Franciscan Friars

Province of the Immaculate Conception

Provincial Update - February 2020

Our Call to

Holiness

Each year on February 2, the Church celebrates the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord. Our gospel reading on that feast narrates the familiar events. Mary and Joseph took Jesus to the temple in Jerusalem to be presented, since he was the firstborn, in obedience to the Law of Moses. In 1997, Saint John Paul II declared that February 2 would also be the World Day for Consecrated Life. As Jesus was consecrated to the Lord in the temple, the church would forever honor those who are consecrated to the Lord through religious vows. 

When he established this World Day of Consecrated Life, Saint John Paul II cited three reasons: First, to thank God for the gift of consecrated life, which enriches and gladdens the church through its charisms and fruits

Second, to promote knowledge of and esteem for the Consecrated Life by the People of God.

Third, to give the opportunity to Consecrated Religious to come together and celebrate the great things done by the Lord through them. He made it clear that at the very heart of the Consecrated Life is the call to holiness. 

Very often in life, we see people in terms of function. One of the first questions we ask when we meet someone new is- what do you do? What is your work? What is your job? And very often we make value judgments on that person based on their work. 

We do something similar in religious life. When we look at the many priests, brothers, and sisters who have served in parishes, for example, we often think in terms of their function.  We may say, Father So and So was our pastor, Brother So and So ran the Senior Program, Sister So and So was the Principal of the school, Father So and So had a great youth program at the gym, or Brother So and So was wonderful in visiting the shut ins. But every once in a while, we may hear someone say- Father So and So, Brother So and So, Sister So and So- was so holy. 

Our lives should be viewed in light, not of what we do, but who we are. Very often these are aspects that are neglected, not only in the lives of religious, but in the lives of Christians and Catholics in general. Many of us have neglected the spiritual life in favor of more active things. And while we as Franciscans have much to be proud of in regard to our bringing the gospel to the poor and downtrodden, many times this comes at a high price.

The Consecrated or religious life is a call to holiness. It is a call to be more like Christ. Through our vows, it is a call to be an example and witness of what all Christians are called to be. Consecrated religious are called to be salt of the earth and light of the world by demonstrating to the world the true values of the Gospel. Through poverty, chastity and obedience, religious bring a countercultural response to the supreme values of our society- money, sex, and power. 

This devotion to God, and love for the church, manifests itself in the great works and ministries of these religious orders. Even here in the United States, we know that consecrated religious established countless Catholic schools- grade schools, high schools, and colleges; as well as hospitals, nursing facilities and homes, hospices, homeless shelters- the list would go on and on and we know that they did this with little or no compensation.

Our own Franciscan Order has a proud heritage of ministry, whether it is more than 800 years of presence in the Holy Land, or the missionary activity of the Franciscan Order throughout the world. We are often reminded that our own Province of the Immaculate Conception, as most of the United States Franciscan provinces, began as a missionary province, with the friars coming to our country to minister to Italian and Irish immigrants. 

However, as we look at all the wonderful works of consecrated men and women through the years, we must remind ourselves that, just as the Apostle James wrote in the New Testament, “Faith without works is dead”, the opposite is also true. Our good deeds and works are empty unless they are rooted in our faith in God, our love for Jesus Christ, and our witness and example manifested in our growth in holiness. 

With blessings and peace, 

Fr. Robert Campagna, OFM

Provincial Minister

Convento San Francesco, Rome

Post Novitiate Program

Welcome Friar Daniel Ramirez Luna

We are happy to announce that Friar Daniel Ramirez Luna, OFM, has arrived at our Convento San Francesco as a friar in temporary vows.  Daniel has transferred from the Franciscan Custody of the Caribe of Santa Maria de la Esperanza.   He arrived on January 25, 2020.  Daniel was born in Azua, Dominican Republic on January 19, 1999, and entered the novitiate of the Caribbean Custody on July 14, 2018.  He made his temporary profession on July 15, 2019.  

