Thoughts from your Regional Formation Director
December 2018
Greetings to you my sisters and brothers in Christ and Saint Francis of Assisi.
All peace and good be with you! May the peace and joy of our seraphic Father be yours in ever greater abundance as we journey with Saint Francis, Saint Clare and the Franciscan family in imitating Jesus and Mary.
It is hard to believe but after looking through my files, this will be a full year that I have been sending you my thoughts and it has caused me to reflect on mile-stones and anniversaries which in turn has caused me to contemplate a very special anniversary we all share! The fortieth anniversary of the approval of our rule of life. I can almost laugh to myself some times when I hear a sister and brother say “Our New Rule” or “the New Rule”. Almost all the Secular Franciscans I know have known no other rule!
This rule of ours is a precious and most loved gift from our Order and from the Church. It has brought us back to the foundations of our origins, brothers and sisters of penance and ongoing conversion. It truly reflects the spirit of the Second Vatican Council in LUMEN GENTIUM ( Dogmatic Constitution on the Church) where our Holy Mother Church redirects our thoughts to the original intent of “Church” and mission.
THE MYSTERY OF THE CHURCH
“Christ is the light of humanity; and it is, accordingly, the heart-felt desire of this sacred Council, being gathered together in the Holy Spirit, that by proclaiming his Gospel to every creature (cf. Mk. 16:15), it may bring to all men that light of Christ which shines out visibly from the Church. Since the Church, in Christ, is in the nature of sacrament–a sign and instrument, that is, of communion with God and of unity among all men–she here purposes, for the benefit of the faithful and of the whole world, to set forth, as clearly as possible, and in the tradition laid down by earlier Councils, her own nature and universal mission. The condition of the modern world lends greater urgency to this duty of the Church; for, while men of the present day are drawn ever more closely together by social, technical and cultural bonds, it still remains for them to achieve full unity in Christ.”[1]
I encourage all of you to re-read the Second Vatican Documents, but especial Lumen Gentium. And as you do you should see a striking commonality in tone and form with the Rule approved in 1978, and like the rule the constitutions and statutes. It is intended to bring us back to our roots and original mission.
In my discussion with many of you I hear a frequent question. What do we do for ongoing formation? I can understand the question. Our materials and guidelines for Initial Formation are very clear and abundant. But at first glance not so much for ongoing formation. Just like our rule is a return to our roots, I would suggest the same thing for formation. Take the rule one paragraph at a time along with the reference material like the constitution and the “Franciscan Journey” and spend your ongoing formation time reflecting and discussing or “Re-Discovering” the most precious gift of our Rule of Life!
Pax et Bonum
Peace and all Good
Ted Bienkowski, OFS
SKD Region Formation Director
[1] LUMEN GENTIUM ( Dogmatic Constitution on the Church), The mystery of the Church, par 1
