Saints | Franciscans of Life

Obedience is deadly

I’ve been thinking, what can I say or write in preparation for the Solemnity of St. Francis of Assisi (October 4th) that would speak to others and would come from my heart rather than my head. Then it occurred to me to share the Lord has taught us through St. Francis. Every teaching has been a blessing.

I have to say that the most visible blessing that God has given to the world is the Franciscan family. I don’t think that anyone really knows how many sons and daughters St. Francis has. If I were to compare Francis to a biblical personality, it would be Abraham, the father of many. I think the first quality of St. Francis that I respond to is fatherhood.

This is interesting, because Francis always identified himself as our little brother. But this little brother has commanded the attention of millions of men and women around the world, not all of them Catholic. He has certainly had the obedience of thousands of men and women during the last 800 years. What makes Francis such a special man and a father figure is not that he was authoritarian or controlling. What makes him a special figure and a father is that he was respectable. Francis is credible. Credible people are respectable. He set out to live his life according to the Gospel. To everyone who came to him, he offered the Gospel. He did not impose himself on anyone. On the contrary, he was the father who guided his sons and daughters into the future.

Parents normally point to careers, education, potential spouses, hobbies, social activities and many other things that they believe will enhance the lives of their children. Francis is no different. He points to Christ and his Blessed Mother. He points to the Church. He points to prayer, penance, poverty, family, service and to the Cross.

I have often thought that Francis is like the man who has an elderly parent who may no longer be physically attractive, but he knows his parent and he knows the beauty inside. This man makes sure that his children are exposed to this grandparent, who has warts and wrinkles, is old and appears to walk a little out of step with the rest of the world. He exemplifies filial love and love that goes beyond the faults, to the heart of the other.

This is Francis relationship with the Church and his sons and daughters. In some respects, the Church can be WP_20140819_001 that grandparent that is no longer physically attractive and at times can be cranky. Just like Grandma’, she is beautiful inside and has much wisdom to pass on to us, if we open ourselves to receive it. Francis loves the Church, warts and all. He takes his sons and daughters into the heart of the Church, through example more than words. He teaches us to look beyond the surface and see the glory of the Church.

I can’t speak about Francis without speaking about family. As I said above, Francis identifies himself as everyone’s little brother. He was right to do so. You see, in a large family the youngest is usually singled out. Sometimes his older siblings will bully him and at other times they will spoil him. This certainly was the relationship that Francis had with the first generation of brothers.

Everything was not sugar and roses as some people want to make it appear. There were
brothers who worshipped the ground upon which Francis walked Brother & Tasha . There were also brothers who fought his vision of the Gospel Life tooth and nail, to the point of being mean. But like all good little brothers, Francis loved them just the same. Little brothers can often become the most forgiving persons. Francis was the brother who always forgave.

Even when his brothers were wrong, Francis maintained the clarity of mind necessary to separate between the person and the deed. I wouldn’t say that he hated the sin and loved the sinner. Francis went beyond this. He did not judge anyone to be a sinner. It would be contrary to his way of thinking to look at someone and say that he or she is a sinner whom I must love, even when he has committed a sin that I must hate. What we see in Francis’ writings and his actions is honesty. He recognized sinful deeds and he pointed them out when necessary.

His admonitions are full of sinful deeds that he notices among his brothers and sisters. poor man walking in integrity That’s why he wrote the admonitions. Why admonish those who need no admonishing? However, when one reads through the admonitions, his letters, his rules and his testament, he does not refer to a single person as a sinner, other than himself. He leaves that to God. In other words, St. Francis is a person who can teach us what belongs to God, what belongs to the Church, to the superior and to the individual. He does not cross those boundaries.

Today, we have too many people who want to make the world right by dictating to others, including correcting the Church. There is such a thing as fraternal correction, which Francis used quite often. But let’s look at his style. Look at the admonitions. He speaks about faults that are to be avoided and how they are to be rectified if they are committed. He is a brother, not a policeman. He didn’t even police his own brothers.

A brother corrects while being very careful not to cross the line and assume authority that he does not have. A brother who is faithful to the Gospel corrects without making a judgment about the state of the other person’s soul.

I want to draw attention to an aspect of him that is rarely addressed, obedience. Francis’ poverty is well known. But very little is said about Francis’ obedience and what he taught the brothers concerning obedience.

Francis knew that Christ is the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. He knew that John the Baptist is the voice who points out the Lamb of God. Each of these men had a
mission assigned to him by the Father. In both cases, the mission ended up terribly, if we measure it by human standards. Both were executed.

As tragic, as cruel and as unjust as both of these executions were, they could not be any other way, because to change the conclusion would be to thwart God’s plan for our redemption. Our loss of paradise is the product of disobedience. Recovery can only happen through obedience. Obedience goes beyond compliance. Obedience is charity. Obedience is poverty. Obedience is the greatest expression of union between the soul of man and the mind of God.

