Presented by Our Lady of the Angels Province Friar, Fr. Ericson de la Peña, OFM Conv., who served in Campus Ministry at the Catholic University of America, Washington, DC.
Pope Francis expressed his hope of our sharing Christian values with the young by presenting “Jesus Christ as the meaning of life…” (Vatican Audience, 2/13/14). In my ministry at Catholic University, I personally try to foster in vivo encounters with Christ by focusing on the meaning of life that is found through our Franciscan calling to minority, for we are told by St. Francis that Christ willing chose to be become poor. Teaching minority as a lifestyle has brought me, and those I serve, up close to the poor and the marginalized (whom St. Francis loved dearly with special devotion.)
Our campus ministry is always offering opportunities for us to meet the poor and to help them. This is good, but not enough. It was in a homily earlier this academic year that a friar asked the students how many volunteered for service projects, or in particular at a soup kitchen. Nearly everyone’s hand was raised in the air. Then the friar asked for another show of hands, for those who actually took the time to sit, share a meal, and have a conversation with the people at the tables. He was asking if the value of minority, of our truly being “lesser brothers and sisters” was operative. He was asking if our charity moves into minority, as a way of living and interacting with other that may seem a bit reckless at times.
A mission trip to Costa Rica two years ago brought together students from CUA, Duke, & UNC, stirring a real Franciscan passion for charity, justice, and peace within us. During the week friars and students went out to meet the homeless and the severely disabled persons who were left in institutions that would care for them. One of the tasks that our students bravely performed was to wash and clean the bodies of the sick amid the horrid conditions they found them in. The repulsive stench was certainly not for the weak heart, yet none of the students assigned there backed out, some even vied to get the spot! I was deeply moved by the compassion I witnessed from our young missionaries, and honestly caught by surprise at how these privileged youngsters were reckless in associating themselves so closely and tenderly with the poor.
The mutual edification during the mission trip did not end after our day of service but continued on through the evening with a daily reflection of our encounters. Touched by the human suffering they witnessed, these encounter engendered a greater desire in them to reach out and give of themselves more completely as lesser brothers and sisters.
Two students from CUA returned to Costa Rica after college, as FrancisCorp volunteers, and one of the two became Catholic during her time there. Another has just been accepted to return to Costa Rica as part of next the next FrancisCorp group, while yet another one has volunteered at an extended volunteer mission in NY.
Our Franciscan charism of fostering charity, justice and peace, when presented through the lifestyle of minority, resonates strongly with the youth. We simply cannot relegate this core values to the side, for if lived authentically we will find ourselves not working solo in our mission. Instead we find ourselves, like St. Francis, among the poor and the youth, discovering together Jesus Christ as the meaning of life.
March 2, 2017: Our Lady of the Angels Province friars, Fr. Gerry Waterman, OFM Conv. (Syracuse University Catholic Chaplain) and Fr. Russell Governale, OFM Conv. (Province Vocation Director) celebrated the Masses with the Students and faith Community at Syracuse University on March 2, 2107, the Fifth Sunday of Lent. It was a beautiful Spring day, during which participants were able to pray together and reflect upon the new life that Jesus offers us. The students were encouraged to consider if God is calling them to Religious Life or Priesthood. Please continue to pray that the message of the Gospel and our Gospel life will encourage more people to serve Christ in the Franciscan way of life.
Over Spring Break 2017, twenty Elon students participated in two separate mission trips. One group traveled to Charleston, SC to volunteer with Habitat for Humanity, while their Catholic Campus Ministry Chaplain, Our Lady of the Angels Province friar, Fr. Peter Tremblay, OFM Conv. lead a group to Montego Bay, Jamaica to serve with Mustard Seed Ministries at their orphanage for children with disabilities. Those serving in Jamaica we were able to join the bishop of Montego Bay, The Most Reverend Burchell Alexander McPherson, for Mass at the Cathedral, on the first full day and the rest of the week was spent caring for the children, as well as some landscaping on the mission grounds. It was a powerful and life changing experience for all involved.
Friar Michael Lasky, OFM Conv. serves as Chairman of the Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation Commission of Our Lady of the Angels Province. His ministry hub is now located in Washington DC. Featured here is one of the last projects he worked on, just before he left his prior ministry assignment location – where he also served the people of the Newman Student Center Parish of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, as Administrator.