From Friar Jimmy Zammit, OFM, on the World Day for Consecrated Life

Our young men made it onto the Vatican News in Italian. Victor Treminio in the foreground, Daniele Cavalieri standing behind Victor and half of Daniel Luna standing in the left part of the frame. This photo was put up immediately on the Italian version of the Vatican News site - for the papal Mass to celebrate Consecrated Life on the occasion of the Solemnity of the Presentation of the Lord at 5 pm local time last Saturday Feb 1st, 2020.

I am also including the Holy Father's homily in Italian. It was given by a Pope who is a religious and understands religious life.

I tried looking for it in English but I didn't find it. Allow me some unofficial loose translation... it bears sharing:

ALL IS GIFT, ALL IS GRACE

Simeon's contemplation of the Infant Jesus was the basis of the Pope's reflection. It is the looking and seeing of an older man who never stopped believing in salvation, who in the simplicity of a child finds the answers to life, the fulfillment of the promises, the "grace" that is worth more than everything and above all, peace. Following God is to leave everything because, the pope explains, one is taken in by His glance, because in Him one contemplates everything, because He is true love.

Consecrated Life is this vision. It is to see what is important in life. It is to embrace the gift of the Lord with open arms, like Simeon did. And this is what the eyes of the Consecrated see: the grace of God poured into our hands. The consecrated person is that person who looks every day and says, " All is gift, all is grace." Dear brothers and sisters, we have not merited (earned) religious life, it is a gift of love that we have received.

THE ANTIDOTE TO DISTRUST AND TO THE MUNDANE (WORLDLY) VISION (OUTLOOK)

"To know how to see grace is the point of departure." It is from there that one can reread the story of every person and see, the pope underlines, "the faithful gift of God: not only in the great moments of life, but also in the moments of fragility, of weakness, of human misery" and in spite of the temptations of the devil who seeks to show us only our failures. And we risk to lose our bearings, that is the free gift of God, because God always loves us and gives himself to us, even in our misery. When we hold our sight fixed on him, we open ourselves to the pardon that renews us and we are confirmed in his fidelity. Today we can ask ourselves: " Who do I set my sights on: on the Lord or on myself?" Whoever learns to see first the grace of God, that person discovers the antidote to distrust and a worldly outlook.

NEVER SURRENDER

The temptation of this world, is what prompts us to seek some "surrogate": "a small success (victory), an affective consolation, to finally do what I want to do". In this way we become "creatures of habit and pragmatic, while inside sadness and distrust increase, and degenerate into surrender."

But consecrated life, when it doesn't gravitate around the grace of God, turns in on itself. It loses its enthusiasm, becomes wary and stagnates. And we know what happens: we start to reclaim our personal space, our personal rights, we allow ourselves to be swayed by pettiness and gossip and by negativity, one becomes offended at every small thing the doesn't go their way and they vocalize a litany of complaints -- the laments, "father complainer", "sister complainer" - about the brothers, about the sisters, about the community, about the Church, about society. They no longer see the Lord in everything but they only see the world and its dynamic, and the heart stops feeling.

FAMILIARITY WITH THE SPIRIT

The road indicated by the Pope to see God's grace is to touch the love of the Father, being close to Him. To be close to one's own community, like some sisters in one of the earthquake effected zones of Italy - Francis recounts - recreated the spirit of their monastery that was damaged by the earthquake, in two caravan trailers.

Consecrated life, if it remains built upon the love of the Lord, sees beauty. It sees that poverty is not a titanic effort, but a greater freedom, that God gifts us and others with as true riches.  One sees chastity not an austere sterility, but the way to love without being possessive. One sees obedience not as a discipline but as a Christlike victory over our own anarchy.

... there is more to the homily but I thought that this translation gives anyone enough for a thought in this Month of Consecrated Life.

MORE NEWS FROM THE CONVENTO

The Convento fraternity with our Holy Father

(Please do not post this photo to any Social Media Network)

Il Signore vi dia la pace!  As we continue through these winter months here in Rome, which have not been terribly cold and without snow, the fraternity here at Convento San Francesco would like to provide the province with a brief update of our how things are going here in Italy. In the past month we have finished the first semester of the school year, along with exams, met Pope Francis, and received a new member to our community. So, to say the least its been quite an active month.

