Video: A Year with the Franciscans of Life


Published in: on April 11, 2016 at 11:48 PM  Leave a Comment  

Wait for us in Eternity


MOTHER ANGELICA

The Franciscans of Life give thanks to Almighty God for having called another holy Franciscan to Himself.

We mourn the loss of a heroic and exemplary Franciscan in this life; but we celebrate her entrance into eternal life.  We offer prayers for the repose of her soul and we count on her prayers for our salvation.

Run Mother . . .

and don’t look back!

Published in: on March 29, 2016 at 1:30 PM  Leave a Comment  

Celibacy: a Jewel of Great Price


The question has often been raised by parents and friends. “Why would a ‘normal’ healtFrancis_and_Pietro_Bernardonehy man choose celibacy and chastity over a woman?” Another popular question, “How can you live without a woman?”
There are people who believe that such men do harm to themselves and eventually to others by engaging in gay sex or pedophilia. Nothing can be farther from the truth. There are married men who engage in both behaviors. Neither promiscuity nor marriage are “cures” for gay sex or pedophilia. In fact, these two behaviors do not belong in the same sentence, because they are not related.

To understand celibate chastity one has to understand love, marriage, and covenant. The man who chooses a celibate chaste life is not running away from marriage, love, and commitment. He is turning to something that he has found, that being the jewel of great price. He is overwhelmed by the love of God.

HeFrancis_leper can love another person and be intimate. However, when he experiences the love of God, he is filled with peace, interior silence, joy, and courage that he has never experienced. His life is different and he wants more. He cannot turn back to the love and intimacy of human romance, not because human romance is bad, but because he has found something even better than good. He has found Him who is the perfect lover: God.

When he compares his current state with his previous life, he discovers new things about himself. The first thing he discovers is that he has a courage that he never knew he had. He can stand up to those who try to control him. He is no longer afraid of bullies. And he makes choices and takes risks that he never took before.
Secondly, he finds that those romantic feelings he once had were truly beautiful and profound shadows of what consecrated life would later offer. Those experiences foreshadowed his romance with God.

Francis_blessingHow does he know this? He no longer question himself or his relationship. He is truly loved by God and he freely returns that love. He no longer wonders whether his beloved will change his mind. His relationship is no longer about liking what he feels or what the other feels for him.

His relationship with God is dynamic, because it is about surprises. God surprises him by filling his time, so that time seems to stand still God also surprises him when he looks back on his life and sees how much he has grown and how far he has moved from where he was.

Former relationships are now the old school where he learned the joys and sorrows of love. Now he feels ready and willing to live with the joys and tears that are part of loving God and being intimately loved by Him. Those old relationships were a training ground for what was to come.

One does not choose chastity and celibacy because he failed at romance, though it may have felt that way in the past. In hindsight, we realize that the past taught us that we could experience the joys and tears of love and continue loving and giving ourselves by the grace of the Beloved with whom we finally settle down.

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What happens to a man who enters the Franciscans of Life?


To answer the first question, NOTHING.  We stopped torturing people a long time ago.  Having said that, you may find that you go through a transformation that you never thought was possible.  “I can never do that.”  Many people say.

The first thing one learns is to share.  For us, this means living in very small spaces.  You thought that an airplane bathroom was small?  Check out our sleeping arrangements.

WP_20160201_009These are our sleeping quarters, also called cells.  No brother owns anything, not even a room of his own.  A large room is divided by curtains, as you would see in a hospital.  Behind each curtain there are two beds for two brothers, bunks.  There is an aisle along the length of the bed that is 18 inches wide and another curtain, behind which there is another cell with two more beds the same size.  The brothers always remember Jesus’ words, “The Son of Man has no place to lay his head.”

