The Province of St. Maximilian Kolbe in India runs four Minor Seminaries in different regions of the Province. The three-year program for aspirants to the Order, aged 15 to 18, has 50 young men at its Kerala site called “Nirmalaram” – Garden of the Immaculata (pictured above). When our Order’s Minister General – Most Reverend Fr. Carlos Trovarelli, OFM Conv., the Assistant General for the FAMC – Friar Benedetto Seung-jae Baek, OFM Conv., and our Minister Provincial – Very Reverend Fr. James McCurry, OFM Conv. visited Nirmalaram Franciscan Ashramon the 28th of August, they were joyfully welcomed with garlands of flowers and a sumptuous meal. Friar Carlos leaned over to Friar James and observed awestruck, “This is like a film scene!”
August 26-27, 2019: While in India for the Dedication of the new St. Bonaventure Franciscan Ashram Seminary, in Bangalore, the St. Maximilian Kolbe Province of India‘s Minister Provincial – Very Reverend Fr. Leo Payyappilly, OFM Conv. joined our Order’s Minister General – Most Reverend Fr. Carlos Trovarelli, OFM Conv., the Assistant General for the FAMC – Friar Benedetto Seung-jae Baek, OFM Conv., and our Minister Provincial – Very Reverend Fr. James McCurry, OFM Conv. for a vistit to the Belvedere Franciscan Ashram Novitiate and their 16 novices and a 3-man staff of formators (above). Tea is a staple of the Tamil Nadu Novitiate in a double sense. Besides drinking India’s favorite beverage, the novices also farm the crop on their ten hilly acres which are 8000 feet above sea level. Expert pickers (above) do the expert work, with the novices’ assistance. A local factory processes the leaves. The enterprise helps in a major way to defray novitiate costs. Friar Leo and Friar James even tried their hands a harvesting (right).
Also on August 26th, Friar Carlos, Friar Benedetto, and Friar James visited the cloistered monastery of the Poor Clares of Perpetual Adoration (above). The nuns spoke with the friars about their Foundress – St. Clare of Assisi. After sharing that St. Clare used to make altar linens for poor churches, the nuns presented each of the friars with a set of altar linens made by them.
In the State of Tamil Nadu, the Friars run Assisi Snehalaya,a hospice for end-stage HIV/AIDS patients. There are presently 36 in residence, including 8 children. At every site they visited, the Minister General, Assistant General, and Minister Provincial were formally welcomed, according to traditional local customs, with the presentation of a garland of flowers called a “Mala.” On their August 27th visit to Assisi Snehalaya, they were each also given a prayer shawl and coconut with straw to sip coconut water (above).
The Second Part of the Ceremony took place in the Dining Hall, where our Minister Provincial, Friar James, gave an inspiring message and blessed the Cross to place on the Dining Hall wall (below).
Friar Carlos, Friar Benedetto and Friar James celebrated Holy Mass with post-novitiate philosophy students in the very cramped chapel (below) of their 4-room rented house without indoor bathroom facilities. They now will be moving into the newly built seminary.
Friar Marius-Ciprian Tomulesei, OFM Conv. poses with a few parishioners of Church of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, gathered for the St. Maximilian M. Kolbe, OFM Conv. Novena (Dublin, Ireland)
Friar Aidan Walsh, OFM Conv. and Friar Joseph Connick, OFM Conv. sharing fraternal joy inside of the friary. (Dublin, Ireland)
Friar James (center) with (left to right) Friar Solanus M. Simms, OFM Conv., Friar Robert Cojoc, OFM Conv., Friar Aquino Maliakkal, OFM Conv. and Friar Joseph Fenton, OFM Conv., at St. Francis Friary. (Wexford, Ireland)
Each year, on August 15th our friars serving at our pastoral ministry of St. Peter’s Roman Catholic Church, in Point Pleasant Beach, NJ celebrate a unique Mass with the community, for the Solemnity of Assumption of Our Lady. The Mass always includes the Blessing of the Sea. This is am important tradition for the people of Point Pleasant Beach because so much of their daily lives revolve around the sea. As the parish bulletin for August 12, 2018 explained: “It is a custom in many coastal regions in the US and Europe to have special blessings of the water –the sea or ocean– on the Feast of the Assumption. The custom originated in the 15th century Italy. A bishop traveling from Venice, during a storm at sea on the Feast of the Assumption, prayed and threw his pastoral ring into the sea from the ship. The waters were calmed. In these “blessings of the sea” celebrations, after the priest blessed the water, the people wade out into the water and fill bottles with it, and use the holy water in their homes.”
