Friar Joseph Benicewicz, OFM Conv., a Franciscan Friar of Our Lady of the Angels Province, died unexpectedly on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, in Kensington, Conn. Born on Feb. 29, 1960, in Baltimore, Md., he was the son of the late Walter and Theresa (nee Niemczyk). He was predeceased by his brother, Walter, Jr.. He is survived by his sister, Lorraine Ludwig, along with several nieces, nephews, great nieces, and great nephews.
Upon graduation in 1978 from Archbishop Curley High School in Baltimore, he entered the Franciscan Friars novitiate in Ellicott City, Md. He attended St. Hyacinth College Seminary in Granby, Mass., where he earned a B.A. in philosophy in 1983. He taught for a year at St. Francis High School in Athol Springs, N.Y., then continued his studies in theology at St. Anthony-on-Hudson Seminary in Rensselaer, N.Y., where he was awarded a Master of Divinity in 1988.
Friar Joseph was ordained a friar priest on May 28, 1988, in Albany, N.Y. Following his ordination, he re-joined the faculty of St. Francis High School for 18 years. While at the school he was a math and religion teacher, baseball coach, department chairperson, assistant principal, principal, and lastly president of St. Francis.
In 2005, he was elected to serve a five-year term as treasurer of St. Anthony of Padua Province. In 2010, he was appointed president of Archbishop Curley High School where he served until being appointed pastor and rector of St. Stanislaus Basilica in Chicopee, Mass. His final assignment was as pastor of St. Paul Catholic Church in Berlin, Conn.
Visitation hours will be on Tuesday, Sept. 10, 1 p.m. to 7 p.m., at St. Paul Catholic Church, 461 Alling St., Berlin, Ct., with a Franciscan Wake Service at 7 p.m. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated Wednesday, Sept. 11, at 11 a.m., at St. Paul Catholic Church. A second Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at Sacred Heart of Mary Catholic Church at 11 a.m., on Saturday, Sept. 14, followed by interment at St. Stanislaus Cemetery in Baltimore. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations can be made to the Franciscan Education Fund (12300 Folly Quarter Rd., Ellicott City MD 21042).
The Boston-born Black missionary to Brazil died 25 years ago this summer (June 22, 1999) and was the first African-American to join the Conventual Franciscans.
A devotee holds a Portuguese prayer card of Servant of God Martin Maria de Porres Ward at his grave on June 22, 2024, in Andrelândia, Brazil.
The sainthood cause for Servant of God Martin Maria de Porres Ward has received approval from the Vatican to proceed to its next stages, according to the Order of Friars Minor Conventual.
Br Douglas McMillan, OFM Conv., shared that an official biography of the late African-American friar is now underway, part of the Roman Phase of the canonization process. Ward, a Boston-born missionary who spent his ministry in Brazil, died 25 years ago this summer and in 2020 became the seventh Black Catholic sainthood candidate from the United States.
“As of July 1, we received notice, through the Brazilian Historical Commission, that we have official approval from the Dicastery of the Causes of Saints,” McMillan told BCM. “We are now in the process [of] working on putting together the final copy of the positio for the dicastery.”
The positio is an official dossier on the life of a sainthood candidate that, if approved by Rome, allows the pope to issue a decree of heroic virtues, granting the title “Venerable.” There are currently four African Americans to have reached that stage—the most recent being Venerable Mary Lange, who founded the nation’s first order of Black nuns.
Raised in Massachusetts and Washington, D.C., Ward converted to the Catholic faith as a teenager and felt a call to religious life thereafter, first to the Salvatorians before a health condition precipitated his exit from the seminary. He followed his call in an era when African Americans were typically barred from entering formation for the priesthood in the United States, save for a few religious communities.
Ward later overcame the obstacles of American racism to become the first African-American member of the Conventual Franciscans and was ordained in 1955 in upstate New York. He is revered as a uniquely holy figure in Brazil, where he worked for more than four decades as a missionary teacher, pastor, vocations promoter, spiritual director, and chaplain.
He was christened a “Citizen of Andrelândia” in 1995, an honor named after the municipality in Southeast Brazil where he worked for most of his priesthood. Four years later, Ward suffered a series of heart attacks and died at the age of 81.
On June 22 of this year, the local province of friars marked the 25th anniversary of Ward’s death with a special Mass and procession, the latest in a series of regular celebrations honoring his legacy of service and holiness.
