Live as if the whole world were a cloister

This approach to ministry is one that places relationship and community above one’s personal faith journey and conversion. In fact, one’s own conversion, if indicative of a Franciscan hue, should lead toward humanity and away from only one’s self. It is for precisely this reason that Francis insisted that the friars were to remain mendicants and not monks, to live as if the whole world were a cloister and not be limited to the four walls of private religious life.
~Francis of Assisi and the Future of Faith by Daniel Horan OFM

Pax et bonum

The Genius of the Incarnation

The Genius of the Incarnation

Marty Lynch OFS

     I found this recent article from ZENIT relevant to me as a Franciscan, because in it the Holy Father offers the faithful yet another insight into the genius that is imbedded within the mystery of the Incarnation, a mystery so central to our saintly founder’s major charism.  So I’m offering this little piece that would be useful for our own catechesis and contemplation. May it bring you – as it has me -- to a prayer of gratitude to our merciful Lord who has provided us with yet another brilliant and pastoral Vicar of his holy presence on earth, the successor of John Paul the Great.  Makes you want to shout, “Alleluia!”

       What the prophets of the Old Testament longed for, and what even atheists today long for, is made possible by Jesus Christ, says Benedict XVI: We can see God's face.

     This was the reflection the Pope offered Wednesday in the general audience, as he considered the revelation of God made with the Incarnation.

     The Holy Father explained that Jesus' answer to the Apostle Philip, who requested to see the Father, is a synthesis of the Christmas event…Jesus' answer…leads us into the heart of the Christological faith of the Church; the Lord affirms: 'Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.'

     This is a synthesis of the novelty of the New Testament, according to the Pontiff. God can be seen, he has shown his face, he is visible in Jesus Christ.

     The theme of seeking God's face runs throughout the Old Testament, Benedict XVI added, with 400 uses of the Hebrew term for face, 100 of which refer to the face of God.

     Still, Judaism, in forbidding the use of all images -- and thus standing in opposition to the worship of idols -- seems to totally exclude from worship and piety any possibility of seeing, the Pope observed.

     What does it mean then, for the pious Israelite, to seek the face of God, while recognizing that there can be no image of Him … on the one hand, it is said that God cannot be reduced to an object, to a simple image, nor can anything be put in the place of God; on the other, however, it is affirmed that He has a face, that is, He is a 'You' that can enter into a relationship, who isn't closed in his Heavens looking down upon humanity.

God is certainly above all things, but he turns to us, hears us, sees and speaks, makes covenants, is capable of love. The history of salvation is history of God with humanity, it is the history of this relationship of God who progressively reveals himself to man, letting him see His face.

     In fact, the Pope continued, The splendor of the divine face is the source of life, it is what allows us to see reality, and the light of His countenance is the guide to life.

    God's progressive revelation culminates in Christ … God's affirm(s) to Moses…no one shall see me and live, (yet) something new happens with the Incarnation.  The search for the face of God undergoes an unthinkable change, because now this face can be seen: that of Jesus,… In Him the path of God's revelation finds fulfillment, which began with the call of Abraham;… in Him the content of Revelation and the Revealer coincide.

The Holy Father affirmed that a desire to know God truly, to see the face of God is in every man, even atheists.  This desire is fulfilled in following Christ… in the whole of our lives, not only when we are in need or find a spare moment.

     The whole of life should be directed towards encountering Him, towards loving Him; and, in… the light of the Crucified One… to recognize the face of Jesus in the poor, the weak, the suffering, Pope Benedict said.  This is only possible if the true face of Jesus has become familiar to us in… entering into his Word in such a way as to really encounter him, and naturally in the Mystery of the Eucharist.

     The Eucharist, the Pope said, is the great school in which we learn to see the face of God, we enter into an intimate relationship with Him, and we learn at the same time to turn our gaze towards the final moment of history, when He will satisfy us with the light of his face.

 ZENIT, The world seen from Rome News Agency

 

Pax et bonum

God's Romantic Love

The Greatest Valentine of All:

God’s Romantic Love

Br. Joseph Michael Fino, CFR, Most Blessed Sacrament Friary, Newark, NJ

     Love is a word that is bigger than mere romance.  And yet there is something in romantic love that more keenly captures the heart.  Paternal or maternal love, filial or fraternal, even spousal love—which cannot always be romantic—are more enduring kinds of love.  They are loves that walk us through life, foundational and structural loves, highly important in practice and reception.

     We know that God loves us paternally, like a father. Jesus is our friend and brother, and so we experience his steadfast support and presence. Even the Holy Spirit loves us, encouraging and inspiring us over the long haul.  

     But do you ever encounter God’s romantic love?  If not, I have to say, it’s important that you do.  Romantic love is quicker, more sudden, shorter lasting but more impacting.  It is the love that pierces the heart and captures the imagination.   This encounter is behind all those overbearing converts that won’t stop talking about Jesus and the Church and the Eucharist, and they won’t stop because they simply cannot, because they’ve fallen in love, and when we do that, we want everyone to fall with us!...

     The scriptures give us no shortage of evidence that God will pursue us, that he will court us, and the word seduce us is even used. Christmas is the story of a lover decidedly throwing himself into the life his beloved. God puts himself in a position of radical closeness to the one he loves and begins to woo, to seduce by his presence, by his words and his life.  He now touches us, speaks closely to us and desires to take us unto himself so that we may live together forever.

