We are delighted to be hosting the meeting of the Central Commission of the Order at Mount St Joseph Abbey from 8-18 June. The Central Commission meets in a monastery of the Order every three years in the year before a General Chapter to prepare the agenda and other matters for the next General Chapter. At the last General Chapter our monastery was chosen for the Central Commission meeting of 2016. We have 35 visitors from all over the world, including our Abbot General, Dom Eamon Fitzgerald.
Each General Chapter elects a commission with the task of preparing the next Chapter. This commission is called the Central Commission. It operates under the presidency of the Abbot General and according to the norms established by the General Chapter. The Central Commission meets once between General Chapters or when the Abbot General or a majority of the members considers it necessary.
The following are members of this Commission with the right to vote:the Abbot General; the five members of the Coordinating Commission of the General Chapter; the elected representatives of the Regional Conferences; the Councillors of the Abbot General; others elected by the General Chapter in a particular instance. Other persons invited by the Abbot General may attend the meetings of the Central Commission without voting rights.
The Central Commission prepares the General Chapter by co-ordinating the initiatives coming from the Regional Conferences.