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Holy Week: a time to choose

Palm Sunday

As Holy Week moves along, the Franciscans of Life are also moving right along with the liturgy and the celebration of the paschal mysteries. The week began with the liturgy of Passion Sunday (Palm Sunday). The brothers attended the liturgy as family. It was a very moving day for us, especially for those brothers who had never seen the liturgy of Palm Sunday in the Ordinary Form. The beauty and solemnity of the liturgical celebration removed any doubt that the Ordinary Form can raise the heart and mind to God as much as the Extraordinary Form. In both, Christ does his part. It is up to us to do our part. The young men and women from LifeTeen reenacted the Lord’s passion as the Gospel was read. We were impressed to see how prayerful the kids looked and how well they memorized the many lines in the Gospel reading. Of course the priest and the deacon helped out during the reading.

Meet Our New Postulant

Monday night was a very special night for the fraternity. We received a new postulant, Alberto Emilio Rodriguez. Alberto joined us as an aspirant several months ago. He is the product of a solid Catholic home and

Alberto está a punto de comenzar el discernimiento

Postulant Alberto Rodriguez, FFV

Catholic education. We thank his parents and the Marist Brothers for their investment in Alberto. Postulant Alberto is active in the community, especially in youth retreats. As a student the only thing we can say is that he is brilliant. He was accepted by three leading universities in the United States, all of which offered him full scholarships.

Lazaro Rodriguez (father), Postulant Alberto, Br. Jay and Br. Luis sign the registry after Alberto is received as a posulant

However, Alberto has decided to study in Miami and form with the Franciscans of Life. He has responded to what Jesus said to his apostles at the Last Supper when he washed their feet:

¹⁴Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. ¹⁵I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. ¹⁶Very truly I tell you, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. ¹⁷Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them. (John 13:14-16).

As we have said, he is academically gifted, speaks two languages, is the class president at his school, has been a retreat speaker and altar server, is an excellent drummer and an aeronautics aficionado. Most important, he is a man of great faith and a deep prayer life.

New Secular Franciscan of Life

We have also received a new brother as novice for the Secular Franciscans of Life, Brother Luis Charbel.

Br. Luis Charbel, FFV was received as a novice at St. Maximilian Kolbe Chapel.

Br. Bernardo di Carmine and his mother, Mrs. Angela Torres

Brother Bernardo Di Carmine delivered a beautiful reflection during solemn vespers when Luis was received.

Luis is originally from Colombia. He and his wife have made Miami their home along with their beautiful eight children. Luis came to us driven by the Holy Spirit. He has always experienced an attraction to the spirit of St. Francis. His children serve the poor in a Franciscan ministry. However, Luis had never done anything about his craving for Francis of Assisi and his way of life until he saw an article about Project Joseph, which the Franciscans of Life operate for Respect Life Ministry Archdiocese of Miami. Docile to the Holy Spirit, he responded to Christ’s challenge to the apostles during his Passover with them:

¹²Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these. (Jn 14:12).

"Louis-ix" by El Greco - Transferred from en.wikipedia; transferred to Commons by User:Sfan00_IMG using CommonsHelper.Author: Original uploader was Uri at en.wikipedia. 2003-07-01 (original upload date). Licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons - http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Louis-ix.jpg#/media/File:Louis-ix.jpg

St. Louis IX by El Greco

Like Alberto, Luis is also a man of profound faith and prayer. His patron saints are Saint Louis King of France, the patron of the Third Order of St. Francis, and Saint Charbel Makhluf, Maronite monk and hermit, known for his intense life of prayer and asceticism. Luis couldn’t have picked better patron saints.

Saint Louis IX was a contemporary of Saint Francis of Assisi and king of France. He is one of the earliest secular brothers in the Franciscan family, a faithful husband and the father of eleven children.

Saint Charbel Makhlouf, O.L.M. The Wonder Worker

Saint Charbel was Maronite monk and hermit at the Monastery of Saint Maron where he lived a life of severe asceticism. For those who may not understand the term asceticism, it has little to do with corporal penances and much to do with the practice of the virtues. As an ascetic, Saint Charbel disciplined his mind and body to conform to the virtues of Christ and his Blessed Mother.

Like Saint Charbel, Luis has a very personal relationship with the Immaculate and recently completed his consecration to Mary in the Kolbe tradition.

