Implementing C 603: Difficullties?

[[Dear Sister, if someone doesn't like canon 603 or the way it has been used in some instances, why would they seek to be consecrated and professed under it? You have read Joyful Hermit's blog. [Title and author's name omitted here per request.] She seems to be arguing that the canon is subject to abuse, misuse, hypocrisy, and so forth in ways that troubles her. If her bishop wants to use canon 603 in her regard is she forced to accept it? You are professed under this canon. Do you think there are significant difficulties with its implementation?]]

No, of course, neither "Joyful" nor anyone else is forced to accept canonical standing under canon 603 if she (or anyone else) has serious conscientious disagreement about its nature and/or use generally. For that matter, however, no bishop would or could admit someone to profession and consecration under this canon if that same person has serious concerns about the validity and integrity of the canon, or believes it represents something destructive of true eremitical life -- something "Joyful" has posted about a number of times over the years. For instance, the idea that canon 603 prevents someone from focusing on Jesus alone -- or, I would say instead, from focusing on Jesus and learning to see everything in light of Him --- is simply not the case.  I would say that arguing in that way indicates a lack of understanding not only of the canon, but also of what it looks like to focus on Jesus in the way the gospel and our baptisms call us each to do.

What canon 603 provides is a framework for solitary consecrated eremitical life. It is the only canonical means of doing so. It combines various essential elements (stricter separation from the world, the silence of solitude, assiduous prayer and penance, within the framework of the evangelical counsels, under the supervision of the hermit's bishop) all according to a Rule the hermit writes herself. This combination allows for significant structure, eremitical substance, ecclesial accountability, and appropriate flexibility so the needs for each hermit's spiritual growth are adequately met. Not everything one needs to understand and live a consecrated life in the Roman Catholic Church is included in this canon. For instance, other canons will apply regarding the vows, provisions for end of life, canonical freedom, impediments to the vocation, etc., so it is best not to look to canon 603 as exhaustive. Even so, most hermits will find that the way it defines the essential elements and combines these with a personal Rule and the supervision of legitimate authorities, provides a good foundation which is both edifying and sufficient for the hermit's living out of this vocation with authentic freedom and space for the Holy Spirit.

The greatest problem I find with the implementation of this canon is the inadequate understanding of its history and the charism of eremitical life. This lack of understanding is true not only for some seeking to be professed under this canon, but for some who are responsible for admitting individuals to profession and consecration. It takes time and education to understand the distinction between being a lone individual and being a hermit, and especially a consecrated hermit with an ecclesial vocation.  Even some hermits should never be consecrated using c 603 because they are not suited to living an ecclesial vocation "in the name of the Church". Similarly, the discernment and formation of such a vocation takes time, education, and prayer. Cutting corners here, and using canon 603 as some sort of stopgap when other options for religious or consecrated life are not open to one, is a great temptation for those seeking and those admitting to profession both. It is critically important that those dealing with candidates for profession understand the charismatic nature of eremitical life, otherwise they may simply not take the significance of this vocation with adequate seriousness. If the charism or "gift quality" of this vocation is carefully attended to by all involved in its living out, canon 603 will certainly provide the foundational canonical structure needed for solitary consecrated hermits and their ever-deepening relationship with Christ.

Keep in mind that this canon is only 37 years old. There is a learning curve involved in using it wisely, especially in a world given to an exaggerated individualism. Remember too that this is a world in which contemplative life is rare and eremitical life is rarer. Only as dioceses work out their own approaches to discernment and formation (both initial and ongoing), as well as the fundamentals of supervision in conjunction with dioceses with successful hermits, does the nature of the life defined and governed by this canon become clearer. Have mistakes been made? Yes, there have been. Generally, these have raised serious questions by others (religious, clerical, and lay persons in the diocese of profession and beyond its boundaries) which has tended to make dioceses more careful in the future -- though it has also sometimes made it more difficult for dioceses to use the canon appropriately due to greater caution. But canon 603 has also been used well during these 37 years; as a result, diocesan bishops and Vicars for Religious have learned what is necessary to live this vocation well and discovered ways to assist in the discernment and ongoing formation of such candidates.

One note: when I researched the sources for "Joyful's" recent post on c 603 Catholic Hermits and Work, I found she had used the equivalent of Wikipedia as her primary citation. Personally, I find that a credible source only for the most general description of the ways c 603 has been implemented. For someone involved in a serious discernment process, especially if they have concerns with this implementation, it is better they speak to C 603 hermits themselves or seek out information from canonists and others who have dealt directly with canon 603 hermits over the years. "Joyful"  believes C 603 will lead her from living hermit life in its "purity" and "essential nature." While I don't doubt the truth of this subjective fear, it isn't true for me nor for the diocesan hermits I know personally or have read about. And this is as it should be for someone professed and consecrated under this canon. We know the nature of the way Canon 603 works from the inside out, and for those professed after sufficient discernment and formation, this experience is positive in terms of personal and spiritual growth as a hermit. In any case, what generally remains true, is that in the Roman Catholic Church, the essential nature of this vocation to solitary consecrated eremitical life is defined by the canon itself. That is the nature of a canon or "norm". That is why the canon was created and why it functions in a "performative" way. It is tied to other canons in the Code of Canon Law where the norms for consecrated life lived according to the Evangelical Counsels are found.

If one is professed and consecrated under Canon 603 one accepts ALL of these norms as legally (i.e., canonically) binding. Together they constitute the framework in which one discovers a realm of freedom that is infinite in its breadth and depth because God and the union with God one is called to explore in this way is infinite. This is both the sacrifice and the blessing of consecrated life. If one believes otherwise or has found their experience is contrary to the witness of those living canonical (consecrated) eremitical life, it is most likely because one is not called to this. Please understand this is not a problem for Catholics since one may live as a hermit in either the lay or the clerical states without benefit of the additional canons pertaining to religious and consecrated solitary eremitical life. Instead, one needs only fulfill the baptismal and canonical obligations of the lay or clerical states and do as one feels called as a hermit within this context. Whatever state of life this implies, one must act in good conscience to live the truth of one's own call and one needs to discern/discover the best path to that life. If one feels called to canonical/consecrated eremitical life, then that pathway will be mutually discerned with representatives of the Church herself.

The real question raised by the post you cited is not whether there are inconsistencies (and far less, whether there are hypocrisies) in the way a canon like 603 is implemented from country to country and diocese to diocese, but whether the canon can provide what is needed to live the truth of one's own Divine call with integrity and the flexibility and creativity of the Holy Spirit. My own answer to that question has been proven time and again: canon 603 is exactly what I need to hear and live my own divine call. Canon 603 constitutes one as a consecrated solitary hermit; for this vocation Canon 603 is normative and constitutive. 

Is this right for everyone? Must everyone seeking to live an eremitical life embrace the same canonical rights and obligations? No, nor has the Church ever said they must. In fact, the reason discernment is relatively long-term with this vocation is rooted not only in the fact that the eremitical vocation is rare, but also in the fact that one has meaningful alternatives if the two canonical routes (semi-eremitical and solitary eremitical life under c 603) do not suit one. Lay hermits (hermits living this life in their baptismal state under the canons that pertain to lay life alone) have always been a significant and often, a powerfully prophetic form of eremitical life. That was true in the early church with the Desert Fathers and Mothers who have been paradigmatic for all hermits; it is true today as well.