Therefore, Francis demanded that his sons and daughters obey. Above all, we are to obey God. We know when God speaks to us, because the Church confirms it for us. We can’t jump a rung on the hierarchical ladder. We seek to know the will of God in order to fulfill it. It is the Church who tells us if we’re on the right track. We can’t simply say that the will of God is X and the entire college of bishops is wrong and I’m right. It doesn’t work that way and Francis knew it. He reminds us in his Testament that the rule was of divine inspiration, not human influence. He quickly adds that he knows this because the Lord Pope confirmed it for him.

Obedience can be deadly. John lost his head. Jesus was crucified. We already mentioned this. Francis reminds us that we cannot be obedient without dying. This death is not symbolic, metaphoric or allegory. It’s very real. We die to ourselves and to many things
around us.

Francis taught us there is only one question that we need to ask. “Is this a sin?” If I’m being commanded to sin, I have a duty to disobey. However, if I’m being commanded to do something that is not a sin, even if I believe it is not the best decision made by legitimate authority, I am bound to obey. God is pleased by obedience more than by the thing that we do or not do.

Jesus said “Truly, I say to you, among those born of women there has risen no one greater than John the Baptist; yet he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he” (Matt 11:11)

John would obey, even though it would cost him his life. Jesus knew that his life would take the same turn. At some point, his obedience to the Father would cost him his life.

From a human perspective, these deaths were scandalous, because they were foolish. There was no just reason for these men to be executed. But from a divine perspective, these deaths were the greatest acts of love that the world has ever seen. When one obeys the Beloved, even unto death, there is no greater love, regardless how foolish the command. One is freely giving. No one is taking.

“No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again; this charge I have received from my Father,” (John 10:18)

Francis teaches us what he learned from Christ, “obedience, even unto death,” without murmuring and without second thoughts, obedience given, rather than compliance demanded.

Today, there is much talk about the Church and her prudential judgments. Many excuse themselves from obedience, because the Church, the bishop, the superior or the boss is less than prudent or the command is not infallible. They’re looking in the wrong direction. Francis taught us to look out for sin. If there is no sin, we turn our complete attention and gaze to what is asked of us and we respond with love for God and for the authority that God places over us.

Despite everything that Francis said and wrote about Lady Poverty, he begins his most important piece of writing with the words, “The Rule . . . is to observe the Holy Gospel in obedience.”

Christ is the Master and Francis is his hired teacher sent to us, through the Church, by the Holy Spirit. He teaches us that obedience is an absolute requirement in order to be like Christ, even when obedience is deadly (in the eyes of the world).

Holy Father St. Francis . . .Pray for us.

Published in:

on October 1, 2014 at 12:16 AM Comments (1)

A Deacon’s Deacon

The Solemnity of St. Francis of Assisi is just around the corner. I’m moved to write a few thoughts on it. What a surprise, right?

Our Holy Father Francis was a man who walked in many shoes. He was a family man, even though he was never married. He had parents and siblings and was very close to all of them. He was a patriot who went off to war to fight for Assisi ending up as a prisoner of war for one year. Fast forward just a little and we see him living the life of a hermit and a penitent asking God to tell him what to do next. He was a layman, religious brother and very late in his life, a deacon. Pope Innocent III approved the order 1209. Pope Honorius gave the final approval to the Rule in 1223. It seems that this is when Francis was tonsured.

It’s rare that I meet a deacon who does not remind me that Francis was one of them. In philosophy we learn that words have meaning. For the sake of clarity, let’s establish that Francis lived 800 years ago. Today’s deacon shares in Christ’s Diakonia as Francis did in the 13^th century.

Peter said to him, “You shall never wash my feet.” Jesus answered him, “If I do not wash you, youhave no part in me,” (John 13:8).

Simply put, he’s one of their predecessors in the diaconate. As we approach the feast day of one of the world’s most celebrated deacons, after Stephen the martyr, there are some points that deacons may want to reflect on.

Rev. Brother Francis Bernadone did not limit himself to identifying with the poor, nor did he stop at giving back his father’s name, fortune and future inheritance. He saw the poverty of Christ at the Last Supper, at Calvary and in the Eucharist. The God of creation san francisco n remains with us, out of pure love, fully alive in his glorified body under the appearance of the most basic forms of food, bread and wine. Christ chose bread and wine in order to remain with all men. Bread and wine are found in every culture. In the Eucharist, Francis contemplates the poverty of Christ and he has only one desire, to make Christ’s poverty his bride. Francis’ place at the altar went beyond performing certain liturgical functions; it was about becoming a poor man as Christ was poor on the altar of Calvary.

Can today’s deacons say the same about themselves? Can they say that they see Christ’s poverty? Can they say that they aspire to make Christ’s poverty their own or do they gloss over it, as Francis used to say, by labeling it “spiritual poverty” or “poverty of spirit,” terms that Francis considered a form of white washing.

