Just a Brother

Merry Christmas

2011-12-25T18:02:00.000+01:00

"Christian, remember your dignity, and now that you share in God's own nature, do not return by sin to your former base condition. Bear in mind who is your head and of whose body you are a member. Do not forget thatyou have been rescued from the power of darkness and brought into the light of God's kingdom" (from a sermon by Saint Leo the Great, pope).

Profession of Br Daniel Jimenez

2011-12-20T20:57:00.000+01:00

The Order's newest jurisdiction

2011-12-20T20:07:00.005+01:00

Over the weekend of December 17-18, I participated in the inauguration of the Custody of Northern Mexico in Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, Mexico. The General Minister, of course, presided at the ceremony, and Br Carlos Novoa, General Definitor for the Spanish-speaking jurisdictions of the Order, was also on hand. The ceremony was held at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, December 17, in the chapel of P. Pio Friary in Monterrey, which serves as the post novitiate house of the jurisdiction, and will now become the headquarters of the new Custody, as well. Brs. Mauro and Carlos read the decree of establishment, and declared that David Beaumont will serve as the first Custos, assisted by first councilor Maximino Gonzalez and second councilor Bill Trauba.

This year, the Capuchins of the Western America Province celebrated the 25th year of their presence in northern Mexico. In 1998, the mission began accepting candidates to the Order and has since seen steady growth so there are now about twenty local vocations among the professed brothers of the Custody. Along with the four friars of the Western American Province ministering in the Custody, there are two friars from Goa, India, and three from Brazil. At various times in the past, friars from the Provinces of Mid-America and New Jersey have also collaborated in the mission.

On Sunday, Br Daniel Jimenez de Santiago professed perpetual vows into the hands of the General Minister during the 11:00 Eucharist. Both Daniel and I had the same novice director, Bill "Memo" Kraus, although a few years separate his novitiate and mine. In fact, I am the oldest surviving novice of Bill Kraus in the Order.

Farewell

2011-10-02T18:43:00.004+02:00

By the feast of All Saints the General Curia fraternity will be located at the International College in Rome. Since October 1^st was one of the last days in which the whole fraternity would be present, we celebrated the closure of the Via Piemonte site of the General Curia. Br Mauro presided at the Eucharist, and some of the "old-timers" shared some of their memories of the friary and of the brothers who lived here. Photographs of the liturgy can found on Br Carlos Novoa's blog.

After the Mass, we had a festive lunch, prepared by our cook, Claudio, with the help of other staff members.

During the November Definitory meeting, we will celebrate the opening of our "new", temporary Generalate at the International College.

Capuchin Meeting on Migration

2011-09-07T03:55:00.003+02:00

Friars from all parts of America—North, Central and South—have gathered in Lima, Peru, this week to discuss what we as an Order can do to alleviate the plight of migrants in this part of the world. The North American-Pacific Capuchin Conference is well represented by its 11 participants (out of a total of 32). Also attending the meeting are Bernd Beerman, Director of the Order's JPE Office, who organized the meeting, Helmut Rakowski, Mission Secretary of the Order, and the three General Definitors for the area: Carlos Novoa, Jose Gislon and I. The General Minister was originally scheduled to participate in the meeting, but had to back out due to a scheduling conflict.

As Mauro pointed out in his message to the participants, the Capuchin presence in the Americas, "began with the desire of European jurisdictions to follow the emigrants and to assist them pastorally." In some ways, the situation of migrants today is very different than it was when Capuchins first arrived in the Americas, but the need for pastoral care is still there. The hope of the meeting's organizers is that the participants can identify those needs and organize a response to them within the various regions of the American continent, or even set up a project that involves collaboration among different regions of the continent. As Mauro put it in his letter: "Starting from our guiding values, we cannot remain indifferent, and though we may feel powerless in the presence of a phenomenon of such gigantic proportions, we want to do something to alleviate the sufferings of as many people as possible. Planning for it and working on it together will make our efforts more effective. It is important that we not shrink from the task given us by the migrant."

The first two days of the meeting had input from three people. Fr. Rafael Moreno Villa, SJ, gave an overview of migration in the Americas. Fr. Daniel Groody, CSC, presented a conceptual framework for understanding the complex issue of immigration, then laid the groundwork for a theological understanding of immigration. Finally, Br. José Angel Echeverria, a member of the Order's Historical Institute, presented an historical overview of the Capuchin response to immigration in the Americas.

Further information about the meeting can be found on the blog of the JPE Office. Some of the excellent material
presented by Fr. Daniel Groody can be found on his website.

The Big Purge

2011-08-18T10:16:00.007+02:00

Although we are still waiting for final approval of our project by the Ministry of Cultural Heritage and Environmental Conservation, we plan to completely vacate the General Curia by the end of October 2011 so that renovations can begin. Hope springs eternal! The delicate tasks of moving the library and the archives of the General Postulator and General Procurator are nearly complete. Many of the Curia's other offices have begun to move some materials to our temporary home at the International College.

One of the advantages of having to completely vacate the premises is that it gives everyone an opportunity to cull unnecessary or duplicate items from our offices. We have probably supplied enough recycled paper to save a few dozen trees. The furniture that is not needed for our rooms at the International College will be given to the Capuchin Poor Clares or organizations serving the poor. The old computers, printers and other electronic devices that have accumulated in storage over the past few decades will be disposed of in an environmentally-friendly manner. Ditto for the inks and chemicals remaining from the days when the Curia did its own printing. Saved from recycling, however, was the General Curia's first computer—an IBM PC-XT, purchased in 1985. I hope to convince the Capuchin Museum to add the computer to its collection.

The friars themselves will move to their new digs at the International College during October. Since I will be in Rome for less than two weeks during all of October, I have begun to move all non-essential items to the International College now. My desk has never been so clean. This must be what Capuchin austerity looks like! For the sake of clarity, I wish to point out that most of the boxes in the photograph to the right do not contain my personal belongings. In fact, just to move the complete set of the Analecta OFMCap. that came with the office required four boxes. I suppose I could give the set away, but I couldn't bring myself to part with it.

Principles vs. Practice

2011-05-29T22:42:00.003+02:00

The issue of being able to elect lay friars to serve as major superiors has been on my mind very often lately. It is an issue that has interested me from the time I joined the Order, but it has been brought to the front burner on several occasions this year. Every time I preside at a chapter – four times already this year, with at least another three to go – I am obliged to give “The Speech” about the futility of electing a non-ordained brother to the office of provincial minister or provincial vicar. This puts me in the uncomfortable position of having to defend a law of the Church, to which the Order belongs and to which we have professed obedience, which conflicts with our Order’s history and charism, not to mention common sense. At least in the NAPCC, the chapter delegates have been very diligent in charitably reminding me that they find the law to be unnecessary and unjustified. I know it and I get it!

Recently I have been asking myself which is more important, the principle or the practice? In other words, should we hold on to our position that “all brothers in final vows may be elected to all offices or positions except those which come because of ordination” (Const. 115,6) regardless of how long it takes, or should we accept a partial solution if it were offered to us tomorrow? A partial solution, for instance, might take the form of permission to have either a non-ordained provincial minister or provincial vicar as long as the other was an ordained brother; the general minister and general vicar, however, would always have to be ordained brothers. A few years ago, I would have considered this a rhetorical question, but not any longer. One reason this question has become real for me is that I have heard anecdotal evidence that some clerical institutes have been permitted to have just such an arrangement. If that is true, we could very possibly cut the same deal. The other reason this question has become real for me is that as the provinces in the West get smaller, it becomes more obvious that sometimes the best candidates for leadership positions have to be passed over because they are not ordained.

As the question has moved from rhetorical to real, I find my position shifting away from the principled to the practical solution. On principle, I would dislike having to restrict myself to voting for an ordained brother as provincial vicar merely because the chapter had elected a lay brother as provincial minister. Practically, however, I dislike it even more that I am not allowed to elect a lay friar as either provincial minister or vicar provincial, even when he is the best candidate. The problem with the practical solution is that accepting it might kill any hope we have of receiving what we really want. It is easy to believe that we could accept a partial solution in the short term while continuing to ask for permission to live our charism fully. In practice, however, having the ability to elect lay brothers as major superiors at the jurisdictional level would reduce the sense of urgency felt by the Order to ask for the full solution, as well as reduce the pressure on the Vatican (if, indeed, it feels any) to concede it. So the question really comes down to whether we as an Order are willing to go against our principles in order to receive some of what we want?

As this is an issue that affects all of us, I would appreciate hearing what you think about it.

Good Friday homily

2011-04-23T10:40:00.005+02:00

I am posting the link to the homily Br. Raniero Cantalamessa delivered during the Good Friday service in the Basilica of Saint Peter yesterday. As Preacher of the Pontifical Household, it is one of Raniero's duties to preach the Good Friday homily in Saint Peter's each year.

Not only is the homily worth reading, it also serves as a notice, to those who didn't know it already, that our brother Raniero has a website where one can find the homilies he preaches to the Pontifical Household each Friday during Lent and Advent. You can also find articles and news items about him on the site. Best of all, almost all of it has been translated into English. It could be a good resource if you need an idea for a homily or a talk, especially during Advent and Lent.

Holy Week 2011

2011-04-21T18:17:00.002+02:00

For several years now, the churches in our neighborhood of Rome have organized an ecumenical Via Crucis each year during Holy Week. This year's celebration was held on Wednesday of Holy Week, and about half a dozen friars of the Curia participated in it. The service even rates the participation of a bishop of Rome, although not the bishop of Rome. The Presider for Wednesday's service was Bishop Ernesto Mandara, Auxiliary Bishop of Rome.

The service started at the Church of Saint Camillus, just a few blocks down Via Piemonte from the Curia. For some reason, we were not able to use the church itself so we gathered in front of it for the first two stations of the cross. Reflections were given by Fr. Luigi Secchi, the Pastor of Saint Camillus, and by Fr. Iurie Hìncu, the Pastor of the Moldavian Orthodox Community of Rome.

From Saint Camillus we processed to the Church of Saint Patrick, which is staffed by Irish Augustinians. The Augustinian friars gave reflections on two more stations of the cross. Next we processed to the chapel in our own General Curia. Here, Br. Carlos Novoa, General Definitor from Argentina, gave a very insightful reflection on "Jesus is stripped of his garments". He called attention to the "nudity" that exists all around us—of the people who are stripped of their dignity in society by poverty, violence and abandonment. He also nicely tied in the idea of Francis who wanted "naked, wished to follow the naked Christ". The other reflection in our chapel was provided by a sister from a nearby convent (who unfortunately was not introduced).

Lastly, we processed to the nearby Lutheran Church, where the Reverend Dr. Martin Kruse, Pastor of the Evangelical Lutheran Community of Rome, gave one reflection, and the Assistant Pastor gave another. This church, by the way, was the first to be visited by a reigning Pope—Pope John Paul II went there in 1983.

As you may have noticed, there were only 8 stations in this Via Crucis; no doubt due to time limitations. Nonetheless, it was a very nice experience, and a good start to the heart of Holy Week.

Beware of e-mail scams

2011-01-14T12:22:00.004+01:00

Once every three months or so I get an e-mail from someone I know, usually a Capuchin, that reads something like this:

How are you doing ? I'm stuck in London, I got mugged at gun point last night, all cash,credit card and cell phone were stolen off me, Thank God i have my life and passport saved...I am having problem in settling the hotel bills i need you to loan me 1,350 Pounds to sort out the hotel bills and also take a cab to the airport, You can wire the money to me through western union all you need is Name on my passport and location below i will appreciate any amount you can wire to my info below....

Most of the time, the scenario presented is so implausible that it is easily recognizable as a scam. While almost everyone who uses e-mail has received advertisements for, um, male enhancement products that purport to be from someone we know, the scam above is much more insidious since the scammer has actually succeeded in taking over someone's e-mail account. Once in, the first thing the scammer does is to change the password on the account so that the real user can no longer access it. Then the scammer proceeds to send e-mails like the one above to everyone in the account's contact list. Most recipients of the message will recognize it for what it is and ignore it. Unfortunately, there are still a few kind-hearted, gullible people in the world who will fall for this scam.

Even if no one falls for the scam, the legitimate owner of the account usually loses all his stored messages and contact information. In order to regain access to the account, the owner has to prove to the service provider (Yahoo or Google, for instance) that he is the real owner, which can be nearly impossible. Meanwhile, the scammer waits for his money to show up at a Western Union location somewhere in the world. In the meantime, he (or she) will begin trying to break into all the other e-mail accounts contained in the latest victim's contact list. Online services such as Yahoo, Google and AOL seem to be the preferred targets.

What can you do to protect yourself? First of all, use a strong password on your e-mail account. The longer the password is, the more difficult it will be to guess. Use letters, numbers and at least one special symbols (such as, ! ^ # @ + *) in the password. Avoid using ordinary words; hackers can use "dictionary attacks" to discover these passwords. When you come up with a strong password, write it down and keep it in a safe place.

Secondly, update the security settings on your e-mail account. The most popular e-mail providers allow you to set up security questions and secondary e-mail addresses that will help you get your account back if someone does manage to take over your account. If you use Gmail, open www.google.com in your browser and click on "Settings" then "Google Account settings" in the upper right-hand corner. Under the section titled "Personal Settings", you will see a link to "Change password recovery options". After clicking on that link and confirming your gmail user name and password, you can set up an alternative e-mail address and a cell phone number where you will receive messages whenever the password on your account is changed. On that same page, you can set up a security question and answer that can be used to recover your account.

If you use Yahoo mail, go to www.yahoo.com and login. Click on the arrow to the right of your user name, then click on "Account info". After confirming your password, you will see a link titled "Update password-reset info" under the "Sign-in and Security" section. On the next page you can set your alternative e-mail address, cell phone number and two security questions and answers.

If you use a different e-mail provider, you may have to dig around a little to find the security settings.

Keeping your e-mail account secure will not only save you a lot of hassle and heartache, but will also keep the addresses of your friends and co-workers from falling into the hands of unscrupulous people. Help spread the word.

Merry Christmas

2010-12-22T05:19:00.003+01:00

Let us remember that the Christmas heart is a giving heart, a wide open heart that thinks of others first. The birth of the baby Jesus stands as the most significant event in all history, because it has meant the pouring into a sick world of the healing medicine of love which has transformed all manner of hearts for almost two thousand years... Underneath all the bulging bundles is this beating Christmas heart.

George Mathhew Adams

Assembly in Australia

2010-12-22T05:00:00.003+01:00

I was in Australia during the first week of December, where I lead the provincial assembly in a study of the Constitutions project currently underway. By my count, there were 32 friars participating in the assembly, which ran from the 6th to the 10th of December. I guided the group through the study of the revisions of chapters one, two and four, then the participants divided themselves into six groups, one for each of the remaining revised chapters—three, five, six, seven, nine and ten (the revisions of chapters eight, eleven and twelve were not yet ready). The groups did very well studying the revisions and pointing out some of the more important changes to the rest of the assembly.

I do not consider myself an expert in our Constitutions so I was reluctant at first to lead the assembly on this topic. After all was said and done, however, I was very glad that I did it because it gave me the opportunity (read: forced me) to do a more in-depth study of the project myself. I must admit that I learned a lot. The notes that accompany the revisions are useful and even interesting, at times. They helped me to understand many things not only about the revisions that are being proposed, but about our current Constitutions, as well. If you haven't studied any of the proposed revisions yet, I urge you to do so. Pick the chapter of the Constitutions that most interests you—formation, prayer, poverty, our manner of life, fraternity, penance, ministry, obedience, etc.—and see what the committee is proposing for that chapter. I bet you will learn something too.

