The St. Katharine Drexel Region of the Secular Franciscan Order

October 2014

Let us desire nothing else,

let us wish for nothing else,

let nothing else please us and cause us delight,

except our Creator and Redeemer and Savior,

the one true God,

Who is fullness of Good, all Good, every Good,

the true and Supreme Good,

Who alone is merciful and gentle, delectable and sweet,

Who alone is holy, just and true, holy and right,

Who alone is kind, innocent, pure,

from Whom and through Whom and in Whom

is all pardon, all grace, all glory …

Therefore, let nothing hinder us,

nothing separate us or come between us.

Let us all, wherever we are …

Glorify and exalt, magnify and give thanks

to the Most High and supreme eternal God . Amen.

(Saint Francis of Assisi)

The month of October celebrates the Holy Transitus and Glory of our Seraphic Father St. Francis of Assisi. Following are excerpts taken from: A Letter on the Passing of Saint Francis (attributed to Elias of Assisi) Major Legend, Chapter 15 (Saint Bonaventure). Daily reflections are taken from various sources.

1

Before I begin to speak, I sigh, and rightly so… For what I feared has overtaken me and has overtaken you. What I dreaded has happened to me and to you. Our consoler has gone away from us and he who carried him in his arms like lambs has gone on a journey to a far off country. – God is with you, God is within you, dwell for a moment in God’s presence.

2

He who was beloved of God and of man, who taught Jacob the law of life and of discipline, and gave to Israel a covenant of peace has been received into the most resplendent of dwellings. We would rejoice exceedingly on his account, yet for our own part we must mourn, since in his absence darkness surrounds us and the shadow of death covers us. – Holiness is where we are. » Click to continue reading “Fr. Francis’ Reflections – October 2014” »

August 2014

(St. Francis of Assisi)

O truly the most Christian of men,

who strove by perfect imitation to be conformed

while living to Christ living, dying to Christ dying,

and dead to Christ dead,

and deserved to be adorned with an expressed likeness!

(Your) most holy soul was released from the flesh

and absorbed into the abyss of divine light …

You were borne aloft straight to heaven …

(you) merited to enter the place of light and peace

where (you) rest with Christ forever.

(Pray for your family on earth

that we may share your life with God one day.)

(Major Legend by St. Bonaventure, chapter 14 – adapted)

Following are excerpts taken from The Romanticism of St. Francis by Father Cuthbert, O.F.M. Cap. ed.1924; Daily reflections are taken from Day by Day with by Pope John Paul II.

The Story of the Friars

1

For three years…Francis had been living a life of strict poverty, working with his hands and begging his bread. He had run the gauntlet of ridicule and now by sheer force of character and his evident sincerity, was winning the respect of his fellow citizens. – As soon as the Christian becomes aware of his supernatural vocation, he welcomes the mystery of God’s coming to his own soul.

2

One day hearing Mass when the words of the Gospel fell upon his ears…He at once cast aside his shoes and went forth barefooted and as he met people on the road, he began to admonish them to love God and save their souls. Thus to the life of poverty was added the apostolate. – The stable of Bethlehem is the primary place of man’s solidarity…chiefly with those for whom “there is no room in the inn”.

» Click to continue reading “Fr. Francis’ Reflections – August 2014” »