An overlook on ICMICA

I. General presentation

Definition

Historical reminder

• Icmica Pax Romana is a global Christian community of intellectuals and professionals, a federation of movements present in some sixty countries and an NGO with consultative status with the United Nations.
• Pax Romana was founded by students of the Catholic University of Fribourg in Switzerland at the end of the 19th century. In July 1921, it was officially recognised by Pope Benedict XV. He gave it the name “Pax Romana” which is also its original mission: peace in the spirit of the Catholic Church. In 1946 Pax Romana reformed itself by creating two branches: IMCS for students and IMCS for graduates. It also created transnational networks by profession: engineers, doctors, lawyers, artists, teachers…
• Here you can see a video summary. Some historical texts are also available here.

Who are we?

• A global Catholic community of lay intellectuals and professionals, organised in small communities, who seek to respond to the calls of the Christian faith and the challenges of the world, in their areas of responsibility.
• A federation of autonomous lay movements that cooperate, decide on general orientations and elect their leaders. This federation is governed by statutes that are available here.
• An NGO accredited by the United Nations and the Council of Europe.
• A space to experience cross-cultural friendship, participatory and committed church life.

The raison d’être

• The raison d’être is the existence of a service recognised as useful by those for whom it is intended:
• To people: to offer spiritual guidance, especially in the stages of life that require delicate decisions. This service is essentially provided by the local movements.
• To society: to contribute to its democratic development, by promoting the common good and caring for others, especially the poorest.
• To the Church: to encourage an evolution so that it can better ensure its mission of proclaiming the Gospel.

The Mission of Evangelisation – Humanisation

The primary mission is the evangelisation of ourselves, our movement and the environments in which we carry out our responsibilities. To avoid misinterpretation, we often use the expression “humanisation, in the spirit of the Gospel”. This topic is developed in the guide, Living a spirituality of action » page 12.

Structure

Constituent and associated movements

• The Pax Romana network is composed of individuals and movements belonging to 2 categories: The constituent movements and the corresponding movements. The constituent movements intervene in the orientations of ICMICA through their right to vote and the payment of the annual subscription. The associated or corresponding movements participate in the actions and debates but without voting rights.
• The list of these movements can be found here.

The coordinations

The coordinations bring together movements because of a common objective:

• Geographical, for countries belonging to the same area, for example, a sub-regions
• By profession: also called international secretariat for engineers, artists, lawyers, teachers…For example, the Siiaec brings together engineers, agronomists, and economists.
• Thematic: on a common subject such as Human Rights, Environmental Protection, History, Communication, and Formation.

Delegations to International Institutions

Pax Romana is accredited to the UN in ECOSOC New York, to UNESCO in Paris, to the Human Rights Council in Geneva and in Vienna. Pax Romana is also a member of the Council of Europe’s International NGO Conference in Strasbourg.

Management of the association

The international team and the International Council

• The international team consists of the President, the Secretary-General, the Treasurer, and the International Chaplain.
• The International Council includes the International team plus the Vice-Presidents (Africa, Asia, Latina America, Europe) elected by the Plenary Assembly.

The Plenary Assembly

• The Plenary Assembly meets every 4 years.   The assembly includes the election of a new leadership team, validation of the strategic orientation for the next four years, and review of the statutory document.

The Secretariat

• Miic Pax Romana is an association under Swiss law with its headquarters at 3 Rue Varembé in Geneva Switzerland.

Budget and financing

Income

• The income that ensures the functioning of Icmica Pax Romana comes from its own resources: the contributions from the constituent movements and the individual contributions of members, and donations through projects.

Expenditure

• The average expenditures of ICMICA cover 50% personnel costs, 20% office rent and charges, 20% online activities and network animation costs, and 10% accounting and accounts certification.

