THE DOMINICAN Curia has released a circular clarifying the use of post-nominal initials of the lay fraternities of St. Dominic.
The curia, headed by Master of the Order of Preachers and UST Chancellor Fr. Gerard Timoner III, O.P., said lay men and women should append the letters “OP” instead of other post-nominal letters.
“As needed, the Prior Provincial and his Council are to ensure that the initials are used in such a way that any confusion among the faithful regarding the canonical status of the members is avoided,” the letter read.
“We note that this does not imply that a lay Dominican should or is encouraged to use ‘OP,’ only that if the member chooses to use post-nominals, they should be ‘OP,’” it said.
The clarification was due to the different ways post-nominal initials such as “OPL”, “OPs” and “O.P.” for the Dominican laity were being regulated in various provinces.
Depending on the circumstances of his province, the prior provincial has the right to determine if the lay Dominican will not use post-nominals at all “to avoid confusion on different levels.”
The general council deliberated on the proposal presented by a committee composed of the General Promoter of the Laity, General Promoter of the Priestly Fraternities, and President of the International Council of Dominican Lay Fraternities, during a plenary meeting.
The curia hoped that the provision would lead to a more “harmonious path” towards promoting “greater communion” among the members of the branches of the Dominican family.
According to the general declarations of Dominican lay fraternities in 2019, the lay people of St. Dominic are those “faithful who [a]re called by a special vocation to progress in the Christian way of life and to animate temporal things through the charism of St. Dominic.”
