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DAILY BRIEFING
ENGLISH SPEAKING CONFERENCE | ORDER OF FRIARS MINOR
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 "May the fire of the Spirit burn within each us, set us free from all fear, and allow us to step out in faith and joy to all the world, announcing with joy the truth that Jesus promises to all people and all of creation. Veni, Sancte Spiritus! Come Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful, and kindle in them the fire of your love!"
- General Minister Michael A. Perry, OFM
Homily for Pentecost, May 24, 2015
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Yearning for the new Heavens and Earth
Presentation by Marie Dennis, OFS, co-president of Pax Christi International
DOMUS PACIS, ASSISI - The day's major input was from Marie Dennis, OFS, Co-President of
Pax Christi International, who spoke to the Chapter delgates about the intersection of the economy and ecology, achieving a sustainable peace and promoting right relationships between people.
General Minister Michael A. Perry, OFM, welcomed Ms. Dennis to the Chapter. Ms. Dennis is a Secular Franciscan from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvanie, who worked for 23 years with Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns. She was among those who helped form the Assisi Community in 1986, an in inner city inserted community in Washington, DC, made up of men and women, lay, religious and ordained, who work toward social transformation and peace. For the last seven years, she has been Co-President of Pax Christi International, the Catholic peace movement founded at the end of World War II, but now working on five continents with 115 member organizations.
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| Marie Dennis, OFS, Co-President of Pax Christi International addressing the General Chapter. She is pictured here with the General Minister (center) and Provincial Minister John Puodziunas, OFM (ABVM) who was serving as Moderator today. |
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Here are some highlights from her presentation to the friars:
- "I was enormously impressed not only by the faithfulness of your efforts to follow Francis, which I of course expected, but also the depth with which you are reading the signs of the times in these early years of the 21st century. As a fraternity (like many religious congregations) you are well practiced at reflecting on the reality of our world today in the light of the Scripture, the Francisclariana tradition and your own journey as Friars Minor - and at striving to shape your life in fraternity accordingly. Your attention in this General Chapter to living a radically evangelical life of Brotherhood and Minority in the present time is a good example."
- "Every day, as has been true since the beginning of the Order, Friars are witness to the devastation of poverty and violence -- in many places, to the heartbreak of war. The suffering of each individual person - from hunger and insecurity, homelessness and fear - was probably as severe in the 13th century as in the 21st, but the deep root causes of the poverty we now encounter and the consequences of the wars, whether on a battlefield or in the street, are profoundly different.
That contemporary poverty endures when it could be eradicated is deeply wrong. Does
the Minority of the Order give witness to that fact?
- "We cannot un-know what we have begun to learn about the immensity of the universe, the fragility of the planet, the human's place as part of Earth community, the critical importance of diversity to our physical survival on this planet as well as to healthier societies; the depth of relationality; the challenge of understanding and achieving sustainability. At the same time, I believe that the Francisclariana tradition is better equipped than most to live and act with integrity in this complex world. Like Pope Francis, the Saint's namesake 800 years later, St. Francis' worldview was built around relationships -- relationships that honored the dignity of people living on the margins of 13th century Assisi; relationships of brotherhood/ sisterhood with the rest of creation; reconciling and respectful relationships with the so-called enemy.
- "We have to muster the creative imagination and political will to transform our way of life and the economic system that supports human life to one that respects the carrying
capacity of earth, resource limits and natural processes and is in harmony with the
rhythms of the universe. The bad news is that such a shift is extremely difficult to
imagine; the good news is that, given only one Earth, we don't have a choice. Our job is
to invest financially and politically in a new economy that ensures social justice; honors
the dignity of every person and of all life; and is in harmony with the rhythms of the
universe. Will the Order of Friars Minor help lead people of faith to understand the human and ecological consequences of deep injustice in the workings of the global economy and financial markets?"
- "In the coming weeks Pope Francis will promulgate his eagerly anticipated encyclical on ecology. Shortly after his election, in explaining his choice of the name Francis, he
emphasized that Francis of Assisi 'is the man of poverty, the man of peace, the man who
loves and protects creation' and he added, 'these days we do not have a very good
relationship with creation, do we?' Will this Chapter be remembered as one which called the Order of Friars Minor to a deeper, more demanding, more visible witness among the Brothers living in fraternity to the desperate need for right economic relationships between humans and with the rest of creation?"
