S.I.T. Statutes

PRESENTATION

With the satisfaction of an objective achieved, we are presenting these Statutes of the organization TRINITARIAN INTERNATIONAL SOLIDARITY (SIT = Solidarietà Internazionale Trinitaria). They are intended to be a guide and stimulus for the common action of and in communion with the whole Order in the field of redemption, open to the collaboration of the entire Trinitarian Family (cf. Extraordinary General Chapter, Ariccia 1999).

In this sense, the representatives of the Trinitarian Family, assembled in Ariccia (August 1999), propose 'to take up the organization Trinitarian International Solidarity (SIT) as the work of and in communion with the whole Family' (III International Assembly, 1. C). in his audience of 26 August 1999 granted to the Trinitarian Assembly, the Holy Father said to us: ''you have thought of establishing an international organization - by means of which you can intervene more effectively in defese of those persecuted or discriminated against because of religious belief and faithfulness to the values of the Gospel or to their conscience'' (John Paul II, Message to the Trinitarian Family on 26 August 1999, n.3).

This project is born at a moment which is especially significant for the Order and for the Family: the celebration of the 8th centenary of the foundation of the Order and 4th of its reform. It is the fruit of the wish for faithfulness to the specific charitable-redemptive mission. The celebration of the upcoming great Jubilee of the Year 2000 invites us “to a renewed commitment of liberation” (John Paul II, Message to the Trinitarian Family, 4). The drawing up of these Statutes for SIT has required considerable effort, time, dedication, comparison of opinions, working out texts, etc. In each instance, there was the search for a better compilation and effectiveness for putting the Statutes into practice in the future. The approval of these Statutes by the Extraordinary General Chapter of the Centenaries is certainly a point of arrival, but especially a point of departure. In the journey which we are about to begin, there are so many things that are hoped for.

May the Holy Trinity bless this initiative which begins precisely in the year consecrated to the Trinity. With the works of charity and redemption, we wish “to make God’s merciful face, revealed to us in the Incarnation of Christ, shine among men” (John Paul II, Letter to the Trinitarian, 7 June 1998, n.4). Our Lady of Good Remedy, our Fathers John de Matha, Felix and John Baptist of the Conception will be our protectors and models. Like them, we make our lives “a sacrifice of love for ransoming the victims of every form of material and spiritual slavery” (John Paul II, Letter to the Trinitarians, 7 June 1998, n.3).

Fr. José Hernández Sánchez, O.SS.T.

Minister General

STATUTES

STATUTES OF
TRINITARIAN INTERNATIONAL SOLIDARITY (SIT)
OF THE ORDER OF THE MOST HOLY TRINITY

"The spirit of the Lord is upon me;
...He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives;
...To let the oppressed go free" (Lk 4,18)

I. Preface

Returning to the Evangelical roots expressed in the Rule approved by Pope Innocent III(1), the Order of the Most Holy Trinity renews its commitment of fidelity to its proper charism and reclaims the motto which is present in the heart of every Trinitarian: “Gloria Tibi Trinitas et captivis libertas.”

In a world in which people suffer oppression, persecution and discrimination because of their faith in Christ, or fidelity to the values of the Gospel and to their conscience, the Trinitarians, desiring to bring together the yearning for liberation and the cry of hope, offer a work of mercy.

II. Constitutions and purpose

1. Trinitarian International Solidarity was created by a decree of the Extraordinary General Chapter of 1999. The name of the organization is abbreviated to SIT, by which it is referred in the succeeding articles of the present statutes. The organization is headquartered in Rome, at the General Curia of the Order of the Most Holy Trinity; Via Massimi, 114/C; 00136 Rome, Italy. Regional headquarters are located in the various countries in which the Order is present.

2. SIT is committed to incarnating the Trinitarian charism in the specific area of liberation on behalf of those who because of their faith in Christ, to the Church, the values of the Gospel or of their conscience(2) are reduced to slavery, oppression, exclusion or persecution.

3. SIT exists to promote solidarity with the previously mentioned suffering people, and acts without the motive of profit. It works through peaceful means and favors dialogue and tolerance.

4. SIT, an institute of the Order of the Most Holy Trinity, is open to the participation of, and collaboration with, organizations which pursue the same goals, and it ardently desires the voluntary collaboration of the Institutes and laity of the Trinitarian Family.

5. SIT, in order to create awareness, sustains and encourages its goals and activities:
a.) Encourages a greater dedication to prayer and redemptive charity;
b.) Organizes and animates the specific formation to determine the appropriate redemptive action;
c.) Offers information about situations and the urgencies in the area of persecution;
d.) Programs concrete actions according to its abilities and always in consonance with its purposes.

6. SIT is placed under the protection of the Holy Redeemer, whose feast is celebrated on
October 23rd. It is a worldwide day of prayer, sacrifice and redemptive charity.

III. The Governance of SIT

SIT is composed of:

A) The General Assembly

7. The General Assembly is the supreme governing body of SIT. It can be either ordinary or extraordinary and has the following competencies:
a.) Create programs, verify previous activities, and indicate the directives for the next triennium;
b.) Review the financial statements of the previous administration and approve the budget for the next triennium;
c.) Elect three reviewers from the members of SIT, who are not part of the Council of Directors, whose competency is to review the accounts and the administrative management of SIT.

8. The times established to convoke the meetings of the ordinary and extraordinary General Assembly are:
a.) Ordinary meetings are scheduled every three years, according to the calendar set by the Council of Directors, and are convoked by a letter from the Minister General of the Order at least six months prior;
b.) Extraordinary meetings, in turn, are called by the same Minister General, at the request of the Council of Directors, occasionally or for special or particular reasons.