WP_20160201_004Every brother is assigned a flat sheet and a single blanket.  We use only what we need, not what we like.  We don’t use comforters or fancy bedspreads.  The money that can be spent on those items can just as easily be put into our apostolate among the voiceless, even if it’s just paying for gas to get from point A to point B.  After a few days, one becomes so accustomed to this arrangement, that we no longer miss our old bedroom in our former home.  The community house becomes home and the cells become our bedrooms; but they are more than that.  It is here that we experience the intimacy and poverty of the fraternal life that St. Francis so loved.  Like Christ and his Apostles and like Francis and the early brothers who shared huts, the brothers practice charity and detachment.

The cells are in the enclosed part of the house where no outsiders may enter, male nor female, not even our moms.  While in the cells, we avoid unnecessary conversation so that in solitude and silence the soul may be more attentive to the voice of God speaking from within.  The cell and the enclosure are only external reminders of an internal attitude that every brother should have.  Each of us carries within him an interior cloister where only the soul and God interact.  This awareness is the summit of poverty, when you own nothing, not even your inner space . . . everything belongs to the Beloved.

WP_20160130_004In the sleeping area there is always a small oratory.  An oratory is not a chapel.  The Blessed Sacrament is not reserved there.  Oratory comes from the Latin word oratio, meaning to speak and to pray.  Oremus,”Let us pray.  Let us speak with God.”   The brothers last conversation before retiring is with Jesus and His Immaculate Mother.  His first conversation of the day is also with the beloved Mother and Son.  During the day, the brother sneaks into the oratory, like a lover sneaking along the hedges to have a quiet words with his sweetheart.  Christ and the Immaculate are our sweethearts.

TUNIC_SMOCKWe don’t have closets, since we don’t have many clothes.  We share a row of hooks where we hang up our formal and work habits.  We also have a pair of grey pants and a grey banded shirt.  Here you see a typical work habit for a postulant.  Novices and professed brothers wear it with a cord or without a cord, depending on the task at hand.  The work habit it short.  It does not reach the knees.  It’s our version of grunge clothing.  Nothing is ever wasted.  Our Constitution reminds us that like  St. Francis, we follow the poor and suffering Christ who walked to Calvary in  shredded clothes, except for his sacred seamless tunic.  When a garment is too damaged to wear, it is cut up and used to patch up other work habits.  It is not unusual to see our brothers wearing patches on their work habits or displaying grease stains from an engine.  These stains are tough to wash out.  But we manage.WP_20141209_001 (1)  We don’t have cooks or housekeepers.  Those are chores that we do ourselves.  The brothers take turns cooking, scrubbing and cleaning.  Those brothers who have never done it before or don’t know how are taught by more experienced brothers.  WP_20151212_004St. Francis said that we are to be “minors”.   During the Italian Middle Ages there was a social class known as the Minores.  It seems that these men and women were of the lower class of serfs and peasants.  Even among the peasants, there was social stratification.  Christ reminds us that we have been sent to serve, not to be served.  “Go out and do what I have done for you.”

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It’s time to leave.  A brother may be going to class at the university, while another is going to the hospital or to hospice and another brother is on his way to do counseling or education with dads in crisis pregnancies or going to visit a newborn baby that was going to be aborted.  The brother is always there to say “Hi Little One”BABY M-2 (2)

Life calls out to life  We even have two pups.  The black and brown handsome fellow is Max, named after St. Maximilian Kolbe. max_and_tasha The little fawn cutie is Tasha, named after a character on Star Trek Generations.  Yes, we have former Trekkies among us.  The brothers may not watch television.  Start Trek is out of the question.  Besides, who has time.

No day is complete without prayer and the
Holy Eucharist.Archbishop Thomas Wenski celebrates Mass for Nascent Life

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In between we manage to insert
an hour of private prayer at 5:30 AM, the Liturgy of the Hours: morning, midday, evening, night and midnight.  There is always time for the Holy Rosary.

profession of vows

I VOW AND PROMISE . . .

Dancing Friar

COME AND SEE

Brother Bernardo Makes Vows


After three months as an aspirant, three months as a postulant and 12 months as a novice, Brother Bernardo D’Carmine made temporary vows as a Franciscan of Life.

