Purity of Heart – OFS Rule, Article 12
Article 12 may be only one sentence long, but it offers a rich and powerful invitation: to witness to the good yet to come and to seek the purity of heart that frees us to love.
The Gospel Through a Franciscan Lens – 22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time – Fr. Christopher
What profit would there be for one to gain the whole world and forfeit his life?
The Gospel Through a Franciscan Lens – 20th Sunday in Ordinary Time – Fr. Christopher
St. Matthew presents us with an uncomfortable encounter with Jesus. A Canaanite woman comes to Him desperate for help. Her daughter is suffering. She knows Jesus has the power to heal. She approaches Him with faith, calling Him, “Lord” and “son of David.”
The Gospel Through a Franciscan Lens – 19th Sunday in Ordinary Time – Fr. Christopher
Peter does not ask to walk on the water. He requests that Jesus command him to come to him on the water -- a journey ever deeper into Christ -- a journey that entails the overcoming of fear, the courage not to be afraid. Jesus responds with one word, “Come.”
Hearing the Voices of Pope Leo and St. Francis in the Jubilee Prayer
Fr. Wayne Hellmann, OFM Conv., invited Secular Franciscans to listen deeply to the voices woven throughout the Jubilee Prayer of St. Francis during his presentation at the 21st Quinquennial Congress of the Secular Franciscan Order-USA.
Apostolic Nuncio Brings Pope Leo XIV’s Blessing to the 21st Quinquennial Congress
A special moment of grace marked the 21st Quinquennial Congress of the Secular Franciscan Order on Saturday, Aug. 1, as His Excellency, Archbishop Gabriele Caccia, Apostolic Nuncio to the United States, joined hundreds of Secular Franciscans gathered in Lexington, Kentucky.
The Gospel Through a Franciscan Lens – 18th Sunday in Ordinary Time – Fr. Christopher
“Jesus said to them, they need not go away; give them something to eat yourselves.”
Stuff – What Can’t You Live Without? OFS Rule Article 11
Do you have any possessions that you cannot live without? Anything? A few years after I professed, one of our sisters shared that during formation, the director asked her what can’t she live without? She thought about it and replied: “the washing machine.” She had a large family. The washing machine was truly a necessity.
Quinquennial Congress Opens with a Call to Be Messengers of Hope
More than 500 Secular Franciscans from across the United States gathered in Lexington, Kentucky, this week for the 21st Quinquennial Congress. The Congress opened with the celebration of the Eucharist by the Most Rev. Bishop John Stowe, OFM Conv., Bishop of the Diocese of Lexington. In his homily, Bishop Stowe challenged those gathered to embrace their Franciscan vocation as witnesses of hope in a world marked by division and distrust.
The Gospel Through a Franciscan Lens – 17th Sunday in Ordinary Time – Fr. Christopher
Whether we are looking for God, or not. God is looking for us. God is always successful.