Deacon Francis wanted only one thing. He wanted to reflect perfection. Thus he spent most of his life trying to become The Mirror of Perfection, that mirror which reflects the perfection of Christ. He became the reflection of the perfect deacon, Jesus Christ who came to serve, not to be served, Jesus Christ who said,

“Go and tell John what you have seen and heard: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the poor have good news preached to them,” (John 7:22).

Francis became the servant of the voiceless as was Christ. Diakonia, in Franciscan tradition, takes its inspiration from Christ who is one with the poor and serves among them. In Francis’ mind, being a deacon and being a Friar Minor were perfectly compatible as long as the deacon focused on union with the voiceless and in service of the voiceless.

Francis also placed his ministry at the service of his brothers, not above his brothers. It would seem that the idea of permanent deacons became difficult to fit into the Franciscan tradition when the diaconate became a transitional step toward the priesthood and when deacons themselves assumed a clerical attitude. Some deacons are readily available and visible for liturgical functions and missing in action among the voiceless and among those who ask for their help with the faith. Francis was to be found more often serving the sick, teaching the crowds, listening to a young man struggling with the faith, or serving food to the hungry, than he was serving at a liturgy. That’s probably why we Franciscans don’t remember him as a deacon, but as a brother, teacher and spiritual father.

Those who are deacons of the mysteries of Jesus Christ must please all men in all ways. For they are not deacons of meats and drinks [only] but servants of the church of God (St. Ignatius of Antioch)

(more…)

Published in:

on September 25, 2014 at 2:46 AM Comments (1)

Why do I do this?

I’m trying very hard not to engage in heavy philosophy and theology these days. I’m tired, my health is poor, my brothers need my attention, it’s “Franciscan Season,” then I have to rest for the Advent Season. But every once in a while someone says something or publishes something that stirs my juices and I can’t turn my brain off. I keep asking the brothers to elect a new superior. If someone else were the superior, he could order me to stop thinking about A, B, and C and I would have to make an effort to focus on something else. But that’s not the way it works these days.

I read an article, which you can read, if you have time. The link is at the bottom of the page. I refuted the writer’s comments and placed them on Facebook. In a nutshell, the writer interpreted something that the Holy Father said about Mary as making her part of the Godhead and more important than Jesus. If you read the article, the Pope never said such a thing. After my refutation, a poster from Facebook chimed in

To me this is like arguing about which version of Little Red Riding Hood is correct.

I responded like this. I’m just going to give you snippets of my response.

When we come to the person of Jesus Christ, we have to face the question about a real person who exists in real history, but has two natures, one divine and one human and he proved it to those who knew him. He died on a Friday and walked out of a tomb on a Sunday. Dying is very human. Walking out of a tomb after three days is not normal for human beings to do.

I gave a few other examples such as Jesus walking through walls and asking for food, before moving on to this other point.

Now we have the union of two natures in one man. The divine nature is that of the second person of the Trinity and the human nature is that of Jesus of Nazareth. But the second person of the Trinity, who happens to be pre-existent, is also the infant who was born of Mary and who could not be born, had there not been a mother to carry him for nine months and give birth to him.

Yes, I know that God could have taken on human nature using any means he wished. But he’s God and I’m not. Who am I to tell God how to enter the world?

Another post shows up and said “Not buying any of it.” That’s fine, because Truth is not for sale.

As Franciscans, we present it, but we don’t try to sell it, shove it down anyone’s throat, or seduce anyone into acceptance. The Truth is of God and God does not need help to distribute grace. Faith is a gift of grace. God just asks us to deliver the message. He does the rest.

However, I did state that I would give my life for this, meaning that I am willing to die rather than deny that the Second Person of the Trinity broke into human history by taking on human nature from Mary of Nazareth. I’m not about to argue with him why he didn’t use some other way. That’s like arguing about technique with the lifeguard who’s trying to save your from drowning.

Of course it finally came out. The famous question.

Explaining a fairy tale, is just explaining a fairy tale. Where is logic and science?

It seems that some people have elevated science to be the “Source of All Truth”, an assumption that even many non-believers reject.

In a certain sense, modern man is more naive than the ancient Chinese, Romans, Greeks, Aztecs, Incas, Mayans, Brahmans and other great thinkers. The ancient thinkers never believed that one discipline had all the answers. Truth is distributed among science, art, nature, human behavior and development, the environment, math, and other disciplines. Theology studies Truth in order to understand that to which our faith has already given assent. In plain English, science can only answer some questions, the answers to other questions are to be found in other domains out of the reach of science.

Can science create beauty or something that is beautiful? Beauty exists before the beautiful. Science did not create beauty. It created something beautiful using technology. Case in point, science does not have all the answers, so why even ask this question? I explained that science can only deal with that which is contained by space, time or both.

Einstein also taught us that space and time are relative to each other and to that which occupies it. If science could show us all truth, then truth would be limited to space and time. In which case, there would be no absolute truth, because science is not absolute. We’d exist in a world of relativism where nothing can be trusted, because nothing is guaranteed.