Holy Week: time to reach out

John’s Gospel tells us that after Jesus had finished the Last Supper and had washed his disciples’ feet he said to them

“Love each other as I have loved you. ¹³Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. ¹⁴You are my friends if you do what I command. ¹⁵I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. ¹⁶You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you. ¹⁷This is my command: Love each other.” (Jn 15:12b-17).

Holy Week is the perfect time to reflect on our universal vocation: the perfection of love. It’s a time to examine what we do and who we are, keeping in mind the precedence of being over doing.

Jesus calls us friends, for that is our universal vocation. He has loved us enough to call us his friends. Brothers Alberto and Luis have taken the leap of faith. Christ chose and extended his hand from the cross in friendship. Like Saint Francis of Assisi, they responded.

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on April 1, 2015 at 5:48 PM Leave a Comment

Transformation

We had a great couple of days for Project Joseph and the Franciscans of Life!

On Saturday, March 21st, the Franciscans of Life attended the 5th Catholic Men’s Conference of the Archdiocese of Miami. The event, which featured Catholic apologist Tim Staples, took place at St. Mark Catholic Church. We represented Project Joseph along with some of the mentors of Respect Life Ministry.

Our display included some literature and a poster describing the roots of Project Joseph and where it is today. It also featured pictures that the Project Joseph dads allowed us to share, either of their classes or of their beautiful children.

The event was well attended, and we had a chance to talk with several men, some of whom were dads themselves, and present to them information about Project Joseph, as well as invite them to our upcoming workshop.

On Monday, March 23rd we had the joy of receiving Brother Luis as a novice. He received the name Brother Luis Charbel, FFV.

As a secular brother, Br. Charbel exchanges the cord that holds the wooden tau around his neck from a brown one to a red one. The red signifies the Sacred Blood shed by Christ during His Passion, and constitutes for Br. Charbel a reminder that he is called to “obey as Christ obeyed, without murmuring, complaints and resentment”, in order to “live perfect charity as Christ taught us on the cross”.

The exchange of the color and the reception of a new name are for the secular Franciscan of Life “an outward sign of his desire for transformation from the old man enslaved by sin to the new man, liberated by the Passion and Resurrection of Jesus Christ”.It was a beautiful and moving reception, attended by the regular and secular Franciscans of Life and their families. Brother Jay directed the ceremony, and Brother Bernardo offered a reflection on the call and life of the secular brothers.

In the next days we will feature more news about FFV and Project Joseph…stay tuned! 🙂

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on March 28, 2015 at 10:11 PM Leave a Comment

True and charitable obedience — pleasing to God and neighbor

Pope Francis and Franciscans of the Immaculate

It seems that these days everyone wants to gripe and whine about the pope, bishops, and the synod on the family, the Traditional Latin Mass (TLM) or the Mass of Paul VI (Novus Ordo). Then there are such subjects as abortion, same-sex marriage, contraception, divorce, remarriage and Holy Communion and women’s ordination.

Yesterday, I saw another article claiming that Pope Francis has done great harm to Summorum Pontificum, the document written by Pope Benedict clarifying that the Tridentine form of the mass for the Roman Rite was changed a bit by Pope St. John XXIII, but never abrogated. The gist of this complaint is that allegedly Pope Francis told the Franciscan Friars of the Immaculate that they may not celebrate the Tridentine Form without asking for specific permission to do so. To some people, this is a form oppression and a violation of law.

To get past this point, let’s clarify that the Franciscans of the Immaculate were never founded to be a Traditional Latin Mass (TLM) community. When they were founded, the Mass of Paul VI or Novus Ordo was the ordinary form of the mass for the Latin Church. Secondly, Summorum Pontificum clearly states that the superior general alone can make rules about who and when the TLM is celebrated in public or in community, but he must make these rules in keeping with the proper laws of his institute. This means that he must look at the constitutions of his institute and see what they say about the older rite and the newer rite, if they say anything at all. In most cases the constitutions do not speak to this point, because they were written before this became a hot question. Therefore, there is nothing in proper law that allows a superior permission to make the Extraordinary Form of the mass (TLM) to become the norm for his community. The question needs to be put on the table to the community to vote on. Once the community votes on it, the Holy See must approve the change that is to be made to the constitutions.

