Dominicans preach the Word of God. This is our one vocation, lived out in a variety of states of life: friars,cloistered nuns, apostolic sisters, and many different groups of lay people. We are a religious order within the Roman Catholic Church.
The Capitulars have elected the 86th Successor of Saint Dominic:
fr Bruno CADORÉ
Sunday, 5th September, the General Chapter of the Order of Preachers, founded by Saint Dominic, elected Bro. Bruno Cadoré as new Master of the Order. Elected for a nine year term of office, he succeeds Bro. Carlos Azpiroz Costa, an Argentinean, who was Master of the Order from 2001 to 2010, and before him Bro. Timothy Radcliffe, a friar from England, well known all over the world for his publications and preaching. The last Frenchman to occupy this post was Bro Vincent de Couesnongle, Master of the Order from 1974 to 1983.
Meeting in Rome since the first of September, the General Chapter of the Order is made up of 127 delegates from all the continents. Prior Provincials are members of the Chapter and also the Delegates elected by the friars themselves according to the democratic tradition of the Dominican Order. The General Chapter, which is the sovereign governing body, shall be working for the next two weeks to give the Order some important guidelines which the newly elected Master is expected to put into practice during his term of office.
Aged 56, Bro. Bruno Cadoré was up till now the Provincial for the Dominicans of the Province of France. He served in this office for the past eight years, after having been in charge of the formation of the young friars, especially in Lille. He was a medical doctor when he started his novitiate, and he worked for two years in Haiti before starting his Dominican studies. He is a Doctor in theology and he taught biomedical ethics at the Catholic University of Lille where he was director of the centre for Medical Ethics until he was elected Prior Provincial in 2002. From January 2008 onwards he is a member of the National Aids Council.
During his term of office, the Province of France welcomed many young friars. Bruno Cadoré has also helped develop the Dominican way of life in many countries, from Scandinavia to the Congo passing through Cairo and Iraq which he visited many times.
Day 6 – 5th September 2010
This momentous day, when the capitulars would elect the new Master of the Order, began with Lauds and Mass celebrated by fr Timothy Radcliffe, former Master of the Order. The Holy Spirit was invoked upon the capitulars, and in his homily fr Timothy encouraged us to be preachers of truth and hope, particularly in the witness of our fraternal lives. This, he suggested, would give our words authority in a world where many doubted the credibility of the Church and the Gospel. The new Master would ideally be someone who could inspire the Order to be such preachers of truth and hope.
On Saturday, a Mass of the Blessed Virgin Mary was celebrated in Spanish, with fr Alexis Páez Ovares, Provincial of Central America, presiding. The preacher, fr Miguel Ángel Gullón Pérez, who is the Delegate from the Dominican Republic, drew on the Gospel of the wise men being led to Christ by the guidance of a star. Five centuries ago, Dominicans travelled from Spain to the New World, guided by the star of St Dominic, to preach the Gospel to the peoples of Latin America. And the Dominicans were among the first to defend the indigenous people of these lands from the colonizers, and to allow Christ to be born and dwell among them. So too, fr Miguel urged us to do likewise today.
BELEN TANGCO
Guest of the Master of the Order
Dominican Laity
Is this your first Chapter?
This is my first General Chapter of the Order as a guest of the Master, and I feel very honoured and privileged to be here with my Dominican brothers and sisters. I feel blessed, and thank the Lord, and thank the Master for inviting me.
My experience of this Chapter nourishes my Dominican charism. I am nourished by the presence of everyone here, and their presence is a gift in the present moment. We always speak of Jesus as alive, of Jesus as crucified and risen, as we heard in our homily today [3 September]. This is the good news, and we have to make him known in every territory. So from here in the Chapter we must muster all the strength, energy and courage to go beyond what is humanly possible, knowing that God is with us.
Loving God with all our capacity for understanding
“Intent upon God in oneness of mind and heartâ€
This momentous day, when the capitulars would elect the new Master of the Order, began with Lauds and Mass celebrated by fr Timothy Radcliffe, former Master of the Order. The Holy Spirit was invoked upon the capitulars, and in his homily fr Timothy encouraged us to be preachers of truth and hope, particularly in the witness of our fraternal lives. This, he suggested, would give our words authority in a world where many doubted the credibility of the Church and the Gospel. The new Master would ideally be someone who could inspire the Order to be such preachers of truth and hope.
On Saturday, a Mass of the Blessed Virgin Mary was celebrated in Spanish, with fr Alexis Páez Ovares, Provincial of Central America, presiding. The preacher, fr Miguel Ángel Gullón Pérez, who is the Delegate from the Dominican Republic, drew on the Gospel of the wise men being led to Christ by the guidance of a star. Five centuries ago, Dominicans travelled from Spain to the New World, guided by the star of St Dominic, to preach the Gospel to the peoples of Latin America. And the Dominicans were among the first to defend the indigenous people of these lands from the colonizers, and to allow Christ to be born and dwell among them. So too, fr Miguel urged us to do likewise today. 