If there is no absolute truth, then there is no such thing as absolute love, friendship, fidelity, honesty, patience, kindness, compassion, purity, detachment and many other things. If we contain these things in space and time, they would be relative, not constant. You couldn’t trust that your feelings for a loved one are the same today as they were when you went to bed last night. Einstein’s theory of relativity helps us understand the relationship between space and time. To use a modern word, they’re synced.

I think that Truth has to be bigger than the bubble in which we live. Einstein would agree. He once said,

The most beautiful and most profound experience is the sensation of the mystical. It is the sower of all true science. He to whom this emotion is a stranger, who can no longer wonder and stand rapt in awe, is as good as dead. To know that what is impenetrable to us really exists, manifesting itself as the highest wisdom and the most radiant beauty which our dull faculties can comprehend only in their primitive forms.
( Albert Einstein – The Merging of Spirit and Science)

Miguel Pro, SJ Gave his life for Christ the King

After explaining why I would give my life for this, I asked my FB friend, “If you were put with your back against the wall and told to believe a falsehood or shot for denying what you believe to be false, which would you choose?”

The response was rather interesting. “What a ridiculous choice. I would pretend to buy it and walk away, wondering at the stupidity of my captor.”

To which I was forced to respond, “There is the difference between you and I. I would never forfeit my life for a lie, but I would for the truth.” Our preoccupation with empirical truth has actually deteriorated our ethical character.

So she hit me with, “Your perception of the truth is not necessarily the truth. You have submitted yourself to ideological brainwashing.”

Here is the weakness in that thinking. You’re assuming a great deal about the other person. She’s assuming that I’m naive, ignorant, weak-minded and that she has no need to walk in my shoes, because she has her stuff and mine all figured out. We can never make such assumptions. St. Francis never assumed that he understood the other person. He allowed the other person to open himself up to him and he in turn reciprocated by opening himself to the other. He took the risk of loving, believing what he could not see and trusting.

I want to do the same. I want to take the risk of sharing my faith. I came to the faith on a risk. I trusted a man named Francis of Assisi. I believed that he would teach me about Jesus and he did.

For a few years, I lapsed in the faith and underwent a second conversion. This time I trusted my eyes. I had completed my studies in neurology and psychology and I’ went through a conversion experience that began in my mind.

As I studied studied neurology and human development. I came to the realization that the
human brain and its concomitant behaviors are too complex, too ordered, too consistent and at the same time outside of our ability to contain in time and space, which makes them consistently fluid and unpredictable, because we can’t create human experience. We have to wait for it to happen in order to attempt to understand it. We can’t create human passions. We have to wait for them and then analyze them.

For anything that precise to exist free of human control and capable of transcending space and time, while obeying natural law, there must be a Law Giver more intelligent and capable of much more than what I give him credit for.

Why do I do this? Why do I engage in discussions with fallen away Christians? Because I’m a Franciscan of Life. God sends us into the world to continue the work of Christ who is the firstborn of many brothers.

What did Christ say was his work, “Icame that they may have life, and have it abundantly,” (John 10:10) The Franciscan of Life is the instrument of Life calling out to life.

The article that triggered the dialogue.

http://www.inquisitr.com/1477428/pope-francis-about-to-decree-virgin-mary-to-be-more-important-than-jesus-christ/

Published in:

on September 18, 2014 at 2:20 AM Leave a Comment

A Woman Ahead of Her Time

It’s fascinating that many women in the Church are complaining about not having a voice and not having power, yet in the 13th century, Lady Clare Scifi, defied her parents at the age of 18, ran away from home in the middle of the night to meet with Francis and his friars. There, at San Damiano, she consecrated her life to God and became the mother of the Franciscan Order.

Clare was no lightweight. She was the first female religious superior to govern her community without being subordinate to an abbot or a bishop. She and Francis governed independently of each other. Francis and his successors never had a voice legal or advisory over the Clare and her successors.

When Francis returned from the Holy Land, where he had tried to convert the Sultan and his people, he was determined to enter a monastery. He felt that he had failed as a preacher. It was Clare who set him straight. She insisted that he remain in Europe and continue to preach, because Catholics needed to be converted to Christianity more than the Muslims. She understood that the Muslims did not know the Lord through no fault of their own, but Catholics had become tipid and careless in their practice of the faith.

The Pope decided that Franciscan poverty was too severe for women and he gave Clare and her sisters the Rule of St. Benedict to adapt to their Franciscan spirituality. The Rule of St. Benedict allowed the nuns to own property in common, which was anathema to Francis and Clare. Christ revealed to them that they were to own nothing individually or corporately.

For almost forty-years, Clare engaged in a dialogue with the Holy See, until two days before her death at the age of 59, she received the papal bull that granted her and her sisters the privilege of poverty. It’s important to notice here that Clare engaged in dialogue. She did not disobey, nor did she criticize the Holy See or the hierarchy for seeing things differently. The discussion between the young abbess and the Holy See continued, because the Holy See allowed it, not because Clare was belligerent or defiant.