Let’s remember that the Franciscans of the Immaculate, like any other religious community owe obedience to the Holy Father. At the end of the day, the Holy Father is the legitimate superior general of every institute in the Catholic Church, because he alone exercises universal jurisdiction. Therefore, we cannot accuse the pope of overstepping his boundaries or of abusing power. If you have the power to do something or to prohibit something and you make use of it, how can it be an abuse?

Some will argue that the pope cannot use his power to do harm. This is true. No one can use power to do harm. Power is given to us for the common good. There are times when we use power with the intention of doing something good and somewhere in the process something goes wrong and the end result hurts more than it helps. This was not the intention of the person exercising the power. This was the result of many random acts that were against the idea in the first place. In this case, one can say that the end result was that the lay faithful who were benefiting from the TLM celebrated by the priests of the Franciscans of the Immaculate no longer had that benefit. Obviously, they were hurt by Pope Francis’ decision to stop the TLM among the Franciscans of the Immaculate. Did the Pope intend to hurt these folks? I don’t think so. He intended to put out a fire within the Franciscans of the Immaculate.

This does not mean that the TLM is prohibited or that the Franciscans of the Immaculate are being suppressed. It means that people who had come to depend on the Franciscans of the Immaculate to provide a TLM mass have to look elsewhere, which is an inconvenience. In fairness to the Pope and to the friars, this congregation was never founded for the explicit purpose of celebrating the mass in the Extraordinary Form (TLM Form). The congregation’s mission is to walk the Gospel in the footsteps of St. Maximilian Kolbe and St. Francis of Assisi under the protection and patronage of the Immaculate.

Did something go wrong? Yes. I don’t know what went wrong. I’m not a member of that community. I can see what’s going wrong outside of the community. Pope Benedict XVI started an investigation into the Franciscans of the Immaculate, not Pope Francis. Pope Francis inherited it, but almost everyone blames Pope Francis for it. Like most popes, Pope Francis is not too enthusiastic about people using the mass for their political battles. Therefore he restricts the permission to use the Tridentine Form to those who have specific permission to use it. He never said that it could not be used. He said that one must ask first.

Whatever Summorum Pontificum says about what priest can celebrate the Extraordinary Form of the mass, we cannot forget that the Motu Proprio does not bind the pope, including the one who wrote it, much less the pope who succeeds him. He is free to abrogate it, edit it and interpret it. It is not up to us to tell the pope what he can or cannot do with law.

Boniface VIII in “Constit.” reminds us that the sovereign pontiff is the most fruitful source of . . . law; he can abrogate . . . legislate to the whole Church or part thereof, a country, or a given body of individuals . . . he is not legally obliged to obtain the consent of any other persons and his power is limited only by Divine law.

Another important point here is that this is a situation between a pope and a religious community of Pontifical Right. Meaning . . . that the pope is the highest ranking superior, above whom there is no appeal and who has absolute authority over the religious community. He need not speak ex cathedra to be obeyed. If we look at the writings of St. Francis, he promises obedience to the Bishop of Rome, commands that all the brothers obey him and his canonically elected successors for all time. In essence, Francis binds everyone to obey the pope, regardless of the matter involved, except sin. To put it more bluntly, it’s not for any of us, outside of the Franciscans of the Immaculate, to demand to know what happens within the community or to speak as if we had the authority to make a judgment on a situation that does not fall under our jurisdiction.

We must not lose sight of the fact that the good brothers have not asked us for our help, comments, opinions and interventions. These are well educated men, free to ask for help if they need it, and who have a good understanding of how the legal system in the Church works, should they choose to make use of it. Instead, it seems that they have chosen to apply one of our Seraphic Father’s admonitions.

The Lord says in the Gospel: he “that doth not renounce all that he possesses cannot be” a “disciple “and “he that will save his life, shall lose it.” That man leaves all he possesses and loses his body and his soul who abandons himself wholly to obedience in the hands of his superior, and whatever he does and says—provided he himself knows that what he does is good and not contrary to his [the superior’s] will—is true obedience. And if at times a subject sees things which would be better or more useful to his soul than those which the superior commands him, let him sacrifice his will to God, let him strive to fulfil the work enjoined by the superior. This is true and charitable obedience which is pleasing to God and to one’s neighbor.

