Dominican Spirituality

The Four Pillars of Dominican Life

Dominicans seek to know and love Christ, so that we may better share Christ with others. To this end, Dominican spirituality is rooted in study and prayer/contemplation; nurtured in fraternity/community; and poured forth in preaching the Gospel in both words and deeds.

Prayer

Prayer helps us to know and love Christ, of whom we preach. Dominican prayer is characterised by contemplation.

What is contemplation, and how does it help us to know and love Christ? Consider time spent with a friend or loved one, recalling shared experiences, and delighting quietly in the other's goodness and our shared hope for the future.

In like manner, the contemplative delights in God's presence as one delights in the company of a friend. We recall God's goodness and all that He has done for us: God's plan of salvation for us in the fullness of time.

Study

Study, also helps us to know and love Christ, of whom we preach. Study helps us to discover and understand God's actions in our lives and in the world, and helps us to live in the liberating perspective of God's will. The principal sources of our study are Creation and Scripture.

As written in the Order's Primitive Constitutions, study is meant to enable the Dominican to better serve their fellow man: "Our study ought to tend principally, ardently, and with the highest endeavour to the end that we might be useful to the souls of our neighbours".

Study helps us to grow as true adults in the Faith, equipping us for our participation in the Order's apostolic mission. Study also leads back to contemplation, deepening our friendship with God.

Community

Community is the "school of contemplation", where we encounter God's presence in our neighbours. Life in community helps us grow in charity and virtue, while providing opportunities to bear witness to God's providence in daily living. Community life thus prepares Dominicans for preaching by cultivating our love and zeal for the salvation of souls, after the example of our Holy Father Dominic.

For the Dominican laity, our fraternal life in community challenges us to better love and live with individuals from different backgrounds in society. We do not live in cloisters (unlike the friars and nuns); instead, we are challenged to go beyond ourselves to authentically live the fraternal life of the Dominican vocation in secular society.

Preaching

Preaching overflows from the Dominican life of contemplation and beatitude. Dominican preaching is not merely a task, but something that must come forth from one's friendship with God, and spurred by a love for the souls whom God loves.

Dominican preaching manifests in both words and deeds. It may take the form of liturgical preaching, teaching and counselling; academic study and parenting; friendship; service and daily witness.

Dominican preaching is missionary. As an act of love towards our neighbour, our preaching must respond concretely to the needs of the persons we engage. Likewise, Dominican preaching must respond to the needs and signs of the times. As preachers, we prepare ourselves to go to where the Gospel is most needed: not just in distant lands, but also to the forgotten places and persons we might encounter in daily life.

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