Constitutions and Statutes
“This Order is a monastic institute wholly ordered to contemplation. The nuns/monks … lead a monastic way of life in solitude and silence, in assiduous prayer and joyful penitence as defined in these Constitutions.” — Constitution 2
After the Second Vatican Council all Catholic religious congregations were asked to update their constitutions. The new O.C.S.O. Constitutions were approved by the Holy See on the feast of Pentecost, 1990 and have been modified at subsequent General Chapters.
Decree of Unification
“There is to be only one class of religious in the Order. All are monks; monastic formation is given on the same lines; rights and duties are to be the same. It follows that the only difference which is to remain is that which arises from the various functions to which monks may be appointed…” — Decree of Unification 1
One of the particular aspects of the Cistercian Order was the presence of lay brothers (conversi) who were introduced in the early 12th century. Though not monks, they took vows and lived alongside monks in separate but integrated communities, performing physical work, managing the land and agricultural operations. They did not attend most of the offices in the church with the monks but had their own simpler prayers. However by the mid 20th century the existence of two separate groups within the monastery was considered inappropriate and unnecessary and from 1965 the two groups were united.
Statute on Unity and Pluralism
“The unity which is based on charity and which has been the strength and beauty of the Cistercian Order ever since its origin…” — Letter, Pope Paul VI to the Abbot General
With the rise of the Strict Observance movement in the Cistercian Order in the 17th century and especially after the establishing of the OCSO in 1892 there was a strong emphasis on the uniformity of observance in all monasteries of the Order. With the expansion of the Order to many new countries and cultures and in response to the call for renewal of Religious Life after Vatican II such uniformity of observance was neither practical nor desirable. The Statute on Unity and Pluralism, approved by the General Chapter in 1969, presents in a concrete way those observances that require special attention today, in order to maintain monastic life without imposing uniformity in details.
Past Constitutions
The Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance was established in 1892 and the new Constitutions approved by the General Chapter in 1893 and by the Holy See in 1894. A new Code of Canon Law came into effect in 1917 which necessitated a revision of the Constitutions. These revised Constitutions were approved by the General Chapter in 1921 and by the Holy See in 1924.