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on March 7, 2015 at 3:30 PM Comments (2)

Upon this “quarry” I will build my Church?

Since the closing of the extraordinary synod there has been a great deal of commentary on the blogosphere about the reception of Holy Communion by Catholics who are divorced and invalidly remarried. The question is not so much as to whether the first marriage was valid and the second is not or the other way around. The question on everyone’s mind seems to be whether or not Pope Francis is pushing for a relaxation of the law that currently exists, which says that people who are conscious of grave sin should not receive Holy Communion. Living with someone as if he or she were your spouse when the person is not, would be one of those occasions when objectively one is culpable a grave sin.

I wouldn’t have written this article, if I thought that this is the only issue on the table. After all, Pope Francis has not said anything that indicates that he is trying to persuade the bishops to change the law or keep the law. What we seem to be hearing from the Holy Father is that he wants every voice to be heard. Sometimes, when one opens the door to every voice one finds discordant voices. Whether it’s prudent to open the door to every voice is an important question. However, in the case of the extraordinary synod on the family, it’s a moot question, because the horse has already left the starting gate.

We have seen cardinals, bishops, theologians, religious and laymen speak on the synod and the documents that were published after. The points that concern most people are whether or not these men and women in invalid marriages should be allowed to receive Holy Communion; whether or not same-sex couples have something positive to contribute to the Church; and whether or not we can find any good in situations where people who are not spouses live as if they were. I certainly can’t claim to have the answers to these questions, because they are above my paygrade. Even if I thought I had the answer, the Holy See is not really interested in my opinion, because it’s not my place in the Church to speak as an authority of matters of faith and morals. That authority is reserved for the local bishop. I can only speak as an authority in my home and in my community with the Franciscans of Life. Even there, I can only repeat what the Church teaches; I cannot teach anything that is outside of Church teaching as if it were the “official” Catholic position.

Here is precisely where we’re having problems today. The blogosphere is overpopulated with voices that not only have something to say about these questions, but want to speak and be heard as if they had the BOOKS ON HEAD authority to make pronouncements to the rest of the Church. When they speak they sound intelligent, because they can use big words, throw around some citations from previous popes, councils and older catechisms and there are times when their arguments have some logic. To the average layman (not as in non-ordained, but as in newbie to Church politics) these voices can be very impressive and persuasive, to the point that these readers become talking boxes for the bloggers. You hear them repeat, verbatim, what a blogger has written. This is an interesting development, because the blogosphere seems to be giving birth to its own oral tradition within the Catholic Church and some people are beginning to take this tradition seriously.

At the risk of sounding like these voices, I have to state that bloggers are just that and no more. St. Francis of Assisi held that a man is what he is before God, nothing else. This has been part of Franciscan tradition and culture for 800 years. Why? Because it works. Why does it work? Because it’s true.

When we read what someone puts out there, be he a cardinal, bishop, religious, concerned Catholic layman we must keep this person in his or her proper context. He or she is what God sees, not how he presents himself. When God looks at a cardinal, he sees a bishop who has a specific place in the Church, with a specific assignment, specific role and mission. He does not see another Peter, because there can only be one Peter. The Church is built upon the faith of one rock, not an entire quarry.

The same applies to lay writers, who are often very impressive. Nonetheless, they are not Peter. All of these people are commenting on what Peter has said, failed to say, should say, will never say and that’s fine and dandy. They are commentators. We have to take them as such. I do not take the commentator at a Super Bowl show and credit him with the same authority that I credit the referee. At the end of the day, the person who makes the call whether the ball is in or out of bounds is the ref, not the guy at the microphone. The guy at the microphone can call the shot anyway he likes it, but his call is not going to determine the outcome of the game.

Listening to and reading what every blogger in town has to say about divorce, remarriage, Holy Communion, same-sex marriage, homosexuality, cohabitation, the family, sex, and many other topics that fall under the umbrella of “family” can be very interesting and very enlightening. I certainly like knowing what other people are thinking. But I have to remind myself that what I’m reading are the talking points and opinions of others like the sportscaster at the Super Bowl. These are not the officials who call the shots that shape the outcome of the game. The only person who can call those shots is Peter.

So far, in this entire discussion on the family, Pope Francis has only said that a synod of bishops has no authority to make or change rules, much less dogma and that the pope calls a synod under his watchful eye and under his authority. Therefore, he and only he can decide what to keep or throw out from what comes from the synod.

