October 5, 2017: Cardinal Peter K. A. Turkson, prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development and former president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, found time during a Catholic U – Washington DC speaking engagement, to visit Friar John Burkhard, OFM Conv. one of his professors from his time in study at our province’s former St. Anthony-on-Hudson Seminary.
Fr. John and our friars of the St. Bonaventure Friary – Post Novitiate Formation Community in Silver Spring enjoyed a wonderful visit after Cardinal Turkson contacted our Minister Provincial, the Very Reverend Fr. James McCurry, OFM Conv. to arrange the impromptu get-together.

Presented by Friar Richard-Jacob Forcier, OFM Conv. ~ Province Secretary
Archbishop Curley High School Transitus Service (10/3/17)

My sister-in-law loves the minions from Despicable Me and it was with my family that I first watched the film.  For those of you who follow the movie series it traces the life of Dru Gru and how he found love, adopted three little girls and thereby changed his wayward life of villainy, well … thievery, to one of domestic bliss.  The Minions are dedicated in service to Dru, much like how Friar Matt has his Minions, I mean “assistants,” here at Curley.  As the story line has dragged on in the most recent Despicable Me 3, we see how Dru Gru finds out that he has a somewhat polar opposite identical brother, Felonius Gru, who tries to talk him back into a life of crime.  In any event the DM3 animated adventure revolves around the theme – “I have a brother!”
In celebrating St. Francis of Assisi tonight we meet a real brother to all, not a comic creation, but someone who realized, as he noted in his Testament “the Lord gave me some brothers,” that he knew his way of life – living a poor simple life following the footsteps of Jesus – had been blessed with brotherhood.  God has continued to give Francis brothers throughout the centuries.  This Transitus Service assists us in getting close to the Spirit that embodied this man and serves as a charism for the Franciscan way of life.
Francis was a very charismatic young man and had many friends.  Even in his decisions to move away from the world of fabric selling as a merchant, what we would call retail, he asked his close friends about his decisions.  In this early time in his life, he encountered Christ in the cross at the church of San Damiano.  It was there that he heard the challenge, Francis, “go and rebuild my church for it has fallen into ruin.”  Christ spoke to Francis as a friend who asks for help; I need you to help Me do this.  Francis, by following the literal observance of rebuilding that particular church, further developed his relationship with Christ in his many moments of prayer and fasting.
When I come to Archbishop Curley High School I often admire the slogan – “Where brotherhood begins.”   This saying captures the very spirit of Francis; being a brother or a sister to everyone and in all things.  Our life is always relational – to our Most High and Glorious God, our parents, siblings, friends, and even to all of creation.  This interwoven pattern begins but never ends.   Just as Francis had this awesome challenge to responsibility when the Lord gave him brothers, our call is to look inward to see how we can be a brother a sister to all.
Of course, we live in a world that is also very aware of the environment – we recycle, we try to reduce our carbon footprint for our good Earth.  Francis’ life beckons us – to love creation, but to love the Creator more.   I think that is why Francis could embrace Sister Death singing – or having the Canticle of Creation sung to him.  He had done what was his to do, and he challenged his followers to find out, to discern, where God is calling us to brotherhood today and every day.
Brotherhood to Francis was like a verb – to brother – indicating action and reaction to the world, people, everything around us.  It requires an intense amount to love – for God has loved us much.   Being a brother had no boundaries.  At the time of his death he asked for his friend, the Lady Jacoba, to come to see him. The friars with Francis were hesitant that this woman would go into the cloister of the friars.  Francis simply said – let brother Jacoba in for I need to see her. Francis was brother to all.  With Francis there were no boundaries.  At his tomb at the Sacred Convent in Assisi Francis four closest friars are buried near him, even dear Lady Jacoba is buried in the same crypt for she is buried across the chapel from him.
We come together tonight to realize that Francis is our brother.  As we mark his passing, we can realize that here in this place, where brother hood begins, it is up to each of us to make this relational call to honor one another, to honor creation, and to honor and praise our God, Who has given us so much.  We must look at ourselves and not say like Dru Gru, “I have a brother,” but it is better to say, “I am a brother.” This involves more responsibility – more accountability.  How can I best be a brother to my friends and family around me right here and now?
In his Testament, Francis also says that he has done what was his to do and that we might be shown what is ours.  Ours is still the call to be a brother to all and to honor one another well.