In 1228, Pope Gregory IX arrived in Assisi for the canonization of St. Francis. At a meeting with Mother Clare he informed her that he was absolving her from her obligation to absolute poverty. Mother Clare chuckled and responded, “With all due respect Your Holiness, but I would much rather be absolved from all my sins than from my duty to God.”

Her obedience, honesty and fidelity won her the respect of popes, bishops, friars and the laity. He life of heroic virtue earned her one of the fastest canonizations in the history of the Church. She died August 11, 1253 and was canonized September 26, 1255 by Pope Alexander IV. The Pope insisted that there was no need for an investigation into Clare’s cause or a beatification, because he personally experienced her sanctity while she was alive. Therefore, he believed the many reports of miracles and stories of heroic virtue without investigating a single one.

How can we read the story of Clare and say that women have not had influence in areas of authority in the Church? Today, there are more than 20,000 daughters of St. Clare. Every house is autonomous. They are not governed by males nor by a mother general either. Each house and its daughter houses governs itself. They are bound to the same canons in the law that bind male religious, especially monastic religious.

St. Clare, pray for us that we may see the Church and all people with the clarity that you saw.

Published in:

on August 11, 2014 at 1:06 PM Leave a Comment

Cast into the deep . . .

Christ said to Peter,

“Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch,” (Lk 5:4)

and when Peter did they had to call for help, because the nets were bursting with the weight of the fish.

When most of us think of Maximilian Kolbe we think of a holy Polish Franciscan friar who took the place of a man condemned to die at Auschwitz and whom the Catholic Church canonized as a martyr. But this is too simplistic a view. His journey to Auschwitz began when he was nine-years old. Speaking through his Immaculate Mother, Christ invited nine-year old Raymond Kolbe to “cast [himself] into the deep.” When the Immaculate appeared to the young boy she showed him two crowns, one white and one red and told him to choose one. Raymond asked what they represented. She told him that the white was for purity and the red for martyrdom. Raymond chose both.

If we fast forward, Raymond eventually enters the Order of Friars Minor Conventual (Conventual Franciscan Friars) and becomes Friar Maximilian Maria. The friars did not use last names in those days. This is a later development when secularism invades religious life.

Maximilian Kolbe began his trek to martyrdom at age nine, accompanied by Mary. It is not coincidence that he achieves martyrdom on the eve of her Assumption into heaven. The relationship between Maximilian and Mary was much deeper than the Sea of Galilee. Together, they would catch many souls.

St. John Paul II, preaching at St. Maximilian’s canonization said, “In the mystery of the Immaculate Conception there revealed itself before the eyes of [Maximilian’s] soul the marvelous and supernatural world of God’s grace offered to man.” Does not Peter say, “Depart from me Lord, for I am a sinful man”(Lk 5:8)? God never misses an opportunity to reveal his grace and to offer it to man.

To focus on Maximilian’s death and ignore his lifelong journey to Auschwitz, is to miss the movement of God through human history. Throughout his life, Maximilian would have much to teach us about intimacy with God through the Immaculate. We often wonder what exactly happened to John the Baptist while in Elizabeth’s womb when Mary arrived at their home. Elizabeth said, “For behold, when the voice of your greeting came to my ears, the babe in my womb leaped for joy,” (Lk 1:44). In presenting the relationship between the soul and Mary Maximilian wrote,

“Mary will enkindle hearts with the love of her Maternal Heart and inflame them with the fire of the charity that burns in the Divine Heart of Jesus.”

He also reminds us that without Mary, our battle against the forces of hell is a lost cause.

“The conflict with Hell cannot be maintained by man alone. The Immaculate has from God the promise of victory over Satan.”

To try to become saints and conquer sin by our own efforts, without the aid of the Mother of the Lord, is a futile cause. Many non-Catholics and non-Orthodox will argue that they know members of their community who have never had a devotion to Mary and have lived very holy lives. This may be true. But that is not to say that Mary is absent. Mary does not need our permission or even our friendship to intervene between our soul and hell. This was planned by God from the beginning of time. “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; she shall bruise your head,” (Gn 3:15). We cannot handcuff Mary, because we cannot handcuff God, nor can we alter his plans for our redemption.

Mary is not divine. She is only human. She is not part of the Trinity. Yet, being the mother of the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity, she is inseparable from the Trinity, because the persons in the Trinity are inseparable from each other. She is daughter, spouse and mother.

Christ’s passion, death and resurrection involve the three divine persons of the Trinity and the human person who surrendered her Son to be executed for our redemption, in fulfillment of the Father’s plan. She is the first to cooperate fully with the Holy Spirit for the redemption of mankind. If we want to experience how much the Trinity loves us, we must draw close to Mary.