Those people who are saying that the Church is going to do A, B, and C, because the synod fathers said something in favor of A, B, and C can be very mistaken. The Church is going to do whatever Peter decides. It may be A, B, and C or D, E, and F.

Do not take these bloggers too seriously, nor reporters for that matter or people doing interviews. Remember St. Francis of Assisi. A man is what he is before God, nothing else. None of these men is Peter. They have strong opinions and are often very rational. Other times they have very strong opinions and are very illogical. I don’t pledge my support to the former, because as logical as his opinion may be, he lacks the authority to speak for the Church. I listen to his opinion and like Mary; I hold these in my heart. On the flip side, I don’t pledge my allegiance to the latter either, because his opinions are illogical.

Until the Church tells me that what appears illogical to me must be obeyed and held, I have no duty to do so. The key here is “to me”. Just because something seems right or wrong to me, does not make it so. Just because I think I understand what the Church has traditionally said on a specific subject does not mean that I do.

We are very proud of what we think, to the point that we throw our ideas out there as if they were revealed truths and we’re willing to insult, hurt, and ignore others who do not agree with our understanding of the faith, morality or Catholic tradition. Which leads me to ask whether at the end of the day, all of these interviews that people are giving, all of these opinions that people are posting on blogs concerning the Church, the family and the pope, and all of these sound bites are just another temptation to pride and disobedience.

How much of all that is said is about love of God and man and how much is about love of one’s opinion and one’s idea of what “is” means?

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on February 28, 2015 at 7:41 PM Leave a Comment

—— Life Issues Seminar —— March, April 2015

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on February 24, 2015 at 6:16 PM Leave a Comment

— Project Joseph Workshop — March 2015

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on February 24, 2015 at 6:07 PM Leave a Comment

Walking for Life

Every year, Respect Life hosts a “Walk for Life” at Archbishop McCarthy High School to support the Hollywood Pregnancy Center, which provides counseling, education, material assistance, and support to men and women in crisis pregnancies.

It is not uncommon for the three-hour event to witness hundreds of “walkers” who are animated by great music, refreshments, and the Holy Rosary. The event also provides an opportunity for students to earn community service hours.

This year, some of our brothers joined the Walk. It was a great time; we even made some new friends!

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on January 17, 2015 at 10:04 PM Leave a Comment

“Good night, son!”

“Pax et bonum”! I am very happy to wish you a blessed new year and to share with you the highlights of my first week of postulancy in residence at the Franciscans of Life motherhouse. I hope you like it!

It has been great to begin my residency during the Christmas season.

In retrospective, I can see I experienced both the great solemnity of the Nativity and the secular “holiday” of New Year as times of “glad tidings”, of a new beginning, as well as a reminder that Christ lives. “My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and act on it”, says the Lord. And St. Paul, who was no “forgetful listener”, would say: “I live, no longer I, but Christ lives in me”.

In short: this first week was for me the time to welcome the birth of Christ in my heart and embrace Him in my brothers.

Arriving to the motherhouse was not a new experience, but this time it took a whole new aspect. I wasn’t just visiting. I was at home, now.

After settling in, I was invited to go to evening mass at the nearby parish of St Boniface. It felt great to begin this way. As Brother Jay always reminds us, “everything begins at the beginning”. I was very happy to attend this mass with my brothers and to pray Vespers with them afterwards, before the Blessed Sacrament.

This would be the first “in residence” taste of the fraternal liturgical life. Little did I know (I say this with great joy!) that this would become the “heart and soul”of my daily life of love!

The life in fraternity is “in common” in many ways. We strive to serve one another and to meet each other’s needs. We all seek to love and be loved, and in the life of the regular brothers we are always attentive to each other’s needs for spiritual support, safety, and affection.

The common life is also very practical. Our community embraces early Franciscan poverty in which the brothers did not just share common property. We simply have what is strictly necessary. For this purpose, Father Superior worked right away on the motherhouse weekly schedule to meet the needs of a postulant student brother and assure that I can continue my formation while pursuing my first doctoral degree – all the while living the peaceful and joyful life of penance of the Franciscans of Life.

My days begin at the “cella” (pronounced like “shell”), where I sleep “at a pillow’s distance” from Father Superior. It is always a joyful experience, as we encounter one another in awakening and, shortly afterwards, our Lord in the prayer of Lauds.