- "Friars living in the inner cities in the United States don't have to guess about the root causes of the anger that is so deep among young African American youth that it is erupting more and more often in the streets - sometimes violently. They know about persistent racism, racial profiling and police brutality, about unemployment and inferior education. Can
they help break open the roots of a growing conflict before it gets worse? The Friars perspective elsewhere must be similar -- in Bosnia-Herzogovina, in the Holy Land, in Kenya, in El Salvador and Mexico and on and on. Your Franciscan greeting, 'the Lord grant you peace,' and your vantage point as you accompany marginalized people speak to your way of being present in the world - as Brothers to all, even the 'enemy.'During this General Chapter will you commit Friars Minor to fully engage in the difficult work of the Gospel for which your founder prepared the Order so well? By lifestyle, ministry and common commitment will you assume a position of global leadership in addressing the deep challenges that confront us now and face us in the future?"
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"Will you make of this General Chapter a truly new beginning for the Order of Friars Minor ('Let us begin, brothers, to serve the Lord God, for until now we have done little or nothing.')? Not to do so would be a monumental tragedy for the Order for the church and for humanity. To do so will go far to bring about the New Heavens and the New Earth described in Isaiah 65 and Revelations 21 and for which we all so ardently yearn."
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Words from the Franciscan Family
Conventual, Capuchin, Secular and TOR representatives speak
DOMUS PACIS, ASSISI - As the third week of General Chapter business got underway on Monday, the friars heard words from different parts of the Franciscan family - hearing from the General Minister of the Conventual friars, the Vicar General of the Capuchins, the General Minister of the Secular Franciscans and a representative of the International Conference for the Third Order Regular.
The Capitulars heard from the General Minister of the Order of Friars Minor Conventual, Br. Marco Tasca, OFM Conv. He called upon all of the family to seek a great union. He said:
"T
hank you for this gift to the Order that is Br. Michael's re-election so that we can move forward together. Let me give you some of my thoughts. I believe that in this moment we are called to come together and put aside our differences. In the world today, the only way that people come together is to go to war. But, we are called as friars to give a visible and credible sign to that world that it is possible to come together in peace and as friends. We are called today not to renounce the long history of our communities, but to recognize that perhaps that history is no longer credible. Today, if we don't make the choice to put our differences in the past, then we are paying too much of a tribute to that history of division. Enough of it. It would be great if we could says, 'Yes, there are differences between us, but now is the time for us to come together.' The problem is that it is easier to talk about the differences than it is to come together. We have to come together with the differences. We already have a beautiful experience within our family of putting aside our differences. Now is the time. Let's come together."
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| General Minister Michael A. Perry, OFM, with Conventual General Minister Marco Tasca, OFM Conv. |
The friars also received greetings from Tibor Kauser, OFS, General Minister of the Secular Franciscan Order. In his words to the friars, he said:
"We always look to you as our elder brothers. I would like to ask you to be good witnesses for us. Your testimony as Franciscans in your individual lives and in your fraternal lives is good for us. it is important for us to see how you are living your Franciscan charism, your prayer life, your vocation. But also, it is important for us to see your fraternities.
One of the major challenges for us is to strengthen the fraternal bonds in our fraternities. In the last 38 years since the renewal of our Rule, we have passed through many changes. Our life has changed a lot. But, we need your help, your assistance and the testimony of how you live your fraternal life to help us transform our fraternities from pious prayer groups into true secular fraternities and it is not an easy job. We need your spiritual assistance. We need your love and personal commitment. It is not always easy to find friars to be spiritual assistants, but I kindly invite you to come and see our fraternities and give us your help. We all belong to the same fraternity, we are living the same charism, we deeply need your presence in our lives and we need this life-giving union. We are strongly convinced that we belong to the same fraternity, the same Franciscan family and we will do our best to help you as friars in your mission, in your service, in the church and in the world."
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| Secular Franciscan General Minister Tibor Kauser, OFS, speaking to the Chapter |
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My own General Minister sends his greetings to Br. Michael, Br. Julio and all the newly elected Definitors. Our greetings have three points: peace, wisdom and strength. We are an order that is being called to bring a living gospel to the world and that is not easy. We all really need the gift of the Risen Lord, which brings with it peace in our hearts. It is only when we are at peace with God that we can truly discern wisdom. It is not easy to take the decisive steps that God calls forth from us. Without the strength that comes from God and from our own fraternal support, we won't go very far. Peace. wisdom and strength - these will accompany you in your animation of the Order. We are all called to be witnesses. This fraternal witness is a witness of taking steps together. And so, we ask that we can discern and move together into this universal field. Our common charism was born here in Assisi and it was that charism that called the friars go out into the world."
The friars also received a greeting from
Sr. Klara Simunovich, representing more than 200 religious communiteis of women and men who make up the International Franciscan Conference of the Third Order Regular Institutes.
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| Sr. Klara Simunovich greeting the Chapter on behalf of the International TOR Institutes. |
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Doing more than is expected
VIDEO: Daily homily by Custos Felix Jungco, OFM (St. Anthony, Philippines)
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TOMORROW: Audience with Pope Francis
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