A Tribute

2010-11-07T21:49:00.004+01:00

Speaking of Ireland, while visiting the brothers in Rochestown, I took the opportunity to visit the grave of Br Donal O’Mahony, who passed away on 14 August 2010. I lived and worked Donal when he was the Secretary of the Justice Peace and Ecology Office of the Order and I was the English-speaking Secretary, from 1988 to 1994. Donal was small of stature, but he had a big heart and his presence could fill a room. Anyone who ever met Donal was instantly his friend. In his life he met many famous people, but he showed as much respect and interest in ordinary people as he did to politicians and celebrities. Once he was seated next to a young Irish couple who were flying to Rome to be married, and by the time they exited the plane, Donal had agreed to witness the marriage and provide a honeymoon tour of the Eternal City.

All the major newspapers in Ireland carried an obituary of Donal in which they spoke of his work as a hostage negotiator, his efforts for the homeless that led to the establishment of Threshold and his passion for peace that led him to create the Damietta Initiative. While those initiatives are commendable, it was the quiet, unassuming way that he worked in the Order’s JPE Office that led me to admire him. He was the first Secretary of the JPE Office, and as for most pioneers, the trail was not always easy to blaze. Not everyone in the General Curia believed we needed a JPE Office so his work was not always appreciated. Once, he returned to Rome from official business somewhere in the world only to find that someone had removed half the furniture from his office “since he wasn’t using it.” A lesser person faced with such attitudes probably would have given up, but Donal bore it all with a smile. He preached peace not only with his lips, but by his very actions.

It is all too easy to say that one person cannot make a difference, but thanks to Donal the lives of thousands have been improved by the work of Threshold. In a day and age when it seems that the world seems to be locked in an inevitable clash of cultures, perhaps the Damietta Initiative will work a similar miracle. Rest in peace, Donal.

A Canticle of Creation

2010-11-07T17:39:00.003+01:00

The pastoral and fraternal visits conducted by the General Definitory are not exactly holiday excursions, but I cannot deny that I often find myself in interesting and beautiful places. The place I am currently visiting would fall into the latter category. For the last two days I have been visiting the brothers in Ard Mhuire Friary, County Donegal, Ireland. During a rare, sunny moment this morning I snapped the above photo of the friary from a short distance away. I was given the privilege of staying in the “Bishop’s Room”, which can been seen on the top left side of the friary in the photo. The second photograph is the view from my room on a less sunny moment. Although this would now be considered prime property, before the Capuchins acquired it from the Irish Land Commission in 1929 it had been on the market for nearly seven years. The friary was originally used as the province's theologate, but is now a retreat house. The brothers here are most hospitable, and would gladly welcome fellow Capuchins for a private retreat or just some time away.

I was told that the mountain seen in the background of the photo is used by local residents to predict the weather. If the mountain is not visible, they say, it is raining. If it is visible, it is about to rain. It seems to be a very accurate indicator since the mountain was very visible in the bright sun this morning, but now, six hours later, the rain is so thick that the mountain is barely visible.

Province of Croatia visitation

2010-08-26T05:06:00.004+02:00

Tempus fugit! It has been over a month since I completed the visitation of the Croatian Province (27 June to 11 July 2010). First, let me answer the obvious question: No, I do not speak Croatian. Fortunately, the Croatian brothers' linguistic abilities are better than mine—most of them speak either Italian or English; for those who did not, Br Ivica Vrbić, who was my driver for most of the visitation, also very capably handled the job of interpretation. Customarily, a general definitor does not conduct the visitation of his own province—that would be akin to asking a mother if she thought her baby was beautiful. Since Jure Šarčević, the general definitor for the area, is from the Croatian Province, he asked me to conduct the visitation there. I readily accepted because I had fond memories of my visit to Croatia in 1999.

The first permanent Capuchin presence in Croatia dates to 1611. Although it has historically had only around fifty members, the Province has already given the Order one saint, Leopold Mandić, whose image can be seen in almost every Catholic church in the country. The Province has recently begun to promote the cause of another of its members—Ante Tomičić, a lay brother who died in the odor of sanctity in 1981. The ministry of the brothers in Croatia consists mainly in caring for several shrines and parishes, although there is a variety of other ministries, as well. The Capuchins are noted and appreciated for the traditional ministries of preaching and confession.

Since Croatian won its independence from the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugolavia in the early 1990's, it has re-asserted its Catholic character and has also experienced an improved economy. In 2004, it applied to join the European Union. As I see it, these changes, while in some ways good for society, will pose a challenge for the Province. Rising incomes generally lead to smaller families, which means fewer vocations. Increasing materialism will make it more difficult for the Church and the Capuchin Order to keep the attention of youth in Croatian society. Many of the brothers are aware of these challenges and are trying to address them, although it is never easy to know what the correct response is.

Pennsylvania Province Chapter

2010-06-19T01:42:00.004+02:00

From June 14 to June 18, 2010, I presided at the Ordinary Chapter of the Pennsylvania Province. There was a wonderful, fraternal spirit among the 94 official delegates and the numerous guest-friars who attended the Chapter. The Province chose to reflect during the Chapter on the four core values of the Capuchin life mentioned in the General Minister's fourth circular letter, Let Us Fan the Flame of Our Charism, namely, fraternity in minority, contemplation, closeness to the poor and continuing renewal. In preparation for the Chapter, the friars of the Province met in regional assemblies during the past twelve months to discuss their experiences of these values and how they wanted to live them more deeply in the future. At the Chapter itself, the friars met in small groups to discuss the topics further and to formulate suggestions for the new definitory. The groups came up with many practical, yet challenging ideas for helping the Province live these values more authentically.

The liturgies and the moments of prayer during the Chapter were also well-planned. For lack of a suitable retreat center large enough to accomodate the Chapter, it was held at a conference center. Despite the lack of a real chapel, the space created for the liturgies was quite prayerful. The musicians and liturgists helped to create a prayer spirit during the Chapter, which no doubt contributed greatly to the overall sense of peace and fraternity that I sensed.

Congratulations to the new Provincial Council that was elected. May they be blessed in this fraternal ministry for which they have been chosen.

Saint Lawrence Seminary Celebrates 150 Years

2010-06-12T18:43:00.010+02:00

Soon after arriving in the United States and establishing the first, permanent presence of Capuchins in the country, Bonaventure Frey and Francis Haas realized that if the fledging jurisdiction was to survive, it needed to recruit and train local vocations. So it was that in 1860 they opened a school for boys that would become known as Saint Lawrence Seminary. On 3 June 2010, the seminary celebrated the 150th anniversary of that courageous and prophetic decision.

That the seminary exists at all is fairly remarkable since most high school seminaries in the United States closed in the 1970's due to declining enrollments. A Chapter of the Province of Saint Joseph (Calvary) discussed just such an option, but decided to do everything in their power to keep the doors open. The enrollment in recent years has been about 200 students, which is lower than at the school's height, but higher than in the 70's and 80's. Although only a small percentage of Saint Lawrence Seminary's students eventually become priests or religious, all are formed to become leaders in the Church and in their communities. Numerous bishops, priests and brothers were among the alumni who attended the anniversary celebration. Some of those present for the celebration are shown in the picture below. They are (from left to right, with alumni indicated by *): Br John Celichowski*, Provincial Minister, Bishop Octavio Cisneros*, Auxiliary Bishop of Brooklyn, Bishop Joseph Perry*, Auxiliary Bishop of Chicago, Bishop Jerome Listecki, Bishop of Milwaukee, Bishop Richard Sklba, Auxiliary Bishop of Milwaukee, Bishop Paul Schmitz*, Apostolic Administrator of Bluefields (Nicaragua) and Br Dennis Druggan*, Rector of St Lawrence Seminary.

In my remarks, I mentioned that running an educational institution might appear to be a strange ministry for an Order whose founder viewed higher education with some suspicion and forbid his brothers to have any book other than the breviary. I recalled, however, something that Br Raniero Cantalamessa said at the International Chapter of Mats in 2009—that Franciscans were once known for their work of evangelizing the lost. Using biblical images, he said that we were once more fishermen than pastors. Given that youth are overrepresented among the unchurched today, the education of youth may be among the most Franciscan of all ministries.

Chapter of the Central Canadian Province

2010-06-03T21:18:00.002+02:00

Provincial ministers who dream of having smaller, less complicated provinces may want to talk to someone from the Province of Mary, Mother of the Good Shepherd (Central Canada) before jumping ship. Having just presided at its Eighth Ordinary Chapter, I can attest that fewer brothers and fewer friaries does not necessarily translate into fewer challenges. In some ways, just the opposite is true. For one thing, fewer brothers means that a greater percentage of them are involved in the inevitable internal ministries of a jurisdiction—provincial minister, directors of formation, vocations and communications, etc. It is true that in a smaller province some of these ministries may not need to occupy a brother full-time, but assigning several ministries to one brother adds its own complications. Fewer brothers and friaries also means there is less flexibility in terms of ministerial and fraternal assignments. None of this, of course, is news to the members of the Mother of the Good Shepherd Province. The discussions during the Chapter clearly indicated that the brothers were well aware of the challenges they faced. They were equally aware, however, of the resources and hopes that they have to meet these challenges.

There are currently twenty-six professed brothers working in the Central Canadian Province. Of these, eight are members of provinces in Eritrea, India, Italy, and Poland. Some came specifically in order to work with Catholics of their own ethnic groups, but other came mainly to help the Province maintain strong, vital fraternities. Some have come with the intention of remaining the rest of their lives, while others are there on multi-year commitments. Because of the Province’s long experience in this regard, it is something of a laboratory for Solidarity of Personnel. In the discussions that took place during the Chapter, it was clear that successfully integrating brothers from different areas of the world is not as easy as it seems, and that it requires ongoing efforts. I was happy to see, therefore, that one of the resolutions passed at the Chapter was aimed at improving the way friars from other countries are welcomed and integrated into the Province.

On the other hand, the mere fact that the Chapter’s participants could candidly discuss the difficulties among themselves was a sign of the trust that has developed among them. That one non-Canadian served on the previous Provincial Council and two were elected to the current Council are further evidence that integration is possible.

An Accidental Reunion

2010-05-05T17:37:00.007+02:00

The General Minister and I recently completed our travels to various jurisdictions in North America: the Chapter of the Province of Mid-America, the centenary celebrations of the Province of Western America, the NAPCC meeting in Québec City, and a visit of the Pennsylvania Province. Understandably, everyone wants to maximize the time they have with the General Minister so we were constantly on the move during the three weeks he spent in North America.

While all the events we attended added, in their own way, to the General Minister's understanding of Capuchin life in North America, the celebrations in California of the 100th anniversary of the coming of Irish Capuchins to the West Coast stood out. The latest issue of the BICI has an article about the celebrations so I will not elaborate on them here. One event during these celebrations, however, rendered the experience even more memorable, thanks to a chance remark and the diligence of one friar.

Having just attended a symposium on the life of our former General Minister, Bernard of Andermatt, I knew that he was the first General Minister to visit the missions in North America, which he did in 1891 (the website of the Province of Mid-America has a photograph of Bernard of Andermatt taken during the Chapter of the Pennsylvania Province in 1891). I was struck by the fact that the itinerary of this General Minister from Switzerland included many of the same stops (Pittsburgh, Victoria, San Francisco, and Québec) as our current General Minister, also from Switzerland. Knowing that he had traveled to San Francisco to meet his brother, Edward, who immigrated to the U.S. in 1884, I wondered in an e-mail to Br Matt Elshoff, the Provincial Minister of Western America, whether there were still any descedents of Edward Christen in California. Matt asked the Provincial Secretary, Br Miguel Ortiz, to look into it. With characteristic diligence, Miguel managed to track down a grandson of Edward still living in Ferndale, California. Richard Christen and his wife, Ann, were invited to join the centenary celebration in Burlingame, California, on 15 April 2010, together with any other interested family members. In all, about twenty-five members of the Christen family were in attendance, bringing with them a photograph they had of Bernard of Andermatt and a copy of his biography of Saint Francis that he had given them.

Where America’s Day Begins and Ends

2010-02-26T00:58:00.004+01:00

I’ve just concluded a visit to the Vice Province of the Marianna Islands and Hawaii, also known as Our Lady, Star of the Sea. The cynics among you are probably thinking that I deliberately planned the visit for February in order to escape colder, snowier climates. Let me state from the outset, therefore, that just because they are cynical does not mean that they are always wrong!

A total of twenty friars make up the Vice Province—fourteen on the island of Guam (including Archbishop Anthony Apuron) and six in Hawaii. Seven of the friars are from the mother Province of New York/New England, one is from Hawaii and the rest are from Guam. Although the Vice Province is among the smaller jurisdictions numerically, it is probably the largest geographically; 3,800 miles (6,120 km) separate Guam and Hawaii. Flying from one to the other takes over seven hours. As you can imagine, this presents a formidable challenge to the friars’ ability to get together and to maintain a sense of unity. Furthermore, while Guam and Hawaii have many things in common—a tropical climate, the island mentality of its residents, and a substantial number of Filipino and Pacific Islander immigrants, to name a few—there are also significant differences. The fact that Hawaii is one of the fifty states of the United States and its proximity to the American mainland (it is “only” a five hour flight) means that Hawaii is heavily influenced by the culture of mainland America. Guam, although a territory of the United States since 1898, was first colonized by Spain, and the Spanish influence can still be seen, especially in Guam’s religious devotions. Guam is also more strongly influenced by Asian and Pacific cultures than Hawaii. In fact, the Archdiocese of Guam belongs to the Episcopal Conference of the Pacific. Practically speaking, this means that the church in Hawaii struggles with a lot of the same issues as that of the mainland, such as falling Mass attendance, fallout from sexual abuse scandals, and clergy shortages. The church in Guam is not untouched by these struggles, but it does not experience them quite as strongly. Sunday Mass attendance is still high, and even weekday Masses will have a good attendance. Devotions to the saints, especially St Jude and St Anthony, are also strong.

There are also some significant differences in the experience of the Order on the two islands. The missions in the Marianna Islands was entrusted to the Capuchin Order by the Propaganda Fide so at one time Capuchins “owned” the church on Guam. Until recently, all the parishes on the island had a Capuchin pastor. As the number of secular clergy has grown, both through ordination of local vocations and the borrowing of clergy from other countries, the friars have begun to relinquish parishes to the diocesan clergy and to expand into other ministries, most notably teaching. In Hawaii, on the other hand, the local church was already quite established by the time the first Capuchins began working there. One commonality among the friars of both islands is their diminishing numbers. However, last year’s ordination of an Hawaiian friar, the presence of a Chamorro friar in the NAPCC novitiate, a candidate for next year’s postulancy and several potential future candidates gives hope that the Vice Province will continue to serve the church of Guam and Hawaii for the foreseeable future.

Free advertising

2010-01-20T14:20:00.002+01:00

In his catechesis during last Wednesday's general audience, the Holy Father made mention of the importance of the Mendicant Orders in renewing the life of the Church in the 13th century. The full text of his talk is available only in Italian on the Vatican website, but below is a summary of it in English.

