Courtney McGrailMarking a significant step in an extensive process of the reform of the Legionaries of Christ, the Vatican approved the congregation’s amended constitutions. The approval of the final constitutional text was part of a Vatican-led effort to help the religious community clarify and better define its fundamental norms and charism.
The new and amended constitutions “describe the specific way each of us should live religious life in the Legion,” and they are part of “the path that will guide us to holiness and apostolic fruitfulness in serving the church and men and women,” Fr Eduardo Robles Gil, general director of the Legionaries, said in a letter to members. “The constitutions contain the fundamental norms to preserve the charism of the congregation and help it thrive,” said a press release on the order’s website.
The order has struggled to come to terms with the revelation that its once-revered founder, Fr Marcial Maciel, who died in 2008, abused boys and maintained relationships with at least two women, fathering up to six children, two of whom he allegedly abused