Transitus Service 2017: Each year, Archbishop Curley High School students portray St. Francis of Assisi and his Companions (brothers – friends) for the Transitus Service

September 25, 2017: As part of this year’s Novena Preparation for the Feast Day of St. Francis of Assisi, our Conventual Franciscan confreres processed through the streets of Assisi, Italy, to the Tomb of St. Francis, in the Basilica di San Francesco d’Assisi, for a Blessing with the Relics of St. Francis. (Video provided by Our Lady of the Angels Province friar, Fr. Martin Breski, OFM Conv. who is currently serving in Assisi as a guide for pilgrims to the Basilica)

Franciscans from around the world celebrate the October 3rd Transitus of St. Francis of Assisi, in addition to his October 4th Feast Day. The definition of “transitus” is the “transit of a person or property en route from one place to another.” For Franciscans, TRANSITUS marks the night Francis left his earthly life, to move onto a life in heaven with Our Lord Jesus. He died, on the evening of October 3, 1226, a small man in his forties who had wanted to live a simple life in service to God.
Traditionally Saints’ Feast Days mark the date of death and are remembered with special mention, prayers, and scripture readings.  For us the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi on October 4th is so much more. It is a day filled with celebration and joy; blessing animals (often on the closest weekend), gathering for meals and enjoying the fellowship of our brothers and those we serve. Just as with all of the saints, it is the day Francis obtained Eternal Life.
In his time the message of St. Francis of Assisi attracted many followers across Europe.  Francis could have led a life of luxury and earthly power. He was born into a wealthy cloth merchant family in Assisi, Italy around 1181 or 1182. As a young man he spent his days admiring Troubadours who traveled across Europe and performed their poetic songs to audiences. He also partook in raucous celebrations and planned on becoming a knight. His forays as a warrior against nearby Perugia ended in capture and imprisonment. The time in isolation allowed Francis to reflect on what God really wanted him to do in life.

This weekend, at many of our ministry locations, the faithful will gather for a Blessing of the Animals. Please join us at a ministry nearest to you as we celebrate St. Francis’ love for all of God’s creatures. He called animals “brother” or “sister,” and he exhorted them to praise God. This tradition is a strong one in many sects, beliefs and denominations, but for Franciscans it is a part of one of our most beloved celebrations of the year.

The friars serving at our San Damiano Mission in Brookyn, NY (Fr. Nicholas Spano, OFM Conv. (left) – Director & Fr. Raphael Zwolenkiewicz, OFM Conv. (middle) – Assistant Director) during the blessing of the animals our first year in the community.

Lord God King of heaven and earth,
Thou the Word of the Father by whom all creatures were given us for our support: look down, we beseech Thee, on our lowliness. As Thou hast given us these animals to assist us in our labors and needs so mayest Thou in Thy great goodness and mercy bless them from above, guard and preserve them; and, while Thou givest Thy servants temporal benefits, mayest Thou grant us thy continual grace so that we may praise Thy holy name with thanksgiving. Amen

On Sunday, September 24, 2017 the Good Shepherd Sisters (serving in Baltimore, MD) invited our Friars (serving from the Portiuncula Friary in Ellicott City, MD) to lunch.  The Good Shepherd Sisters arrived in Baltimore in 1864 and until recently ministered at the Good Shepherd Center in Baltimore, a residential treatment facility for adolescent girls with emotional and behavioral difficulties. Our friars began a relationship of spiritual care with the sisters many years ago. For several years, the friars serving from the Immaculate Heart of Mary Friary, in Baltimore, MD, served the sisters and those in their care as one of their Sunday Mass calls. With the building of our Provincial House (administrative offices for the Province) in Ellicott City, this Mass call was transferred to the friars of the Portiuncula Friary, in 1991.  The Sisters closed their residential treatment center in the early Spring of 2017 and they will be moving on; many to live in housing prepared for them by the Sisters of Saints Cyril and Methodius in Danville, PA. We friars will continue to pray for these Sisters as they move onto their new homes.
During our September 24th lunch, an original painting of Emily Caton McTavish, an early benefactor of the Sisters, was gifted to our friars. The painting hung in their original motherhouse, in Baltimore. A copy of the same portrait is in the Manor House of our Carrollton Hall Historic Site.  This original artwork was their going-away gift to the friars for our many years of spiritual care (Mass, Confessions, and Spiritual Direction).  The painting itself is an important work of early American art and will certainly be one of the jewels of the collection at the Carrollton Hall Historic Site. Another gift was a small painting done by one of the sisters of “Willow Brook,” another home of Emily Caton McTavish.

