Carolyn Seal – Page 8 – Secular Franciscan Order

Day of Prayer and Fasting – October 11

The Ministers General, gathered in Assisi have called us to unite in a day of prayer and fasting for peace, tomorrow, October 11. Please see the attached letter [Copy of letter in this blog and link to the letter with signatures] that was composed on Oct. 4, and is now being sent to us from CIOFS. Please share this invitation widely. The thirty-eight members of the National Fraternity Council, along with many observers, will be gathering tomorrow for the opening of our National Fraternity (NAFRA) Elective Chapter. We will stand together in prayer for this intention.

Carolyn Seal2022-10-10T11:22:49-04:00October 10th, 2022|Categories: Announcements|2 Comments

The Importance of Leaders Presence

This is an article that I have been thinking about for several months. I felt I needed to relate to our leaders the importance of their “Presence.” I would like to share observations I made and complaints I heard in my role as your Multicultural and Diversity Councilor and to provide suggestions on how to make the best of your presence as regional leaders of diverse fraternities. ...

Carolyn Seal2022-10-04T13:43:02-04:00October 10th, 2022|Categories: From the Newsletter|0 Comments

Blessed Feast of St. Francis from Markus Heinz, OFM

Looking into our actual world we can get an impression that humanity is in process of destroying all this beauty; not respecting the inherent dignity given by God our Creator, which we as humans share with all creatures. ...

Carolyn Seal2022-10-03T11:26:31-04:00October 3rd, 2022|Categories: Uncategorized|1 Comment

Ecumenical Interfaith Committee Joint Committee on Franciscan Unity

What do you know about our brothers and sisters of the Jewish tradition? What of our Muslim brothers and sisters? Or any other faith tradition? My work on the Interfaith Alliance of the Southwest and the Interfaith/Ecumenical Committee has challenged me to SEE – to see deeply beyond borders, beyond faith traditions, and to learn to celebrate the differences that mark our uniqueness. I have found that when we examine the faith of others, we embark on a journey that reveals just how much we have in common. To embark on this path, however, takes courage. ...

Carolyn Seal2024-06-06T18:33:32-04:00October 3rd, 2022|Categories: Ecumenical Interfaith Committee, From the Newsletter|0 Comments

Formation Commission – The Light of the World: We Are Called to See It and Be It

The creation story begins with the goodness of light. Light was God’s first gift to each of us. The birth of Jesus was announced to us with the light of a star. We read of light in many stories in scripture, in both the Old Testament and the New Testament. ... Light symbolizes the many wonderful characteristics of God. Light is also a symbol for awareness, knowledge, goodness, and understanding. We are each called by name (Isaiah 43:1) into the light and to shine the light from God into the world. We are called to be witnesses (Isaiah 43:10) to the world. ...

Carolyn Seal2022-09-20T13:36:44-04:00September 26th, 2022|Categories: Formation, From the Newsletter|0 Comments

JPIC – When Violence is the Way, We Must Choose and Show Another Way

In those days when a person’s word meant something, there was also more conversation, less debate, and more dialogue. Debate is more about winning and making the other person wrong than about having a healthy dialogue and sharing ideas. Where have those days gone? Why do I need to make you wrong rather than just understand your point of view? When we make others wrong, we do violence to them. We also do ourselves a disservice, because we lose out on the opportunity to learn from them, and thus to grow. ...

Carolyn Seal2022-09-13T14:14:15-04:00September 19th, 2022|Categories: From the Newsletter, JPIC|0 Comments

Our Freedom, our choice, is to live as Christ lived

Fourth of July is a civil celebration, but for us Franciscans—indeed for all Christians—any commemoration is infused with a sense of God’s presence. While many of the Founding Fathers of our nation did not believe in the kind of God we believe in as Catholic Christians, several were Christian, and others acknowledged some kind of godly presence worthy of giving direction to our lives and our common project of national government. But what kind of freedom do we celebrate? ...

Carolyn Seal2022-09-07T14:06:01-04:00September 12th, 2022|Categories: CNSA, From the Newsletter|0 Comments

Fraternity Life – Fraternity: Our Secular Franciscan Witness

What could be the best contribution we, as Secular Franciscans, can make to the life of the Catholic Church? ... Here’s what Pope St. John Paul II had to say in 2002: “The Church expects from you, Secular Franciscans, a courageous and consistent testimony of Christian and Franciscan life, leaning towards the construction of a more fraternal and gospel world for the realization of the Kingdom of God. ….

Carolyn Seal2022-09-13T14:23:19-04:00September 5th, 2022|Categories: Formation, From the Newsletter|2 Comments

Secular Franciscan Order – USA Website

Website News and Did You Know… - How to use the slides on www.secularfranciscansusa.com ... - Franciscan Saints, Blesseds, & Holy Days ...

Carolyn Seal2022-09-30T08:01:56-04:00August 29th, 2022|Categories: Did You Know, From the Newsletter|0 Comments

Sharing the Vision – News From REC

The appointments for National Commissions Chairs or Committees Chairs or individual positions typically are made until one year after a scheduled NEC election. The appointment terms are set in such a manner, so a new council won’t have to appoint new commission or committee chairs immediately after being elected. ...

Carolyn Seal2022-08-16T14:51:54-04:00August 22nd, 2022|Categories: From the Newsletter, News from the NEC|1 Comment

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