To briefly give you all a quick update on our studies: the first semester of the academic year came to close January 15 ^th  with the celebration of the feast of the Antonianum University the next day. The week after, we commenced with exams which lasted actually almost a month until today the day I am writing this article, February 13 ^th . Speaking from my own experience, the exams were a bit different from what we were accustomed to in North America. Oral exams seem to be the preferred method of determining the understanding of the student. With some hard work and a whole lot of grace, we were able to adjust and we have all progressed through the exams and are prepared to begin the next semester this Monday the 17 ^th . 

With that said, I would like to share with all of you brothers, the joy and consolation that we were given which came in the form a reflection and sharing with our Holy Father Pope Francis. It truly was a special visit and the highlight of our month! Maybe even our winter! To say the least, it was a remarkable experience for each one of us and the presence and words of the Holy Father touched us each in a different way. Before beginning with a prayer, Pope Francis made it a point to go around and personally shake each friar’s hand and to introduce himself, not that he needed an introduction! After a moment of prayer, the Pope encouraged us all to come in closer and form a circle. The Holy Father read a Gospel passage that he selected and also followed up with “alcune scintille” as he called them, or points that struck him. Then he opened the floor for a “Q&A” session which went on for almost two hours and really had a wide range of topics. The Pope honestly and openly responded to each individual’s question, including our own brothers Antonio and Victor. After this interchange we shared another very important aspect of our lives – food! We had a light lunch that included sandwiches and wine in which again the Pope was right in the mix. This experience was truly dear to us all and we are content to be able to share that with you.

Shortly after this visit, we attended the Mass of the Consecrated Life on the Feast of the Presentation, which actually took place in the evening of Saturday, February 1 ^st . The Holy Father presided over the Solemn Mass. It was a beautiful celebration at St. Peters which really helped us to put things into perspective, especially in regards to our vocation to the Consecrated Life. Pope Francis gave a powerful homily in which he encouraged each consecrated person to have a new outlook, one similar to Simeon who recognized the Lord without haste. He also exhorted us to stay close to Christ,  appreciating the pure gift of the Consecrated Life and to avoid becoming “worldly religious”. 

Another major event of this month was the arrival of a new member of our fraternity – Friar Daniel Ramirez Luna, OFM, who is 21 years old and comes from the Dominican Republic. Daniel arrived here at the Convento almost 3 weeks ago, on Saturday, January 25 ^th . We were most happy to welcome Daniel as a brother and as a new member of our fraternity and our province. We ask you all to keep him in your prayers during this time of transition. Daniel was content to meet all of us but I think he was even happier to meet the Pope! Friar Daniel has already begun to study Italian at the local language school and is adjusting well. We ask you all to continue praying for us as we continue our journeys together here at Convento San Francesco. We wish you all a holy and grace-filled start to the Lenten season.

Fraternally,

Friar Daniel Cavalieri

MINISTER GENERAL: BACK IN ROME AFTER RECOVERY

Posted on January-27-2020 in  Minister General ,  News

My dear Brothers,

May the Lord give you peace!

I wish to confirm reports about my return to the General Curia. It is good to be back “home” and to once again resume the duties entrusted to me by the Lord and by you my brothers.

Throughout the period of my rehabilitation, I felt strongly the presence of you my brothers who were praying for me constantly. Thanks to those brothers in the General Curia, and all who reached out through emails, letters, and fraternal visits. I fear I have not responded to all those who wrote to me. Please accept this note as a sign of my gratitude for your loving care for me.

I also wish to thank the Poor Ladies (Poor Clares), the Conceptionists, and members of the Franciscan family for your prayerful support. May God bless each of you as you follow the evangelical vocation to which you have been called.

A special word of thanks goes to Br. Julio Bunader, the Vicar General of the Order, who together with the General Definitory provided guidance to the Order during my absence. May God bless each of you and strengthen always our collaboration and communion as we serve the Order.

The doctors in Chicago did an excellent job putting the pieces of my bones back together. I am now walking with a cane, which is only temporary. I have been able to walk for up to three hours at one time, exercising and stretching the muscles in the left leg, which bore the brunt of the impact of the bicycle accident. It is my hope that soon I will be able to walk without any assistance, and, eventually, to get back to riding a bicycle.

Yes, I am still a bit ‘crazy’.