Dear Brothers and Sisters,
In our catechesis on medieval Christian culture, we now consider the movement of ecclesial reform promoted by the two great Mendicant Orders. In every age the saints are the true reformers of the Church’s life. In the thirteenth century Saints Francis and Dominic inspired a vast evangelical renewal which met three significant needs of the Church of that time. The Franciscans and the Dominicans adopted a lifestyle of evangelical poverty which, unlike that of the Cathars, was grounded in communion with the visible Church and a sound Christian understanding of the goodness of creation. As zealous preachers, especially in urban environments, the Friars provided religious instruction and spiritual guidance to the lay faithful, many of whom became members of their "Third Orders". Travelling freely from place to place, they also contributed to the overall renewal of Church life and the spiritual transformation of society. By their presence in the universities, the Friars worked for the evangelization of culture, affirming the harmony of faith and reason, and creating the great syntheses of scholastic theology. May their example of holiness and evangelical lifestyle inspire our own witness to the Gospel and our efforts to draw the world to Christ and his Church.

Have a blessed Christmas

2009-12-24T22:15:00.002+01:00

Nativity scene at Saint Augustine Friary, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Capuchins in the 21st Century

2009-10-29T12:20:00.004+01:00

Here is the presentation I made at the meeting of the Conference Presidents a few weeks ago. Google Docs didn't handle the graphics very well so some words are cut off and others overlap.

Some of the slides may not be self-explanatory so here are the instructions for seeing my notes on the slides. First, click on the box to the right of the words 'Slide 1/27' at the bottom of the opening slide. This will open the presentation in a new window. At the bottom of this window, again to the right of the words 'Slide 1/27' there is a drop-down box called 'Actions'. Click on the arrow to see the various actions available and choose 'Display speaker's notes' (or something similar). This should bring up a smaller window with my notes in it. Use the arrows at the bottom left of the slide to move forward or backward through the presentation.

A sign of hope in Pakistan

2009-10-27T17:38:00.003+01:00

One of the concrete signs of our global brotherhood is the concern we show for our brothers natural disasters strike or other troubles occur. When the tsunami hit Indonesia years ago, offers of help came from provinces throughout the world. After the earthquake in Aquila, Italy, and after the recent earthquake in Indonesia, many brothers asked how they could help. Given the news of frequent bombings and shootings in Pakistan, I am often asked about the situation of our brothers there. Two weeks ago, I conducted an economic visitation of the Vice Province of Pakistan so I was able to see the situation for myself.

The Vice Province of Pakistan had its beginnings over 150 years ago when the British Army invited Capuchins to serve as military chaplains in India. The original Italian missionaries were soon replaced by friars from France. Later, in the 1880’s, the French Capuchins were replaced by friars from Belgium. Today there are about 40 friars in the Vice Province, of whom three are from Belgium while the rest are Pakistanis. They are involved primarily in parochial ministry, although they also run a few schools.

Although priests and religious have rarely been specifically targeted by extremists in Pakistan, they share the plight of all Pakistanis. A bomb planted by a terrorist group outside a police training center last March blew out the windows and splintered several doors in one of the friaries in Lahore. Beyond the dangers caused by frequent bomb blasts and gun battles between the military and the extremists, the friars share additional difficulties with the rest of the Christian community in the country. Christians account for only 3% of the population in Pakistan, and they are often looked upon as outsiders. Various attempts to “Islamicize” the country have made their situation even more perilous. Officially, Christians (as all minorities) are tolerated and even protected. Clearly, however, minority groups do not enjoy equal rights. The clearest example of this disparity is the country’s blasphemy laws. The effects of these laws was made clear in a recent case.

In one of the villages where the friars minister, a young Christian man befriended a Muslim girl. There was nothing unusual in this since interreligious marriages are not uncommon in Pakistan. At some point, the relationship was broken off, which apparently displeased the parents of the girl. They exacted their revenge by accusing him of blasphemy. The local police arrested the young man, and threw him into a jail cell with a group of Muslim prisoners. These prisoners began to beat the young man mercilessly. He was then taken to a solitary cell, where the police continued to torture him. Eventually, they strangled him to death. According to the official police report, the young man hung himself, but the autopsy clearly showed marks that were inconsistent with hanging. Despite clear evidence of police brutality leading to death, nothing will be done to discipline them. Another false accusation of blasphemy in Gorja, Pakistan, culminated with a mob torching the houses of several Christian families. Such cases are common enough that even some Muslims are calling for the abolition of blasphemy laws.

The unequal treatment of Christians is also seen in employment opportunities. Christians are often trapped in low-paying jobs, with few opportunities for advancement. Christian children are treated with such contempt in the public schools that many will not attend school at all unless there is a Catholic school nearby. In this way, the cycle of poverty is continued.

While the situation may seem bleak, our brothers in Pakistan are working diligently to improve the lives of Christians in the country. One of the brothers works extensively in the area of interreligious dialogue. It is a work that requires great patience since progress comes in small, slow steps. The brothers have also opened many schools, both in the cities and in the villages. Through education, they are slowly improving the lives of the poor and helping to eradicate an extremism that preys on ignorance. Through their work in the parishes, they help the parishioners to strengthen the sense of community and interdependence among the Catholic community. One might say that the primary ministry of the Vice Province is one of providing hope to the people of Pakistan.

Take the St. Francis Pledge

2009-10-01T15:57:00.003+02:00

Weekly re:Cap, a bulletin of the Saint Joseph (Calvary) Province in the United States, pointed out the website of The Catholic Coalition on Climate Change, where you can take the “St. Francis Pledge” to care for creation and the poor. The website is worth a look, and the initiative is a worthy one. I took the pledge.

Know your SoG's

2009-09-30T12:55:00.008+02:00

The vice postulator of the cause for canonization of the Servant of God Thomas Acerbis of Olera, a Capuchin of the Venice Province, recently asked me to assist him in locating an article about the friar written in 1960. Fortunately, the Order's Central Library in Rome had the issue of Round Table of Franciscan Research containing the article so I was able to procur it without much difficulty. Through the semi-miracle of scanners and optical character recognition software, I was able to digitize it. The OCR software, however, insisted on recognizing every fly speck and stray bit of ink as a letter so producing a readable document still took several hours of labor on my part <insert sighing sounds here>.

So as to maximize the return on my efforts, I offer the finished product here for the enjoyment of my readers. Recall that this was written before Vatican Council II so some of the terminology (especially in reference to our separated brethren) and the sentiments expressed can be a bit jarring.

Note that while the author of the article spells Thomas' surname as "Acerbi", nearly everyone else spells it "Acerbis". An Internet search turned up over 9,000 hits on "Tommaso Acerbis", including the official website for his cause for canonization. Unfortunately, there seems to be very little published about him in English.

A Different Kind of Evangelization

2009-09-01T17:13:00.003+02:00

Throughout the area of my primary responsibility—North American, Australia and Guam—the main arena of evangelization is the parish. True, the brothers minister in many other ways, including schools, hospitals, prisons, homeless shelters and countless others. The pillars of ministry in each jurisdiction, however, tend to be the parishes. There is a good argument for keeping it this way; parishes tend to be the focus of Catholic life in these areas. They are much more than just a place to attend Mass on Sunday. They serve as places to build community and to provide outlets for service to the wider society. A well-run parish can support and expand a jurisdiction’s ministry beyond what its brothers could accomplish alone.

Assisting Br John Antony with the visitation of the Province of Saint Fidelis in north India at the end of July and the beginning of August, I saw a very different model in action. Saint Fidelis is a very large province begins just to the east of New Delhi and continues beyond the eastern shore of India to include the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Traveling separately, it took John Antony and I ten days to complete the visitation, usually spending no more than one day in each friary and sometimes traveling as many as twelve hours from one friary to the next.

The Capuchin presence in this area of India goes back to at least the early part of the 18th century when the mission was entrusted to the Order by Propaganda Fide. By the mid-twentieth century, Indian laws concerning missionaries made it difficult to continue the mission so most of the parishes and friaries were handed over to local clergy. Indian friars, however, maintained a small presence, and in 1972 the Province of Karnataka-Goa-Maharashtra accepted the territory as its mission. Since then, the jurisdiction has grown into an autonomous province of about 120 friars.

Evangelization in this area of India has always been a difficult proposition. Despite the hard work of friars from France, Italy, Canada, Belgium and the United States over several centuries, Catholics remained a very small minority. In the state of Uttar Pradesh, where the Indian friars first concentrated their efforts, the largest Capuchin parishes have around 200 families. As a way to expand their evangelical efforts, the friars began opening schools. Today, the Province runs about six schools and is in the process of opening others. The schools are open to all students regardless of religion, and offer education from pre-school through grade 12. Each school has an enrollment of around 3000 students with a waiting list that is often exceeds the number of students. The principal of one school told me that they recently had sixty applications for ten openings. These schools allow the brothers to bring the Gospel to bear on the morals and ethics of their society.

Beyond the evangelical impact of the schools, what I found most amazing were the determination the brothers showed and the sacrifices they made to establish the schools. They often began by teaching students under the trees. Then, when they had collected enough in fees, they built one room for the school. As they collected more, they added additional rooms until the whole school was built. Often, the brothers themselves barely had a roof over their heads until the construction of the school was finished. Br Julian Crasta did much of the planning for the schools and supervised their construction, which saved a great deal of money. Rarely did they seek funding for the schools from external sources. Thanks to careful management, most of the schools are not only self-supporting, but provide support for the Province, subsidize their schools in poorer areas and make seed money available to start new schools.

The brothers are quite proud of their schools, and justifiably so. They are proof of how the Order can evangelize even in difficult situations through creative thinking, a sense of mission and a willingness to sacrifice.

How hot was it?

2009-07-24T10:26:00.005+02:00

Guess how hot it is in Rome today:
A. Hot
B. Very hot
C. #!@+&%£ hot

If you guessed "hotter than C", you are correct.

Only a few offices in the Generalate have A/C so most of us have to make do with a fan. I have a nice, black fan that was left by my predecessor in office. It is very nice to look at. It works well, except, that is, when it is hot. A couple of weeks ago on what was the hottest, most humid night of the year so far, I took the fan into my bedroom, plugged it in, turned it on and ... nothing. The extreme heat must have affected my brain because something made me think I could fix it on the spot. Fixing it involved first removing the six small screws holding the fan guard in place. The only screwdrivers I had available were the kind you use for eyeglasses and small appliances, but I was undeterred. For such small screws, they sure were tenacious! By the time I had unscrewed/cursed/yanked (pick one) the sixth one, I was drenched in perspiration. Now all I had to do was unscrew another dilly-dally, take off the whatchamacallit and finally remove the thingamabob. Now the important part—I put my hands on my hips, stared at the pieces and said, "Hmmm". Next, I tapped a few pieces with my finger, then started to put it all back together. When it came time to put the fan guard back on, I could see those six small screws defiantly mocking me so I decided to deal with them the next day. I plugged it in, turned it on, gave the blades a few whirls with my finger (DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME, BOYS AND GIRLS!) and it finally began to work on its own. It did, however, voice its displeasure about having to work in such miserable conditions by emitting various shrieks and groans throughout the night.

Since that night, the fan has continued to operate admirably. Until last night, the second hottest night of the year. I was awakened several times during the night by its plaintive cries. Tonight promises to be even hotter. Will this be the night of the definitive sciopero?

The Big Apple and Beyond

2009-07-19T17:23:00.003+02:00

It has been almost two months since I finished the visitation of the St. Mary's Province (New York/New England) Province, but I am only now getting around to writing about it. I could use the usual excuse of being busy, which would, after all, be partially true. In this case, however, it is probably more true to say that I needed the time to reflect—to step away from the trees in order to see the forest.

The visitation started in White Plains, moved to Patchoque, then Brooklyn, then Manhattan. After visiting the three friaries in Manhattan, I moved slowly northward into upstate New York then through New England until reaching Portland, Maine. From there, I traveled southward again, stopping at the friaries I missed on the northward journey, until arriving back in White Plains. The travel itself was an education for me. I'd been in the St. Mary's Province many times before, but only in New York City or its environs. As such, I associated the Province with New York City and big city ministry. The reality, I learned, is much more multi-faceted. The Province is present not only in the megalopolis of New York, but in the small town of Rutland, Vermont, and even in the beautiful, pastoral setting of Interlaken, New York. Parishes form the cornerstone of the Province's ministry, but this doesn't mean there is no ministerial variety. First of all, each parish has its own character and presents its own challenges. Secondly, the Province's friars are involved in many ministries outside the parish—as hospital chaplains, prison chaplains, campus ministers, adoption agencies, and ministry to immigrants, to name a few.

I do not think I was alone in associating the Province with New York City; about half the world's Capuchins have passed through St. John's Friary in Manhattan at one time or another, and those who haven't visited yet want to New York City may be the most frequented Capuchin pilgrimage site after Rome and Assisi! I was struck during the visitation of the service that the Province provides to the international Order. The Province not only provides hospitality to friars who are visiting or studying in New York, but its provincial offices provides many services for the General Curia, for Capuchin Friars International, and for various provinces in other parts of the world that need a point of reference in the United States. The Province provides important support for Franciscans International. It was a driving force behind the NAPCC's support for our African jurisdictions, and it has continued to support projects in Africa and Latin America. The Province does all this despite having to support two missions of its own: the Vice Province of Marianna Islands-Hawaii and the Custody of Japan.

Another thing that struck me as I traveled around the Province was the positive attitude of the friars. The vast majority of the friars are working hard—even those who have longed surpassed "retirement" age&mash;and they are joyfully trying to live according the form of life they professed. Many of them attributed the positive atmosphere in the Province to the quality and quantity of vocations it has received in recent years. Bro. Tim Jones has done such an excellent job at promoting vocations that some friars openly wondered if he was producing them in a lab in his basement (I call dibs on the movie rights for The Boys from Brooklyn). Seriously, however, Bro. Tim rightly pointed out that vocation promotion cannot be the work of one person, and if the Province has been successful in its promotion it is because of the involvement of all the friars.

The problem with blogging about visitations is knowing where to stop. There were many other revelations for me during my time in the St. Mary's Province, but, like its patron, I will "meditate on them in [my] heart."

Meeting with ASMEN

2009-07-13T11:34:00.002+02:00

The meeting with the Capuchin Conference of the Near East (ASMEN)concluded the General Definitory's meetings with each of the Order's thirteen conferences. The meeting took place in the General Curia on June 15-16. The name of the Conference is a little misleading because it comprises jurisdictions that are not, strictly speaking, in the Near East. Currently, the Conference comprises the Domus Praesentiae of Jerusalem, the Provincial Delegation of Greece, the Custody of Turkey, the Vice Province of Pakistan, the General Vice Province of Arabia and the General Vice Province of the Near East (Lebanon and Syria). There are a little over 300 friars in the Conference.