9. Those who take part by right in the General Assembly, both ordinary and extraordinary, include:
- The Minister General of the Order;
- The Council of Directors of SIT;
- One or more representatives, according to the criteria of the President, from among the organizations and associations that belong to SIT, elected by these same organizations and associations.
a.) If any such organization or association does not have a representative in the General Assembly, they are able to send one of their members even if they do not have the right to vote. In any case, the absence of these members, does not affect the juridical validity of the Assembly.

B)The Council of Directors

10. The Council of Directors is the supreme governing body of SIT outside of the General Assembly and its term is three years. It is composed of:
a.) The President of SIT International;
b.) The Presidents of SIT from the various jurisdictions of the Order;
c.) A delegate from every institute of the Trinitarian Family that belongs to SIT;
d.) A delegate from the Laity of the Trinitarian Family nominated by CILT which belongs to SIT;
e.) A Secretary and a Treasurer can be elected from amongst the members of the Council of Directors. If either the Secretary and or the Treasurer are not members of the Council of Directors, said individuals do not have voice or vote.

11. The Council of Directors ordinarily meets once a year and the President of SIT
International presides over the meeting.It has the following competencies:
a.) care of the administration of the members and the formation of candidates for the
various projects;
b.) review and evaluate the annual reports of the various jurisdictions of SIT;
c.) study the triennial program of the General Assembly;
d.) give concrete directives to actualize the program of the General Assembly;
e.) circulate information about local projects that are in line with the General Assembly;
f.) approve the financial report of the preceding year and the budget for the coming year;
g.) present urgent cases for study and to take action on proposals in accord with the norms of the Statutes and according to the directives of the General Assembly;
h.) prepare the ordinary and extraordinary General Assembly;
i.) promote the expansion of SIT;
j.) examine and accept the requests for admission of organizations and associations;
k.) dismiss organizations and associations belonging to SIT which do not remain in
conformity with the purpose and the objectives of SIT.

C) Functions of the President, the Secretary and the Treasurer

12. The President of SIT International is nominated by the General Council of the Order of the Most Holy Trinity, upon the proposal of the Council of Directors. His functions are:
a.)  convoke the meetings of the Council of Directors;
b.)  prepare, with the Secretary, the agenda;
c.)  encourage communion among the members and coordinate the work;
d.)  care for the relations, collaboration and communion with the organizations of SIT in the various jurisdictions;
e.)  represent SIT at conferences and international meetings;
f.)   draft, with the secretary, the annual report.

13. The Secretary is entrusted with the following duties:
a.)  record the minutes of the meetings;
b.)  maintain the archives;
c.)  attend to the various secretarial needs of SIT.

14. The Treasurer is entrusted with the following duties:
a.)  record the income and expenses;
b.)  pay the ordinary expenses approved by the Council of Directors and those extraordinary expenses approved in writing by the same council;
c.)  maintain and administer the ordinary funds of SIT in accord with and dependent upon the Council of Directors.

IV. Local Branches of SIT

15. SIT will have provincial branches and or local branches. Every jurisdiction of the order must organize its respective branch respecting the principles of these statutes and the legislation applied in their country.

V. The Funds of SIT

16. In order to respond with creative fidelity to the needs of the Trinitarian Charism and with the goal of reactivating the practice of the “Tertia Pars” in every Province, Vicariate
and Delegation, a “Chest of Redemption” is to be created, as the Decree of the Extraordinary General Chapter, celebrated at Ariccia (Rome) in 1999, reminds us: A third of the funds of this Chest of Redemption are to be designated to the common actions of the entire Order, so that SIT International, may assist in the service of mercy and of redemption to the persecuted and those discriminated against because of their religious faith, the faith and values of the Gospel and of their conscience.

17. The goods of SIT are designated to the works of mercy and of redemption, according to the purposes of the same organization. These come from:
a.) funds of solidarity of the Order, establishing the spirit of the Tertia Pars,
according to the Trinitarian Rule;
b.) contributions to SIT from the various jurisdictions, determined by the Council of
Directors;
c.) free will contributions from the members;
d.) possible contributions from national and international entities and organizations;
e.) donations on the part of associations, private individuals and benefactors;
f.) bequests left in wills;
g.) income from the assets that come to SIT by virtue of title.

18. The funds sent to SIT are to be deposited with the joint signatures of the President and the Treasurer in the bank chosen by the Council of Directors. The said Council must avoid the accumulation of funds.

19. The financial transactions conducted by the Council of Directors must be provided in
writing by the President, co-signed by the Secretary, and executed by the Administrator
in accord with the same Council.

20. When a donation is received for a concrete project it must be entirely designated for this purpose(3).

VI. Particular norms

21. To subsequently modify, amend or change these Statutes, they must be presente to and studied by the General Assembly and proposed to the General Chapter and, outside of the Chapter, to the General Council of the Order for approval; the above mentioned Council is the body to which every appeal is made.

22. The eventual suppression of SIT is the competence of the General Chapter of the Order. In this case the goods of SIT will be entirely dedicated to the works of mercy and of redemption in accord with the directives of the General Council.

23. The various translations of the present statutes will be faithful to the original text in the Italian language.

24. Having present these Statutes, SIT in the various jurisdictions will draft their own particular statutes, that are approved by the respective Provincial Council, and presented for review to the General Council of the Order. If there are various jurisdictions within the same country, they are able to construct a unified national body with proper Statutes approved by the corresponding Provincial Councils and presented to the General Council.

NOTES

1. INNOCENT III, Bull Operante divine dispositionis (17 December 1198)
2. Cf. John Paul II, Letter to the Trinitarians (June 7, 1998) n. 3; OSST Constitutions (1983) n. 5; General Directory OSST (1983) n. 87.
3. Cf. RT 13