A special moment of grace marked the 21st Quinquennial Congress of the Secular Franciscan Order on Saturday, Aug. 1, as His Excellency, Archbishop Gabriele Caccia, Apostolic Nuncio to the United States, joined hundreds of Secular Franciscans gathered in Lexington, Kentucky.
“Jesus said to them, they need not go away; give them something to eat yourselves.”
Do you have any possessions that you cannot live without? Anything? A few years after I professed, one of our sisters shared that during formation, the director asked her what can’t she live without? She thought about it and replied: “the washing machine.” She had a large family. The washing machine was truly a necessity.
More than 500 Secular Franciscans from across the United States gathered in Lexington, Kentucky, this week for the 21st Quinquennial Congress. The Congress opened with the celebration of the Eucharist by the Most Rev. Bishop John Stowe, OFM Conv., Bishop of the Diocese of Lexington. In his homily, Bishop Stowe challenged those gathered to embrace their Franciscan vocation as witnesses of hope in a world marked by division and distrust.
Whether we are looking for God, or not. God is looking for us. God is always successful.
We often confuse appearances. We mistake our enemies for God’s enemies. We are quick to uproot those whom Christ is patiently nurturing. The Kingdom grows through God’s patience before it culminates in God’s judgment.
My very first introduction to a Secular Franciscan was getting to know a gentle soul named Anna. When she described her relationship with God as “intimacy,” I knew that I wanted to have what she already possessed. I wanted to love God as she loved Him. Anna was my living model of loving Christ. She lived her Franciscan life as Francis did: with humility, simplicity and love for others. Although Anna surely knew suffering in her life, she still remained joyful and caring.
“The word that goes forth from the mouth of God does not return empty. It does not come back without succeeding in what it was sent to do.”
The mission of Franciscan Month is to celebrate the 800-year charism of the Franciscan way of life, to build awareness about this way of life, and to invite and inspire people of all faiths to live it. Our intention for 2026 is to promote the Franciscan values of simplicity, care for creation, peacemaking, the dignity and integrity of each person and service to the poor, marginalized and forgotten - especially during this Jubilee Year of St. Francis.
Jesus comes back again and again to this image of the child, to communicate a sense of human relationship to God.