Due to the diminute size of the “cella”, the brothers must take turns; one brother takes care of the beds while the other lights the candles at our little prayer table, before the icon of the Immaculate and the crucifix of San Damiano. It is here that we keep the prayer intentions entrusted to us. On one day in which my turn came around for the latter and I was particularly sleepy, I recalled the words of an earlier liturgical reading: “Awake, sleeper!”. For a moment, I thought I could feel the Lord’s eyes on me…but when I turned around, I realized it was Father’s glance! “Are you done waking up, or do you need a hand?” 🙂

Having warmed up the soul with prayer, we take care of the rest with breakfast (and, not uncommonly, some laughter!) On more than one occasion I “showcased my cooking skills” by preparing some awesome toasts with coffee (although I ought to admit that the greater merit goes to the new toaster oven that we recently received from a kind benefactor).

What happens in the mornings depends on the daily schedule.

Most weekdays we coordinate our schedules for academics and apostolate, and we often share the community car by planning our daily trip accordingly. Several days, however, the morning begins with a formation class in topics such as spiritual theology, sacred liturgy, and Franciscan studies.

Saturday is dedicated in a particular way to prayer and to taking care of the motherhouse. Once a month, we dedicate it to a full day of prayer and recollection. This week, however, was my opportunity to “brush up” my broom and mop skills 😉

Sunday is our family day. Usually, we begin the day by going to the nearby parish of St. Maximilian Kolbe to attend mass.

Once a month, however, we also travel to Miami, to the mission of Sts. Francis and Clare, where I serve as acolyte for the local Latin Mass Community. While we worship in community in the Ordinary Form of the Roman Rite, Father Superior and the brothers know that I have been an E.F. altar server for several years with great joy and to my spiritual benefit. They have kindly accommodated for me to be able to continue to do so without turning the extraordinary into the norm.

The weekday afternoon usually includes some free time for spiritual reading, private prayer, a walk around the lake, and (for me, in a special way) time for homework. This doesn’t mean I am “off the hook” for an afternoon formation class, however! 🙂

Saturday afternoon is often the occasion to buy the necessary groceries for the week and take care of the needs of our lovely companions Max and Tasha.

On Family Day, it is not uncommon to spend the afternoon at a nearby park, alternating times of prayerful contemplation to times of joy and fun.

The evening is usually marked by attending daily Mass followed by Vespers, in turn followed by supper.

Something beautiful happens on Monday evenings, as the regular and secular brothers gather for the weekly “chapter”. This is one of my favorite experiences of our fraternity life – to welcome all the brothers and be welcomed with a warm embrace, and then pray Vespers together, receive formation, plan our joint efforts in our common service to the voiceless, and also share weekly experiences.

It is written: “How good and how pleasant it is, when brothers dwell together as one!” This is exactly what I experience at our “family meetings”, as the secular brothers, who are husbands and fathers, enrich us with the experience of a Catholic family life, and at the same time allow us to share with them the fruits of peace and good that we find in the celibate life in community.

At the end, Father Superior sends the secular brothers back to their families with a warm embrace. This is a very moving moment, but it is also a reminder that I must retreat to the “cella”, for this evening is the time for the regular brothers to have the Chapter of Faults. The regular brothers recollect, as Father Superior enters the cell and sits quietly. One by one, we “come into the light, that our deeds may be manifested”.

When my turn comes, I kneel before Father Superior, entrusting myself to his justice and mercy, and opening myself to my brothers, as I accuse myself of my faults against the Holy Rule and our Constitutions. After receiving Father Superior’s firm but gentle correction, I prostrate before the Crucified Lord and, arms outstretched, I recite my Confiteor. As I hear Father’s words “Arise, in the name of the Lord”, and I sit down amidst my brothers, I have the unshakable certainty that despite my limitations, my Superior and my brothers still love me. As Brother Leo steps forward, I glance at the eyes of the Crucified. Those eyes, and the peace in my heart, are enough to make me wish to leap for joy. But I remain recollected, as I recall the words of our Holy Father St. Francis: “Let us begin, for up to now we have done nothing.”

The night finishes with a visit to His Majesty, who in the Blessed Sacrament awaits for us at the St. Francis chapel of a nearby parish.

