National Minister’s Message November 29, 2019
I thought of you, each member of our Order, as I pondered these readings (from Franciscan Morning and Evening Praise) for the Feast of All the Saints of the Franciscan Order (Nov. 29):
DID YOU KNOW – Calendar no longer available
As suggested by Jan, our National Minister, we would like to provide “DID YOU KNOW” blogs in the coming months of what this tremendous site has in store for us. We will start with The CALENDARS pages.
National Minister’s Message – TAU-USA Summer/Fall 2019
No matter what method we use to help us get things done, there are times in life when we are stopped dead in our tracks. It may be loss, conflict or confusion, but when something big lands right in our path, we are often stopped short. ... Purity of heart sets us free. St. Francis calls us to this freedom, to “put aside every care and anxiety, to serve, love, honor and adore the Lord God with a clean heart and a pure mind."
160 Years – Utica, NY Fraternity Celebrates with Awards and Street Signs
Betty Frank, OFS, who was professed 70 years ago and is one of the longest living professed Secular Franciscans in the U.S., helped to unveil the “Welcome to Utica” sign for city officials during the 160th Anniversary Celebration of St. Joseph Fraternity. Founded in March 1859, the fraternity is the second oldest in the country.
Our Life-Giving Union – Discernment and Discussion – August 2019
In August, 2019,, fifty-five Franciscans journeyed to St Louis in our country’s heartland. Three days of dialogue and discernment, with passion and the flame of the Holy Spirit in our hearts—a true gathering of the Franciscan Family—the dream of many sunsets became a reality.
30 Years of Human Rights Advocacy at the UN
For most of us ‘human rights’ is a vague and abstract term. It seldom moves us until we’re confronted with what it means to lack human rights. Here’s an example: Try to imagine living without an official identity such as a birth or marriage record.
The Prologue: Lens of the Rule
Careful consideration suggests that the Prologue should be the starting point for any study, discussion, or meditation on the Rule.
National Minister Message TAU-USA Spring 2019
Rebar is a good image for how I see the Rule working in my life. The ideals embedded in our OFS Rule are very much like steel bars, encased deep in the center of my being.
Catholic Social Teaching and Fraternity Life
A sense of community will make them joyful and ready to place themselves on an equal basis with all people, especially with the lowly for whom they shall strive to create conditions of life worthy of people redeemed by Christ. (OFS Rule, Art. 13b)