AN INTERVIEW WITH FR. UMBERTO CHIARELLO,
Things don't always go as planned

Sitting in the middle of the front row of delegates at the General Chapter is the man who has attended more chapters than any other SCJ in recent history -- Fr. Umberto Chiarello. The 20th General Chapter marks the sixth that he has attended as a delegate. "I didn't plan to be here again," he said, "it was time for a younger member of the province to participate. But, of course, things changed." What changed for Fr. Umberto was that last year he received a call from Fr. Virginio Bressanelli asking him to fill Fr. Braga's place on the General Council. Fr. Braga had just been named bishop of the Azores. "And so, here I am at another chapter." A member of the South Italian Province, Fr. Umberto, 66, was serving as superior of the Italian inter-novitiate community when he received Fr. Bressanelli's phone call. Fr. Umberto has held many roles in his province, including six years as provincial superior.

SIGNIFICANT MOMENTS

In the past 30 years, Fr. Umberto has taken part in some of the most significant legislative moments in the congregation's history. The first chapter he attended was a special one which called for renewal following the work of the Second Vatican Council. "This chapter provided the base from which our Constitutions were developed," he said. The work of that chapter was followed up at the next, when delegates produced what was to become the forerunner to the current Rule of Life. What is significant about the 1997 chapter, he said, is that much of the work of previous chapters was spent developing the Rule of Life and defining the spirituality of the congregation. "Now we must move on and ask, 'What is our mission?'" he said. "I hope that in developing a strategy for global mission, we will find unity, as we did when defining our charism. We can find a common unity to advance the mission of the congregation. That is what is significant about this chapter." He continued, saying that this chapter "has the capacity to form a vision of our hopes, dreams and aspirations for the future." While most other chapters have produced documents, he believes that this does not need to be a primary goal for the 20th General Chapter. "What is important is not that we produce a document, but that the 80 or so people here develop a consciousness of 'We the Congregation,'" he said. "In the past, it has been my experience that the chapter ends and then we all go back to our provinces and we continue to go in our own directions as provinces." This time, he hopes that when the delegates leave, they bring back to their provinces a better sense of the global congregation. "Instead of returning to our own concerns when we leave, this chapter should bring us closer together as a congregation," he said. The work of the chapter and the issues being discussed, he believes, have come from the grassroots. This gives the congregation a better sense of ownership of the topics discussed. "What we are dealing with here came from the work of the provincial chapters, and their work came from the work of their local communities," he said.

LAY DEHONIANS

Besides work toward "We the Congregation," Fr. Umberto said that another important feature of this chapter was the inclusion of lay Dehonians during the first week. "At the last chapter there were representatives from the lay Dehonians, or Dehonian Family, and this took many of the delegates by surprise," he said. "Some delegates were uncomfortable with their presence and some of the lay Dehonians were also unsure of their role." This time, however, attitudes changed dramatically. "For the most part, the lay Dehonians were enthusiastically welcomed," Fr. Umberto said, adding that both the members of the congregation and the lay Dehonians benefited from their participation. He hopes that in the future, the general administration will develop a clear idea as to the role of the lay Dehonians. "It is not that we need to make laws for the lay groups," he said, "but we do need develop clear objectives." This, he believes, will slowly develop over time. Does Fr. Umberto think this will be his last chapter? "You will have to ask God for that answer," he said smiling.

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Mary Gorski
mgiornal@scj.org
Rome, Italy