As in the case of CECOC, it is not easy to summarize the situation of this Conference. Some of these jurisdictions, most notably Jerusalem and Arabia, are purely missionary, in the sense that there are no expectations for local vocations. The possibility to operate freely and openly differs substantially among jurisdictions in this Conference. The one thing they all have in common, however, is that they live on the "fringe" of Catholicism. They are minorities in societies that are majority Muslim, Jewish or Orthodox. While that makes life challenging for the friars, it also offers opportunities to evangelize truly as minors. Our brothers in this Conference are, in a sense, living Francis' dream to preach the Gospel among the Saracens. Far from shrinking from the challenge or being discouraged by the apparent lack of results, the ministers of this area exhibited real enthusiasm. Listening to their experiences, I wondered how one could measure his success in such an environment, or if he could at all. I then wondered if I could live in a place where the only measure of success was one's faithfulness to the Gospel and the Rule. I have not been able to answer that question, but I do know that I am edified by my brothers who have accepted the challenge.

Meeting with CECOC

2009-07-13T09:44:00.006+02:00

From June 9 to 11, the General Definitory met with the members of the Capuchin Conference of Central and Eastern Europe (CECOC). The meeting took place in the beautiful city of Prague, in the Czech Republic.

In contrast to the situations in CIMPCap and CIC, with whom we met immediately prior to this meeting, it is difficult find a synoptic way to characterize the Conference since the situations in its various jurisdictions vary greatly. For instance, some jurisdictions have many vocations while others have very few. The pace of societal change is also different from country to country. Nonetheless, it is possible to find a few common elements that link many, if not all of the Conference's jurisdictions.

First, many of the jurisdictions share a history of suppression and oppression, having lived under more or less hostile Communist regimes. Many of these regimes maintained control by effectively using its citizens to spy on one another, which bred a certain form of innate mistrust among members of the society that has not completely disappeared. As a result, the basic sense of trust that is so important to fraternal relationships is difficult to establish. The problem often manifests itself in the inability to live serenely in a community or to accept authority.

The crumbling of the Communist regimes across central and eastern Europe allowed the Capuchin Order to operate freely and openly, but it also brought with it a new set of challenges. While many rejoiced in their new-found liberty, that liberty was not slow to degenerate in license. Thus, many jurisdictions that experienced a burst of vocations in the immediate aftermath of freedom, are now seeing vocations fall as young people become more materialistic and disinterested in the Church. In addition, the young men who ask to join the Order come with widely varying degrees of faith background, which creates an additional challenge for the jurisdictions' formation personnel.

Another result of the fall of Communism was the restitution of many of the friaries that had been taken away from the religious congregations. This was only right and just, but it has also been a mixed blessing. Some jurisdictions now find themselves saddled with structures that are much larger than present needs dictate, and which are financially difficult to maintain. This, at least, is one issue that they have in common with the Capuchins in the rest of Europe. The challenge everywhere is to find the correct balance between the preservation of meaningful connections with our past and the wise use of our limited financial resources.

I would be remiss if I did not say a word about the excellent hospitality of our Czech hosts. The meeting was held at the recently-restored friary adjacent to the Loreto Shrine in Prague, which was the first friary to be given back to the Capuchins of that jurisdiction. The picture above was taken from the front of the Loreto Shrine with the friary in the background. It is a beautiful friary in a beautiful city. [In the interest of full disclosure: my great grandparents emigrated from Moravia, then part of the Austrian Empire. If you wish to split hairs, Prague is in Bohemia, but that is close enough for me.]

P.S. Someone suggested that the building pictured below may have been at one time used as a novitiate (enlarge the photo by clicking on it, then find the clues for this assertion).

Hey, brother, would you like to be a bishop?

2009-06-18T10:18:00.005+02:00

This just in from the Union of Superiors General (USG)...

"Two persons posing as Cardinals (Ruini / Bertone) from the Vatican approached our members in three different countries. The phone and email contacts were made 'sub secreto pontificio', each time denying the person permission to speak with the Superior General. Vague references were often made to urgent meetings with Pope Benedict, just hours earlier.

"Ostensibly, the 'cardinal's' request was made for one member to consider an appointment as a bishop in his own country. He in turn was referred to another senior member in another country, who had been asked by the 'cardinal' to urge him to accept the nomination. Overtures to build a formation fund as compensation to the province were offered by the 'Vatican Official'

"In a later phone conversation, requests were made for bank account information. Eventually the nominee for bishop was asked to come to Singapore to meet with the 'cardinal' in person, and incidentally bring along a large sum of money.

"The phony 'Cardinals' had enough ecclesiastical information and jargon to sound initially credible to the persons called. When, however, bank accounts and money were mentioned, suspicions arose.

"Thankfully no transfer of money took place. However, in retrospect these extortionists are rather bold and well-informed. They may currently be trying something similar with other groups.

"I advise Superiors General to post alerts to members of their staff and provincials to be on watch for similar fraud and extortion schemes to may be going on."

Forewarned is forearmed! Apologies to all those who bought non-refundable tickets to Singapore for not bringing this to your attention sooner!

Meeting with the CIC

2009-06-11T15:26:00.002+02:00

After an adventurous day of travel—our first flight was delayed, causing us to miss our connection in Frankfurt—the General Definitory arrived in Spain on 4 June to begin its meeting with the Iberian Capuchin Conference. The meeting took place in Alcalá, birthplace and burial place of the Franciscan Saint Diego (who, by the way, was an early example of a lay brother who served as guardian of his friary).

The Iberian Capuchin Conference (CIC) includes the five provinces of Spain and the Province of Portugal. The major topic of discussion was the planned merger of four of the five provinces of Spain into a new Spanish province. The provinces have worked very hard at organizing the merger, and their efforts exceeded our expectations. Rather than approaching the process with resignation, they showed great enthusiasm for the project, and see it as a way to revitalize our presence in Spain.

The Province of Catalonia, which is not currently participating in the merger process, is hoping to find new energy by welcoming a few friars from the Province of Sardinia. Eventually, both Catalonia and Portugal may join the new Spanish Province.

Meeting with CIMPCap

2009-06-03T22:51:00.002+02:00

The other members of the General Definitory and I have just completed our meeting with the Italian Conference of Capuchin Provincial Ministers (CIMPCap). The meeting was held in Venice at the Friary of Our Most Holy Redeemer, which is attached to the shrine (pictured here) of the same name. The shrine, I seem to remember, was built as a thanksgiving offering by the people of Venice for having been spared from the worst of the Black Death that ravaged much of Italy.

The Capuchin Conference in Italy is the largest in the Order, with between 2,220 and 2,400 friars, depending on how you count them. While Capuchins are still quite numerous in Italy, their number has fallen significantly in recent years. Part of the reason for the decline can be found in the secularization that has taken root in Italian society, a factor that it has in common with the other western European conferences and with the NAPCC. Because of this numerical decline, provinces in Italy are facing many of the same struggles that face provinces in the NAPCC: the need to close friaries and withdraw from ministries that are no longer sustainable, the difficulty of finding an adequate number of friars to be guardians, formation directors, pastors, etc. and the difficulty of finding sufficient income with a dwindling workforce, among others.

In other ways, the experience of the Italian provinces is different from that of the provinces in the NAPCC. For one thing, the friaries that the Capuchins are closing in Italy are often almost 500 years old, and are sometimes one of the town's major landmarks. Understandably, such a closure is traumatic both for the friars and for the people they served. Another important difference is that, while vocations are increasing in many parts of the NAPCC, they have not picked up in Italy. The Italian Conference had roughly the same number of novices this year as the NAPCC (around 15), even though there are four times as many friars in CIMPCap than in the NAPCC.

Despite the obvious challenges facing our brothers in Italy, they are looking to the future with hope. The painful process of downsizing is being looked at as a chance to return to the essentials of our life. Rather than merely continuing to do what they have always done, the provinces in Italy are looking for new ways of serving the poor with a spirit of minority. Rather than giving up in the face of their difficulties, they are working to recapture the spirit that once led them to be called, "Brothers of the people."

International Chapter of Mats

2009-04-27T21:57:00.004+02:00

From Wednesday to Saturday of Easter week 2009, around 1800 Franciscans of various types converged on Assisi for the International Chapter of Mats. It was, we were told, the first of its kind. The Chapter was convoked by the four General Ministers of the Franciscan First Orders and the Third Order Regular in order to celebrate the 8th Centenary of the approval of the first Rule of Francis. While the bulk of the participants were Friars Minor, Conventuals, Capuchins and TOR’s, there were representatives of the Secular Franciscan Order and of other religious congregations of Franciscan inspiration (including, for example, the Friars of the Renewal). Our sisters of the Second Order were united with us in prayer; their sole visible representative was Sister Angela Emanuela Scandella, Abbess of the Poor Clare monastery in Foligno, who spoke to us during Friday’s morning prayer. Most of the planning for the Chapter was entrusted to the respective Italian conferences of the orders involved.

It is difficult to categorize the event; it was part retreat, part workshop, part pep rally. After the opening welcomes and introductions on Wednesday afternoon, Br. Raniero Cantalamessa gave the keynote address. Personally, I thought his talk was the highlight of the week. He challenged the whole of the Franciscan family to return to the three P’s of our origins: preaching, poverty and prayer. One line in particular piqued my imagination, which I will paraphrase as follows: “We are better at being pastors than fishermen. We work well with the flock of the saved, but have abandoned the task of bringing the lost sheep back to the flock.” He challenged all Franciscans to take up the mission of ministering to unbelievers and the unchurched. Hopefully, the text of his talk will eventually be made available in English.

Thursday was dedicated to the theme of Witness. After morning prayer in the assembly tent, there were talks by the former General Ministers of the First Orders: Bishop John Corriveau, OFMCap, Archbishop Agostino Gardin, OFM Conv, and Brother Giacomo Bini, OFM. The afternoon’s program consisted of a series of five short video presentations on various aspects of the Franciscan presence around the world. Each video featured a different member of the Franciscan family, and was followed by a discussion. The first video featured a young Italian Capuchin working as a missionary in the Amazon region of Brazil. That was followed by a video about the communications ministry of the Conventuals who produce the magazine Messaggero di Sant’Antonio. Thirdly, there was video featuring the work of the Third Order Regular friars at Steubenville University and Saint Francis University in Loretto, Pennsylvania. The presence of the Secular Franciscan Order throughout the world was the subject of the fourth video. The last video was about the work of interfaith dialogue by the Friars Minor in the Holy Land. A prominent Italian television journalist posed a series of questions to a representative of each of the five Orders after each video. I thought the journalist did a good job of picking up on important elements of each video for further discussion.

The theme of Friday’s events was Penance and Fasting. The day began with morning prayer in the Basilica of St. Clare. The Basilica, of course, does not have the capacity to seat 1800 people so more than half of the participants had to stand for the whole period of prayer. After the reading, Sister Angela Emanuela Scandella gave us a thirty-minute homily. It was a good start for a day dedicated to penance, especially for those who could not understand Italian or who could not hear her clearly. After morning prayer, we were invited to find a quiet place in one of the Franciscan sites around Assisi where we could pray and meditate. You do the math: 1800 friars divided by 10 sites does not exactly equal peace and quiet. I chose to walk up to the Carceri on the theory that few others would want to walk 2.5 miles to pray. I was right! The rest went by car. On the way up, I was passed by carloads and vanloads of brown, black and gray habits. By the time I arrived, red-faced and out of breath, the place was crawling with tourists and friars. After catching my breath, I caught a ride back down to Assisi and walked over to the church of Saint Mary Major, and found it was nearly empty. Saint Mary Major, by the way, is next to the Bishop’s residence, where Francis gave his clothing back to his father and entrusted himself totally to the Father. More to the point here, it is about a hundred yards away—downhill—from where we prayed morning prayer. So much for my theories!

The next scheduled event, at three o’clock in the afternoon, was the procession from the Basilica of Santa Maria degli Angeli to the Basilica of Saint Francis. Along the way, we prayed psalms, sang, and got acquainted with some of the other participants. Upon reaching the Basilica, we processed down to the tomb of Saint Francis and received a copy of the Rule from the hands of the three First Order General Ministers. Exiting from the other end of the tomb chapel, we came out into the piazza beside the lower basilica, where a Mass was celebrated to conclude the day’s events.

Saturday morning, we all headed by car, van or bus to Castel Gandolfo for an audience with the Pope Benedict XVI. Originally, the plan was to hold the audience at the Vatican, but the Holy Father decided to spend Easter week at Castel Gandolfo to rest up from the previous week’s exertions. Unfortunately, the courtyard at Castel Gandolfo was not large enough to hold all the participants so some had to remain in the piazza outside the building. After Pope Benedict addressed the assembly, the three General Ministers of the First Order renewed their vows to the Holy Father in the name of all the friars of their Orders. It was a moving moment. Then the Pope tossed commemorative t-shirts into the crowd. Okay, I’m just kidding about that last part. Thus ended the first International Chapter of Mats.

If one were to judge the event solely on the basis of the number of participants, it was quite successful. The organizers originally planned for about 2000 participants. Early registrations were running behind expectations, but last-minute registrations brought the number close to the target. Will there ever be another International (and inter-obediential) Chapter of Mats? In informal conversations with several of the participants, it seems that the experience was well-received, and many wanted to see it repeated. Whether others shared this sentiment will become clear when and if we ever receive the results of the evaluation that everyone was asked to complete at the end of the event. Considering the number of participants and the fact that it was the first event of its kind, it came off fairly well.

If there is a second Chapter of Mats, I think a few changes would be in order. First, the number of participants should be reduced to around 1200. None of the venues was large enough for 1800 people. I cannot imagine how Francis managed to hold a Chapter of Mats with 5000 friars without the benefit of microphones and Jumbotrons! Secondly, more attention needs to be given to translation. This year, arrangements had been made to have simultaneous translation of the talks into English, Spanish and Polish. Noticeably absent was a translator for Italian. It was assumed by the organizers that all the talks would be given in Italian—to the surprise of some of the speakers who were not Italian. There was only one translator for each of the three languages, which meant that they sometimes worked three hours straight without a break. No wonder, therefore, that the quality of the translations was not always top notch. No arrangements were made for translation during the liturgies. If you didn’t understand Italian, all you heard during the homilies was “blah blah blah” for 20 minutes or so (if it is any consolation, those of us who do understand Italian sometimes heard the same thing). There were several other things that I would have done differently, but all things considered, the organizers did a superb job. They deserve thanks and congratulations for pulling off a very large, complex event.

In the end, maybe the symbolism of the event is what mattered most: that the sons and daughters of Saint Francis could come together to celebrate together our common beginning. Given our histories, that’s not such a small thing, after all.

Mexico

2009-03-19T00:49:00.013+01:00

The former Vice Provinces of Mexico and Texas, both entrusted to the Province of Navarre (Spain), were combined into a single vice province on 3 March 2009. Since the Vice Province of Texas was a part of the NAPCC, I was invited to the ceremony in Mexico City establishing the new Vice Province of Mexico-Texas (can I call it the "Tex-Mex Vice Province", please, please, please, pretty please?! Can I, can I, can I?!). You can read about the ceremony and the visit of the General Minister to the Vice Province on Br Carlos Novoa's blog. If you can't read Spanish, you can look at the pretty pictures!

Taking advantage of some otherwise free time before and after the ceremony, I visited the mission of the Western America Province in the northern part of Mexico. I was accompanied most of the time by Br Matt Elshoff, Provincial Minister of the Western America Province. We met at the Dallas airport on Ash Wednesday and boarded a flight to Chihuahua, where we were met by Br Michael Ronayne. Our first stop was the monastery of the Capuchin Poor Clares in Chihuahua. I am not sure of the exact number of Capuchin Poor Clares in Mexico, but it is in the thousands. The sisters there were kind enough to give us something to eat and drink (even though we were not hungry or thirsty), and to show us around the monastery.