The time of rehabilitation provided me an occasion to reflect on my own life and vocation, on the life of the brothers of the Order, the Church, and world, and to ask questions about where we are heading as a band of Lesser Brothers in radically changing times. I was able to meet with several friars, a biblical scholar and a theologian, to begin to lay out a plan for preparing what is entitled the “Report of the Minister General to the Brothers of the Order.” It is my hope that this report, which I plan to forward to the Order by the end of November 2020, will provoke serious reflection, analysis, discussion, the emergence of ideas and concrete proposals to help prepare us to embrace the future with intelligence, courage, hope, and joy, in the spirit of Laudato si’. Clearly this involves reflecting on an integral, ecological vision grounded in relationship with God, the brothers, with all of humanity, and with the created universe. To this end, I urge all brothers of the Order to continue to study and dialogue about the materials contained in the various documents that have been produced during these past nearly five years, most especially on the Final Document of the 2018 Plenary Council that took place in Nairobi, Kenya.

May God bless each of you, my brothers, as you strive each day to live in deep friendship with God; as you express in simple, concrete ways your commitment to the values of fraternity and mission; and as you – as we – dream together the dream God has for the future of the Order of Friars Minor.

 

Rome, 27 January 2020

 

Fraternally yours in Christ and St. Francis,

Br. Michael A. Perry, OFM

Minister General and Servant

March Birthdays 

Take time to wish our friars a Happy Birthday!

Falvian Mucci - March 1st - 85

Antonio Riccio - March 3rd - 74

Joaquin Mejia - March 23rd - 53

Ralph Paonessa - March 26th - 84

Stephen Galambos - March 29th - 80

Jack Hoak - March 31st - 72 

2020 Anniversaries

Ordination to the Priesthood

65 Years-Roderick Crispo

60 Years-Primo Piscitello

50 Years- Antonio Riccio, Charles Soto

40 Years- Patrick Boyle

25-Aziz Eissa

Solemn Profession

25 Years- Stephen Galambos, Aziz Eissa

40 Years- Courtland Campbell, Mario Julian

60 Years- Romano Almagno, Paschal DeMattia,

Brennan Egan, Claudio Moser

First Profession

25 Years- Charles Trebino

40 Years- Rafael Fernandez

50 Years- Charles Gingerich, Ronald Bolfeta

60 Years- Amedeo Nardone

65 Years- Robert Caprio, Flavian Mucci,

Ralph Paonessa Simeon Distefano,

John Bavaro, Claudio Moser

70 Years-Guy Vellardita, Alexis Anania

CONGRATULATIONS BROTHERS

Mission San Jose in San Antonio, Texas

Marks Three Hundredth Anniversary

When we hear the term ‘Franciscan Missions’ we often think of the chain of missions located in California, built by the Spanish Franciscan missionaries along the coast.  The first of these missions was Mission San Diego, which was founded by St. Junipero Serra, and later grew into the City of San Diego, California.  The mission and city are named for the Franciscan saint, St. Diego of Alcala (or Didacus).  This mission was established in 1769.  What is not commonly known that almost fifty years before the establishment of the first of the California missions, the Franciscans established missions in Texas.  The most famous of these Texas missions was established in 1720, and this year celebrates its three hundredth anniversary.  This mission was named Mission San Jose y San Miguel de Aguayo.  It was seen as a model of mission organization, and still exists today as Mission San Jose in San Antonio, Texas.  It is called the “Queen of the Missions” and, believe it or not, it is currently a parish and is still  staffed by the Franciscans as part of the Sacred Heart Province.  Congratulations to the friars, staff, and parishioners of Mission San Jose on their three hundredth anniversary.     

Province News Briefs

Friar Joseph Powell, OFM, transferred from St. Francis Centre, Caledon, to St. Thomas Aquinas Parish, Derry, NH as assistant pastor, effective March 15.

Br. Damian Johnson, OFM, transferred from St. Christopher Friary, Boston, to St. Thomas Aquinas Parish, Derry NH, as pastoral associate, effective March 15.

Br. Gabriel Aceto, OFM, assigned as Guardian of St. Christopher Friary, Boston, in addition to his assignment as Guardian of St. Leonard Friary, effective immediately.