II. Our Strategic Orientation for 2023 – 2025

Thematic 1: Evangelization, synodality, and formation

1. Evangelization is the foundation of our existence as a movement, as lay Christians, ICMICA members are called to testify to their faith and know the word of God so that they can be the salt of the earth and light of the world.
2. The contribution to building a synodal church is the central guideline of our movement from the lived experience in movement practices, and
3. Ensuring the formation and continuous education of our members and new members is key.

To fulfill this mission, the following activities will be carried out:

1. Create a specific group for evangelization, spiritual and pastoral formation within ICMICA.
2. Reflect on new models of community that are more responsive to the needs of younger professionals but also reflective of the mission of Pax Romana.
3. Organize regular sessions to share the Social Teaching of the Church and document lived experiences.
4. Promote partnerships with other ecclesial and civil organizations to strengthen networks of reflection and action in specific fields such as public policies (health, education, employment), human rights, climate change and environmental action, peacebuilding, etc.”

Thematic 2: Movement Building

1. Support experience sharing in different fields (humanitarian, health, food) through the Specialized Secretariats.
2. Continue to organize online webinars and celebrations (e.g., Pentecost) for members.
3. Develop training programs for new/potential chaplains on our spirituality, mission, and tradition.
4. Develop a strategy for the extension of the movement, especially in North America and Asia.
5. Create a room for young professionals to take up leadership roles in the movement.
6. New membership development.
7. To strengthen the Specialized Secretariats to improve our presence in civil society and the church.
8. To relaunch “Convergence”.

External activities

Public statements

They are prepared on the occasion of specific events, and often as part of a collective involving local organizations. For example :

• The declaration of solidarity with students and civil society leaders in Myanmar.
• Becoming Anti-Racist : a challenge for Pax Romana, following the racist crimes in the USA.

Participation in international institutions

• Accreditation in these institutions allows us to provide grass root testimonies and reflections on the topics of our competence. Here is some recent activity at the Council of Europe.

Participation in Ecclesial Institutions

• At the international level, official relations are mainly with the Dicastery for the Laity, Family, and Life, and with the Secretariat of State because of our presence in international institutions. Relations also exist with the nunciatures to the international institutions.

Working method

It is defined by 5 criteria:

• Reflection based on experience,
• Reflection with a universal (catholic) perspective,
• Reflection oriented toward personal and social transformation (integral liberation),
• Reflection based on discernment and not following directions from elsewhere,
• Reflection is done in a community, not just individually. More info on the 5 key elements is available on the website.

Partnerships

All the relationships described here are at the international level, but they can all be adapted to the local level in appropriate forms.

IMCS

• A strong cooperation has been developed between ICMICA and IMCS. This cooperation is essential for the survival of both movements. ICMICA can provide continuity and support to IMCS members and conversely, IMCS can provide a stimulus for action.

Specialised Catholic Action Movements (Miacs)

• We share the same spirituality with the Miacs, but in different milieus: workers, rural people, independents, and children. See the presentation of the Miacs. Most of these movements also exist at a national and local level. This cooperation is very important, it strengthens us but also makes us aware that our way of thinking is not universal, but specific to a certain milieu.

Other religious organizations

• Many cooperative relationships exist with religious orders such as the Jesuits, Dominicans, and Franciscans. This cooperation can be joint work such as advocacy in Geneva, or support from religious orders to the movement’s chaplaincy.

Civil society platforms

• Among these platforms are Catholic-inspired NGO platforms such as the CCIG in Geneva, the CCIC in Paris or the CINGO in Strasbourg, as well as civil society platforms such as UNESCO’s Clong.

III. Communication

The main current communication tools are:

• The Icmica Pax Romana website
• The newsletters
• The social media of Miic Pax Romana International are:

1. A Facebook page.

2. A Youtube channel

3. A Twitter account

4. Instagram

5. LinkedIn

Communication is an essential part of the life of the community, members are invited to share information by sending it to the secretary general at segeneral@icmica-miic.org, or to communication@icmica-miic.org.