Leaving the monastery, we started our five-hour drive to Tres Ojitos, a small village nestled in a broad valley of the Sierra Madre mountains. Just before reaching Tres Ojitos, we stopped to visit the Capuchin Poor Clares in Ciudad Madera. This is one of the newer monasteries in Mexico; in fact, it is still under construction. The sisters gave us a warm welcome and enjoined a bit of food and drink on us. Afterward, we continued down the highway for a few hundred meters before turning down a dirt road for the 10 km drive to Tres Ojitos.

The friary in Tres Ojitos was built as a vocational training center by the Augustinian friars who once ministered there. Since receiving it from the bishop, the Capuchins have added a chapel and a couple of other buildings. It now serves as the novitiate for the northern Mexico mission, and until a few years ago, the Vice Province of Mexico also sent its novices here. At present, there are four novices. It's isolation makes it a wonderful spot for a contemplative lifestyle, yet there are plenty of ministerial opportunities in nearby Madera and the surrounding villages.

Next on our itinerary was Yecora, about an eight-hour drive from Tres Ojitos. This was the first friary of California's mission in Mexico. Besides David Beaumont, two friars of the Goa, India, Vice Province—Vincent and John Thomas—conduct a wide-ranging ministry from here. Not only do they conduct pastoral ministry in Yecora itself and several missions within a two-hour radius, but they provide many social services to the local population. They have an especially important ministry to the Pima and Yaqui Indians, for which the friars have received national recognition. For the two days we spent in Yecora, Matt and I were taken in the luxurious "Beaumont-mobile" to visit several of the outlying missions.

From Yecora, Matt and I traveled another five hours to Hermosillo, where we caught a morning flight to Mexico City and the unification celebration. After the ceremony, Matt and I were able to visit the Saint Veronica Giuliani Formation House, a large structure dedicated to the education and formation of the Capuchin Poor Clares of Mexico. Currently, almost 100 sisters are living there—30 in the two-year theology program and the rest in ongoing formation courses.

The day after the ceremony, we flew to Monterrey to conclude our visit of the mission. Padre Pio Friary in Monterrey is the newest of the mission's houses (although one is now under construction in Durango). The friary houses the postnovitiate program and the philosophate/theologate program. As in each of the other houses, Matt and I conducted a house chapter at the end of our visit. Before saying my farewells to the friars in Monterrey and to Mexico, I took a personal day to visit the city of Monterrey (a worthwhile destination!) and to smell the flowers.

Chapter of the General Vice Province of Kenya

2009-03-17T00:52:00.004+01:00

In early February, I presided at the Chapter of the General Vice Province of Kenya, which was held at the Rosa Mystica Spiritual Centre in Nairobi. Normally, this would not be one of my responsibilities; either the General Minister or the General Definitor for Africa would preside at these chapters. With the nomination of Brother Vicente Kiaziku as Bishop of Mbanza-Congo, however, other arrangements had to be made this time. Happily, the lot fell to me. The chance to see Kenya was something of a dream come true for me.

This was only my second time in Africa, the first being for the meeting in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania, last November with the two African Capuchin Conferences. I expected tropical temperatures and humidity, but was pleasantly surprised to discover that due to Nairobi's altitude (almost 1,700 meters or 5,500 feet), its climate is much like my province's home city of Denver, Colorado. The days were warm and sunny, and the nights were pleasantly cool. Another stereotype bites the dust!

The Chapter itself was a great experience. The 37 friar-delegates enthusiastically participated in the business of the Chapter. There were lively debates about formation programs, ministries, the organization of fraternities and ways to improve the Vice Province's economic self-sufficiency. The atmosphere was in sharp contrast with most of the chapters I have attended, where the level of enthusiasm is, shall we say, more contained. This was also the first chapter I have attended in which all five members of the new Council were elected on the first ballot. I gave myself credit, but I'm sure the Spirit had something to do with it, as well.

I must also note the great spirit of fraternity during the Chapter. I was made to feel quite at home during my entire stay in the country. I was struck again by the power that lies in our Franciscan vocation: that people from geographical areas and cultural backgrounds as different as mine and the Kenyans could live together as brothers.

I would have liked to stay much longer in Kenya in order to see the Serengeti and the Rift Valley, but that was not possible. I did, however, talk one of the brothers into taking me to see Kibera, one of the largest slums in Africa. There I met briefly with a local Pan-African Conciliation Team (PACT) of the Damietta Peace Initiative. I also visited "Bomas of Kenya", a cultural center just outside Nairobi. I made a point of visiting a recreation of a Luo village to see how the ancestors of my current President once lived.

Capuchins in 2050, part 2

2009-01-02T12:44:00.004+01:00

In a previous post, I wrote about two articles* I read recently on world demographic trends and about the implications of those trends for the Capuchin Order. As I wrote in that post, the main focus of the articles was on the financial implications of demographic trends. Since Capuchins are affected by the economics of the society in which they live, these demographic trends will have implications for the Order’s finances, as well.

The basic premise of one of the articles is that demographics have a determining effect on economics. One of the most widely-used indicators of a country’s economic well-being is the Gross Domestic Product, or GDP, which measures the amount of wealth produced in a country each year. Citing studies by Jeffrey Williamson, former head of the Harvard economics department, the article “The Pig in the Python…” noted the strong influence demographics have on economic growth. In somewhat oversimplified terms, one can say that there is a positive correlation between a country’s economy and the number of its 40-year-olds. This is so because the years surrounding the age of forty are generally the most productive years of a person’s life, at least in terms of economic output. (It is an oversimplification, however, since it ignores issues such as the distribution of wealth, tax structures, bribery and corruption within the country).

Accepting this basic premise and applying it to the demographic situation presented in my previous post, points to declining wealth in areas such as Europe and, to a lesser extent, North America over the next forty years, whereas in parts of Asia and Africa wealth will gradually increase over the next forty years. This process has already begun. The economic growth of India and China, for instance, is obvious. In recent years, the GDP of each country has grown as a percentage of the world’s total GDP. This growth has come largely at the expense of Japan, which has seen its share of world GDP slip from 18% in 1995 to 8% in 2007. Japan, as I noted in my last post, is in a period of negative population growth. Europe’s share of world GDP fell from 40% to 27% in that same period. The United States, on the other hand, saw its share of world GDP increase from 24% to 26% from 1995 to 2007. Looking forward, however, both the United States and Europe will face greater social spending costs because of its aging population. This in turn will limit their economic growth and cause their share of world GDP to slip even lower.

Under the leadership of Br John Corriveau, the Order set up a Solidarity Fund to support its missionary efforts in poorer areas of the world. The Fund has been instrumental in allowing the Order to bring the Franciscan charism to new areas of the world and to support many of its traditional missions. As of last year, 30% of the money distributed for mission solidarity was supplied by the Fund’s investments. Most of the other 70% came from contributions by the Order’s jurisdictions, mainly in Europe and North America. If, as expected, those countries have fewer economic resources in the future, donations received by our jurisdictions there will also decrease. Fewer donations means fewer financial resources available to the Solidarity Fund. In addition, many of the jurisdictions in Europe and the United States who so far have been able to support their missions without recourse to the Solidarity Fund may have difficulty doing so in the future. This could lead to more requests for financial support in the future, placing increasing pressure on the Fund.

With good management and a disciplined approach, the investments of the Solidarity Fund will continue to grow, thus providing critical, long-term support to the Order’s missions. It seems clear, however, that the growth in its investments will not be able to offset the expected decline in contributions to the Solidarity Fund from the Order’s European and American jurisdictions. We have no reason to panic at this point, but neither can we afford to ignore these “signs of the times”.

This emerging situation is yet another reason for Capuchins throughout the world to review their lives in light of the principles enunciated by the Sixth Plenary Council of the Order. Transparency, participation, equity, subsidiarity, solidarity, austerity and co-responsibility within the Order were never more important than they are now. In particular, we need to re-discover the value of austerity, the “mother of solidarity”. By practicing austerity, brothers in wealthier societies will have more to share with their brothers in need, and brothers in poorer societies will allow more of the available resources to go where they are most needed. The future of the Order’s ability to bring the message of the Gospel to the world depends on the actions we take today.

* The two articles in question are:
Verne Sedlacek, “The Pig in the Python and Other Reports from the Front Lines of Demography,” in Mission Matters. Spring/Summer 2008, pp. 2-7.
Michael Strauss, “World Potrait, by the Numbers,” in Mission Matters. Spring/Summer 2008, pp. 8-13.

Merry Christmas

2008-12-23T00:59:00.004+01:00

The Capuchin Vice Province of the Marianna Islands/Hawaii is hosting a "Christmas Village" at Saint Fidelis Friary in Agana for the second year in a row. Each evening, hundreds of people from around the island visit the display. I produced the video below to recognize the friars' fine work and to serve as my Christmas card to all of you who did not receive one from me this year. Merry Christmas and a happy, blessed New Year.

Mendi welcomes the General Minister

2008-12-19T09:22:00.003+01:00

I accompanied the General Minister to Papua New Guinea, where we participated in the friars' annual assembly from December 9 to 12. The main topic of the assembly was a study of our Constitutions, especially as they related to three policies that have been recently drafted in the Vice Province. Br. Robert Stewart of the Australian Province led the discussions.

On Thursday afternoon, December 11, Mauro, Robert and I were invited to visit the parish in Ekari (also known as Upper Mendi), where Br. Colman has ministered for years. We received a grand welcome from the members of the parish, complete with gifts of bilum hats and bags.

Chapter of Australian Province

2008-12-18T09:44:00.000+01:00

The Chapter of the Province of Australia was held on December 1-4, 2008, in the former seminary complex in Plumpton, N.S.W. The General Minister, Br. Mauro Jöhri presided so I attended as an observer and interpreter. Besides Mauro, there were 28 other delegates at the Chapter, plus a few observers.

What especially struck me about the Chapter was the willingness of the brothers to look forward in faith. As I mentioned in my post-visitation blog entry, the Province has been working for many years to redefine the image of Capuchins in Australia, from that of an Italian Order that works principally with Italians to a multi-cultural Order working in a wide variety of ministries, but with a special emphasis on youth ministry.

The positive, forward-looking spirit was undoubtably helped by the fact that the Province has been experiencing a good influx of new vocations. In fact, the Province's six postulants paid a visit to the Chapter one day. Br. Robert Stewart gave a very interesting presentation on the Province's efforts in the area of vocation promotion and the mentality of "Generation Y".

Capuchins in the year 2050

2008-12-01T06:11:00.001+01:00

Last month, out of the blue, I received a couple of articles from an investment company that specializes in working with nonprofit organizations. The articles dealt with world demographics for the next 40 years and the impact they would have on nonprofit organizations. The articles were real eye-openers for me, especially coming as they did just before the General Definitory met with the Capuchin Conferences of Africa, India and Asia. I would like to share with you some of the information contained in those articles.

First of all, as one article pointed out, there is no magic involved in predicting future demographic trends. Someone born today will, barring an untimely death, be fifty years old in fifty years. Demographers can know with great precision the current birth and death rates of most countries. These trends change, but at a relatively slow pace. It is, therefore, relatively easy to predict the population and age distribution of a country for a fifty year period.

The articles focused on the economic impact of demographics, with which I will deal in a later post. These populations studies alone, however, have interesting implications to ponder. Consider for instance the fact of Europe’s negative population growth. By 2050, one article stated, Europe will have lost the equivalent of the current populations of France and Italy combined. In addition, the average age of Europe’s population will continue to increase. This has tremendous implications for the future of the Order in Europe. Even if one ignores the effect of secularization, there will be far fewer young men in Europe available to enter religious life. Barring a massive change in attitudes regarding immigration and family size in the next few years, the Order’s jurisdictions in Europe will certainly continue to become smaller.

The situation in North America is somewhat different because of its higher birth rate and greater openness to immigration (at present, anyway). The population of the U.S. is expected to continue growing, but at a smaller pace than in the past. The “baby boom echo” of the 80’s and early 90’s resulted in an increase in America’s birth rate, which may partially explain the recent increase in vocations there. Youth at the “peak” of this boom are just entering their university years, which indicates that the next ten to fifteen years have the possibility of providing the greatest number of candidates to religious life since the 1960’s. Once the peak has passed, the number of vocations to religious life will slowly, but surely decline. The provinces and congregations that will profit most from this increased pool of possible candidates are those that appeal to the ever-changing sensibilities of young people and who have invested the resources to get their name in front of them.

Probably to no one’s surprise, the areas of the world that will have the greatest growth among youth, and thus the greatest potential for providing vocations to the Order, are India and parts of Africa. What some might find surprising is that China will soon enter a period of negative growth because of its “one child” policy in the past. The number of males significantly outnumbers females among China’s youth, which will add to the country’s low birth rate in the future. Asia, as a whole, will experience only slight growth in the next forty years. Vietnam has a relatively low birth rate. The population of Japan already entered a period of negative growth several years ago, and there are no signs of change for the near future. These trends have implications for our current presences in Asia and for the missions that are planned for China and Vietnam. On the other hand, there are good prospects for the continued growth of the Order in India. Strong population growth is also projected for Nigeria and the Congo, which bodes well for the future of the small, but vibrant Capuchin jurisdictions in those countries.

Overall, these figures indicate that the Order’s center of gravity will continue to move south for at least the next forty years. In many cases, the Order’s growth will be in the developing world and its greatest declines will be in the developed world. This will have important consequences for the Order’s economic solidarity, which will be the focus of my next post.

Under a Big Sky

2008-08-30T23:27:00.007+02:00

Continuing my eastward trek, I crossed the Pacific Ocean and eventually found my way to Montana, U.S.A., where I made a short visit to the friars working there. Montana is aptly nicknamed “Big Sky Country” because of its vast, sparsely populated areas of semi-arid grasslands and mountains. It is also home to several Native American reservations, which were the original reason for the friars’ presence here. Due to the state’s demographics, the parishes of Montana, with the exception of those in urban centers such as Billings, Helena or Great Falls, tend to be small and far apart. Although the Capuchin friaries of Montana used to have fraternities of three or more friars, the shortage of friars in the United States has made it difficult to maintain traditional fraternities. Most of the eight Capuchins now working in Montana live alone; they do, however, have fraternal gatherings and/or chapters twice monthly.

Three of the friars currently serve as pastors or sacramental ministers on the reservation of the Crow tribe, and another works on the Northern Cheyenne reservation. The other four, although not ministering on a reservation, have a significant number of Native Americans in their parishes. Most of them care for more than one parish, since there are more parishes than priests in the diocese. I was impressed and edified with the ministry of all the friars here, but especially with the ministry on the reservations. From art and architecture to the style of their ministry, the respect of the brothers for the cultures of the Crow and Cheyenne was evident. They are very much “friars of the people” here. For example, if their health permits it, the friars regularly take part in “sweats”, a ceremony that is used to create and maintain a sense of community. More than just respecting the local culture, the friars have tried to improve the life of the communities they serve, especially through education. Thanks to the efforts of the friars, there are three elementary schools and one high school on the Crow and Cheyenne reservations that students can attend free of charge. Many graduates of those schools are now employed as teachers and staff members of those same schools. Although unemployment on the reservations is still very high, the situation would clearly be worse if not for the help provided by the Capuchins.