Fr. Alvin Te, OFM - now living at the Collegio S. Isidoro, Via deglia Artisti, 41, 00187 Rome, Italy. He continues to work at the General Curia.

In her book, "Franciscan Prayer", Sister Ilia Delio, OSF says that "the simplest way to describe Franciscan prayer is that it begins and ends with the Incarnation." This statement summarizes well the foundatonal mystery of grace which stirred the heart of Clare of Assisi, guided her following of the Gospel, and framed her faithfulness to a life of contemplative prayer. You are invited to spend this afernoon reflecting on the kind of transformation that is possible when, like Clare, we take seriously the gift of Incarnation and its implications for our depening relationship with the poor and crucified Christ.

Clare A. D'Auria, OSF, a Sister of St. Francis of Philadelphia, Aston, PA, currently ministers as a staff member of the Franciscan Spiritual Center in Aston, Pennsylvania. For half of her fifty years in ministry, Clare has traveled throughout the United States and abroad, offering directed and conference retreats, especially focused on topics in Franciscan spirituality. She also served on the staff of Franciscan Pilgrimate Programs for eight years, leading pligrims through the holy sites in both Assisi and Rome. A certified spiritual director, her other ministerial experience has included congregational and provincial ledership, secondary and collegiate education, and a variety of additional administrative roles both within and outside her congregation. 

All are welcome. If you plan to attend, we ask that you RSVP to Siobhan O'Dwyer, OFS: smdfranciscanlibrary@gmail.com. The Blessed John Duns Scotus Library was at our Provincial Curia, 125 Thompson Street, New York City.

Future Events

November 7, 2020- John V. Kruse, Ph.D. will speak about "Discovering the Life-giving Vision of the Franciscan Intellectual Tradition."

April 10, 2021- Sr. Kathryn King, FSP, a Franciscan Sister of Peace, will speak about Peace.

Caption for the photo:  Lynley Herbert, Curator of Rare Books and Manuscripts at the Walters Art Museum, discusses a legendary item in their collection, the St. Francis Missal from Italy, circa 1200, which is once again accessible after the museum undertook a two-year conservation project. St. Francis read this book at a critical moment. After a long absence, it returns to the spotlight at a Baltimore museum.

Amy Davis/TNS

BALTIMORE —This is the book that set St. Francis on the path to poverty.

The 12th-century collection of prayers is slightly larger than a sheet of notebook paper. A corner of the beechwood boards covering the manuscript has crumbled away and the surface is delicately pitted with wormholes. Restorers found the dried carapace of an unidentified species of insect trapped inside the pages.

It seems fitting that even after an ambitious and painstaking two-year restoration, the book that persuaded the man from Assisi to renounce earthly goods —and that resulted in the founding of the Franciscan order —appears as humble and unprepossessing as a monk’s brown habit.

Now, the book has its own public exhibit at the Walters Art Museum for the first time in nearly 40 years.

“The St. Francis Missal” is an intimate show in which the famous volume is shown with about two dozen paintings, ceramics, ivories and illustrated manuscripts taken from the museum’s collection.

Perhaps to compensate for the plain appearance of the star attraction, many of the artifacts surrounding the missal possess an extraordinary and seductive beauty. There’s no dearth of dazzle on display —including a 14th-century diptych said to contain fragments from the tunics of Saint Francis of Assisi and his most famous female follower, Saint Clare. The little artwork of scenes from Christ’s nativity and crucifixion are reverse painted on glass, and is so fragile that it’s going on public view for the first time in the Walters’ 86-year history.

The show has been generating excitement internationally, especially among historians and members of religious orders.

“St. Francis is one of the most beloved saints in history,” said Lynley Anne Herbert, the museum’s curator of rare books and manuscripts.

“Over time, the missal has acquired the status of a religious relic. It’s the most requested book in our collection. It inspires pilgrims from all over the world to come here to see it. At one point we couldn’t even open the missal anymore because it was in such fragile condition. Our visitors didn’t care. They just wanted to be in its presence.”

The missal is considered to be extra sacred because it is considered “an object of touch,” according to Herbert.

