INTRODUCTION

1. Attentive to the conditions of the present moment and under the guidance of the Lord, the Church is continuously required to provide, in view of the growth of the Body of Christ,(¹) for the formation of her members.

Aware of the significance which religious life has for the People of God,(²) the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and for Societies of Apostolic Life judges it an obligation to reflect on the formation of members of religious institutes in today's circumstances and to propose some directives which guarantee a formation which is complete, solid, and consistent with the journey of the Church. One fruit of this commitment was publication of the Instruction Potissimum institutioni.(³)