This year, Friar Brennan-Joseph Farleo, OFM Conv. remained at the parish to have Mass for those who could not attend, as hundreds of the Faithful joined Friar Pedro de Oliveira, OFM Conv. (Pastor), Friar Marek Stybor, OFM Conv. (Parochial Vicar) and Friar Richard Rossell, OFM Conv. for Mass on the nearby Boardwalk. Friar Pedro and Friar Marek then dipped a statue of Our Lady, into the sea after the procession of Faithful gathered at the water’s edge. Many on hand then gathered the blessed water for their homes.
Friar Marek carries a statue of Our Lady, as Friar Pedro processes with parishioners to the water’s edge.
Fr. José Guadalupe Matus Castillo, OFM Conv. (Parochial Vicar) processes with the parishioners to the sea.
Blessing of the Ocean at Saint Junípero Serra Parish
Once again this year, the Parish of Saint Junípero Serra gathered at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church in Seaside Heights, NJ, for the celebration of the Eucharist on the Solemnity of the Assumption with a procession to the shore and a blessing of the ocean.
Parishioners of Saint Junípero Serra Parish carry the Statue of Our Lady, in a procession from Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church in Seaside Heights to the shoreline.
Event coverage featuring friar Raad Eshoo, OFM. Conv., one of the recently professed friars of our Province Delegation of St Francis of Assisi (Canada), born in Mosul, Iraq.
A sampling of the St. Ignatius Martyr Church Parishioners in attendance gathered with friar Raad (holding flowers) and the friars who concelebrated Mass: Fr. James Fukes, OFM Conv. (top row second from left), Fr. Sebastian Karamvelil, OFM Conv. – Pastor of St. Ignatius (2rd from left), Fr. Jobe Abbass, OFM Conv. – Provincial Delegate (center front) and Fr. Ed Debono, OFM Conv. (5th from right)
Over the weekend of August 9-10, 2019, several of the friars of our Province’s Canadian Delegation of St. Francis of Assisi came together in Ottawa, Ontario to honor friar Raad Eshoo, OFM Conv.; the first friar of the new Delegation to Profess his Simple Vows, since it was erected on February 14, 2019. Friar Raad was on hand for Friday Mass at St Ignatius Martyr Church, and the Saturday Evening Vigil Mass at Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Parish. After both, he shared his vocation story with the parishioners. A reception followed Saturday’s Mass, affording those in attendance the opportunity to meet and congratulate Friar Raad. Both events were successful and helped to raise awareness of the need for an increase in Vocations.
A sampling of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Parish Parishioners in attendance at the reception, gathered with (left to right front row) Fr. Sebastian, Fr. Jobe, friar Raad, and Fr. Dominic Lim, OFM Conv. – Pastor of Assumption.
In 2011, several years before the late +Fr. Peter Damian Fehlner, OFM Conv. returned to our Order, where he spent the last two years of his life as a Franciscan Friar Conventual of our Province, he recorded this video Novena at the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe, in Lacrosse, Wisconsin; a ministry of the Franciscans of the Immaculate. +Friar Peter Damian was welcomed by Sister Death on May 8, 2018, but we are grateful that his writings and his gifted words are a great source of prayerful comfort and peace.