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The vows are obedience, poverty, chastity and a fourth vow to proclaim the Gospel of Life.  Brother made vows during a solemn celebration of evening prayer (vespers) on January 18, 2016 at St. Maximilian Kolbe Chapel in Pembroke Pines, Florida.

Presiding over the Liturgy of the Hours was Rev. Mr. Scott Joiner.  Deacon Scott also preached the “exhortation” reminding us all that one man’s conversion can change the Church and history, referring to the Seraphic Father, St. Francis of Assisi. DSC_0027

The first step is to embrace the poverty of Christ and his most blessed mother.  He also reminded the Franciscans of Life that we are an outgrowth of a long and venerable family that is more than 800 years old, with more than 100 different congregations, orders, societies and institutes.  Today, there are almost one million Franciscan men and women around the world, secular and religious, lay and cleric, men and women.  It all began with one man who responded to Christ’s call to “rebuild his house.”

Deacon Scott witnessed the profession, but he did not receive the vows.  Brother Jay Rivera, superior of the Franciscans of Life, received the vows.   Mrs. Tina Handal led the singing with the litany of Franciscan saints and blessed.  She did an outstanding job for the Lord and the community that was present.  She has an incredible spirituality and a voice that expresses it beautifully.    Extern brother, Chris Handal and regular brother, Leo Belanger were the witnesses to the profession.  Present were friends of DSC_0073Brother Bernardo’s from his days at university, other friends from the area and his mother, Mrs. Angela Torres.  The group was small.  The ceremony was simple, dignified, reverent and above all, prayerful.

Brother Bernardo will continue graduate studies in computer science, computer engineering, theology and philosophy.  In addition, during the period of temporary vows, the brother continues his Franciscan formation with studies in Franciscan history, spirituality, rule and constitutions, Franciscan pastoral practices, and Sacred Scripture.  Along with classes at the university, several hours per week active in the apostolate, a life in community, the brother is also homeschooled in Franciscan studies and Scripture. The years as a “student-brother,” as we call those in temporary vows, are very busy and exciting years.  The most exciting part of all is the brother’s knowledge that his life now belongs to Christ and to the voiceless.

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Litany of Saints

Published in: on January 19, 2016 at 8:18 PM  Leave a Comment  

Let God do the driving


As everyone who follows us on our blog or on Facebook knows, we were in desperate need of a car.  Our car was totaled on December 26.  A few days after the accident, I remembered something that St. Francis said in his Testament.

Let those who know not [how to work] learn, not through desire to receive the price of labor but for the sake of example and to repel idleness. And when the price of labor is not given to us, let us have recourse to the table of the Lord, begging alms from door to door.

I know that we do not bring in enough money to purchase a car, not even a used one.  Other than a few hundred dollars from the insurance company, we had nothing.

However, God will never be outdone in generosity and in pity for us.  I remembered this passage from the Testament and decided to beg for help.

In less than 24 hours after posting our cry for help, we received three offers to help us.  The first was from an old friend who said, “I have a car that I want to give to you.”   Imagine our joy when we heard this good news.  But there is more . . .

An hour later, a dealer who supports our work for the Gospel of Life called me.  “Brother, I can help you.”

The next morning we received an email from another generous person.  “Pick the car you want.  I’ll pay for it.”

All of this is leading somewhere, so please stay with me.  The Franciscans of Life have just finished a three month process during which we reviewed our constitutions and did some editing for greater clarification.  The chapter on poverty required the greatest amount of attention.  For greater clarity we inserted an article into the chapter on poverty.

The brothers shall own only one car per house.  They may not own a new car, nor an old car that is commonly used by the wealthy.  They are to acquire used cars, either through their effort or the generosity of others.  Let these vehicles be such that they conform to what the working man or woman in the lower economic sectors would drive.  Let them not use said vehicles for recreation.  They are tools for service to the voiceless.

