1. Clergy
Clergy are those who have been ordained to the diaconate, presbyterate, or episcopate in the one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church of Jesus Christ, and who - if ordained elsewhere - have voluntarily submitted to the jurisdiction of the Ordinariate. Clergy have both voice and vote in all Ordinariate business.
2. Postulants
Postulants are those who, having discerned a calling to a ministerial vocation, have entered a formal process of formation for ordination. This level of membership is maintained throughout the formation process until ordination to the diaconate. Postulants have voice in all Ordinariate business.
3. Lay Ministers
Lay Ministers are those who have been set apart for formal, lay-led ministries, who have voluntarily submitted to the jurisdiction of the Ordinariate. Lay Ministers have voice and vote in all Ordinariate business.
4. Companions
Companions are laypersons who support and seek to live lives in harmony with the charism of the Ordinariate. They must be actively involved in a sacramental Christian Church and should routinely participate in the activities and worship of the Society as they are able. Companions have voice in all Ordinariate business.
5. Vows of Membership
All members shall certify that they hold to the Doctrinal Foundations of the Ordinariate, make any vows appropriate to their clerical state, and signify their desire to living out the charism of the Society through their subscription to the following vows:
• I pledge to live out my baptismal covenant daily.
• I pledge to deepen my concern for those who live on the margins.
• I pledge to use my skills, talents, and strength to advocate for what is good, holy, and just.
• I pledge to proclaim, with all that I am, that “God is love.”
5. Clerical Vows
Before the incardination of an existing cleric, or the ordination of a postulant member, the individual preparing for Clerical Membership shall indicate their understanding of the office to which they are being admitted and shall subsequently, in the context of the Mass of Ordination or Incardination, profess the clerical vows appropriate to their office.
6. Annual Nature of Vows
A. Membership Vows and are to be renewed annually on First Sunday of Advent each year by letter to the Ordinary, and (when practical) within the Eucharistic liturgy in the presence of the people served.
B. Clergy renew their vows annually, preferentially at an in-person retreat or convocation, at the direction of the Ordinary. When an in-person program is not planned, the Ordinary shall specify the means of renewing one's clerical vows.
7. Release from Vows
While Scripture counsels against making vows in a careless and frivolous manner, we recognize that circumstances and situations change. We do not believe that God holds us to vows which, for appropriate reasons, we are no longer able to keep. In the event that an individual wishes to do so, there is freedom to request a release from the Membership Vows of the Ordinariate, by letter, from the Ordinary.
A. For Companions, the request for release is regarded as a simple matter of courtesy and is granted on an ipso facto basis.
B. For Lay Ministers, the request for release from membership vows is taken as an indication of the desire conclude one's ministry, or to transfer it outside the Ordinariate's jurisdiction. If the former, the individual may request to transition to companion status if they wish to retain membership. If the latter, the individual must give notice of the bishop receiving the work so that a formal transition of oversight may be made.
C. For Postulants, the request for release is regarded both as a matter of courtesy, as well as a matter of good order, so that the Ordinariate may ensure that any educational and formation records may be transferred to the postulant prior to departure, and to ensure that any concerns regarding the life of the Ordinariate may be received for the betterment of the future of its apostolic work.
D. For Clerics, the request for release impacts both membership and clerical vows, and is not simply a matter of courtesy, but also one that will allow for the initiation of a transfer to another ecclesiastical body. To affiliate licitly with another ecclesiastical body, the Ordinary must issue a letter dimissory for a cleric to present to a new bishop. Generally, without a letter dimissory, a cleric must go through an extended process to affiliate with a new jurisdiction or may find themselves unable to affiliate elsewhere.
8. Apostolic Oversight
A. Clergy already ordained who intend to join the Ordinariate and who have professed membership vows but who are unable to make immediate arrangements for a Mass of Incardination shall be extended Apostolic Oversight for a period not exceeding one year, during which time the Ordinary and the cleric shall make arrangements for the in-person reception of the cleric.
B. In rare instances, clergy who have experienced harm or woundedness in another ecclesial body, but who require continued issuance of faculties in order to carry out their ministry, may petition the Ordinary for Apostolic Oversight without taking Membership Vows in the Ordinariate. During this time, the cleric commits to engage in discernment regarding a long-term affiliation with either the Ordinariate or another ecclesial body. Those falling under this provision are welcome to attend all meetings and gatherings of the Ordinariate, and are required to renew their ordination vows as directed, however they do not have voice or vote on Ordinariate business.
C. Clergy who are retired, but who seek to retain association with a bishop and the faculties to licitly celebrate the Sacraments may apply for apostolic oversight. Those falling under this provision are welcome to attend all meetings and gatherings of the Ordinariate, and are required to renew their ordination vows as directed. They are welcome to share their experiences to inform the Ordinariate's business, but have no vote.
9. Issuance and Withdrawal of Clerical Faculties
A. All clergy subject to the provisions of §5 and §8 above shall receive a letter testifying to the issuance of faculties appropriate to their order.
B. Faculty letters are issued upon ordination or incardination and, thereafter, annually, based on the date for the selection of the renewal of clerical vows.
C. The Ordinary may, for just cause, withdraw the of faculties of a cleric. Notice shall be made verbally and by letter.
D. A request for release on the part of a cleric with initiate a process of transferring faculties to a new jurisdiction and its ordinary. Any cleric seeking release without a receiving jurisdiction will receive notice of the withdrawal of faculties verbally and by letter.