“For many of the faithful, his simplicity and joy were a sign of the presence of God,” the province shared after the event, where devotees prayed for Ward’s intercession at his tomb.
Ward’s cause for sainthood is headed by the Diocese of São João del Rei, with the Brazilian research commission aided by friars in the U.S., including McMillan. The Archdioceses of Washington and Boston, where Ward lived before becoming a priest, are not expected to officially join the cause.
Should the efforts succeed, and with a miracle approved by the Vatican, Ward could become the first beatified African-American in history. He would also be the second in Brazil, after Blessed Francisco de Paula Victor, a formerly enslaved man who later became a priest and was beatified in 2015.
Prayer for Beatification and Canonization of Fr Martin Maria de Porres Ward, OFM Conv.
O Glorious, most high God, who deign to glorify in heaven the souls of those who served and glorified You on earth, hear our prayers for [petitions in silence] and according to the design of Your Divine Providence, Deign to glorify your Servant Martin Maria de Porres, who by his love desired to offer his life for the education and service of the youth, the poor and the sick, that like our ‘compadre’ we too may progress in the service of the most needy. Amen.
On the Feast Day of Saint Clare of Assisi (Aug. 11, 2024), six young adults were commissioned as the 26th group of FrancisCorps volunteers by Friar Gary Johnson, OFM Conv., vicar provincial of Our Lady of the Angels Province. The commissioning was held at Assumption Church in Syracuse, N.Y.
On their Facebook page, FrancisCorps 26 said, “Thank you for saying ‘Yes’ to the Spirit of Assisi, ‘Yes’ to service of others, and ‘Yes’ to FrancisCorps. We are so excited and blessed to accompany FrancisCorps 26 during the next year! As they begin their first day at their service sites, we ask for your continued prayers.”
The FrancisCorps experience is a year of real Gospel service for young adults aged 21 to 25. The FrancisCorps experience is not one of prayer, service, or community at any one given time, but an experience of prayer, service, and community at all times.
Minister Provincial Friar Michael Heine, OFM Conv. (l-r), Friar Joseph Krondon, OFM Conv., Friar Cristofer Fernández, Friar Raad Eshoo, and Friar Bishop Michael Martin, OFM Conv.
As their Franciscan journey continues, Friar Raad Eshoo, OFM Conv., Friar Cristofer Fernández, OFM Conv., and Friar Joseph Krondon, OFM Conv., made their Solemn Vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience on Friday, Aug. 2, 2024, at St. Louis Catholic Church, Clarkesville, Md. Each friars’ request to make solemn vows was granted by Minister Provincial Friar Michael Heine, OFM Conv., and the Definitory. Before Friar Michael, they proclaimed their vows, “for the entire time of my life.”
More than 60 friars attended the Mass.
The Franciscan Sisters of St. Francis of Assisi from Holyoke, Mass.
“Our Lady of the Angels Province is so blessed to have Raad, Joe and Cristofer as full members of our Order,” said Friar Michael, who celebrated the Mass. “All three come from different backgrounds and experiences yet they are able to live together as brothers in fraternity. In a world that is so divided, the Franciscan Friars, and these three in particular, try to be a witness that living together, even with many differences, is possible. The love of Jesus Christ, and the example of Saint Francis unites us in a bond of fraternal love and charity.”
More than 60 friars joined the celebration, including Friar Bishop Michael T. Martin, bishop of Charlotte. Several members of the Franciscan Sisters of St. Francis of Assisi from Holyoke, Mass. also attended. Friars Eshoo, Fernández, and Krondon completed their Solemn Vows Retreat in Holyoke. They decided that since Friar Raad is not allowed to travel due to visa issues, they would forgo their retreat in Assisi in order to prepare for vows together in Massachusetts.
A native of Mosul, Iraq, Friar Radd said solemn vows, “Embody a profound commitment that resonates deeply within me. They represent promises made with unwavering sincerity and conviction, binding me to a path of integrity and purpose. Each vow is a testament to my values and aspirations, a declaration of dedication to a cause or relationship with immense significance.”
Friar Raad Eshoo, OFM Conv., (right) with Minister Provincial Friar Michael Heine, OFM Conv.
The son of Honduran and Salvadoran immigrants, Friar Cristofer said making solemn profession, “Reaffirms and binds the commitment I made at first profession of vows as a Franciscan friar. Through these vows and with all my imperfections, I consent to God remaking me in the invitation to a transfigured existence, that is religious life, so that through me God might christify the world!”