We now had an interesting situation.  We had a vendor who was willing to give us a very generous deal on a used car.  There was a benefactor who wanted to purchase a car of our choosing and there was the father of a family who was offering his car as a gift.

We, the brothers, discussed what to do and which offer to accept.  It was finally decided that the superior should decide.  I hate it when the brothers do that.  😦  Guess who has to decide?  😀

The question on the table was, “What would be the most natural for a poor man?”

This was easy.  People don’t usually call the poor and offer to purchase a vehicle of their choice for them.  That offer was now off the table; although we are very grateful.  The poor don’t get telephone calls from dealers offering them a bargain on a car, simply because they’re poor.  I wish this would happen more often.  Unfortunately, it does not happen often enough.  That offer was off the table as well.

This left one offer on the table.  The older family car that was offered to us free of charge.  I remembered that the first car I ever owned was a hand-me-down from my sister.  I was broke.  The only thing that I could afford was that old car.

The end of the story is that we have a car and it’s beautiful.  It’s a 2004 Dodge Grand Caravan with 156,000 miles and a few dents and scratches on the outside, but it’s perfect under the hood.

Here are the pictures.

There are several other dimensions to this story.

First:  The brother who was involved in the accident in one of our novices who is about to make vows this week.  The car was totaled; but Brother walked away without a scratch, not even a headache.  Not only was he not hurt, he was smiling when he arrived home.  His first words to me were, “I feel very peaceful.”  If this is not a sign of a man whom God has called to himself, I don’t know what is.

Second dimension:  During our review of the Constitutions, we asked The Immaculate to point us in the right direction.  “Are we doing the Will of God?  Is this way of life and this work what God wants from us?”  The Lord protected our novice from physical harm and blessed him with great peace and joy, despite the hardship.  Interior peace is the best sign that one is in compliance with God’s Will.

Finally, the third dimension to this story, without the car, our student brothers cannot travel to the university.  We cannot continue our work in hospice, pregnancy centers, university campus, religious education and among the immigrant poor.  We live in an area where public transportation is very poor.  It would take two hours to get to the university using public transit, when it takes 25 minutes by car.  A brother would spend four hours on the road to go to a class.  This is time that has to be stolen from prayer, community, and apostolate.

Not only did God’s providence come through for us through the generosity of others; but he confirmed us in our vocation.  God does not provide transportation to go where he does not want us to do so.

The last thing for today, we need to do some body work on the car.  We have $1,300.00.  We need about another $500.00.  If you can spare $1.00, it would help.  If you know someone who does body work in the Fort Lauderdale area and can hook us up with a good price, that would be very helpful.

While we’re on the subject of money.  We want to thank everyone who donates to Franciscans of Life.  Every month, we manage to reach the necessary dollar amount to pay our rent and utilities for that month.  Isn’t that awesome.  🙂

“Come to Bethlehem and see / Christ Whose birth the angels sing!”


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Nativity scene at St. Maximilian Kolbe Catholic Church

The Franciscans of Life wish to extend to you our most sincere hope for a peaceful and joyous Christmas!

Christmas is a very special time in the life of mankind, because it sets into motion the fulfillment of the Covenants that the Lord had made with Israel at different times before pre-Christian history.

Th12313767_1724552867778905_4437807418574257125_ne Incarnation and the Virgin Birth set into motion the journey to Calvary and our redemption.

Our holy father St. Francis was sensitive to the connection between Christmas and the Pasch of the Christ. He sets up the first creche, not because Christmas is the center of our Faith, but it is the first step in the final chapter of the Covenant, which was fulfilled during the Easter triduum.

As we enter the Christmas season let us remember that Christmas is not an end. Rather, it is the beginning of the journey to Good Friday and Easter.

Let us begin. Up to now we have done nothing.

