ESTABLISHING LEGION COUNCILS
No praesidium or council shall be instituted without the formal permission of its next-highest council or of the Concilium Legionis, and the approval of the appropriate ecclesiastical authority. (Handbook 28 :1: 5 )
The structure and functions of the various Legion councils are described in the handbook, chapter 28, Government of the Legion. That chapter merits careful study, especially by officers of praesidia and councils, if councils are to function as they should. In regard to the establishment of councils, it may be helpful to list here some points which might be borne in mind:
  1. As the quotation from the handbook above shows, formal permission is required front the next-highest council or from the Concilium and from the appropriate ecclesiastical authority, normally the Bishop of the diocese.
  2. A Curia may he established only with the sanction of a Regia, a Senatus or the Concilium. Where a Comitium (which is a Curia on which certain powers of superintendence over one or severul Curiae has been conferred) deems it desirable to have a new Curia established in its area, it should seek sanction from the council to which it is affiliated.
  3. A Comitium may be established (that is, a Curia raised to Comitium) only by a Regia, a Senatus or the Concilium.
  4. A Regia or a Senatus may be established only by the Concilium. In practice, a Regia or Senatus is established through the raising of a lower council, that is, Curia or Comitium to Regia or Senatus, or in some cases, Regia to Senatus.
  5. Any change in the composition of the lower council raised to higher status requires the sanction of the council which raised it as any change may weaken the council and affect its to function as a higher council.
  6. It follows, therefore, that a Regia or a Senatus may not establish a Curia composed, in full or in part, of praesidia directly affiliated to it, without the sanction of the Comilium. A Regia or Scnatus should also seek sanction from the Concilium for any proposal to form a Comitium composed, in full or in part, of Curiae directly-affiliated, which would significantly affect the core attendance at the Regia or Senatus meeting. This also applies to the transfer of directly- affiliated praesidia or Curiae to another council, which would have a similar elfect.
  7. The proposal to set up a new Council should take into account the number of directly- affiliated praesidia. While a Curia may be set up with two or more praesidia, it is desirable that a higher council should have a reasonable number so that it may have sufficient personnel to carry out its functions. It is not desirable to divide small existing Curiae into smaller ones unless there are very good reasons (lot example, excessive distances which officers of praesidia have to travel) for doing so.
  8. When a new council is set up it should be given a definite area and the various parishes (and/or dioceses) should he specified. It is desirable that the designated area should include parishes (and/or dioceses) without the Legion as well as those which have it so that the council may have scope for extension.
  9. The appointment of a Spiritual Director by the ecclesiastical authority is an important element in the establishment of a new Curia.
  10. It is desirable that any proposal for the establishment of a new council should be examined in detail by the officers of the higher council, however, it is only at the meeting of the council that sanction may he given and this should be recorded in the minutes of the meeting.