Nine days into the 64th General Chapter at Sacrofano, Rome, the Chapter Fathers took a day of pause and went on a pilgrimage to Naples.
The pilgrimage to Naples aimed to trace the footprints of the founders: Augustine Adorno, St. Francis Caracciolo, and Fabrizio Caracciolo.
The fathers began at the hermitage of Camaldoli. Situated at the highest point in the city of Naples, with a maximum altitude of 457 meters above sea level, it is estimated to be thirty-five thousand years old, molded from volcanic eruptions.
The view from this hill is impressive. The full view of the city of Naples, as well as the exhilarating backdrop of Mt. Vesuvius, renders this hill a panoramic site.
It was here that the hermitage was founded in 1585. Several years later, the founders spent forty days in early 1588 drafting the first constitution of the Clerics Regular Minor.
The backdrop of the founding of the Clerics Regular Minor in the 16th century was significant, as several orders were approved before and after the Council of Trent under the name of the Clerics Regular. It was in this climate that Augustine Adorno, a Genoese, found collaborators in the city of Naples: Fabrizio Caracciolo and Francis Caracciolo.
Even though these three men came from different geographical, social, and religious backgrounds, they brought together a common desire to reform their lives. They shared a vision to renew the Church in the aftermath of the Reformation.
By this time, twenty-five years had already passed since the Council of Trent officially closed, and more than half a century had passed since the establishment of the Theatines, the Jesuits, and a number of other institutes. The three founders drafted the Constitutions and Rules based on what they had seen and what they felt would bring deeper renewal to the Church. After the first constitution was written, they presented it to Pope Sixtus V, who approved it with a bull on July 1, 1588.
Now, the Hermitage of the Camaldolese has been run by the Brigidine nuns since 1998. After spending time at the hermitage and enjoying the hospitality of the sisters, the Chapter Fathers proceeded to the next site: the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore in the city of Naples.