“The only human person who was as closely united to the Holy Trinity as is absolutely possible, and therefore, the highest reflection of the love of the Holy Trinity; the most perfect human, living, visible, audible human being is the Blessed Virgin Mary,” (St. Maximilian Kolbe).

When he surrendered himself to the Mother of God, Maximilian sealed his fate. One cannot surrender to the Mother of God and expect to be spared her Son’s cross. At the same time, without the mother, the cross would not have happened and we would be lost. “His death makes Maximilian particularly like Christ — the Model of all Martyrs – who gives his own life on the Cross for his brethren,” (St. John Paul II)

Through Mary, Christ invited Maximilian to cast his life into the deep. Maximilian accepted the invitation with great joy and peace, because he believed that one should

“Place [himself] in Mary’s hand. She will provide for everything you need for soul and body. Therefore, [one can] be at peace with unlimited confidence in her,” (St. Maximilian Kolbe).

Our intimacy with Christ is proportionate to our intimacy with the Immaculate. Maximilian a modern model of this great truth in Christian Spirituality. However, this intimacy is not without risks. It requires that we cast ourselves, not our nets, into the deep — trusting that she will not allow us to drown in sin and hell.

Saint Maximilian Maria
Pray for us

The fact that Friar Maximilian died on the eve of the Assumption is no coincidence. There are no coincidences where the Immaculate is involved.

Published in:

on August 11, 2014 at 12:33 AM Comments (4)

How long have I waited . . .

During the last few fraternity meetings we have been discussing how God reaches out to us through the sacraments, especially the Eucharist and Penance. Let’s pause for a moment and think about how we reach out to our brothers in this fraternity, to others in the communities where we live, in our families and to the voiceless.

What meaning does the name Christian have, if we do not become like the Master? Christ reaches out to all people at some point in their lives, to some it may be at the 11th hour, just before death. The truth is that no one can bypass Christ.

No one should be able to pass by a Catholic without experiencing something different. They should experience that you’re genuinely interested in them and those things that cause them concern, especially those things that frighten them.

People should experience that you recognize that you are a sinner and joyful, because you do penance knowing that God forgives. There is no sin that is too big for God to forgive. The only sin that He cannot forgive is despair, when we stop believing that he can forgive or we begin to believe that he is so angry with us that he won’t forgive us even if we asked.

If we make regular use of the Sacrament of Reconciliation, we don’t have to worry about being forgiven. We can walk through a crowd with serenity, because we know that even if everything else collapses around us, we will not collapse. We are held up by the grace of God that we receive in the sacraments. If that joy and serenity is lacking, we must question our faith in the sacraments, not question the sacrament. It is never God’s fault that we do not take full advantage of what He offers.

Your family and your fraternity must be the first to experience Christ in you. They must be the first to see that you are a son of the Church. What does that mean? It means to learn from Christ as Francis and other saints learned. Francis and the others are simply examples that it can be done, that human beings can become the reflection of perfect love.

Remember the words of St. Augustine. “How long have I waited my Lord.” It was not a question. It was a lamentation. Even though he went on to become one of the greatest saints in the history of the Church, he regretted that he had waited more than 30 years to believe and to live as one who believes, accepting from God and giving to neighbor, perfect love.

Published in:

on August 7, 2014 at 7:50 PM Leave a Comment

How does one become a “Mirror of Perfection?”

A good friend and I were discussing the Mirror of Perfection and how we’re called to be such a mirror. St. Francis of Assisi has often been referred to as the Mirror of Perfection. I believe it may have been St. Bonaventure who started this tradition, which caught on in the Church and has lasted until today.

I’m remembering a few years back when I was a regular poster on Catholic Answers Forums being taken to task for always pointing to St. Francis whenever people complained about this or that. I would always say the same thing. “Look at people like St. Francis. They didn’t live in a perfect world and it certainly was a far from perfect Church.”

Now that I think about it, I’m glad that St. Bonaventure introduced the term, Mirror of Perfection. For centuries that Church has been telling us that we are called to holiness. Vatican II summed it nicely when it said “the universal call to holiness.” I like it because it’s clear that the call is not just for those of a certain religious tradition, but for all people. Everyone is called to holiness, even non-believers. How God leads men to holiness is complicated and parts of it are mysterious to us. We know that no one goes to the Father but through Christ. How Christ brings men to the Father is a whole other issue. We can get into that here, but we won’t. Suffice it to say that Christ does cartwheels to get us to the Father. In other words, he does cartwheels to helps become saints.

This brings me back to the Mirror of Perfection. Christ is perfect. He commands us to be perfect. He speaks to us about how we will be judged on the perfection of charity at the last judgment. “If you did it for one of these the least of my brothers, you did it for me.”

If we’re all called to holiness, to the perfection of charity, to be perfect as Christ is perfect, then aren’t we all called to be Mirrors of Perfection? How can one be like Christ and not reflect Christ to those around us? It’s an oxymoron. “I must decrease so that he can increase.” Those are the words of John the Baptist. The less of us and the more of Christ that people see when they come into contact with us, the better mirrors we become.