Friar Cristofer Fernández, OFM Conv., (right) with Minister Provincial Friar Michael Heine, OFM Conv.
Friar Joe, who grew up in Baltimore, Md., not far from where Our Lady of the Angels Province is headquartered, said, “Solemn Profession is my saying, ‘Yes’ to being further conformed to Christ Crucified in the footsteps of Holy Father Francis, and that “Yes” being received by the Brothers who have helped form me into the man I am today. Solemn Vows for me is an outpouring of gratitude to a Community I can only hope to give back a portion of what I have received.”
Friar Joseph Krondon, OFM Conv., (right) with Minister Provincial Friar Michael Heine, OFM Conv.
Current Assignment Taught at Archbishop Curley High School in Baltimore, Md. During his fraternal apostolic year.
Assignments since joining Our Lady of the Angels Province His main assignment is finishing his studies at the Oblate School of Theology in San Antonio, Texas.
Home Diocese Diocese of Saskatoon, Canada
Education B.A. Theology and Religious Studies, Catholic University of America, 2023
Friar Cristofer Fernández, OFM Conv.
Birthplace
Alexandria, Virginia
Parents Maybelis and Manuel Fernández
Siblings Alessandro, Amanda, Eric
Current Assignment Franciscan Northside Ministries, Syracuse, N.Y.
Assignments since joining Our Lady of the Angels province Summer Assignments St. Anne-Pacelli Outreach Center/St. Benedict the Moor Soup Kitchen/Our Lady of Lourdes Parish, Columbus, Ga. (2021)
St. Junipero Serra Parish, Seaside Park, N.J. (2022)
Other Volunteering/Ministry during Formation Volunteer, St. Thomas of Canterbury Soup Kitchen, Chicago, IL (2018-19)
Elementary School Tutor, St. Thomas Canterbury School, Chicago, Ill.
Activities Volunteer, St. Joseph’s Home for the Elderly, Palatine, Ill.
Volunteer, Little Portion Farm, Ellicott City, Md. 2019-22)
Spiritual Care Volunteer, Volunteer Services, Marian Regional Medical Center, Dignity Health, Santa Maria, Calif. (2019-20)
Spiritual Counselor Volunteer-Chaplain, Adult Jail Services, San Luis Obispo County Jail, Restorative Partners LLC, San Luis Obispo, Calif.
Catholic Climate Justice Coalition (Semester) Intern, Catholic Climate Covenant, Washington, D.C., (Fall 2021)
Circle Facilitator and Graduate Student Liaison, Solidarity Circles Program & CCE Events, Center for Cultural
Engagement, Catholic University of America, Washington, D.C. (Spring Semester 2022)
Ministerial Assistant, Parroquia Inmaculada Concepcion, Jose Leon Suarez, Buenos Aires, Ariz., (Spring 2023)
Fraternal-Apostolic Year Most Holy Trinity Friary, Brooklyn, N.Y., (2023-24)
Pastoral Intern, Most Holy Trinity-St. Mary Parish, Williamsburg, Brooklyn, N.Y.
Friar Intern, Franciscans International, New York, N.Y.
Home Diocese Diocese of Arlington, Virginia
Education Hayfield Secondary School
Alexandria, Va.
B.S. Environmental & Conservation Biology
George Mason University, 2017
M.A. Theology, Religion, Culture
Catholic University of America, 2023
Certificate in Franciscan Philosophy
Franciscan School of Theology, 2023
Friar Joseph Krondon, OFM Conv.
Birthplace
Baltimore, Md.
Parents Gail and Mike Krondon
Current Assignment Assumption Church/Food Pantry and Soup Kitchen, Syracuse, N.Y.
Assignments since joining Our Lady of the Angels Province Postulancy in Chicago, Ill.
Novitiate in Arroyo Grande, Calif.
Three years of post-novitiate in Silver Spring, Md. with at The Little Portion Farm, Ellicott City, Md.
Home Archdiocese Baltimore, Md.
Education Archbishop Curley High School
Baltimore, Md.
He studied at Catholic University of America and is finishing his degree at Le Moyne College in Syracuse, N.Y.
During the Mass, the three friars lay prostrate during the singing of The Litany of the Saints.
Terry Steele, Shrine Advisory Council member and Catholic member of the Algonquin nation, explains the Native practice of the penitential rite.
