This past November found me on several different days for sometimes longer than an hour sitting in front of, praying before and meditating upon the original San Damiano Cross that once spoke to St. Francis
Once again, the Resurrection of Jesus will be proven not so much by arguments over an empty tomb, but by proof of filled-up lives. Do you not know that you are the body of Christ?
Our faith begins not in a thing, nor in a doctrine, nor in a church, … No, our founding stems from none of these, although many things of various natures may stem from our one foundation, who is not a what, nor a when nor a where nor even a why. The heart of our faith is the person of Jesus Christ, true God and truly human.
Friar Matthias said to the effect that despite all the “new scholarship” and “new insights” into Franciscan spirituality, he still felt that what he had learned and always believed and taught was true: that the four basic aspects of the Franciscan Charism were the Crib, the Cross, the Cup and Creation.
Permit me to offer in this article the "flip side" of the article "Miserando atque Eligendo.” In that article, I focused on Christ’s “looking with mercy” (miserando) on Levi, a tax collector, on our Holy Father Pope Francis and on all of us in “choosing” (eligendo) us to follow Him. In this article, I will focus on our response to our Lord's merciful choice or election of us to "Follow me."
I welcomed everyone to our National Chapter at the Savior Pastoral Center outside of Kansas City, Kansas, with the words: “Miserando atque Eligendo.”
Please permit me to request every Secular Franciscan in the United States to pray the Third Decade of the Rosary for our One Secular Franciscan Order and our Four Fraternities to which each of us belongs!
By Dear Brothers and Sisters of Penance,
May the Lord bring us Peace! By our very definition as “Brothers and Sisters of Penance,” any day is a good day for repentance or conversion. After all, our Secular Franciscan Rule 7 states: “United by […]
Sisters and Brothers, may the Lord grant you peace!
Countless millions of us are ordered to “stay-at-home,” not to go to work, not to go to school, and to practice safe and social distancing when venturing out of doors for specific purposes. Religious services and events are being cancelled while religious […]
Regardless of provenance, the Franciscan Peace Prayer offers a wonderful Lenten source of meditation.