      He is anxious to love you romantically, to surprise you and win you; you have only to let him do it.  If you have not yet experienced this side of him, I would say, ask for it, expect it, and don’t be afraid when it actually happens.  For then you will learn two very important truths: Jesus is real and alive, and he loves you personally, whoever and wherever you are, and he loves you a lot.  And if you allow it, this will change your life.

Pax et bonum

A Franciscan Christmas

Pax et bonum

Emmanuel - God with Us      Sometimes in prayer, we hear God whisper something to us. Recently, I heard God tell me, “swing little brother swing.” At first I wasn’t entirely sure what this meant. As I prayed and thought about it, it became pretty clear: when I was younger, I used to play baseball and sometimes when I went up to bat, I would get nervous, really nervous. I would be afraid to swing the bat for fear of striking out and looking like a loser or feeling like a complete failure. So instead of really trying for a hit, I would secretly hope for a walk.        Looking back at it now, I see that I was plagued, almost paralyzed, at those moments with a deadly combination of pride and fear: afraid to failure, pridefully thinking I needed to be better than I was. Even today, I recognize this misguided sense of self-protection within myself. I want to play it safe; I want people to think highly of me, I don’t want to make any mistakes. (Sound familiar?) While I say, “please let me get a walk,” Jesus says, “swing little brother swing.” Jesus says be free and joyful – don’t be a slave to the expectations of others, don’t be a salve to this nagging fear of inadequacy. Jesus says, don’t be so concerned with the results, be concerned with a confident, joyful attitude.        How can this be when I am surrounded by so many pressures and demands externally and internally? At times it doesn’t seem possible. The only ray of hope I can decipher is the presence of God. If God is truly with me at every moment, in all circumstances, and never abandons me no matter what the results appear to be, then maybe, maybe I be can free and daring. Maybe, if the focus is on Him and what He can do and what He has done (and not on me and what I can’t do and what I haven’t done) then maybe I don’t have to take things so seriously.      C. K. Chesterton says that this was the glory of St. Francis: that he saw the whole world turned upside down and hanging by a hair. He wasn’t afraid or intimidated by anything because he knew it was all passing away and he knew the love of God that never passes away. In other words, all the pomp, all the power, all the ‘coolness’, all the ‘success’, all the situation and things we fear are like a puff of smoke. None of these things are as important as the love of God that endures all things and lasts forever. If God is Emmanuel, then maybe, I can swing the bat and so can you. God bless you, Fr. Giuseppe Siniscalchi, CFR Most Blessed Sacrament Friary Newark, N]

Prayer is Easy

By Fr. Jeremiah Myriam Shryock, CFR St. Felix Friary, Yonkers, NY

 
     What is happening in your life is exciting. In the midst of work, study, friendships and all your other activities and responsibilities God is speaking to you. He has given you a greater sense of his love, his fidelity and his compassionate heart in the very “concreteness” of your daily life. You did not need to go on a journey to some far away land to discover Him. You simply opened your heart to Him a little more each day and allowed Him the opportunity to respond. And He continues to respond, much to your amazement!

     In this simple and beautiful process you have learned a valuable lesson regarding the life of prayer: honesty is always the best policy. You yourself have said that the more honest you are with God the more He seems to respond, as if He was desperately waiting for you to share the “concreteness” of your daily life.

     Since God seems to be responding so well to your honesty it appears that the future of this relationship depends a large part on your willingness to be real with Him. Prayer, after all, is supposed to be easy. It is we who make it difficult.

     I once envisioned an image of Jesus that has haunted me often through the years.  He is standing beside me “hat in hand” so to speak, waiting for me to spend a moment, just to speak with Him about what I’m actually thinking that moment, to notice and acknowledge His ever presence with me.

     How sad, how wrong, that the King of all the universe is left waiting, while we are paying attention to everything else.      He is hungering for us to talk about all of it with Him.

Carolyn Barth OFS

Pax et bonum

St. Andrew Prayer

Greetings Fraternity,

Happy St. Andrew's Feast Day. 

Our community has always embraced this beautiful prayer, prayed 15 times a day from St. Andrew's Feast Day to Christmas Day, as part of our anticipation of the celebration of Christmas.

I tried to find some information on the history of this tradition but it seems to be hidden in the clouds of time past. 

If anyone finds out more about it let us know.  Meanwhile we can still join together in prayer.

Advent Prayer:

Hail and blessed be the hour and moment when the Son of God was born of the most pure virgin in Bethlehem at midnight, in piercing cold. In that hour vouchsafe O my God, to hear my prayers and grant my desires, through the merits of our savior Jesus Christ and of his virgin mother. Amen.

From: CatholicismAbout.com

“While a novena is normally a nine-day prayer, the term is sometimes used for any prayer that is repeated over a series of days. The Saint Andrew Christmas Novena is often called simply the "Christmas Novena" or the "Christmas Anticipation Prayer," because it is prayed 15 times  every day from the Feast of Saint Andrew the Apostle (November 30) until Christmas. The First Sunday of Advent is the Sunday closest to the Feast of Saint Andrew.

The novena is…addressed to God Himself, asking Him to grant our request in the honor of the birth of His Son at Christmas. You can say the prayer all 15 times, all at once; or divide up the recitation as necessary (perhaps five times at each meal).”

- Carolyn Barth, OFS

Pax et bonum