FRANCIS AND JESUS

By Barbara Horwath,ofs, fsa Associate

 “The brothers who lived with (Francis) know that daily, constantly, talk of Jesus was on his lips…Out of the fullness of the heart his mouth spoke… He was always with Jesus:  Jesus in his heart, Jesus in his mouth, Jesus in his ears, Jesus in his eyes, Jesus in his hands, he bore Jesus always in his body.”

Whenever I read this passage by Thomas of Celano in the Franciscan Morning and Evening Praise, I stop and am in awe.  Jesus was Francis’ life and life’s work.  He preached as Jesus preached—the Kingdom of God and God’s love for everyone.  He lived as Jesus lived—poor, itinerant and with a following of men and women who wanted to join him.

More and more as time went on Francis became more and more like Jesus Christ until he became Christ.   The stigmata was the external sign of what had already existed within.

One cannot speak of Francis without Jesus, for Jesus was in Francis’ heart, mouth, ears, eyes, hands, his whole body. Awesome!

May's Reflection by Liz Schumaker

During the month of May, the month we honor Our Blessed Mother and celebrate Mother's Day, it may be a good time to reflect upon who our  TRUE MOTHER is and what our relationship with her is like.

"I just want my mother", a woman I know in her late forties uttered with a very deep sigh.   She was yearning for that close, affirming relationship you especially look for when you are going through difficult times.  Some people have had such a supportive relationship, many however have experienced only glimpses and some  never have had them.

The woman had a closeness with her mother for only a matter of months.   Her other experiences with her mother had been - - - wrenching.  When this woman was two weeks old, her mother, then 17, gave her to her own mother and walked out of her life for all but the briefest of periods.   Her mother led a hard life and in her later years began showing signs of mental illness, anger and rage.  The woman  was a target of this rage.  Despite many bad experiences, her desire for her mother was deep and real.   Please click to read more...

For more than forty years, February 24th has been a special day of grace for me, one that challenged me called me to respond.  This year was no different.  
                      

On Tuesday morning I was awakened earlier than usual, and sensed I was being given a gift.  I got out of bed with a sense of expectancy and started doing some research, hoping to get a head start on a reflection paper that was near due.  I had hardly begun when I realized that this new day was February 24th.  Today was an extraordinary day in the life of St. Francis of Assisi, and for that matter, it is a gift handed on to us and to generations yet to come.

On this day in 1208, Francis heard the Gospel of Matthew: 10: 5-16 proclaimed.  After Mass, Francis humbly asked the priest to explain the Gospel to him.  The priest explained it thoroughly, line by line.

  When Francis heard that:   

“Christ’s disciples should not possess gold or silver or money, or carry on their  journey a wallet or a sack, nor bread nor a staff, not to have shoes or two tunics, but that they should preach the kingdom of God and penance, the holy man, Francis immediately exulted in the spirit of God. “This is what I wish, this is what I seek, this is what I long to do with all my heart.” Overflowing with joy, Francis immediately set out to do what he had heard.  Francis was no deaf hearer of the Gospel, but he committed all he had heard to memory and diligently carried it out.  Francis began to preach penance, but always would begin with the greeting: “the Lord give you peace”.

Not unlike the Gospel, Francis’ life and words continue to touch hearts today. Every time I read and reflect on Francis’ conversion story and his wholehearted response, I experience anew within me the initial stirrings of my own call to follow Jesus in the spirit of St. Francis, living the Gospel life in community.   

A line from a song comes to mind:    
“I long for you, O Lord, with all my soul I thirst for you.”  

    Let me, let us begin again.  

Set aside some time to be still and quiet in God’s presence.   

 Ask for the grace to be open and receptive to God’s word.

Is there a scripture passage that reflects God’s relationship with me and one that reflects my relationship with God?  Return there often.

Express your gratitude in: word, music, movement, art …

Eleanor Berret

                                                                             

Lent is moving along at an unstoppable pace; it will be Easter before we know it. This is a good time to stop and see if Lent is preparing us to celebrate the Triduum in a deeper and more meaningful way. Are we spending more time with our God? Are we reaching out to those who are living in poverty, on the margins, or simply alone? Are we working for the healing of our earth? Are we helping our bodies and minds to be whole and healthy?