Before walking into the chapel, Father Superior guides us through a review of our day. This is one of the most meaningful times of the day for me, as I can rejoice at the good experiences of the day and analyze missed opportunities to encounter and serve Christ, in order to see what got in the way and what can I do better.

After a time of adoration, we lift our cowls and we let the words of Compline echo silently before His face: “Lord, now you let your servant go in peace…”.

We return to the motherhouse and retreat into our “cella”, our beloved cloister. Lights go off. I lay down in bed “and sleep comes at once”. It’s been a good day, I tell myself. The night is silent. I thank God for the present moment, for the love, and for the gift of a life of penance in service to the voiceless.

And just as I am about to fall asleep, a pillow hits me. “Good night, son!”

Br. Bernardo, FFV

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on January 15, 2015 at 1:34 PM Leave a Comment

Can you help?

First of all, we would like to wish everyone of our friends a Merry Christmas and a Blessed New Year. As we go through the Christmas season, let us remember the true meaning of this joyous occasion. This was not just another historical birth. This was the historical birth of our God
and Savior. He came to us as a real person in real time to offer Himself as the perfect sacrifice for our redemption.

Secondly, the Franciscans of Life would like to make an appeal for your help. We need to fix some things around the house and replace others. We do not charge for our services to those in crisis pregnancies, the immigrant poor or those who are terminally ill. Like our father St. Francis before us, we depend on Divine Providence to provide for us. God has never let us down. He has always provided for us through you, our friends.

Here’s the situation we have.

Our toaster is broken. One has to stand by holding down the slider or it will not toast. A replacement will cost us about $15.00 to $20.00.

One of our brothers is sleeping on a mattress with a flat side and it’s beginning to affect his sciatica. We need about $160.00 to replace it. It’s a very old mattress, about 15 years old. It was donated to us many years ago.

Finally, we have a leak from the air conditioning unit, which is upstairs. The water has caused a hole to open up over the kitchen table. We have been keeping a pot under the hole to catch the drip until we get enough money to fix the damaged pipe and replace the piece of the ceiling. Repairing the pipe, closing the opening in the ceiling and painting will cost over $200.00 that we don’t have.

In all, we need to raise about $380. While we would rather not bother our friends, we have few resources. St. Francis taught us to apply to the table of the Lord in such situations; therefore, we are reaching out to you.

As superior, I am responsible for the health, education and welfare of my brothers. Currently, one of our brothers is working on his PhD, which is a rather expensive proposition. We’re very proud of him. He’s not only a remarkable brother, he’s also a brilliant student and we love him very much. His education will save many lives. Other brothers bring no income from their apostolic work. Your support is a much needed blessing.

If you can afford to donate something, please help us. You can donate using PayPal or check. All donations are tax deductible as Franciscans of Life are a 501(c)3.

May God bless you for your generosity!

Click on “gifts” on the right hand column or go to

http://www.franciscansoflife.org/HowToHelp.html

Published in:

on January 1, 2015 at 3:39 PM Comments Off

As He is in the light . . .

The Franciscans of Life have had an exciting week. It all began with Brother Bernardo arriving at the mother house on Sunday and Brother Leo Belanger on Monday. Both are in different stages of formation, but in formation nonetheless. It is exciting to watch our little family grow. We began with two brothers, of which only one has persevered. But today there are many more of us. With the grace of God, more will follow.

Brother Jay attended mass in the Extraordinary Form at the Mission Chapel Sts. Francis and Clare, the patriarch and matriarch of the Franciscan family. Contrary to what some extreme Traditionalist bloggers are saying about Franciscans, the people at the mission were very happy to see two Franciscans in the congregation. They were very gracious and welcoming. Some thanked Father Superior for allow the brothers to attend the TLM.

We don’t attend mass in the extraordinary form as the norm. Our constitutions are very clear,

That which is extraordinary cannot be imposed on the brothers, nor may the brothers choose to make it the norm. The brothers are bound to think with the Church. As long as this form is extraordinary, the brothers shall make use of it as such.

However, the constitution is very clear that there is no prohibition on the brothers attending the mass in the old form, as long as every brother in the house agrees to attend. Liturgy is central to the fraternal life. On Sunday, the Lord gifted us with a very nice liturgy and many new friends. I think that we will be going back to visit Saints Francis and Clare Mission, especially because we have brothers who are attached to the Latin Mass Community and to the TLM. Currently, the plan is to attend once a month. Plans are never written in stone. It can be more or less frequently in the future. Man proposes and God disposes.

