Alongside the Friars Preachers (the so-called First Order of St Dominic) and the contemplative nuns (the Second Order), the institutional Dominican Family has historically also included the Lay Dominicans, traditionally known as the Third Order of St Dominic.
History of the Third Order of St Dominic
The present canonical name of the third branch of the Dominican Family is the “Lay Fraternities of St Dominic” (Fraternitates laicales sancti Dominici). The governing documents nevertheless allow the historical names “Third Order of St Dominic” and “Dominican Tertiaries” to be used in community practice in accordance with local custom.
The earliest communities of Dominican Tertiaries arose in the first third of the thirteenth century, when autonomous lay associations connected with the Church reform of the time began to receive spiritual care not only from the Franciscans but also from the Dominicans. The tertiary structures were given canonical form in 1285, when Friar Muño de Zamora, the seventh Master General of the Order of Preachers, gave the Lay Dominicans a special rule. The Third Order was then called the “Order of Penance of St Dominic” (Ordo de Poenitentia S. Dominici). In the fourteenth century, communities of the Militia of Christ (Militia Christi), also under the spiritual care of Dominican friars, were incorporated into this institution.
The origins of the Third Order defined its historic tasks: first, penitential practices for the intentions of the Order of Preachers and the Church; and second, the struggle against heresy. In 1405 the Holy See canonically recognised the united Third Order of St Dominic. Since then, it has been a public juridical institute of pontifical right under the leadership of St Dominic’s successor, the Master General of the Order of Preachers. Since 1987, Lay Dominicans have lived according to a revised Rule drawn up as part of the Church-wide reform of canon law in 1983.
Today the activity of the Lay Fraternities of St Dominic is governed by the following legal sources:
(a) universal Church law: the Code of Canon Law (CIC 1983), canons 298–320 (especially canon 303 concerning the present status of third orders);
(b) the particular universal law of the Order: the Rule and the General Declarations of the Master General;
(c) particular local law: the directories of the local provinces.
Mission of the Third Order of St Dominic
Members of the Third Order do not act in isolation but in territorially organised communities called fraternities. The ordinary way of entering the Third Order is to join a particular fraternity in accordance with the prescribed canonical procedures. To become a tertiary, a person must complete the required stages of discernment and formation—postulancy and novitiate—under the guidance of the fraternity’s superior and formation director, and then make special promises, first temporary and later perpetual.
The spiritual life of Lay Dominicans is united with service to God and neighbour in the Church. As members of the Order, they share in its apostolic mission through study, prayer and the proclamation of the Word of God in forms suited to the circumstances of lay life. This means that Lay Dominican fraternities do not live in monasteries, are not required to renounce property or other obligations, and their members may marry. Tertiary status gives a Catholic no privileges, but it entails additional responsibilities linked to specific rights. As the Rule recalls, following the example of St Dominic, St Catherine of Siena and other great predecessors, Lay Dominicans, strengthened by fraternal communion, bear a distinctive witness to the faith, attend to the needs of the people of their time and serve the Truth. Every Dominican should be capable of preaching the Word of God, thereby fulfilling the prophetic mission received in the Sacrament of Baptism.
Membership in the Third Order of St Dominic
Under the current Rule, the Lay Fraternities of St Dominic are open to men and women who:
• have been baptised and confirmed;
• belong to the Catholic Church and share in the prophetic, priestly and royal mission of our Lord Jesus Christ;
• live in the secular state (although clerics may belong to special, separate communities of the Third Order);
• are called to make the presence of the living Jesus Christ visible in today’s world, so that the saving grace of God may be known and received by all people throughout the earth;
• are called to live according to the charism and spirit of our holy father Dominic.
Sources of formation for members of the Third Order of St Dominic
The sources of Dominican formation for members of the Third Order include:
a) the Word of God and theological reflection;
b) liturgical prayer;
c) the history and traditions of the Order;
d) contemporary documents of the Church and the Order;
e) discernment of the signs of the times.
Lay Dominicans grow in a vocation that is both contemplative and apostolic by:
a) listening to the Word of God and reading Sacred Scripture, especially the New Testament;
b) participating daily in the liturgy, as far as possible, and receiving Holy Communion;
c) frequently receiving the Sacrament of Reconciliation (Confession);
d) praying the Liturgy of the Hours in union with the whole Dominican Family, and individually practising contemplative prayer and the Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary;
e) continually turning back to God in the spirit and practice of evangelical penance;
f) diligently studying revealed truth and reflecting on contemporary issues in the light of faith;
g) honouring, according to the tradition of the Order, the Blessed Virgin Mary, our holy father Dominic and St Catherine of Siena;
h) taking part in regular retreats and fraternity meetings.
The fraternity itself is the best environment for the sanctification and development of its members’ vocation. Regular attendance at meetings therefore bears witness to each member’s fidelity to that vocation.
Structure of the Third Order of St Dominic in Ukraine
As of 1 May 2019, canonically recognised communities of Lay Dominicans in Ukraine were active in the following places:
1. Fastiv, Kyiv Region;
2. Mukachevo, Zakarpattia Region;
3. Kyiv;
4. Murafa, Vinnytsia Region;
5. Lviv—a community in formation;
6. Uzhhorod, Zakarpattia Region—a community in formation.
In November 2018, during a chapter held in Kyiv, the Council of the Lay Dominicans in Ukraine was elected. Delegates from all the fraternities took part. Halyna Maruniak, OP, of the Fastiv fraternity was elected national president of the Lay Dominicans. The Council’s term of office is four years.
The Council’s principal task is to represent the laity of the Order of Preachers both in Ukraine and in international relations. It also maintains contact with the fraternities, organises national retreats and meetings, and oversees the distribution of informational and educational materials about Lay Dominicans.
For all questions concerning the work of the Council, please write to: rada.ops.ua@gmail.com.