In the week I spent in Montana, I was able to spend a day or two each in Crow Agency, the St. Labre Mission near Ashland, the St. Charles Mission in Pryor, and Billings. I learned something about the history of the Crow tribe and its present circumstances while chatting with parishioners in Crow Agency after Sunday Mass and by visiting the site of the Battle of the Little Bighorn, in which a group of Sioux and Cheyenne warriors defeated the forces of Gen. Custer and the 7th Cavalry in 1876. That battle and the resulting reaction of the U.S. Army still has repercussions today. I even participated twice in a "sweat" (imagine a prayer meeting held in a sauna). At St. Labre Mission, I toured the fundraising operations (including mailing, receiving and printing departments) that supports its own schools as well as those of the other Capuchin missions in Montana.

What is clear to me after my visit is that the friars have poured their hearts and souls into this mission. Here, as elsewhere, they have become "friars of the people", even among people who have every reason to be wary of white men. While material poverty on the reservations in Montana is probably no worse than it is in sections of any large American city, it is tinged with a particular kind of despair among the Native Americans—a fear that any gains they make might once again be stolen from them. Because of this poverty and because of the fact that the Native Americans are so often found on the fringes of society I feel that this is a ministry where Capuchins belong. Like everywhere else in the United States, however, the friars in Montana are getting older, and there are few younger friars to replace them. While I will be the first to say that, as they become smaller, provinces will need to withdraw from some of their ministry commitments in order to use their manpower more effectively, I would hope that this ministry to the Native Americans is not one of the ministries that is lost. In my humble opinion, the fate of these missions should be a matter of concern for the whole North American-Pacific Capuchin Conference, not just for the Calvary Province. Saving them, may require looking beyond the borders of the Calvary Province, and perhaps even beyond the borders of North America.

Visitation of the Custody of Japan

2008-08-20T23:49:00.004+02:00

Continuing my journey northward, I arrived in Naha, Okinawa, on 11 August after connecting through Jakarta, Singapore and Fukuoka, Japan. Although the island of Okinawa is in the subtropics, this being their summer the weather was much like that in Kalimantan—very warm and humid. I was met at the airport by Brother Louis Chiusano, who I had met in Rome 20 years ago when he was studying at the Antonianum and I was beginning my work as English-speaking Secretary at the General Curia. Not only did he remember me, but he even remembered that I was a fan of The Who!

The Custody of Japan has a unique history. Since Okinawa came under the administration of the United States of America after World War II, it was effectively cut off from the rest of the Catholic Church in Japan. The Holy See sent 2 friars from the Province of St. Mary to begin missionary work there. On the island of Okinawa, they began with no Catholics and eventually, with the help of additional friars over the early years, managed to establish a small but growing Catholic Church. The first Bishop, Felix Ley, was an administrator for the territory, but after the island was returned to Japan in 1972, it was established as a diocese. Bp. Ley passed on just at that time and a local vocation friar (Peter-Baptist Ishigami) was to become its first official bishop.

Today, there are 16 friars in the Custody—3 Japanese, 6 Indians (from the Province of Karnataka) and 7 Americans. They live in 3 friaries—two on Okinawa and one about an hour from Tokyo—they serve in nine parishes (3 in Okinawa and 6 in the mainland diocese of Saitama), one also helps as an auxiliary chaplain to the large American military presence on Okinawa and numerous other services to local Catholics. Although the number of Catholics on Okinawa has grown considerably since the beginnings of the Custody, it is still estimated to be only about 6000. That number is growing slowly as many Latin Americans of Japanese origin begin to return to Japan to find work. There is also a significant Filipino population on the island.

Since we had to meet only 16 friars in the 10 days we had allotted for the visitation, John Antony and I could work at a much more leisurely pace than in Indonesia, which was welcome news. We felt justified, in fact, in joining the brothers of Okinawa for their annual fraternal gathering on the first full day of our arrival. It gave us a chance to meet them in an informal setting, and to learn about their history with the Japanese Custody. Among other activities, we visited a natural cave used as a Shinto holy place, and toured Ryukyu Village—a park that re-creates the houses and lifestyles of an Okinawan village as it was over a century ago.

On Wednesday morning, 13 August, John Antony and I traveled about 45 minutes north from Naha to Futemna to interview Brothers Paul, Dennis and Patrick. Paul, one of the Custody’s Japanese brothers, maintains the buildings and grounds; Dennis is Pastor of the parish; Patrick is in charge of the Diocese’s Hispanic ministry.

In the afternoon, we returned to the curia of the Custody in Naha. There we spoke to:

Bishop Peter-Baptist Ishigami, retired bishop of Okinawa;
Brother Alex, pastor of the parish;
Brother Louis, retired, but helping as part-time chaplain for various Catholic groups;
Brother Martin, retired, but helping as friary bursar for the Custody;
Brother LaSalle, pastor of Yonabaru near Naha, JPE coordinator for the Custody and the Diocese, and Diocesan representative for ecumenical and interreligious dialogues.

On Thursday morning, John and I visited with Bishop Berard Oshikawa Toshiyo, OFMConv. He had nothing but praise for the work the Capuchins had done in building up the Diocese. While he regretted that the Province of St. Mary was no longer sending additional missionaries, he his pleased with the friars from India and has been able to find additional clergy in Vietnam to fulfill the needs of the Diocese. The same morning, we also toured Shuri Castle, home to Okinawa’s kings until the island became part of Japan in the 1800’s. The castle was completely destroyed by heaving bombing during WWII, but has been almost completely rebuilt as part of a Japanese documentary on the History of Okinawa filmed some years ago by Japan’s public television and the Japanese government. It was an interesting lesson in the history and culture of the island.

Originally, both John Antony and I had been scheduled to fly to Tokyo and meet with the brothers on the mainland. I had to change my plans, however, in order to attend the Episcopal ordination of Brother Joseph Nacua in the Philippines. On Friday, therefore, John went to Tokyo while I stayed behind in Okinawa until my flight to Manila on Sunday. On Saturday afternoon, I was honored to join Bishop Ishigami and Brother Roland Daigle, Minister of the Custody, for a traditional Japanese tea ceremony. In a tea ceremony, the very simple act of serving tea to one’s guests becomes a ritual in which every detail is given deliberate and appreciative attention. One is invited to admire the beauty of the room, of the cup and of the tea itself. The act of drinking tea becomes an invitation to learn patience and to pay deliberate attention to the world around us. It occurred to me that the tea ceremony could be a metaphor for the Capuchin presence in Japan. While the Custody is small and simple, compared to most of the Order’s jurisdictions, it has been built up patiently over the past fifty years, with deliberate attention to both enculturation and evangelization. While the Custody may never grow large enough to be a Province or have enough vocations to become self-sufficient, it is a beautiful presence nonetheless.

Visitation of the Pontianak Province

2008-08-16T12:53:00.007+02:00

From the chilly Australian winter I traveled to the tropical climes of Indonesia, where Brother John Antony and I conducted a visitation of the Pontianak Province. I arrived in Jakarta on 1 August, and was met at the airport by Brother Heliodorus. The Capuchins serve two parishes in the Jakarta area: one by the Pontianak Province and the other by the Medan Province. The parish served by the Pontianak Province is in an area called Tebet, and the church and school is under the patronage of Saint Francis of Assisi. I was surprised to learn that one of the former students of the elementary school is Barack Obama, current candidate for President of the United States.

The Pontianak Province was formed when the Indonesian Province, founded by Dutch missionaries, was divided into three provinces about 20 years ago. It currently counts about 140 friars, of which about 35 are in temporary vows. Other than the friary in Jakarta and a small presence in Central Kalimantan, the friars minister mainly in the Diocese of Pontianak, in the western part of Borneo (or Kalimantan, as it is knows by the Indonesians).

Brother John Antony arrived in Jakarta on 2 August, and the next day we both flew to Pontianak, located near the western tip of the island of Kalimantan. On the morning of 4 August, John and I were privileged to participate in the profession ceremony for three brothers making perpetual vows and three others making temporary vows. The Church of St. Augustine was filled to overflowing for the beautiful ceremony, which included elements from the local Dayak culture. At the end of the ceremony, the Provincial Minister, Brother Petrus Rostandy, called John Antony and I up to the sanctuary and introduced us to the assembly. Since he spoke in Indonesian, I'm not sure what he said, but everyone wanted to have a photograph with us after the ceremony!

In the afternoon, John Antony and I went our separate ways to continue our visitation. I traveled north to Singawang, where two brothers minister in a parish, then on to the novitiate in Poteng. The province currently has seven novices.

On Tuesday, 5 August, I traveled three hours by car to Sambas. Brother Yosnianto was both my driver and my interpreter on this trip and for the next two days. In Sambas, two friars of the province serve in the parish. Sambas is home to the Sultan for this area of Kalimantan. While he no longer holds much political power, the Sultan still maintains a palace here. The Muslim presence was much more evident here than in the other places I had visited in Kalimantan, but relations between the various religions is usually good, I was told.

The next morning, we basically retraced our steps from the day before to go to Nyarumkop, which is only a few kilometers from the novitiate. Here, six brothers work in a parish, in boarding facilities for the boys attending the diocesan elementary and secondary schools and in the diocesan minor seminary. In the afternoon, I made a short visit to the Capuchin Poor Clare monastery in Singawang. To my surprise, I met Sr. Paula there, a Capuchin sister I had driven from Mercatello to Rome many years ago, when she was studying in Italy. She was equally surprised to discover that I was now a General Definitor!

Leaving the coastal area behind, I moved further inland on Thursday morning. With Brother Yosnianto at the wheel, and accompanied by Brother Joseph, our three hour trip took us to Sanggau Ledo. There are two friaries in Sangau Ledo: one is attached to a parish, the other was built for the friars caring for the province’s extensive farm. At present, there are three friars at the parish friary and only one at the farm friary. The latter friary is built in the form of a traditional Dayak longhouse. The farm, which produces a modest income for the province, grows corn (maize), bananas, papaya, durian, and several other varieties of fruits. The friars are in the process of planting hundreds of rubber trees since the latex they provide is very profitable.

The next morning provided the most interesting drive of the visitation for me. We drove over a narrow road, badly in need of maintenance, through the thick forests of Borneo. At times, it felt like the forest would swallow the road completely. Along the way, however, we also saw large areas along the side of the road that had been clear-cut and burned to allow for planting rice (notice the empty land to the right of the road in the video).
I was saddened to see pristine forest land destroyed, but at the same time I knew that the growing population of Indonesia (and the world) combined with increased food consumption meant that additional land was needed to grow crops. I realized that balancing concerns about the environment and protecting habitats with the need to grow more food was not easy to do. The friars are also keenly aware of the dilemma, and many mentioned a desire to see more involvement within the Province in farms that model sound environmental practices. In Menjalin, I met with the three friars who work in the local parish and school. This is not your ordinary parish, however, The pastor estimated there are roughly 41,000 Catholics in his parish, scattered among more than 180 outstations. Several of these outstations see a priest only once a year.

After lunch, I went to a Marian shrine not far from Menjalin that belongs to the diocese, but is cared for by the friars. There, I met the Provincial Minister, Brother Petrus Rostandy, who had come to inspect the installation of statues for the Via Crucis, which winds its way through the dense growths of trees, bamboo and tropical plants. During the months of May and October, he told me, thousands of people will come to the shrine each Sunday for Mass and other prayers. Near the shrine’s entrance, there is a large, grassy area where pilgrims can eat their lunches after Mass. There are also four small ponds there stocked with fish. One of the workers at the shrine netted a few fish that Petrus intended to serve to John Antony and I as our last meal in the Province. He also spotted three bamboo shoots that he took to serve us. (Unfortunately, our plans changed, and we were unable to enjoy either the fish or the bamboo shoots.)

After visiting the shrine, I went with Petrus to the Provincialate in Pontianak, where I met with the three brothers living there. On the morning of Saturday, 9 August, I was taken a short way down the road to the friary of St. Augustine, where I met with the three brothers of that friary. Two of the three work in the parish of St. Augustine, and the other is the provincial secretary/bursar. Like the other parishes in the province, St. Augustine not only has a sizeable local community to serve, but has many outstations that need to be served, as well. In the afternoon, I visited the friary of St. Yusuf, which is also quite near the Provincialate. The friars here administer a carpentry school. When the province was young, the carpentry school not only provided the furnishings for the friaries, schools and churches that the Capuchins were building, but it also trained friars to carry on the work in the future and provided job training for the local men. Although it still provides some occasional furnishings for the churches and schools of the diocese, it is mainly a training center for local men today.

Having completed our visitation of all the friars of the province, John Antony and I met with the Provincial Definitory on the morning of 10 August to review our recommendations. Later that morning, we were taken to the airport where we departed for Jakarta and ultimately our next destination—Japan.

The overriding impression I had while visiting the Province is that the friars are very hardworking. The size of the parishes and the number of outstations they serve are staggering. Because the number of local clergy is still very small, the Diocese is almost totally dependent upon the Capuchins (although in recent years, a few other religious congregations have begun working in the Diocese). Although most friars expressed a wish that the Province would have more vocations, they receive a fair number of candidates each year. While it suffers from some of the problems that are common among young jurisdictions, it seems to me that the Province has a bright future.

WYD, epilogue

2008-07-24T01:21:00.003+02:00

Just a few thoughts before leaving the subject of World Youth Day....

First, we owe a huge debt of gratitude to our hosts, the friars of the Australian Province. Unless you have taken part in one, it is hard to imagine how much work needs to be done before, during and after a World Youth Day. They had to arrange lodging for all the friars in our group (and help a few other groups, as well), arrange transportation to and from the events, arrange speakers, musicians and lunches for the catechesis sessions, collect friars from the airport and drop them off again at the end of WYD. Over and above the preparations for WYD, they had to arrange the Reuniting for Renewal program that took place directly before it. In addition, they provided various tours in and around Sydney before and after WYD for those who arrived early or departed later. I got tired just thinking about everything they needed to do. The Australian Province did a superb job of organizing the week and, despite a few glitches and mishaps, everything ran smoothly. Through all of this, they were most gracious hosts, and I wish to take this opportunity to thank them publicly for all their hard work.

Secondly, it seems to me that since WYD is an international event the Order should be involved in it at the international level. I mentioned in a previous post that we should have vocation literature available in various languages, including contact information for vocation promoters in every country where we have a presence. Furthermore, just as there were gatherings for all the pilgrims from various countries or dioceses, I think it would be good to have a gathering of all the Capuchin friars in attendance. During the week, as I met friars from all over the world, I realized that no one really knew how many were attending WYD. Getting all of the friars together for a few hours would provide a clear sign of the international character of the Order, and could help to promote knowledge of and interest in the Order.

WYD 2008, day 6

2008-07-22T12:52:00.003+02:00

Sunday morning for the pilgrims began with an 8:00 morning prayer. At 9:00, the papal motorcade began its trip through Randwick. Mass began at 10:00. Besides the pilgrims who had camped out overnight, many other pilgrims arrived early Sunday morning to attend the Mass, as did many residents of Sydney. Organizers anticipated up to 500,000 people for the final Mass. The actual number was put at 300,000 by the police and at 400,000 by the WYD officials. In any case, there were a lot of people! Yours truly chose to observe the celebration from a somewhat more remote location—the living room of the friary.