St. Francis was not the only man called to be the Mirror of Perfection. Rather, like St. Bonaventure says, he was probably the best mirror in Christian history. This introduces another concept. We can’t just reflect back an image of Christ. If you have ever been into a house of mirrors, some images are distorted. The key is to reflect an image of Christ that is as close to Christ as possible. That requires work. We don’t accomplish it over night.

We are sinners. We try to do what is right, but we make bad choices and we have to begin again. The secret that St. Francis discovered was that he recognized when he sinned and stopped the sinful action. He did penance for his sins and tried as hard as he could to do better. It was not always easy. Very often, the temptations came back over and over again. Over and over again, he put his hands into the hand of Christ, through prayer and penance. Christ guided him. Gradually, he reflected Christ better and better.

There is no great secret on how to become mirrors of perfection, nor are some called and others excluded. The call to holiness is universal. The key is to try over and over again, letting Christ teach us and not being afraid. As long as we journey with Christ, we have nothing to fear. He knows what we need to reflect him to the world. The first step to being a mirror of perfection is to learn to be sorry for our sins, to do penance and to try very hard not to sin again; but if we do, don’t panic. Christ does cartwheels to save us. Go back to him. Ask for forgiveness and try again. Always trust that each day he will bring you closer to being a perfect reflection of His love.

Published in:

on June 22, 2014 at 1:35 AM Leave a Comment

Franciscans of Life and Respect Life Archdiocese of Miami Joint Adventure in the Apostolate of Life

In our first joint venture, the Franciscans of Life and the Office for Respect Life Ministry of the Archdiocese of Miami held a formation morning for men serving in Project Joseph, an outreach and formation apostolate to dads in crisis pregnancies. Project Joseph deals directly with the fathers, but includes the mothers and extended family thorugh individual and family sessions.

While every Franciscan of Life is not assigned to Project Joseph, every brother (secular and consecrated) is required to know every aspect of all pro-life work done by the Society.

Brother Jay, Superior of Franciscans of Life and Director of Project Joseph, Archdiocese of Miami, opened the morning with a reflection on the Franciscan School in Christian Spirituality. He focused the key elements of our spirituality which makes it the most appropriate delivery model for the Gospel of Life to our dads in our particular circumstances: minority, fraternity, atonement, the Cross, Incarnation, the Trinity, and empathy.

Brother Chris followed with a meditation on the life and legacy of St. Maximilian Kolbe, stressing St. Max’s lifelong contribution to the Gospel of Life through the Immaculate, which would eventually lead to his voluntary martyrdom to save a father and keep a family united.

Father Alfred Cioffi, Professor of biology and bioethics at St. Thomas University, member of the Board of Advisors of Respect Life Archdiocese of Miami, and long friend of the Franciscans of Life presented on the end of life issues. Father gave a wonderful presentation on the principles that every Catholic must have in hand in order to make appropriate moral decisions when facing terminal illness, be it one’s own or that of a loved one.

Finally, Mrs. Joan Marie Crown, Executive Director of Respect Life Archdiocese of Miami addressed the group on future plans for the ministry. These include the opening of a new facility that will house a pregnancy help center, the diocesan offices of Respect Life and Brother Jay’s office for Project Joseph.

It was an interesting morning. Brother Jay was recently released from the hospital after a bout with pneumonia. But he dragged along his oxygen concentrator and did his thing. After, Brother had the opportunity to spend time with some of the brothers and several young men who are discerning a vocation to the Franciscans of Life as consecrated brothers.

It was wonderful to see an integrated group of men who are responding to Christ’s call to serve him in the voiceless father and his preborn child either as a lay mentor, a secular brother or a consecrated brother. But one thing is clear; these men are clearly brothers to each other and to those to whom Christ sends them.

Finally, we want to thank Mary Tate, the director of the North Dade Pregnancy Help Center of the Archdiocese of Miami for hosting the morning’s event. Mary took time from her free Saturday morning to spend with us. As usual, Mary’s love for the voiceless, the ministry and the brothers comes through the twinkle in her eyes, her warmth, her sense of humor and her patience with all of us. She’s like the mom that Franciscans of Life need.

A few pictures to give our readers a TASTE of the day.

Brother Superior needed to catch his breadth — Aspirants and brothers keep him company — This is fraternity

Alberto is about to begin discernment

Luis mentors Alberto’s disccernment

Discernment requires a lot of donuts

Are you still discerning? 🙂

Joseph King and Jose are doing a little discerning of their own.

Bernardo and Mary Tate emerge out of the kitchen. More discernment?

Bernardo and Mary Tate emerge from the kitchen. More discernment?

Brother Chris and Bernardo are going for it now.

Time to get back to work

But Brother, we’re so tired from all that discernment.

Dr. James Dugart and Mrs. Joan Crown in deep discussion during the break. We have no idea what they were discerning.