Lent began as a forty day retreat in preparation for those about to be baptized. Have we made an effort to remember what it means to be baptized Christians, committed followers of Jesus, people who are conscious of their roles in the world as lovers and beloved of God. Are we going to be able to celebrate the washing of the feet on Holy Thursday, knowing what it means to “do this in remembrance of me”? Are we going to be able to celebrate the Passion of Jesus knowing what it means to offer ourselves for the benefit of others? Are we going to be able to sit in vigil knowing that we have helped to bring light into the darkness of our world?

Lent is a gift, an opportunity to grow and to deepen our relationship with God and with each other. Now is the time to unwrap that gift if we have simply let it sit on the shelf. Open it and relish the new life it offers us. Our God who is gracious and merciful offers us joy and peace as we prepare to celebrate our defining feast of Easter.

May the remaining days of Lent be blessing for each of us.

Sister Pat Klemm, OSF

Reflection for February 2015  - by Liz Schumacher

            This Lent we may want to reflect upon the relationship between Jesus and Peter.

            How often, when faced with a situation I believe needs a response from me have I undergone a head, heart or gut check and then proceeded headlong into something.  It winds up not working out too well, or not at all, or worse.  During these times there is confusion and at times prolonged confusion, even chaos.  It seems like what is up is down and what is down is up, like Alice 'Through the Looking Glass'.  Nothing makes sense and a completely unwelcomed situation results.  Or, at times my action, despite my great effort, does nothing to change a situation and the situation continues without relief.  I can't make what 'should happen' happen.  I am left simply baffled at what to do, which is terrible to me, as I am a doer.    

            So, in November, I was truly thankful for an awareness that came during a retreat at Graymoor in Garrison, N.Y.  It has given me comfort and renewed trust that God has things well in hand, and that all I need to do is to get out of the way.    

            The subject of the conference was St. Bonaventure's "Tree of Life" reflections, given by Fr. Rick Martignetti, OFM an Immaculate Conception friar[1].  The retreat was for Franciscan women and men in initial formation.

Please click to read further.

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[1] Fr. Rick presented from his newly published book Hidden Beauty: Reflections on Saint Bonaventure's Tree of LIfe Lignum Vitae  (Tau Publishing, LLC., Phoenix, Az 2013).

Francis, Patron Saint of Ecology

On November 29th, Franciscans throughout the world celebrated the 35th anniversary of the naming of Saint Francis as Patron of Ecology by John Paul II.  Today many believe that we stand at a critical moment of Earth’s history. The environmental questions Francis faced were different than the questions we might have today. The environment in his time did not face the same global threats as we do, but the way he approached the world and his relationship to nature steer us in the right direction.

We can point to Francis’ passionate and sensory love of all creation as God’s handiwork.  His profound appreciation of the beauty and goodness of creation filled him with even deeper love and gratitude for God, the source of such abundant blessing and diverse fullness.

We can point to Francis’ passionate and sensory love of all creation as God’s handiwork.  His profound appreciation of the beauty and goodness of creation filled him with even deeper love and gratitude for God, the source of such abundant blessing and diverse fullness.

Francis so naturally experienced God’s presence in creation that he intuited that the “natural” both points to and participates in, the “supernatural.” He sensed that the God who became flesh in Jesus Christ is still, and always will be, enfleshed in the world.  In other words, Francis’ vision of creation was both sacramental and incarnational.  Francis thus offers us a creation-affirming alternative to an approach that overemphasizes the “stain of original sin.”

Francis modeled a path of contemplative action.  His prayerful grappling with the pain of the marginalized, such as the leper, moved him to act with compassion. He thereby mediated and embodied God’s ongoing love toward the ever-present risen Christ, still “hidden” in the scorned and rejected.  Please click to read more.

Material for this article was taken from the website (http://francis35.org/english/35th-anniversary-reflection) created to provide various resources to help with the celebration of the 35^th Anniversary.

 Materials used with permission.

submitted by:  Marita Flynn, O.S.F., Franciscan Spirituality Committee

“Let us begin, brothers, to serve the Lord God, for up to now we have made little or no progress.” He did not consider that he had laid hold of his goal as yet, and preserving untiringly in his purpose of attaining holy newness of life, he hoped always to make a beginning."

From: The First Life of St. Francis”  by Thomas of Cellano  - p. 318

Submitted by Sister Eleanor Barret, OSF