) in Printable Booklet Form Here in Word Format).
Historical Documents
The Rule
- The Rule Munio de Zamora The First Rule of 1285
- as taken from an 1837 manuscript titled "Manual of the Brothers and Sisters of the Third Order of Penance of St. Dominic" ( Read and download pdf here) - 27 pages -
The Second Rule of 1923
(Read and download searchable MS Word version here) (Read and download pdf here) - The Third Rule of 1964 - electronic version currently unavailable
- The Fourth Rule of 1968 - electronic version currently unavailable
- Fifth Rule of 1987 (Read and download pdf here)
- Sixth Rule in Latin and General Declarations in English 2019 - as promulgated (Read and download pdf here)
- Sixth Rule with General Declarations of 2019 (All in English in Booklet Form) (Not Allowed to Show)
- The Rule of St. Augustine ( Read and download pdf here) ( Read and download MS Word version here) by St. Augustine 400 - 6 pages
-
Primitive (First) Rule of 1221
One of the earliest rules written for laity seeking
membership in a religious order formally. This rule was
for lay franciscans.(Read and download pdf here)
by Cardinal Hugolino dei Conti dei Segni - 1221 - 5 pages - 1mb
Acts of Lay Congress
- Acts of Second International Congress of Lay Fraternities Argentina 2017 ( Read and download pdf here)
- Acts of the Third International Congress of Lay Fraternities Fatima Portugal 2018 (download is unavailable due to their sale online) ( Amazon link here)
Particular Directories
- Particular Directory of the Western Province of the USA 2009 (Read and download pdf here)
- Particular Directory of the Laity St Joseph Province of the USA 1987 (superseeded by new directory) (Read pdf here)
Other Resources related to Rules and Directories
History of the Dominican Laity Rule (Read and download MS Word version here)
by Richard Weber - 11 pages - 1mb
Franciscan and Dominican Influences on the Medieval Order of Penance - Origins of the Dominican Laity (Read and download MS Word version here)
by Thomas J Johnston - 12 pages - 1mb
Constitution of the Dominican Order 1216-1360 (Read and download pdf here)
by G. R. Galbraith - 324 pages - 12mb
Side by Side Comparison of English Translations of the Fifth Rule (Read and download pdf here)
by idahodominican.com - 14 pages - 1mb
Autonomous but not Independent 2019 (Read and download pdf here) 4 pages - 1mb
Manual of the Brothers and Sisters of the Third Order of Penance of St. Dominic (Read and download pdf version here)
1852 - 159 pages
Rule for the Priestly Fraternities of Saint Dominic - promulgated by Father Timothy Radcliffe, O.P., with the General Declarations promulgated by Father Bruno Cadoré, OP 2019 (Read and download pdf version here)
1996 and 2019 - 10 pages
Image of Original Papal Bull of 1216 establishing the Dominican Order (See and download image .jpg here)
1 pages - 1mb