All week long, pilgrims had been speculating about where the next WYD would be held. The prevailing rumor was that it would be in Spain. That rumor turned out to be true, as the Holy Father announced that WYD 2011 would be held in Madrid. It is an interesting choice given the current tensions between the bishops and the government of Spain. It became crystal clear to me during this week in Sydney that a World Youth Day needs the cooperation and support of the local government in order to succeed. Here in Sydney, for instance, streets were closed to traffic, extra bus and train services were added, bus routes were changed, public structures, such as the Opera House and the Exhibition Centre, were given over exclusively to WYD and the normal rhythms of the city were disrupted for the week. None of that could have happened without the support of the local government. So how will this work in Spain? If the government refuses to cooperate, it could score a moral victory against the Church, but it might also negatively affect the image of Spain in the eyes of the world. If, on the other hand, the government works together with the Church to make WYD a success, it could increase tourism to Spain, but at the risk of alienating some of the stauncher members of the Socialist Party. It will be interesting to see what happens.

WYD 2008, day 5

2008-07-22T12:00:00.005+02:00

At 8:30 on Saturday morning, Pope Benedict XVI celebrated Mass at the Sydney Cathedral with a select group of WYD participants in attendance. Some of the Capuchin friars had passes for the event, but was able to get inside the Cathedral; the others watched the celebration on a large video screen from the cathedral's front steps. The remainder of the Capuchin pilgrims went into the city around 11:30 to begin the walk to Randwick Racecourse, where the Holy Father would celebrate Mass on Sunday morning. Most of the friars opted to begin their walk from the Central Station, which was about 4 km (about 2.5 miles) from Randwick. A few brave souls, however, chose to make the 10 km (6.2 miles) walk to Randwick, starting from North Sydney and crossing the Harbor Bridge (seen in the background of the photograph).

Upon reaching Randwick, every pilgrim received a bag containing that evening's dinner plus tomorrow's breakfast and lunch. By 3:00 p.m., when those who opted for the long walk reached Randwick, the place looked like a refugee camp. Tents had been set up and sleeping bags rolled out on every square inch of ground for as the eye could see. The area allotted to the Capuchin pilgrims was not particularly near the altar, but it was near the adoration chapel.

The evening vigil service with the Pope did not start until 7:30 p.m. so the pilgrims spent the time eating, praying before the blessed sacrament, napping, and talking with the other pilgrims. Various musical performances, shown on large video screens set up around the area, also helped to fill the time. The vigil service consisted of song, testimony from several pilgrims, an address by the Holy Father, and Benediction. In his address, Pope Benedict spoke about Saint Augustine's understanding of the Holy Spirit. It was quite challenging intellectually, which shows, I suppose, that he wants WYD to be more than just a Catholic Woodstock.

When the Pope left around 9:30, the pilgrims prayed an "international rosary" and sang the Salve Regina. Fortunately, the rain that had been forecast for Saturday night never materialized. Some high, thin clouds partially obscured the full moon, but otherwise, the night was dry and relatively mild. The tired pilgrims eventually crawled into their sleeping bags for a good night's rest. [In the interest of full disclosure, I must admit that I returned to the friary after the vigil service, and slept in the warmth and comfort of my bedroom there. And no, I do not feel guilty at all about it!]

WYD 2008, day 4

2008-07-21T13:06:00.005+02:00

Friday was the final day of catechesis at World Youth Day. We were again blessed to have a Capuchin bishop speaking to us, this time in the person of Bishop Anthony Apuron, Bishop of Agana, Guam. The theme of his talk was: "Sent out into the world: the Holy Spirit, the principal agent of mission." Those who know Bishop Apuron will not be surprised to know that he began his talk with a song. The celebration of the Eucharist was again followed by lunch outside the church. During lunch, Bishop Apuron surprised the catechesis group by singing a Simon and Garfunkle song.

Lunch was eaten quickly so that once again all could dash off to their assigned positions for the Stations of the Cross. Some members of the Capuchin group were assigned to the Sydney Opera House, and the rest went to Barangaroo again.
Participation in the Via Crucis was hampered for us by the difficulty of seeing the video screens and of hearing the audio. At least by the time the group acting out the Way of the Cross reached Barangaroo, the audio problems had been solved. There were constant references throughout WYD to the fact that it was being celebrated on land that once belonged to the Aborigines. In addition, Aboriginal dance and music was worked into all the liturgies. Even the Via Crucis acknowledged the importance of the Aborigines in Australia's history and culture by having Simon the Cyrene played by an Aborigine.

After another picnic dinner in the scenic surrounding of Barangaroo, the brothers headed off in various directions to take in one or more of the evening's events. Many of us eventually wound up in the Exhibition Centre, where the vocations booths were located. The Centre was packed with young people, many of whom showed a genuine interest in religious life. [Note to the General Definitory: at the next World Youth Day, we should have a booklet listing the vocation directors of every Capuchin jurisdiction in the world to distribute to interested young men.]

WYD 2008, day 3

2008-07-21T11:02:00.007+02:00

Thursday catechesis for the Capuchin group was again held at the Capuchin parish of Saint Fiacre, and was led by Bishop Joseph Oudeman, OFMCap, Auxiliary Bishop of Brisbane. The Capuchin group, by the way, includes not only the English-speaking friars attending World Youth Day, but also groups of youth from Capuchin-run parishes in Australia and Guam as well as a few other groups that were assigned to it by the WYD organizers. The theme for the day's catechesis was: "The Holy Spirit: Soul of the Church". After his talk, a few of the participants commented on what they hoped to take away from the talk, and some asked the Bishop questions, all of which showed a high level of interest among the participants.

Catechesis was followed by the Eucharist, celebrated by Bishop Oudeman. Then after a quick lunch provided by the parishioners, the participants set out for Barangaroo, where the Pope was scheduled to arrive by boat. Getting to Barangaroo, or to any of the other event sites in Sydney, was no small ordeal. Our group had to first catch a city bus into the city. After exiting the bus, we had to walk about 2 km (a little over a mile) to get to our assigned position at Barangaroo. Other groups of pilgrims converged from all directions so that for the last several hundred meters we were squeezed into one flowing mass of humanity. We had been assigned an area next to the path that the Popemobile would take upon leaving the area, and we arrived early enough to get positions along the barricades.

There was great excitement in the air when the Holy Father finally arrived around 3:00 p.m. The event was somewhat marred for us, however, because the loudspeakers nearest our section stopped working just before the Pope began the prayer service. As a result, we missed the entire first five minutes of his homily. The speakers then began working intermittently for the rest of the homily, which was maddening. What I could hear of his homily was very inspirational so I eventually went here to get the complete text online.

After the prayer service, the Holy Father boarded the Popemobile to leave the area, passing within about two meters of us on the way.

Dinner was served to all the pilgrims after the Pope's departure. The fare was not exactly gourmet, and the ambience left something to be desired—sitting on the asphalt as thousands of people kicked up dust and sand as they walked by. On the other hand, no one was expecting four star treatment, and the food was actually quite good considering the number of people they had to feed in such a short time.

Each evening during the week various concerts, exhibits and lectures were offered around the city. This particular evening, most of our group attended the two performances offered at Saint Stephen's Uniting Church. The first was the world premier of Brother John Russo's "Holy Rosary". Brother John, a member of the Capuchin Province of the Stigmata (New Jersey), took on the challenge of setting the rosary to music while he was a postulant several years ago, but never had the opportunity to have it performed. For the occasion of World Youth Day, he rearranged the music for string orchestra and chorus. While the rosary was sung, images of famous paintings illustrating each of the mysteries were projected on the screens positioned at the front of the church. Despite the fact that the performance was inadvertently omitted from the list of WYD events, there was a large audience on hand for it. The reaction to the performance was overwhelmingly positive. Afterwards, most of the audience remained for a performance of Oliver Messiaen's "Quartet for the end of time," which was beautifully performed. The composition itself, however, is an acquired taste that many of the audience have yet to acquire.

Here is a short video of the Papal arrival. We could not see it very well from our vantage point.

WYD 2008, day 2

2008-07-16T13:47:00.003+02:00

Day 2 of WYD for the NAPCC Capuchins in attendance began with a 45-minute bus ride from the Capuchin Retreat Center in Plumpton, where they are staying, to St. Fiacre Church in Leichhardt. Here the Capuchins, along with other groups of WYD participants, attended catechesis and Eucharist led by Cardinal Sean O'Malley. The subject of the day's catechesis was, "Called to live in the Holy Spirit." Apparently, Cardinal O'Malley already has a following through his blog or other means, since the participants were clearly pleased when it was announced that he would be the morning's speaker.

After Mass, the participants were treated to an Australian barbecue for lunch. They then walked a short distance to the Italian Forum for an afternoon of song provided by various artists. Brother Dean Mathieson and his band performed once again. Gary Pinto, who co-wrote the official theme song for WYD 2008, performed with his band. The closing act was provided by "Pellisintetiche", led by Brother Lucio Saggioro, a Capuchin of the Venice Province. The humorous and energetic performance had the WYD participants on their feet dancing in no time.

World Youth Day 2008, day 1

2008-07-16T12:15:00.005+02:00

I am attending World Youth Day 2008 in Sydney, Australia, at the invitation of the Province of Australia. Recognizing the event as a unique opportunity for evangelizing youth and, at the same time, for increasing awareness about the Capuchin Order especially in English-speaking areas of the world, the Provincial Minister of Australia worked hard to get a good showing of young Capuchins from around the world. The provinces of North America responded particularly well, sending around twenty friars. In addition, there are Capuchins from Italy, Poland, Germany, Guam and probably others countries, as well. There are even two Capuchin postulants from East Timor in attendance. At the vocations exhibit set up at the Exhibition Center on Tuesday, the Capuchins were easily the largest group on hand.

The friars of the Australian Province have been working feverishly for the past six months arranging lodging for the friars, venues for various activities, speakers for catechesis and hundreds of other details. Bush hats off to them for their excellent (dare I say, uncharacteristic) organization!

Although the opening Mass of WYD was celebrated Tuesday afternoon, some events began already that morning. One of them was the abovementioned vocations exhibit. Various musicians entertained the crowds of young people at the exhibit, including the Australian Province's own Brother Dean Mathieson. At the vocation booth, the friars had several kinds of literature about the Capuchin Order, as well as label pins with the Province's website listed on it. The booth was well visited, both by prospective candidates and by people who wanted to let us know how much they appreciate the Capuchins friars working in their home countries. It was an uplifting and humbling experience to hear their appreciation.

The opening Mass began at 4:30 in the afternoon, with Cardinal George Pell of the Sydney Archdiocese presiding. The venue of the Mass was an area along Darling Harbor officially known as Barangaroo, but known to the locals as "The Hungry Mile". Getting there and finding one's place was predictably chaotic, but spirits were high nonetheless. Before the liturgy, the pilgrims were greeting by Australia's Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, who praised the role of religion, and Christianity in particular, in the history of society. The liturgy itself was very beautiful, incorporating music inspired by the cultures of the Aborigines, the Maori and some of the nearby islands. While the friars were somewhat scattered among the crowd, there was a visible reminder of their presence at WYD in the person of Cardinal Sean O'Malley, who was near the main celebrant during the Mass and frequently shown on the Jumbotron.

Western America Province Chapter

2008-07-03T12:47:00.003+02:00

The tenth ordinary chapter of the Western America Province was held on 15-20 June 2008, in the picturesque setting of San Lorenzo Retreat Center in the Santa Ynez valley of California. The preparation that the brothers had put into the Chapter was evident from the outset. Besides electing a new Provincial Council, delegates spent time refining the Guiding Principles and Action Steps that were developed in local chapters and regional assemblies during the previous two years. Thanks in part to the help of Sr. Regina Fox in preparation for the chapter, the work of the brothers proceeded smoothly and quickly.

Besides the triennial report of the outgoing Provincial Minister, Br Tony Marti, the brothers also heard a report from Br David Beaumont on the Province’s mission in northern Mexico and one from Jesus Vela on the efforts of the Vocation Office. The newly-elected Provincial Council consists of (left to right in photo above): Jesus Vela (Vicar), Peter Banks, Matthew Elshoff (Provincial Minister), Robert Barbato and Michael Mahoney.

Five resolutions were passed with large majorities at the Chapter:

to ratify the Guiding Principles;
to ratify the Action Steps;
to consent to the establishment of a new friary in northern Mexico;
to use the help of outside expertise to improve the results of the Vocation Office;
to authorize the creation of a Strategic Planning committee, composed of both friars and lay people, to help the Province focus on its mission and to determine the resources needed to accomplish that mission.

Discovering and dreaming

2008-06-06T23:13:00.005+02:00

This past week, I presided at the 43^rd Ordinary Chapter of the Province of Saint Joseph, aka the Calvary Province or the Detroit Province. The Chapter was held on the beautiful campus of St. Xavier University in Chicago, Illinois.

The Chapter, like those I have attended in other provinces, was a wonderful fraternal experience. The Province of Saint Joseph is the largest of the NAPCC in terms of friars, and is also quite large geographically so for many chapters provide the only opportunity to see brothers from other areas of the Province. Its chapters are held with universal suffrage, which can be quite a challenge for such a large province—there were 129 delegates, plus many observers—but everything was well organized.

Besides the election of the new provincial council, the Chapter focused on the topic of Capuchin Community and Identity. Using a tool called, "Appreciative Inquiry," the brothers split up into groups of four to six to first tell stories about the times they were happiest or most proud about being a member of the Province. Based on those stories, they tried to identify the values and qualities that contributed to those experiences. Each group reported the results of its discussion to the whole chapter body. Later, the small groups dreamed about what the Province could be like in ten years, and discussed values that could make those dreams come true. These discussions were also reported back at a plenary session. All the comments I heard about the process were very positive. It was interesting for me to hear how the Province perceives itself and what its dreams for the future are.

In my closing talk to the Chapter, I recalled that St. Francis was also a dreamer, and that dreams can be that "foolishness" that God uses to confound the wise of this world, as St. Paul said in his first letter to the Corinthians. I then reflected back to them some of the dreams they had mentioned during the week:

to recover the passion for justice, peace and respect for creation that was once a hallmark of the Province;
to have stronger, more vital fraternities;
to increase collaboration with other jurisdictions in the NAPCC and in the world;
to recover the pioneering spirit of the province's founders, to be more willing to take risks, and to focus on growth and vitality, rather than diminishment;
to have a renewed sense of prayer and comtemplation.

And now that I've put their dreams in writing for the whole world to see, I hope they feel that their feet are to the fire!

The new definitory (left to right) are: Mark Carrico, Robert Smith, John Celichowski (Provincial), Francis Voris and Mark Joseph Costello.

... the Lord gave me brothers.

2008-06-01T17:30:00.005+02:00

Having just completed a short, three-day visit to the NAPCC novitiate in Burlington, Wisconsin, I have a sense of the joy Francis of Assisi must have felt when others began to join his venture. Spending time with this large, happy group of men who are saying "yes" to our way of life was a very affirming experience. I was deeply encouraged by seeing how both novices and staff, although from different provinces and countries, were able to live and work together harmoniously. Praying together, eating together and being together at recreation was a vivid reminder that the Capuchin Order is international, and that the bonds of brotherhood cross all provincial, national and continental boundaries.