Friar Juan Lopez, OFM Conv. (left – a Transitional Deacon Friar of Our Lady of Guadalupe Province in Mexico, who has been studying in the USA and assisting at Assumption this summer.) and Friar Ed Falsey, OFM Conv. (right – Guardian of St. Francis Friary, serving as a Psychotherapist at a local counseling center) listen to a presentation by FrancisCorps Director – Mr. AJ LaPointe
Mayor Walsh, Friar Jim, Bishop Cunningham, and Friar James
July 19-25, 2019: FrancisCorps celebrated their 20th Anniversary with an alumni reception at Assumption Church, an alumni reunion at the Rosamond Gifford Zoo, and a banquet at the Embassy Suites attended by over 280 Syracuse community members, alumni and friars.
Special guests included the Syracuse Mayor – Ben Walsh, Retiring Bishop of Syracuse – Most Reverend Robert J. Cunningham, and the Minister Provincial of our Province – the Very Reverend Fr. James McCurry, OFM Conv., as well as the Vicar Provincial of our Province – Fr. Michael Heine, OFM Conv. who served as Homilist for the Mass at the conclusion of the weekend, held at the Franciscan Church of the Assumption, in Syracuse, NY, with principal celebrant, Friar Rick Riccioli, OFM Conv. – Chaplain and Pastor of Assumption.
Members of FC1 with the Founder of FrancisCorps – Br. Jim Moore, OFM Conv. (center) and former Co-Minister – Br. Tom Purcell, OFM Conv. (right)
A few weeks later, on August 4, 2019, Fr. James (lower right) returned to welcome the six volunteers of FrancisCorps 21. They are pictured above with FrancisCorps Staff Members: Chaplain and Pastor of Assumption – Friar Rick Riccioli, OFM Conv. (lower left), Director – Mr. AJ LaPointe (top right), and Associate Director and member of FC17 – Ms. Johanna Cajina (top left). Missing from the photo is CoMinister – Sr. Caryn Crook, OSF.
FrancisCorp 21 volunteers were commissioned during 10:00 a.m. Mass, at our pastoral ministry – the Franciscan Church of the Assumption, in Syracuse, NY.
Fr. Edward Ondrako, OFM Conv. is Visiting Scholar at the McGrath Institute for Church Life at the University of Notre Dame and a Research Fellow at the Pontifical Faculty of St. Bonaventure, Rome.
Fr. Ed with Robert Lisowski and Robert McFadden (CSC seminarians), at the 2019 NAA Conference, in New Orleans.
The Province of St. Maximilian Kolbe in India runs four Minor Seminaries in different regions of the Province. The three-year program for aspirants to the Order, aged 15 to 18, has 50 young men at its Kerala site called “Nirmalaram” – Garden of the Immaculata (pictured above). When our Order’s Minister General – Most Reverend Fr. Carlos Trovarelli, OFM Conv., the Assistant General for the FAMC – Friar Benedetto Seung-jae Baek, OFM Conv., and our Minister Provincial – Very Reverend Fr. James McCurry, OFM Conv. visited Nirmalaram Franciscan Ashram on the 28th of August, they were joyfully welcomed with garlands of flowers and a sumptuous meal. Friar Carlos leaned over to Friar James and observed awestruck, “This is like a film scene!”
Also on August 26th, Friar Carlos, Friar Benedetto, and Friar James visited the cloistered monastery of the Poor Clares of Perpetual Adoration (above). The nuns spoke with the friars about their Foundress – St. Clare of Assisi. After sharing that St. Clare used to make altar linens for poor churches, the nuns presented each of the friars with a set of altar linens made by them.
August 25, 2019: Our Order’s 
Friar Carlos, Friar Benedetto and Friar James celebrated Holy Mass with post-novitiate philosophy students in the very cramped chapel (below) of their 4-room rented house without indoor bathroom facilities. They now will be moving into the newly built seminary.