St. Francis himself is thought to have turned the ancient pages on a morning in 1208 in the altar of his parish church, San Nicolo di Piazza, which was located in Italy until it was damaged by an earthquake in the 19th century.

Worshipers believe that the missal retains a trace of the saint’s spiritual aura.

According to several accounts of Francis’ life written shortly after he died, he was inspired to dedicate himself to a life of poverty in 1208 after he and two friends —all wealthy young men —had been up all night debating about how they could best serve God.

When they couldn’t agree, “Francis basically said, ‘Let’s let God decide,’ “ Herbert said.

“They walked around the corner to the church and flipped open the missal on the altar three times, once for each member of the Trinity.” (Roman Catholics believe that one Supreme Being is manifest in three entities: God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit.)

“Each time, they opened the missal to a random page,” Herbert said. “Each time, the text told them to give up all their earthly goods and follow Christ. That was the foundational moment of the Franciscan Order.”

Of course, there is no video footage from inside the church on that day, so it’s difficult to know for certain that the missal that museum co-founder Henry Walters purchased in Paris in 1924 from the dealer Paul Gruel is the same volume that Francis consulted. But Herbert said that there’s more evidence to support this hypothesis than usually exists for a manuscript this old.

A dedication added to the missal in red ink specifies that the prayer book was created for the San Nicolo church.

The missal appears to have been completed some time around the 1180s and 1190s (when the patron who donated the book was actively involved in local affairs), but certainly before 1228 (the missal contains a notation recording the death in that year of a local bishop).

“The feeling has grown over the last century that this has to be the book,” Herbert said.

“San Nicolo was a small parish, and it’s highly unlikely that they would have had another book like this one. This was an expensive object. The blue used in it is marine blue, and it was made from lapis that had to be imported from Afghanistan. During that period, lapis was more expensive than gold.”

The exhibit is located inside a small gallery that can hold no more than 15 people. Herbert said the staff intentionally created an intimate show “to make it easier for visitors to have a personal encounter with the book.” Surrounding the missal are cases containing artifacts that illustrate either Francis’ life or those of two of his followers, Saint Clare and Saint Anthony of Padua. (Since the number of viewers inside the gallery will be limited, visitors should be prepared to wait, Herbert said.)

The scope of the damage to the missal as described by Abigail Quandt, the Walters’ senior conservator of rare books and manuscripts, is daunting, even in retrospect.

The missal’s pages are made of goatskin parchment. During centuries of heavy use, some had become torn and stained. The original binding was replaced in the 15th century —but the glue used in the new spine attracted insects who burrowed through the beechwood boards.

Over time, the lower right corner of the front board became so riddled with worm tunnels that it crumbled into dust. Even the ink used to write the text by hand had begun to flake off.

“The book was so fragile that even when it was handled very, very carefully it was developing more breakage and more cracks,” Quandt said. “It got to the point where I had to tell the curators, ‘You can take the missal out and show it to visitors, but you can’t open it.’ “

Under Quandt’s guidance, restorer Cathie Magee slowly and painstakingly took the entire missal apart, removing and saving the ancient linen thread. She injected epoxy into the insect holes with a syringe to stabilize the wooden boards.

Tears in the parchment were mended with a handmade Japanese paper that’s thin but very strong. Magee reattached the loose ink to the page with a dilute solution of gelatin that she applied with a brush under a microscope.

Finally, the missal was reassembled on a wooden sewing frame. A new binding was attached and covered with goatskin leather.

“This is one of the most challenging projects I’ve ever undertaken,” Quandt said.

Two tablets accompany the exhibit. On the first, museum-goers can watch the restoration project unfold from start to finish. On the second, visitors can flip through the digitized missal page by page.

Those who look closely may spy a shadowy line running horizontally across the pages of goatskin parchment. It was made by hairs on the critter’s spine.

The Baltimore Sun

This article originally ran on  theprogressnews.com . Article by Mary Carole McCauley, Tribune News Service, February 5, 2020

Prayer Requests

BROTHERS:

Please print out a copy of this newsletter to share with those in your community who do not have email. We hope that every friar in our province will have access to the Newsletter and that a printed copy will be posted on your friary bulletin board.

Thank you

The Management