Revision and updating of the Chronology of the Institute
The first printed compilation of the Chronology of the Institute in our possession was published in the Circulars (Vol. 13, p. 437-499) on the occasion of the first Centenary of the Foundation of the Institute. It covered the period from 1789, date of Saint Marcellin?s birth, to 1917. The second compilation of the chronological data of events occurring in the Institute was published in 1976 and made use of the fruit of the researches of Brother Charles-Raphaël between 1968 and 1976. This edition was accompanied by indexes of the subjects, names and places contained in the Chronology. In 2006 Brother Joseph De Meyer undertook, in Rome, the labour of compiling the chronological data from January 1976 up to the end of 2005. All these works were furnished with various annexes which complement the data contained in the works cited.
In view of the celebration of the Bicentenary of the foundation of the Institute, work has begun on an updated and corrected edition of the data recorded in the above mentioned works. With this aim, a team composed of Brothers Jean Rousson, Jean Ronzon, Juan Moral, Edward Clisby and George Fontana met in Rome from 14 to 17 January 2010 under the direction of Brother André Lanfrey. The team carried out an intensive work of revising, completing and updating the compilations of data drawn up to the present.
The body of information collected in this Chronology constitutes an archive of extraordinary data relative to the general history of the Institute. One of the activities carried out by this team of brothers has been checking the sources from which the information comes, and the accuracy of the references and the contents collected in the chronology compiled. The drawing up of tables and sketches which present some of the historical content in graphic form will be a new way of presenting the data collected in the work and will aid future researchers to quickly locate the same. Once the text has been purged of inaccuracies and inconsistencies, it will be able to be published, in book and digital format.