– St. Francis

The Franciscans of Life will remember your intentions at Midnight mass. If you have a special intention, you can email it to us, and your communique will remain strictly confidential: email

Have a grace filled Christmas!

Nativity scene at our mother house

The Brothers

GAUDETE


advent wreathAs we prepare for Christmas Day, many small, but wonderful things are happening in our community.  Probably the most exciting is the fact that we held a chapter and Brother Bernardo D’Carmine’s request to make vows as a regular brother was accepted by the chapter and ratified by the superior.  A regular brother is one who makes vows, lives a celibate life in community and follows a monastic schedule during the day.  An extern brother is one who makes a solemn promise to observe the rule and constitutions.  However, he remains in the world  This can be a diocesan deacon or priest, a married layman or a single man who is hoping to marry.

Brother Bernardo will profess vows of obedience, poverty, chastity and free service to the Gospel of Life on January 18, 2016, just one month away.  The profession will take place at 7:45PM in the Blessed Sacrament Chapel of St. Maximilian Kolbe Church.  Rev. Mr. Scott Joiner will preside over the solemn vesper service and Father Superior will receive Brother Bernardo’s vows.

I regret that I cannot extend an open invitation.  Profession of temporary vows usually takes place in a private setting with the immediate family, the brothers and two friends of the newly professed.

Some of you may be curious as to what happens at this ceremony.  There are several parts.  Let me walk you through them.

One:  After the opening of solemn evening prayer, the superior calls up the candidate and asks him what he wants, to which the novice responds that he wishes to consecrate his life to Christ, the Immaculate and to the Church.

Two:  The Liturgy of the Hours continues as usual.  If it’s not a required feast day, the brothers pray the Office of the Passion composed by Saint Francis and approved by the Church for public use.

Three: After the psalms there are two readings, one from an epistle and one from the Gospel.

Four:  The superior again invites the novice to come up to the sanctuary and proceeds to interrogate him on his faith.  This is extremely important, because Francis clearly said that no one may be admitted to the fraternity unless he is truly Catholic.  The novice must proclaim that he believes and obeys without question, everything that the Church teaches.

Five:  The novice now returns to his seat and the cleric proceeds to deliver the homily.

Six:  After the homily, the novice quietly walks up to the superior who is seated on a special chair in the sanctuary and says, “Father, please pray that I may do the will of God.”  He then prostrates on the floor while the other brothers sing the litany of the Franciscan saints.

Seven:  Having finished the litany, the novice kneeprofession of vowsls with hands in the superior’s hand.  The superior asks him, “Are you firmly resolved to live the Gospel walking in the footsteps of St. Francis under the protection of the Immaculate.”

The novice answers in the affirmative and the superior encourages him to profess his vows.

The novice says:

I, Brother N, vow and promise to almightly God, the Immaculate Virgin Mary, our holy father Saint Francis and to you Father, to observe, for three years, the Rule of the Brothers and Sisters of Penance and the constitutions of this society, living in obedience, without property, in celibate chastity and I also vow to freely proclaim the Gospel of Life.  May God be my judge.

The superior responds:

May the Holy Spirit, who has begun this work in you bring it to fruition and may the Immaculate Mother of God lead you into the presence of her divine son.

The newly professed brother stands and the superior removes his wooden Tau cross and replaces it with a brass Tau cross.  He turns toward the congregation and recites the Magnificat; “My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord . . . . “

The brother then proceeds to the altar where he will sign the profession book and his signature is witnessed by one of his parents, two brothers and the superior.  He then goes to the front of the sanctuary where he will receive the embrace of peace from those gathered for the ceremony.

Eight:  Now the Liturgy of the Hours continues as usual.  Just before the final blessing, the superior says a few words to the brother and those in the congregation.

Because Franciscans of Life is a private association of the faithful, with the blessing of the Archbishop of Miami, Archbishop Thomas G. Wenski, these vows are considered private vows.  We pray for more vocations so that when we have the required number of brothers, the Church may elevate us to a public association of the faithful and eventually to a congregation.  So, please pray with us for more vocations.