Dr. James Dugard and Mrs. Joan Crown in deep discussion during the break. We have no idea what they were discerning.

Father Alfred Cioffi delivers an outstanding presentation on end of life moral principles.

Father Alfred Cioffi delivers an outstanding presentation on moral principles for end of life decisions. No, Joan is not asleep. She didn’t get enough donuts. The brothers ate them. 😮

For more information on this important subject visit:

http://www.usccb.org/issues-and-action/human-life-and-dignity/end-of-life/euthanasia/index.cfm

and

http://www.flaccb.org/CDLD/index.php#

You’ll find everything you need to prepare a Catholic Declaration on Life and Death – Advance Directive
(Health Surrogate Designation / Living Will)

The Franciscans of Life want to thank the Office of Respect Life Ministry of the Archdiocese of Miami for this opportunity to come together as brothers and sisters to reflect on the Gospel of Life and our common vocation to holiness.

Published in:

on June 14, 2014 at 9:59 PM Leave a Comment

Update on urgent prayer request

At 10:30 PM, Jun 10, 2014, I received news from Postulant Jerry that our young friend is breathing on his own using ordinary oxygen. The ventilator has been removed. We have put his care in the hands of Bl. Teresa of Calcutta. We ask the everyone implore Bl. Teresa to pray for him and if it be God’s will that there be a complete recovery.

In the meantime, thank you and keep praying with the Franciscans of Life. Let us unite as the living voice of Christ who calls out to the most vulnerable. Remember the motto of the Franciscans of Life. “Life calls out to life.”

Bl. Teresa of Calcutta, pray for us.

Published in:

on June 10, 2014 at 10:59 PM Leave a Comment

Our Hearts Will Not Rest

I’ve been reading The Restless Flame by Louis de Wohl, a novel about St. Augustine of Hippo. WOW! It could well be the story of my own journey. I strongly recommend it to anyone. Yes, it’s a novel, but it’s historically very accurate. De Whol sticks very closely to the real life story of Augustine. The best part of the book is that he captures Augustine’s search for meaning. This is the part that for me is autobiographical. The events in my life may have been different, but the struggle and the questions were the same.

We are all familiar with Augustine’s later work as a priest, bishop and theologian. He tells us quite a bit about his journey toward conversion in Confessions. But Wohl gives a voice to Augustine’s anguished search for meaning and ultimately for God. You can hear it.

Why is a Franciscan of Life pushing this book? I’m not exactly pushing a novel as much as I am pushing a reality. For many of us, Augustine’s journey is not a foreign experience. Many of us have struggled trying to find what we believed to be evasive truth. We go from one thing to another in life, always believing that we will find happiness and the fulfillment of every desire. This can be a maddening search. We jump from relationship to relationship, from job to job, from one city to another, from parish to parish and often from one religious tradition to the next. Each one promises to be the landing pad for which we search. This was also Augustine’s journey.

What is equally compelling about this work is that it presents to us an Augustine who is very human and a good man at the deepest level of his being. We tend to look on Augustine’s life before he became a Christian as one of dissipation and promiscuity. It’s too easy to condemn a man whom one does not understand. It’s too easy to sit on the chair of moral judgment and look down upon a person without knowing the struggles and deep anguish of the human soul. It’s also too easy to condemn a man’s journey, because we can’t see Grace gradually reeling him in, like a fish who struggles to get off the hook and back into the water; but God’s love is more powerful than the fish. At the end of the day, the fish will relax and yield to Christ the Eternal Fisherman.

The story of Augustine’s conversion is a story of hope for those of us who have not yet arrived, for those of us who struggle with sin, questions, failures, human weakness, and moments of darkness dispersed among the moments of light. Augustine’s story should be a source of hope for those of us whose hearts are restless and who will not rest until they rest in God. Augustine’s story is about the power of God’s love and a man’s refusal to give up his search for Truth.

Love will never give up on us while we live. His grace will fight to conquer our hearts and minds, our bodies and souls. If we lose it’s because we have given up the search for Truth. We have settled for less than perfect love. God’s love for us and our determination to find absolute and living Truth is all we need to arrive at union with the Divine. Love and the search for Truth is painful. But, when the time is right, we will reach the summit of the mount and our lives will be transfigured by Him who is Truth itself.

St Augustine and St Monica, pray for us.

Published in:

on May 22, 2014 at 5:30 PM Leave a Comment
Tags: conversion, Interior Silence, Nature of God, sacrifice, Search for God, Truth, vocation

Franciscans of Life

Vita ad vitam vocat

Obedience is deadly

A Deacon’s Deacon

Why do I do this?

A Woman Ahead of Her Time

Cast into the deep . . .

How long have I waited . . .

How does one become a “Mirror of Perfection?”

Franciscans of Life and Respect Life Archdiocese of Miami Joint Adventure in the Apostolate of Life

Update on urgent prayer request

Our Hearts Will Not Rest

Recent Posts

Archives

Categories

Follow the FFV Blog!

Blogroll