Brother elected, barred as leader. (News: signs of the times).

When members of the Province of St. Joseph of the Capuchin order, which covers several Midwestern states, elected Brother Robert Smith by a substantial margin on the first ballot to lead the province last June, they looked forward to serving under the first African American and first lay brother to reach such a position in the Capuchins, a men's branch of the Franciscans. Most importantly, they believed they had elected the best man for the job. But the Vatican, citing church law, blocked the confirmation of Smith's election and ordered a new one.

At issue is whether a lay brother--a member of a men's religious order who has taken vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience but has not been ordained a priest--can serve as the head of an order's province. According to church law, a lay brother cannot serve as head of a province with authority over priests in his jurisdiction. While the rule has been the subject of study and possible revision by a Vatican commission, this review process has been going on for 15 years and its conclusions must be approved by the pope. Until the question is resolved, observers say, the Vatican is wary of granting exceptions to the rule. The Capuchins allow both lay brothers and the ordained to be elected to governing positions.

Smith is well-known for his reopening of Messmer High School, a Catholic institution the Archdiocese of Milwaukee closed in 1984. Messmer--where Smith is the president--has gained a national reputation for educating low-income minority students. It graduates 98 percent of its students, 85 percent of whom go to college.

Interestingly, Smith is the nephew of the late Brother Booker T. Ashe, who directed the Capuchins' House of Peace outreach ministry in Milwaukee for more than 25 years and who was the world's first lay brother to receive Vatican permission to serve on the governing body of a religious order province.

While some observers see the controversy over Smith's election as a legal matter and not one connected to larger issues of power and justice in the church, some of the Capuchins disagree. "The Province of St. Joseph has always been very concerned about justice issues in the church, and we are convinced that this is an issue of justice," said Brother Michael Aumann, the province's communications director, in a Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel article. "It's not just about lay friars being able to serve in positions of authority. It's about the concept of who is church."

Smith himself told the Journal-Sentinel, "The church is really at a crossroads right now, and to miss such an opportunity to give a symbol and a sign to America that Rome is listening, and Rome is moving toward reform, I just think that is a terrible mistake."