We want to congratulate Brother and tell everyone how proud we are of him.   Brother has distinguished himself in the quest for virtue, life of prayer, love for his brothers and service to the voiceless.  He gives talks, organizes educational events on the Right to Be Born, and collects other people’s treasures to sell at a flea market to help support us and our work.  He also teachers religious education and is founding a group of Young Franciscans for Life with college students.  Brother is also a full-time graduate student and a researcher at a leading university.

Postulant Novice

From postulant to novice, soon to be professed

Let us remain united in prayer as we proceed toward Christmas and let keep Brother in prayer as he completes his last month of novitiate.

Published in: on December 16, 2015 at 3:04 PM  Leave a Comment  

First time in Miami: Respect Life Hispanic Conference


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On Saturday, November 7, the Franciscans of Life attended the Second Statewide Respect Life Hispanic Conference. This is the first Hispanic pro-life conference to take place in the Archdiocese of Miami. The location – Immaculate Conception Catholic Church – was no coincidence: Hialeah is the city with the highest number of abortions in the State of Florida, and the Catholic pro-life efforts in its territory are still limited.

Featuring an impressive panel of speakers, the Conference covered topics such as: “Christian Matrimony: God’s master plan”, “The truth on abortion”, “Recovery after abortion”, “The ethical care of human life from conception to natural death”, “Moral medical methods for the treatment of infertility”, “Spiritual and practical support for couples suffering infertility”, and “Plan of action for the family”.

Hispanic_Conference_talkOne of the talks was titled: “Project Joseph – for fathers”. This was the first time that we presented in Spanish the work carried out in Project Joseph – a joint effort between the Franciscans of Life and Respect Life Ministry Archdiocese of Miami to serve fathers in unexpected pregnancies.

The talk was delivered by our Father Superior, Br. Jay, who founded the program 6 years ago and currently directs it. He was accompanied by Br. Bernardo, Project Joseph mentor at the North Dade Pregnancy Help Center.

The talk – which we will feature in an upcoming article – began by describing how Project Joseph is relevant to the Ibero-American culture, in which too often women, and particularly mothers, are treated as if they were servants or nannies, rather than with the respect they deserve. This leads to the development of dysfunctional environments. As a consequence, there are many situations in which few rights are recognized to the women but many burdens are imposed on her if she becomes a mother, while the father on the other hand retains many rights and few responsibilities. On this note, the origin of Project Joseph were described.

(c) Ana Rodriguez-Soto | FC

(c) Ana Rodriguez-Soto | FC

“Don’t let me catch you talking badly about my Project Joseph dads!”, admonished Br. Jay. “These men are good people. Project Joseph offers them the opportunity to mature and grow as men and as fathers.”  Over 200 fathers have participated and become mature men, responsible and prepared to face the challenges of life.

Br. Jay mentioned that the success of the Project is due to the intercession of St. Joseph, patron of all fathers. His role in the Holy Family, described in a few examples, shows why it is so important to help these men walk in the footsteps of St. Joseph.  The Franciscan charism is also behind the success of Project Joseph, a charism that originates in the Seraphic Father and finds worthy example in the martyr St. Maximilian Kolbe, patron of the pro-life movement.

It was a beautiful, well organized, well attended event. We were glad to be there and have a table set aside for us to raise awareness of the work carried out by the FFV.

Hispanic_Conference_tableOur apostolate to the preborn children and their parents has developed significantly through Project Joseph, and we are particularly interested in recruiting Hispanic or bi-lingual mentors, since many of our dads speak Spanish as their primary language. However, we also serve the chronically and terminally ill and their families and caregivers, as well as the immigrant poor – populations that are very much in need of attention as we look to “The Family in light of God”.

