FAQ - Lay Members - Regnum Christi NA

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How do Lay Members Live the Regnum Christi Charism?

1. What is the Rule of Life of the Lay Faithful Associated to the Regnum Christi Federation?

The Rule of Life of the Lay Faithful Associated with the Regnum Christi Federation was composed by lay members of Regnum Christi in a four-year global process and approved at the second session of the 2018 General Assembly by the lay member delegates, and delegates from the three consecrated vocations. It contains the norms that define the way in which lay members live out the Regnum Christi charism.

This rule recognizes, protects, and promotes the concrete vocation, identity and way of life of the lay members of Regnum Christi in five elements: spiritual life, formation, apostolate, personal accompaniment, and team life. It is a framework that allows us to present clearly and concisely the way of life of the lay members of Regnum Christi, “a Christian way of life that is active and enthusiastic in love, a lifestyle that helps people to live out their baptismal commitments and fulfill the mission of being Christian yeast in the world” ( Communique from Lay members at General Assembly).

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2. What are the five elements of the lay members’ vocation in Regnum Christi?

The five elements of a lay member’s vocation to Regnum Christi shape the way they respond to the personal call from God that they have experienced and embraced by associating to the Regnum Christi Federation. These five facets of life outline how they live their baptismal commitments in the midst of temporal realities according to the charism of Regnum Christi. In fulfilling their vocation, they extend Christ’s presence in the world and transform human realities, especially in their family, professional, and social lives, in accordance with the Gospel.

From the Rule of Life of the Lay Faithful Associated to the Regnum Christi Federation:

Regnum Christi proposes a Christianity that is active and enthusiastic in love, and a way of life that helps members live their baptismal commitments and fulfill the mission of being Christian leaven in the world. Lay members of Regnum Christi develop this way of life in their spiritual life, formation, apostolate, personal accompaniment, and team life. (RL 2)

The path of living our commitments in Regnum Christi is made clear as we engage in what the Rule of Life calls “the five elements proper to the life of the lay member of Regnum Christi.” Here again we see how the Regnum Christi charism is able to help translate the basic elements of Catholic living into a focused, practical reality. The five elements are: 1) spiritual life; 2) formation; 3) apostolate; 4) personal and communal accompaniment; and 5) team life. Each of these elements is described by its own article in the first chapter of the Rule of Life. (from What is Regnum Christi?: A Regnum Christi Essay Introducing the Statutes of the RC Federation and the Rule of Life for Lay Members, p. 83)

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3. Is there a prayer book for lay members of Regnum Christi?

Prayer should be the atmosphere that envelops every aspect of our daily life, from putting bread on the table to our other basic concerns such as love, work, health, friendship, suffering, and even current events that affect the nation, the world, and the Church.

Regnum Christi offers its members a Prayer Book to help them to pray in the various circumstances of life, and to promote spiritual communion with other members worldwide. In addition to the Regnum Christi prayers, it includes a selection of other prayers from the Church’s long tradition, approved and enriched by the popes. The prayer book is available online, in paperback, and in the Regnum Christi English App.

From the Rule of Life of the Lay Faithful Associated to the Regnum Christi Federation:

Lay members of Regnum Christi understand their spiritual life as a progressive development of the Trinitarian life within them, which leads to configuration with Christ. Therefore, they live it as a dynamic relationship of love with God, nourished by the sacraments, the Word of God, the liturgy, prayer, and the exercise of the moral and theological virtues. Their spiritual life permeates and harmonizes all aspects of their life.

The spiritual practices recommended to lay members of Regnum Christi are means to help them grow in their relationship of love with Christ. With the help of their spiritual director, they gradually learn mental prayer and how to live the other practices recommended in the Prayer Book. As a privileged means to spiritual progress, it is recommended they participate yearly in spiritual exercises or a triduum of renewal. (RL 3, 5)

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4. How do lay people discern and join Regnum Christi? What does it mean to “associate?”

The vocation to Regnum Christi is a call to a charismatic family that is discerned, embraced, and lived according to ones’ state in life. Every Regnum Christi locality offers an invitation to potential members to explore a possible vocation within the spiritual family.

The Regnum Christi Discernment Series begins with an overview of our history, an explanation of what a charism is according to the Church, and what a vocation in Regnum Christi looks like. It leads potential members through a series of discussions that present the spirituality, communion, and mission of Regnum Christi and the way of life of a member. The final session in the series allows the potential member to experience the Regnum Christi team prayer called, the “Encounter with Christ.” The Discernment Series is housed in the RC Spirituality Center online in the RC Formation Pathway, Discernment Phase.

The Rule of Life sets out the lay vocation and the process to associate as follows:

§1. The lay members of Regnum Christi are Catholics who, without assuming the evangelical counsels by a sacred bond, personally embrace a vocation from God to live their baptismal commitments in the midst of temporal realities according to the charism of Regnum Christi, the fundamental traits of which are described in numbers six to thirty of the Statutes of the Regnum Christi Federation and in this Rule of Life.

§2. These faithful join Regnum Christi by individual association to the Federation, and are admitted by the section directors, according to the norms of the Statutes of the Federation and this Rule of Life. (RL 1)

The lay member, by associating to the Federation, consciously accepts their baptismal vocation to holiness and apostolate, and gives themselves to Christ so that he may reign in their heart and in society. In this way, they begin a journey of assimilating and living the spirit, communion and mission of Regnum Christi as described in the Statutes of the Regnum Christi Federation, especially through the five elements proper to the life of the lay member of Regnum Christi. (RL 16)

§1. The decision to request association to the Federation must be the fruit of proper discernment and a free response to the call of God.

§2. Admission is the responsibility of the section director, and can be granted in response to a written request by the person interested in associating, with the recommendation of the team leader or another member, after a period of participation in the life of Regnum Christi long enough to ensure that both the person and the section director have come to know each other sufficiently.

§3. Association takes place, ordinarily after a spiritual triduum, through a formal act or ceremony as established in the Rites of Regnum Christi, which must express what is established in numbers 16 and 17 of this Rule of Life. The association is registered in an official record. (RL 20)

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5. How are lay members of Regnum Christi organized and governed?

Regnum Christi lay members are governed by the Federation. At the global level, the General Directive College of Regnum Christi directs the Federation. There are nine Regnum Christi territories worldwide and each one has a Territorial Directive College which governs the Regnum Christi Federation, including the lay members, in that territory.

The lay members of Regnum Christi are grouped into sections, typically Men, Women, Young Men (16-30) and Young Women (16-30) sections. Each section is directed by a section director. All the sections in a certain geographic area of a territory form part of a Regnum Christi Locality which is directed by the local Regnum Christi Director.

Every six years, a General Convention is held in Rome with elected delegates from all vocations of Regnum Christi around the world, including lay members. This Convention holds authority over the Regnum Christi Federation, charts the course for the General Directive College, and oversees the identity of lay members globally.

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How do Lay Members Live the Regnum Christi Charism?

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