The inspirational example of Saint Kateri Tekakwitha was celebrated at her U.S. National Shrine July 12-14, 2024, in honor of her feast day.
The feast day of Saint Kateri Tekakwitha, patron of ecology and the environment and of Indigenous Peoples, was celebrated over the course of three days at her U.S. National Shrine, outside of Fonda, New York. Celebrations began with a Spanish Mass on Friday evening and concluded with the semiannual burning of prayer petitions after Sunday Mass, which fell on Saint Kateri’s U.S. feast day, July 14. The occasion was also marked with a Vigil Mass on Saturday and presentation by Dr. Damian Costello, NAIITS, on the Old Testament tribal roots of the Eucharist, to which Saint Kateri had a great devotion. As is traditional at the Shrine that was the home of this Mohawk-Algonquin saint for most of her life, the penitential rite included purification with Native sacred herbs as the incense and the Four Directions blessing; the sung portions of the Mass took place in Mohawk, courtesy of the Akwesasne Catholic choir.
Friar Joe Freitag, OFM Conv., takes part in the penitential rite.
Anyone interested in learning more about Saint Kateri’s life is encouraged to visit her Shrine on Route 5, Fonda, New York, which is operated by Our Lady of the Angels Province, Conventual Franciscan Friars. The grounds, which include Saint Kateri’s baptismal spring and the archaeological site of the Mohawk Village of Caughnawaga, are available to the public year-round. Special events focusing on spiritual, cultural, and historical topics are held May through October. For more information about Saint Kateri or the Shrine or Historic Site, please contact info@katerishrine.org, call 518-853-3646, or visit https://www.katerishrine.org.
St. Francis of Assisi Novitiate in Arroyo Grande, Calif., was the setting on July 12, 2024, for the investiture of our three novices: Friars James Muzzey, Patrick Allen, and Paulo Moonjeli.
After being clothed in the habit of our Order, they will remain California for a year and a day in fraternity, in private and communal prayer, in classes, workshops, seminars, experiencing manual work, and other activities in line with the goals of this stage of formation. Please keep our novices close in prayer. They will profess their first vows on July 15, 2025.
The events of this past weekend give us an opportunity to look not only at our society, our Church, our Province, but most importantly to look inside of our hearts and recommit ourselves to love. We ask the Lord to cast out all anger, hatred, and violence in our hearts and lives. Our brother Maximilian Kolbe reminds us, “Hatred destroys. Only love creates.” Jesus, risen from the dead, stands before us to remind us that hatred never wins and that new life comes through love.
Friar Sebastian De Backer, OFM Conv., renewed his simple vows on Tuesday, July 9, 2024, at Our Lady of Angels Chapel in Enfield, Conn., at the 4 p.m. Mass. Presiding and preaching at the Mass, Friar John Koziol, OFM Conv., received Friar Sebastian’s vows. The friars and sisters at the infirmary joined in the celebration.
Our three friars on their solemn vow retreat in Holyoke, Friar Cristofer Fernández, OFM Conv., Friar Raad Eshoo, OFM Conv., and Friar Joseph Krondon, OFM Conv., also joined the celebration as did Friars Brad Milunski, John Ruffo, Joseph Freitag, and Luis Palacios-Rodriguez. Friars Tony Kall and Vincent Vivian were the official witnesses for the renewal of vows. A fraternal gathering and pizza party took place after the Mass.
Friar Curt (Robert Curtis) Kreml, OFM Conv., 77, a Franciscan Friar of Our Lady of the Angels Province, died peacefully on Thursday, July 4, 2024, at Port St. Lucie, Fla.
Born in Oak Park, Ill. on September 22, 1946, he was a son of the late Robert and Ellen (nee Dillon) Kreml. In addition to his Franciscan family, he leaves his sister, Bette Lybrook. brother, Thomas Kreml, both of Las Vegas, Nev., sister-in-law, Sandy Kreml, of Forest Grove, Org., as well as numerous nieces and nephews that he dearly loved. He was predeceased by his brothers Norman and Roger Kreml.
The Kreml family moved from Illinois to Phoenix, where Friar Curt was raised, eventually settling in Las Vegas. He earned his B.A. in Political Science from the University of San Francisco in 1968. After graduation, he enlisted in the United States Army, stationed in Germany for three years and serving in Vietnam before his honorable discharge.