On Monday night, the secular and the regular brothers gathered at St. Maximilian Kolbe Catholic Church in Pembroke Pines for the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception where we celebrated a beautiful mass in the Ordinary Form. At the end of mass, Rev. Giovanni Peña, Vicar at St. Maxx, blessed the Miraculous Medals and the brothers, after Brother Jay had led them in the consecration to the Immaculate, as prescribed by St. Maximilian Kolbe.

It was a beautiful event. There were professed brothers present, novices, postulants and aspirants. It was just absolutely awesome to have our entire family consecrated to the Immaculate at the same time. I think that the most beautiful part of it, along with the consecration to the Immaculate, is the fact that all of our brothers are friends. We’re not just a group of random individuals who came together to start a new branch of the Franciscan family. I prefer to believe that we are a family that St. Francis has adopted and presented to the Immaculate for her care and protection.

Tuesday morning, Brother Jay awoke with a heck of a cold. His head felt as if it were the size of a melon. Staying awake was very difficult. Even being sick was a beautiful experience. The brothers took very good care of their father superior. They brought him breakfast in bed. While everyone went about his business, Brother Leo (just like the original) sat with the superior making him tea and bringing him toast with cheese and honey. It was awesome.
Wednesday night was a very interesting night. If our detachment from material things was ever put to the test, it was Wednesday. Two brothers went to the local perpetual adoration chapel just a few blocks from the mother house. Before they left their car, a rather loud noise was heard. Brother Jay thought that one of those pesky critters had knocked off another coconut from an adjacent palm tree and that we had been hit. Brother Bernardo thought that we had been shot at. He propped the door open and peeked. At that point, Brother Jay asked him what he was looking for and Brother Bernardo explained, to which Brother Jay responded, “When someone is shooting at you, you don’t get up to check out who it is. You duck, not stand.” There were no snipers to be seen. However, the rear glass of the car came crashing down into a million pieces of what can be falsely sold as diamonds. I had never seen glass in such small pieces. Of course, it was the coldest night of the cold_thermometer year in South Florida, with temperatures in the 40s.

To us, 40 degrees is a big deal. Realizing that we had no protection from the cold, Brother Jay proceeded to have a word with the Lord. “Did you have to pick the coldest night of the year? No wonder you don’t have many friends.”

But that didn’t stop the adorers. They left the car parked, with a big opening in the back and went into the Blessed Sacrament Chapel that remains open 24/7. There they spent a good 45 minutes with His Majesty.

This is also finals week at the local universities. We have a few brothers who are students. This is a stressful week for them. You would have never known it. They were so involved with their brothers, with the Lord and His Blessed Mother that they had everything in order on time. They prayed. They talked, played, sang songs and played games for our Immaculate Mother. We were able to ask her for the gift of inner peace and silence, rather than ask her for a specific grade. At the end of the day, one’s degree does not get us past the front door in heaven. What will get us through will be the love that we have shown to Christ, His mother and to all of those around us, especially under stress. It was beautiful to hear one brother say to another, “Please be patient with me. I’m in exam week,” and the other brother responding. “Just tell me what to do.”

One of the brothers is spending Thursday and Friday night with his biological family. Brother Jay drove him into the city, but not in the car with the broken rear glass. We had to rent another vehicle. By evening time, there were texts flying around between the brothers asking for prayers for sick relatives and friends, telling each other how much they appreciated being together on Monday evening and telling each other how much they miss the other. It all reminds me of St. John who said,

“if we walk in the light as he is in the light, then we have fellowship with one another.”

Published in:

on December 11, 2014 at 10:58 PM Leave a Comment

Franciscans of Life

Vita ad vitam vocat

Holy Week: a time to choose

Palm Sunday

Meet Our New Postulant

New Secular Franciscan of Life

Holy Week: time to reach out

[How to Help]

Transformation

True and charitable obedience — pleasing to God and neighbor

Upon this “quarry” I will build my Church?

—— Life Issues Seminar —— March, April 2015

— Project Joseph Workshop — March 2015

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As He is in the light . . .

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