Carrollton Hall Historic Site stands on the ground of our Shrine of St. Anthony, in Ellicott City, MD. It includes a house museum honoring the memories of those who lived there and those whose influence sculpted the United State’s most valued heritage, especially the Freedom of Religion. It was the home of Emily Caton McTavish (+1867), a favorite granddaughter of Charles Carroll of Carrollton (+1832), one of four Marylanders to sign the Declaration of Independence and the ONLY Roman Catholic. Members of the Carroll family have served the U.S. in government and as benefactors of religious orders & universities, even giving the land needed to create the U.S. Capital in Washington, DC. A cousin of Charles Carroll, Baltimore’s Bishop John Carroll, SJ, became the nation’s first Catholic Bishop.
In his later years, Charles Carroll wished to give his granddaughter Emily a lasting tribute of his affection, as she was a self-sacrificing and endearing caretaker; nursing everyone through illnesses and crises. In 1832, a retaining wall was completed, leveling a shady hill on which a great neoclassical house of Woodstock granite was constructed. The house was named “Carrollton Hall,” the 1000 acre southwest parceling from Carroll’s nearby colonial homestead, Doughoregan Manor. The parcel was named “Folly Quarter” and it became home to Emily Caton McTavish and her family.
In 1928, Folly Quarter was purchased by Friar Justin Figas, OFM Conv., a Major Superior of the Franciscan Friars Conventual on the East Coast, to be used as a novitiate for training young men for the Franciscan priesthood and brotherhood, in the Roman Catholic Church. As grand as it was, the manor house became too small for the growing community. Two years later Friar Benedict Przemielewski, OFM Conv. was commissioned to design a new novitiate, on the same property. He chose to model it after the Sacro Convento, the 13th century Italian motherhouse of the Franciscan Order, attached to the Basilica where Saint Francis of Assisi is buried. In 1995 the Franciscans transformed the novitiate into the Shrine of St. Anthony of Padua and in 1998 Cardinal William Keeler designated it as an “Archdiocesan Shrine.”
Our friars have been working diligently to restore Carrollton Hall Historic Site. In early December 2014, Maryland state officials announced that it was one of nine statewide recipients of historic preservation tax credits from a fund administered by the Maryland Historical Trust. The program began in 1996 as part of the Maryland Department of Planning and for several years has been made available to religious and other non-profit organizations. In January 2015, Carrollton Hall was officially entered into the National Register of Historic Places. Steps toward opening Carrollton Hall Historic Site to the wider public began in earnest in early spring of this 2015. If you would like more information, please write the Director, Fr. Eric de la Pena, OFM Conv., St. Joseph Cupertino Friary, 12300 Folly Quarter Road, Ellicott City, MD 21042. He can also be reached at 410-531-2800.

A recent article in the National Catholic Register features a pilgrimage experience of Friar James Mary McInerney, OFM Conv., one of our friars of our province’s Blessed Agnellus Custody, also known as the Greyfriars. Take a moment to read The article reflects the joy we friars hold, as we encounter the people of God, in our day to day lives.
During this past month’s Custodial Chapter, Friar James Mary was elected to serve our Custody, as a Definitor. Definitors work with the Provincial Custos to help ensure that the Custody continues to best serve the needs of all of the friars and their ministries. During this recent Chapter, a proposal referencing the remains of the Walsingham Friary (the location of the above linked article) was on the agenda. We ask that you all please keep this process in your prayers, as the Provincial Custos and the Definitory Friars work with the Bishop of East Anglia to initiate a return to Greyfriar service at the National Shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham. The National Shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham is Catholic England’s foremost Marian Shrine, attracting 150,000 – 250,000 pilgrims each year. Our Order came to Walsingham in 1347 (including a ministry to the lepers) and remained there until the dissolution of their friary in 1538. The significant ruins of the Franciscan friary can still be seen today. Over the last five years, our Custody’s friars in formation have assisted in Youth Meetings there. The actions of our friars who have been present at the Shrine, was a catalyst for our possible return. Our friars hope to work at the Shrine serving the Sacramental needs of the pilgrims. This will give our friars a presence in the community with a possibility of growth. Our friars already have a strong Marian focus and this opportunity could be profound blessing to all involved.

