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Good evening dear Father Angelo,

Am I wrong in considering the Dominicans are particularly linked to Tradition, or are there now only a few even among these priests? (Assuming that everyone should be).

In fact, I learned that even in …, where I live, the Dominicans are present and teach in various universities, they are all very well prepared theologians and rightly consistent with the teaching of doctrine (I think?).

I wanted to know if you, as an Order, have rules to follow from the point of view of preaching given that your charism is precisely that of custodians of the faith, in addition to those rules proper to every priest…

Thank you in advance

I wish you a good Sunday and pray, as I usually do, for you

​Paolo

Answer of the priest

Dear Paolo,


 1. Dominicans receive a solid theological training having St. Thomas Aquinas as their master. 

Certainly one of their characteristics is to have a solid doctrine.

This is a matter of fact.

After that, as in every choir there is somebody who hits the wrong note, likewise this happens within the dominicans Order. 

However, overall the Order maintains its doctrinal soundness and the Church knows where to look to find the certain doctrine.

2. I would not go too far in saying this is a grace of state.

It is certainly the proper charism of the Order, from its beginnings.

Pope Honorius III remembered this by writing to Saint Dominic and his companions, whose characteristic was that of “being completely committed to proclaiming the word of God”, of “teaching the rule of faith”, of “extirpating heresy” and of “fight vices”, to “proclaim the name of the Lord Jesus to the pagans and break the bread of the Word to the faithful”.

Dante had also recognized it in the Divine Comedy by putting these words into the mouth of Saint Thomas: “I then was of the lambs, that Dominic leads, for his saintly flock, along the way, where well they thrive, not sworn with vanity. He, nearest on my right hand, brother was, and master to me, Albert of Cologne is this and of Aquinum, Thomas I” (Paradise, canto X, 96.99). (Source:https://www.owleyes.org/text/dantes-paradise/read/canto-10#undefined).

3. As if to confirm this, there is what the Eternal Father revealed to Saint Catherine of Siena, telling her that “by his extraordinary gift it was given to Dominic and his friars to penetrate the truth of his Word and not to stray never from it” (Raimondo da Capua, Legenda major, n. 205).

4. You ask if you are wrong in thinking that the Dominican Order is particularly tied to Tradition.

More than talking about Tradition, which for some could sound like a synonym of traditionalism, the Dominican Order is linked to the Truth.

Among the various mottos of the Order of Saint Dominic, alongside that of “contemplari et contemplata alias tradire” (to contemplate, that is, to be united with God, and to communicate what one is experiencing) and “laudare, benedicere et praedicare” (to praise, to bless and preach), there is also that of Veritas.

The first motto is taken from St. Thomas Aquinas.

The second indicates the difference between monks and Dominicans: the former have the task of praising and blessing the Lord.

The Dominicans, in addition to praising and blessing, also have the specific task of preaching, announcing, and communicating to others what God has placed in their hearts.

The Veritas motto immediately recalls the purity of doctrine, the splendor of truth. It is a splendor that fascinates and conquers.

It is a purity that never walks alone, but is always accompanied by purity of feelings and of life.

5. You tell me that in your city there are several Dominicans who teach in various universities, they are well prepared, and are consistent with the teaching of the Church.

Yes, it’s true.

But it is also true that not all Dominicans teach in universities.

Certainly academic teaching is a particular form of preaching, but there are many others, above all those linked to the celebration of the sacraments, especially the Eucharist and sacramental confession.

In this respect, our communities are almost always heterogeneous because the friars dedicate themselves to different ministries, to any form of preaching.

6. Finally, you ask me if we Dominicans have rules for preparing for preaching.

No, there are no particular rules or techniques.

In their place is the experience of communion with God and doctrinal preparation.

This affects more than anything else to the point of constituting the content and purpose of our preaching.

Thank you very much for the prayers you do for us. The Lord will reward you.

For my part I bless you, I wish you all the best and I accompany you with remembrance to the Lord.

Father Angelo