An online Yale Climate Connections article featuring this video states: In a recent video produced by David Salvesen of the University of North Carolina Institute for the Environment, Lasky reflects on the “Canticle of the Creatures,” composed by St. Francis in 1225. It contains praises for the natural world, including “Brother Sun” and “Sister Moon.”
Information gleaned from a letter to the friars written by Benjamin Pesante, Mission Trip Student Leader for the Dominican Republic, CUA Class of 2017:
This Spring break, a group of students from the Catholic University of America, along with Our Lady of the Angels Province friar and Associate Chaplain for Faith Development for the Office of Campus Ministry at CUA, Fr. Ericson de la Pena, OFM Conv., went on a mission trip to Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
The group volunteered in the small, impoverished neighborhood of Los Tres Brazos, serving as English Instructors at a local elementary school (grades 1-5), run by Bernardine Franciscan Sisters. The participants were challenged; making lesson plans, controlling the classroom environment, and most importantly making sure the students understood the material, all while making the class lessons very interactive and fun. After the school day, participants visited the townspeople, including the very sick. The joy of those people, through strong faith and supportive families, was a source of inspiration for the CUA students, although limited medical care availability was a profound source of frustration for those who are used to the healthcare availability of the USA. This experience magnified the importance and necessity of faith, not only the lives of the people of the Dominican Republic, but in the lives of the student participants. There was a realization that although we live very different lives, we all have Christ, and that is the most important connection that closely unites us, universally.
The group also provided some food and school supplies for which they had raised funds from donors in the USA. Overall, it was an incredible week.
Served by Friar Max Avila, OFM Conv., Minister Provincial, The Very Reverend Fr. Jame McCurry, OFM Conv., flanked by our Province MI Assistant ~ Fr. Jobe Abbass, OFM Conv. and CFF Assistant General of the Order, Friar Jude Winkler, OFM Conv.
March 24, 2017: On Friday Evening, our province celebrated the first of two planned celebrations of the Centenary of the founding of The Militia of the Immaculata by St. Maximilian M. Kolbe, OFM Conv., on October 16, 1917. Our friars serving at the Shrine of St. Anthony (St. Joseph Cupertino Friary) graciously hosted friars from Italy, Australia and Canada, as well as those living and serving in the local area. In August, Fr. Jobe Abbass, OFM Conv., our Province MI Assistant will lead a Conventual Franciscan Pilgrimage to Italy and Poland, also celebrating the 100th Anniversary of the Militia Immaculata.
Joyful News from the Provincial Custody of Blessed Agnellus of Pisa
Newly Ordained Fr. Maximilian Mary Martin, OFM Conv. blessed His Grace, Archbishop Kevin McDonald, Archbishop Emeritus of Southwark, while the newly Ordained Fr. Rory Doyle, OFM Conv. awaits to grant his blessing on the Archbishop.
March 25, 2017: On the Feast of the Annunciation; the day Our Lady first said “Yes!” to her vocation, Friar Maximilian Mary Martin, OFM Conv. of England and Friar Rory Doyle, OFM Conv. of Ireland, two friars from our Province Custody of Blessed Agnellus of Pisa, answered “Yes!” to God, through the Sacrament of Holy Orders, at the Greyfriars Church of St. Anthony of Padua – Mossley Hill, Liverpool.
His Grace, Archbishop Kevin McDonald, Archbishop Emeritus of Southwark led the Priesthood Ordination Mass Celebration attended by their confreres, family, and friends from all over Great Britain, Ireland, and the world! Some of the students in formation joined the parish choir, as Altar Servers from the parish and several friars assisted the 25 priests who con-celebrated the Mass.
Please keep Friar Maximilian and Friary Rory in your continued prayers,
as they serve the people of God, as His holy priests.
Thursday – March 23, 2017: Friar José Guadalupe Matus Castillo, OFM Conv. received his naturalization certificate during a March 23rd Oath Ceremony; became an American Citizen. Please join us in congratulating Fr. José!