The Conference came to a closing with Holy Mass celebrated by H.E. Thomas Wenski, Archbishop of Miami. During his homily, he underscored the important role of St. Joseph in God’s plan for the family. Here is our translation:

“The theme of this conference has been “The family in light of God.” Here, in Mary, Joseph and the child Jesus, that is, in the holy family, we see reflected God’s plan for the family when there is no stain of sin.

May the prayers and example of the Jesus’ parents strengthen today’s parents in their efforts to raise their children according to God’s will. In thefulfillment of His plan of salvation for mankind, God did not need the participation of Joseph to create the child Jesus. Nevertheless, God decided that the help of Joseph was indeed necessary in raising the holy child. Joseph, as chaste spouse of the Virgin Mary, played an indispensable role in the life of Jesus as his foster father. He was not an absent or indifferent father. In fact, to him was entrusted the safety and well-being of Mary and of Jesus. We see this in the episode of the flight to Egypt. We perceive this in the narration of the child lost and found in the temple of Jerusalem. We can deduce that Joseph played a crucial role in the life of Jesus before he began his public life by the fact that his fellow citizens knew him as “the son of the carpenter”.

God wanted the best for his Son, and thus made it possible for Mary to marry Joseph, for only matrimony ensures the commitment between the parents and for the children. The children are raised better when the effort is carried out by a father and a mother. Thus was then and thus is now: every child needs a father, every child deserves a father – a father like Joseph. For this reason, the Church proposes the family of Nazareth as a model; and if for some reason our earthly family does not count with the presence of a mother or father, the Church invites us to count on Mary and Joseph. They will not disappoint us.”

The event was featured on the Archdiocesan News. Click here to read the article, which features the Project Joseph talk.

If you wish to see some more pictures, courtesy of Respect Life Ministry Archdiocese of Miami, follow this link 🙂

If you have any questions or comments, feel free to reach out to us! We will be glad to help you explore and discern if the Lord is inviting you to proclaim the Gospel of life with us.

FFV Highlights


Pax et bonum!

The past few months have been quite busy 🙂 We wish to share with you some highlights, hoping that you will enjoy them and pray for us! Also pray for vocations. The Year of Consecrated Life is not over yet. Could the Lord be inviting you to build with us in the footsteps of St. Francis…?

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The regular brothers wear the “corona” as a sign of consecrated celibacy.

 

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Extern Brother Chris Thomas More (right) renewed his Solemn Promise, and Regular Brother Leo (center) made his First Profession.

 

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In September we celebrated the birthday of Father Superior by throwing a “surprise puppy”… 😉

 

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We crafted our first holy cards featuring a statue of St. Joseph donated to us by a generous benefactress. Some of the cards were blessed in Philadelphia by the Holy Father.

 

 

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We went in pilgrimage to D.C. and Philadelphia following the footsteps of the Holy Father. In the picture: Pope Francis preaches the homily at the closing of World Meeting of Families.

 

 

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On the evening of October 3rd we celebrated the Transitus of our Seraphic Father, St. Francis outside of our mother house.

 

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The brothers worked hard to raise funds at the Flea Market of St. Maximilian Kolbe Catholic Church. Most of the objects were donated to us for this purpose!

 

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Tailor and cobbler workshop at the mother house 🙂 In the pictures, a brother sows a pair of pants and admires its seam, then proceeds to repair some sandals.

 

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A big “thank you” to the generous donor who helped us purchase much-needed front tires for the community car!

 

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Boo! 😀 On Halloween we “dressed up” the front door of the mother house for the joy of the little children who live in the neighborhood.

 

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Franciscans of Life presented Project Joseph (Proyecto Jose’) at the II Respect Life Ministry Hispanic Conference.

 

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Mrs. Joan Crown, Executive Director of Respect Life Ministry Archdiocese of Miami, along with our Superior and Director of Project Joseph.

 

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Franciscans of Life attended the Ministry Fair at St. Maximilian Kolbe Catholic Church, raising awareness for Project Joseph and its great need for mentors.

 

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