Friar Curt entered the Novitiate of the Conventual Franciscans in Lake Forest, Ill., in September 1972, making his first profession of vows on July 28, 1973. He completed theological studies at St. Anthony-on-Hudson Seminary in Rensselaer, N.Y., professing Solemn Vows on Oct. 7, 1975, before earning his M.Div. in 1976. He was ordained a friar preist on July 17, 1976.
Friar Curt served three years as the assistant pastor of Assumption Church in Syracuse. From 1978 to 1982, he attended St. Patrick’s College in Ireland, earning his S.T.L., a degree he used as a professor of Moral Theology at St. Anthony-on-Hudson. In 1988, he began an eight-year tenure as chaplain and campus minister at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, N.C. During this time, he served a term as director of Campus Ministry for the Diocese of Charlotte.
After taking a sabbatical year, Friar Curt served as director of Candidates in Philadelphia from 1997 until 2005, when he became pastor of St. Peter Church in Point Pleasant, N.J., ministering there through 2011. Returning to formation work for a few years, he became the co-director of the Post-Novitiate program in Silver Spring, Md. In 2014, Friar Curt began his last assignment, as parochial vicar of St. Lucie Parish in Port St. Lucie, Fl
Visitation hours in Florida will be held Friday July 19, from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m., at St. Lucie Catholic Church (280 SW Prima Vista Blvd, Port St. Lucie FL 34983), with a Franciscan Wake Service at 7 p.m. A Mass of Christian Burial will take place on Saturday, July 20, at 11 a.m., at St. Lucie Catholic Church.
Additional visitation hours will be held in New Jersey on Thursday, July 25, 4 p.m. to 7 p.m., at St. Peter Catholic Church (406 Forman Avenue, Point Pleasant Beach NJ 08742), with a Franciscan Wake Service at 7 p.m. A Mass of Christian Burial will take place on Friday July 26 at 11am. Internment at a later date at Our Lady of Lourdes Cemetery, Trenton N.J. Memorial Donations may be made to the Franciscan Education Burse (12300 Folly Quarter Road, Ellicott City MD 21042).
On June 24-27, 2024, Minister Provincial Friar Michael Heine, OFM Conv., attended the annual meeting between the General Definitory and the Presidents of the Federations at the Friary of the Twelve Holy Apostles in Rome. The meeting was convened by the Minister General, Friar Carlos A. Trovarelli.
The attending presidents were: Friar Hillary Omondi Raduk for the African Federation of Conventual Franciscans; Friar Milan Kos for the Centralis Europae Foederatio; Friar Michael Earaly for the Federation of Asian Minor Conventuals; Friar Sidifredo de la Cruz Chaparro Gualdrón for the Federación América Latina Conventuales; Friar Wojciech Kulig for the Foederatio Europae Mediae et Orientalis; and Friar Gaspare La Barbera for the Federazione Inter-mediterranea Ministri Provinciali.
The program was modified and shortened to allow the Minister General and other friars to attend the funeral of our confrere Friar Gianfranco Agostino GARDIN, the 117th Minister General and Archbishop Emeritus of Treviso, Italy. The funeral took place on June 28, at the cathedral in Treviso.
The star of the meeting agenda was the next General Chapter, which will be held June 1-21, 2025, at the Seraphicum College in Rome. The General Definitory and the presidents engaged in extensive discussions following the pre-established agenda, namely, to evaluate how the Motions of the 2019 General Chapter have been implemented during the current six-year mandate; to examine the proposed topics for discussion that were sent in by individual friars and some Jurisdictions; to listen to the report on the financial status of the Order presented by the General Econom, Friar Nicholas ROSA and the General Exactor, Friar Leszek ŁUCZKANIN; to arrange the logistics and timetable of the Chapter giving precise details on the important services that will be needed: secretaries, translators, etc. All of this was in order to arrive at a list of topics that will be included in the Instrumentum laboris of the Chapter itself. The big job of summarizing the reports received from each individual Province, Custody and Delegation has been underway for some time now. The Assistants General have been asked to produce a text based on these summaries, which can help the Minister General and the Capitulars to frame the reality, the hopes and the challenges that our Order faces.
The countdown to the General Chapter has officially started thanks to this meeting, which was conducted in a fraternal atmosphere. The meeting was tasked with preparing for the General Chapter as thoroughly as possible so that it will be an event of grace for our Conventual Franciscan fraternity and an opportunity to creatively revitalize our dedication to our charism.