Originally from Mexico’s Provincia Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe (at the time a Custody), Fr. José transfiliated to become a member of our province during his work in ministry with us. In his prior years of ministry in the USA, Fr. José has served in our prior ministry of St. John Vianney Catholic (Lithia Springs, GA), in St. Lucie Catholic Church (Port St. Lucie, FL) and at the Basilica of St. Stanislaus – Bishop & Martyr (Chicopee, MA). Fr. José also served in the Hispanic Ministry for the Diocese of Chicopee.
Friars from our different provinces often work together in ministry. Although Fr. José is a friar of Our Lady of the Angels Province, he currently serves as Associate Pastor of Saint Ita Catholic Church, in Chicago, a ministry of the St. Bonaventure Province.
Most Holy Trinity, we put the United States of America
into the hands of Mary Immaculate
in order that she may present the country to You.
Through her we wish to thank You for the great resources of this land
and for the freedom which has been its heritage.
Through the intercession of Mary,
have mercy on the Catholic Church in America.
Grant us peace.
…
Protect the family life of the nation.
Guard the precious gift of many religious vocations.
Through the intercession of our Mother,
have mercy on the sick, the tempted, sinners—on all who are in need.
Mary, Immaculate Virgin, our Mother, patroness of our land,
we praise you and honor you and give ourselves to you.
Protect us from every harm.
Pray for us, that acting always according to your will
and the will of your divine Son, we may live and die pleasing to God. Amen.
(Excerpt from a prayer attributed to Archbishop John Carroll, first bishop of the United States)
Last year, a video Stations of the Cross series was created through the Catholic Relief Services’ Lenten faith-in-action program for families and faith communities ~ CRS Rice Bowl. Our Lady of the Angels Province friar, Fr. Robert A. Twele, OFM Conv., Esq., who serves as the Director of the CRS Office of Legal Counsel as well as legal counsel for our province, narrated Station XII: Jesus Dies on the Cross. CRS provided not only the video series, but a printable prayer resource, through this same site.
Here is an example of the prayers for the 12th Station from that same resource:
TWELFTH STATION: Jesus Dies on the Cross
Leader: We adore you, O Christ, and we praise you. All: Because by your holy cross you have redeemed the world. Leader: My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? (Matthew 27:46)
(All kneel together for a reflective pause, and then rise.) By human standards, the Crucifixion and Death of Jesus is the ultimate failure. Members of the Jewish community had waited so long for the Messiah, had put their faith and hope in a man they believed had come to liberate them, and he died a horrific death. It was a devastating, final moment, and so many of Jesus’ friends had already fled the scene, abandoning hope in a better future. It’s a good thing the Crucifixion and Death of Jesus are not to be judged by human standards. Rather, what we see as failure, God transforms into victory. Where we see nothing but hopelessness and devastation, God is at work in surprising and spectacular ways. When we think of the hardships so many in our world face, we might easily grow discouraged; but our God offers us hope, and wants all of us to work together to build a world of peace and justice.
How does this perspective of Easter inspire our own work in seemingly hopeless, failed situations? How does God want us to look upon problems like poverty, natural disasters and environmental decay—by human standards, or something more hopeful? All: Christ Jesus, even in the most devastating failures, you show us the importance of hope. May we have the courage to work patiently and tirelessly with those in need, always keeping our sights on you.
As of March 8, 2017, the solar array of Ellicott City has generated its first Giga Watt Hours of electricity, since going online in 2013.
One of the ways our friars who are based in Ellicott City, MD have worked diligently to be good stewards of God’s creation, respecting the environment and promoting of a loving respect for all of God’s creatures, is by adopting an extremely practical path of energy efficiency. Since February 2013, our friars have incorporated solar panels to support the energy needs of the two friaries and the several ministries that are part of the Ellicott City Complex. Read More: Franciscan Conservation in Action & Catholic Social Justice – Franciscans at Work for Justice, Peace and the Integrity of Creation
Pope Francis expressed his hope of our sharing Christian values with the young by presenting “Jesus Christ as the meaning of life…” (Vatican Audience, 2/13/14). In my ministry at Catholic University, I personally try to foster in vivo encounters with Christ by focusing on the meaning of life that is found through our Franciscan calling to minority, for we are told by St. Francis that Christ willing chose to be become poor. Teaching minority as a lifestyle has brought me, and those I serve, up close to the poor and the marginalized (whom St. Francis loved dearly with special devotion.)