More with Friar James Mary: In a video from a few years ago,  he shared his experience in our Novitiate, when it was still in Indiana. Our Novitiate has since moved to California, but the experiences and the purpose of the time the friars spend there, is still the same.

+Very Reverend Justin Biase, OFM Conv.
+The Very Reverend Justin (Augustine) Biase, OFM Conv. was born on Staten Island, NY, on September 9, 1943, and passed away on September 21, 2017.  He was the son of +Frank and +Isabelle (Carlucci) Biase. He is survived by his Franciscan family, by his sister Anna Biase Geronimo and her husband Joseph, nephew Joseph Geronimo and his wife Kerry, niece Maria Miller, five grand-nephews, one grand-niece and several cousins in the US, Canada, and Italy.
After attending St. Francis Seminary on Staten Island, +Friar Justin entered the Franciscan Friars Conventual Novitiate in Middleburgh, NY, in August of 1961. On August 28, 1962, he professed his Simple Vows and on August 28, 1965, he professed his Solemn Vows. He was ordained to the Priesthood at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, Albany, NY, on May 30, 1970. During his first year of Priesthood, he lived at the friary of the Moroccan Martyrs and was a Graduate Student at Fordham University, from which he earned a Masters Degree in Sociology, in 1972.
+Fr. Justin was first assigned as a Parochial Assistant at St. Bartholomew Church, Camden, NJ, from 1971 through 1982, where in time he became both Pastor and Guardian. From 1982-1989, he was assigned to St. Joseph Church, Hoboken, NJ.  He was the Novice Director at St. Francis Novitiate on Staten Island, NY, from 1989 to 1997.  In 1997, he was assigned to Francis, Brother of Peace Friary in Syracuse, NY and in 2001 was made the Pastor of Assumption Parish, Syracuse.  Elected as Minister Provincial of the former Immaculate Conception Province in 2005, he was re-elected in 2010, and served in that capacity until 2014, when St. Anthony of Padua Province and Immaculate Conception Province unioned to become our current Our Lady of the Angels Province. During his years as Minister Provincial, he oversaw the life and ministry of the friars of the Province living in the USA and Canada, as well as the Provincial Delegation in Costa Rica, and the Custody of the Immaculate Conception in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
+Fr. Justin became well-known for championing the cause of racial equality and empowerment of minorities, through committed service to the poor and marginal.  He dedicated the early years of his public ministry to serving the African-American community of Camden.  Fluent in Spanish, he later served Latino communities in New Jersey and New York.  He was also very active in the Conference of Major Superiors of Men for religious, in the United States.  He represented friars of the United States on the international level at General Chapters of the Franciscan Order.  On several occasions, he served as a delegate and prophetic voice at religious assemblies and congresses in Africa, South America, Asia, and Eastern Europe.  He will be deeply missed by those who experienced his compassion and kindness.
After the creation of Our Lady of the Angels Province in 2014, +Friar Justin moved to Most Holy Trinity Parish, Brooklyn, NY, serving as Guardian of the Friary & as Parochial Vicar to the Parish.
Sister Death claimed him quite suddenly following heart surgery a few days after his 74^th birthday.
He will lie in state at Most Holy Trinity Church, 138 Montrose Avenue, Brooklyn, NY.  Visiting hours will be held there on Sunday, September 24^th, from 3:00 to 7:00 p.m., and on Monday, September 25^th, from 3:00 to 5:00 p.m. and 7:00 to 9:00 p.m., with a Franciscan Transitus Vespers Service at 7:30 p.m., on Monday. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Tuesday, September 26^th, preceded by visiting hours from 9:00 – 10:45 a.m.  Interment will be in the Franciscan Friars plot at St. John’s Cemetery, Middle Village (Queens), NY, immediately following Mass.  Because of +Fr. Justin’s lifelong investment in the formation of young Franciscan Friars, memorial donations may be made to the Franciscan Education Burse, 12300 Folly Quarter Rd., Ellicott City, MD 21042.
Funeral arrangements are through B. Anastasio and Son Funeral Home, 533 Lorimer Street, Brooklyn, NY 11211.