This is (presumably) the first and only time the Conference's novitiate will be held in Burlington. The usual site of the novitiate in Allison Park, Pennsylvania, was unworkable this time both because it would not have had enough rooms for the number of novices in this year's group and because this year's novitiate began several months before last year's novitiate finished. Although it was a makeshift solution, the former St. Francis Retreat Center in Burlington provided a very good setting for the novitiate. The spacious building provided plenty of room the various activities of the novitiate. The extensive grounds, nicely landscaped and dotted with various shrines and grottoes, offered a perfect environment for the novitiate's prayer life.

With the end of novitiate only about two months away, the novices have been occupied with writing their official requests for acceptance into temporary vows. Meanwhile, the next batch of novices has begun the investiture program in Victoria, Kansas, and from all reports, the experience is proceeding well.

Paradise Visited

2008-03-18T12:39:00.007+01:00

After finishing our visit to the Province of Medan, John Antony and I flew to Port Moresby for a visitation of the Vice Province of Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands. Travelers entering the international terminal of Port Moresby's airport are greeted by a large sign saying, "Welcome to Paradise!" If that sounds presumptuous to you, it can only mean that you have never been to PNG. Not only is the country stunningly beautiful, but the hospitality of the friars and the friendliness of the people were outstanding.

Port Moresby looks many other large cities in less developed countries, with the possible exception that the traffic is not quite as bad. It isn't until you get out of the capital that you begin to notice real differences. As I flew to Mendi, capital of the Southern Highlands Province and location of the Vice Provincialate, I was impressed with the pristine beauty of the forests below. Occasionally I could spot a narrow road snaking through the trees or the huts of a small village, but otherwise the endless expanse of forest seemed untouched by human hand. Apparently, this is not exactly the case, as I was told that large areas of forest are being bought very cheaply by Chinese and Japanese companies, who then clear-cut them and take the wood to their respective countries.

The first permanent presence of the Capuchins in Papua New Guinea was begun a little more than fifty years ago when, at the request of Propaganda Fide, friars from the Pennsylvania Province went to evangelize the Southern Highlands Province. The focus of the mission has now changed from first evangelization to implantatio Ordinis, although the friars are still very involved in parochial work in the Mendi Diocese. The Mendi Diocese has had only two bishops in its history, both of them Capuchins. The ministry of the Vice Province is now shared by friars from the Mid-America Province and the Province of St. Joseph-Kerala. At various times in the past, there have also been friars from Great Britain, the Philippines, the Western America Province and the Holy Trinity Province in India.

Although the people of PNG lack many of the modern technologies that people in developed countries take for granted, they seldom lack basic necessities. The friars share this simplicity of life to a great extent. Their houses are simple wooden structures built by the friars themselves with mostly local materials. Although many of the houses are forty or more years old, they are comfortable and well-maintained by the friars. Since the Diocese has had a policy from its very beginning that the people are financially responsible for building their own churches, the churches also tend to be built from local materials and are easily maintained. Even the Mendi Cathedral (pictured) was largely built and financed by the people of the diocese. Despite, or perhaps because of the simple materials used in the churches, I found them very beautiful and prayerful.

Moving about the Vice Province is very challenging since the roads are quite rough. As we drove together from Mendi to Tari in his seventeen year-old car, Br. Bill Fey, the recently-elected Vice Provincial, remarked on how nice the road was, to which I responded, "You are easily impressed." Somewhat like Jesus, I could "count all my bones" at the end of the journey! Two days later, when we drove to Pureni, I understood why Br. Bill thought the Mendi-Tari road was good. Parts of the "road" to Pureni were what I would call a muddy path. Many of the outstations are not even accessible by road so the friars have to walk several hours to reach them.

The friars take all the physical challenges of the country into stride. They love their work and the people to whom they minister, a love that is obviously returned. Only a seriously illness could convince the American missionaries with whom I spoke to return to their native provinces. Br. John Antony expressed on several occasions that seeing the simple life of the friars made him feel that he was seeing Capuchin life as it was lived by the earliest friars. One might say it felt a bit like Paradise.

Canonical Recognition of St. Pio

2008-03-05T12:29:00.007+01:00

As a member of the General Definitory, I had the privilege of attending the canonical recognition ceremony for the remains of St. Pio of Pietralcina. The ceremony took place on Sunday, March 2nd, in the crypt of Santa Maria delle Grazie, around the tomb of St. Pio. A small group of people—friars, ecclesiastical dignitaries, relatives of St. Pio and the two people who were miraculously cured through his intercession—were on hand to witness the ceremony. Everything was carried out in an atmosphere of utmost dignity and solemnity.

The actual recognition process began a few days previously, when five eyewitnesses of Pio's burial were called to examine the tomb for any signs of tampering. All agreed that the tomb was in essentially the same condition as on the day of the burial. After that, the blocks of green and red marble (altogether weighing over 3000 lbs. or 1500 kg.) and the white sand that covered the tomb were removed, leaving only four concrete slabs covering it.

The second phase of the ceremony, which began at 10 o'clock p.m. with the reading of documents authorizing the exhumation and the Recognition Process: a Rescript from the Congregation for the Causes of the Saints, the Decree of His Excellency Domenico Umberto D'Ambrosio, Archbishop of Manfredonia-Vieste-San Giovanni Rotondo, and the Authorization of the civil authorities. This was followed by a reading of the transcript from the first phase of the recognition process. It seems that, even after death, you still have to follow the rules!

With the formalities out of the way, Archbishop Domenico Umberto D'Ambrosio led the assembly in a celebration of the Office of Readings, taken from the Common of Pastors. The second reading of the Office was from the letter of Pio, written at the request of his superiors, in which he described the beginnings of his stigmata. After the Liturgy of the Hours, the Archbishop gave a brief reflection on the meaning of the evening's events, calling it an act of "affectionate, gentle, respectful devotion." The underlying reason for the exhumation, explained the Archbishop, was the "responsibility of guaranteeing, by means of appropriate procedures, the lasting preservation of our saint's body in order to allow future generations to venerate and safeguard his relics."

Next, the Notary read the official account by the city officials of San Giovanni Rotondo regarding the burial of Pio of Pietralcina on September 26, 1968. Then the concrete slabs covering the tomb were removed, and the casket was lifted out. Before opening the casket, the Archbishop along with the Promoter of Justice and the Notary inspected the seals that had been applied to the tomb when it was closed almost forty years ago, making sure that they had not been broken. Satisfied that the seals were intact, they were removed with a small hammer and chisel, and the outer cover of the casket was removed. Next, the inner cover, make of zinc, was cut away, exposing a glass plate covering the body of the saint. There was a buzz of anticipation as the zinc cover was removed, and the assembly strained to get a glimpse inside the casket. This was followed by palpable disappointment since condensation on the glass covering made it impossible to see inside the casket.

At this point, the casket was moved to a specially-equipped room where a team of specialists will spend the next forty days working to preserve the mortal remains of St. Pio. Inside the room, a four-member tribunal and a team of doctors inspected the body after the glass covering was removed. The Archbishop later informed the assembly that the upper portion of St. Pio's body was partially skeletonized, but that the lower portion was relatively well preserved. Excessive humidity inside the casket, possibly caused by the fresh plaster on the walls of the tomb, had unfortunately contributed to the decomposition of his remains.

The ceremony concluded with an address by the General Minister, Mauro Jöhri, and a reading of the transcript of the evening's events. Around April 24, after the specialists have finished treating the remains, the body of St. Pio will be exhibited for public devotion for a few months.

Many of you are probably questioning the need for such an elaborate ceremony, and maybe even question the reasons for the exhumation itself. Those questions certainly occurred to me. I think, however, that the historical experience of the Church with regard to its saints can provide at least a partial explanation. Centuries ago, it was not uncommon for cities to fight over the bodies of saintly people. St. Francis of Assisi, for instance, was buried in a secret location for fear that his body would be stolen by the people of Perugia. While most of the remains of St. Catherine of Siena are buried in her hometown, her head somehow found its way to Rome. The list of such "separations" is quite long. It would have been natural for the Vatican to develop procedures for handling the relics of saints in order to prevent disagreements over them or desecrations of their graves.

The Church has also struggled with determining the authenticity of certain saints. Not long ago, for instance, researchers determined that St. Christopher, whose statue once adorned the dashboard of every Catholic-owned car in America, was only a pious legend. Today, it is hard to imagine how the transformation from legend to real person could have happened. Then again, try looking through your parents' photographs and see how many of the people in them you can name! Now imagine someone looking at those photographs 200 years from now. In its 2000-year history—wracked with wars, earthquakes, fires, plagues, etc.—it is understandable that accurate records for all the Church's saints are hard to find. Perhaps to prevent future generations from having similar doubts about the authenticity of today's saints, the Church has developed a "recognition" process. Because the tomb and the remains of St. Pio were inspected by people who were present at the time of his death, and a signed document attesting to the inspection now resides in the Vatican's files, future generations will have the assurance that the relics are authentic. Thus our brother Pio can continue to inspire people for many years to come with the example of his faithfulness and devotion.

Perceptions challenged

2008-02-11T07:42:00.002+01:00

One of the things I like about this job is that it constantly challenges my perceptions. Br John Antony and I just completed a visitation of the Province of Medan in Indonesia. Before the visit, what I knew about Indonesia could fit on a matchbook cover: it was made up of many islands, it was home to Bali (where a lot of people were killed in a terrorist bombing), and it has the largest Muslim population of any country in the world.

This last fact especially colored my perceptions about the three provinces of Indonesia. I assumed that the Catholic population of the country would be relatively small, and therefore well served by the more than 300 Capuchin friars in the country. What I found surprised me. The Province of Medan covers the northern part of the island of Sumatra. The Christian population of the area is actually quite large, and about 60% of those Christians are Catholic. Add to that the fact that there are only about 20 diocesan priests in the area, and that other religious congregations have only recently begun to enter the area. As a result, most parishes are still staffed by Capuchins. More surprising to me was the size of the parishes. The smallest parish that I encountered during my visit had about 9,000 parishioners, with about 6 outstations. The largest parish had 35,000 parishioners and 63 outstations! Even the largest parishes had at most two full-time priests to serve it, although friars in other ministries often covered some of the Sunday masses. Because of the number of outstations, the main parish church might be able to have a Sunday mass twice a month. The people in the outstations might have to wait three months between masses.

Obviously, given the great need, most Capuchins in the Province have until recently been parish priests. Recently, however, the Province has been turning some of the parishes over to the diocese and to other congregations, leaving friars available to serve in other ministries or in missions.

Another surprising discovery during my visit to Medan was the way the friars have tried to inculturate the Catholic faith. The predominant cultural group of northern Sumatra is the Batak, whose homes have a very distinctive architectural style. The friars have incorporated many of these architectural elements into their churches, to beautiful effect. They also use Batak musical instruments in their liturgies. Such attempts at inculturation have lead to the large scale acceptance of the Catholic faith among the Batak. The friars of the Medan Province, most of whom are Batak, are now enriching the Church and the Order with their friendliness and strong work ethic.

Miter flu claims another victim

2008-02-03T20:14:00.000+01:00

On 30 January, I attended the episcopal ordination of our former General Minister, Br John Corriveau. Although the episcopal see is in Nelson, British Columbia, Canada, the ordination took place in Kelowna in order to accommodate those coming from a distance.

The ordaining prelate was Archbishop Luigi Ventura, Apostolic Delegate for Canada. His homily drew extensively from the writings and biographies of St Francis, and at one point he urged John to bring his Franciscan joy to the pastoral care of the people of his diocese.

About 30 Capuchins from around the world braved the frigid Canadian winter to attend the ordination. Among them were 4 Capuchin bishops: Charles Chaput, Archbishop of Denver (USA), Joseph Oudeman, Auxiliary Bishop of Brisbane (Australia), Luis Pepeu, Bishop of Afogados da Ingazeira (Brazil) and Andrés Stanovnik, Archbishop of Corrientes (Argentina). Also present were the provincial ministers of all the provinces of the United States and Canada, friars from Great Britain, Poland, Italy and, of course, many from his own Province of Central Canada. Four Friars Minor who minister in British Columbia were also in attendance, happy to welcome a bishop from the Franciscan family.

John's ordination was a bittersweet moment for me. Of course, I was happy that John's abilities were recognized by the Holy See. He will be a great bishop for the Diocese of Nelson. On the other hand, I was sad that the Order is losing John's energy, enthusiasm and creativity. The title of this post reflects my frustration that we have lost so much leadership in the Order to the episcopate. I don't want to be selfish, but, hey, we need strong leadership, too! I am reminded of the comment made by a friar of my province when our then-Provincial Minister, Charles Chaput, was named a bishop and shortly afterward I was assigned to work in the General Curia. He complained about Rome "reaching in" and taking the good friars, then added, "And what are we left with? Excrement!" (not the actual word he used). I'm sure it's not as bad as that, but you get the point. As an Order that emphasizes its obedience to the Holy Father, clearly John could not have refused the Holy See's request.

In case you are interested, Nelson is a town of about 10,000 people. It has a small airport nearby and few hotels, but was until recently one of the more historical and important towns in the area due to mining for gold and other metals in the area. As the importance of mining wained, Kelowna overtook Nelson in terms of population and importance, with people being drawn there by viticulture and tourism. Kelowna is a 350 kilometer (215 mile) drive from Nelson.

A global brotherhood

2007-11-12T18:56:00.000+01:00

The General Definitory and the members of the North American-Pacific Capuchin Conference have just comcluded their joint meeting in Tampa, Florida. Such meetings between the international leadership and the individual conferences of the Order during the early years of each sexennium were begun during Flavio Roberto Carraro's second term as General Minister, 1988-1994. The meetings serve the dual purpose of helping the General Definitory understand the particular environment in which the friars live and work, as well as the concerns that they have, and of communicating more directly to the Order's major superiors the concerns and plans of the General Definitory.

After an opening talk from the General Minister, Mauro Jöhri, members of the General Definitory delivered talks on Solidarity of Personnel, the project of moving parts of the Constitutions to a General Statutes or similar document, the Order's response to CPO's VI and VII, and Formation. In addition, the General Bursar presented a talk on The Fraternal Economy. After each talk, members of the Conference were asked to respond to the suggestions made and to relate their experiences and concerns regarding the topics. The members of the NAPCC were also asked to share any other concerns regarding the life of the friars in North America, Guam and Australia.

Space does not permit an adequate summary of each talk here. An English translation of most of the talks was provided to each member of the NAPCC and can be requested from them, if you are interested (or from me if you are not in the NAPCC). Some salient points from the talks were as follows:

Solidarity of Personnel: The Order has made great strides in economic solidarity and has also seen an increase in the sharing of brothers among jurisdictions. The General Definitory wishes to encourage this form of solidarity, but also wants it to be practiced in an orderly, equitable manner.
Constitutions: The General Chapter of 2006 mandated the General Definitory to prepare drafts of Constitutions and General Statutes based on the present Constitutions. According to the Chapter decision, juridical elements not essential to our charism should be moved from the Constitutions to the General Statutes. The present text of the Constitutions is to be respected and enriched with elements from recent Plenary Councils of the Order and documents of the Church. The work is now underway, and soon the friars of the Order will be asked to begin studying the question and making their suggestions.
Formation: Collaboration in formation was strongly encouraged as a good in itself, not just as something to do when candidates are few. An apparent tendency toward abandoning the period of post-novitiate formation free of academic studies is a step backward for the Order. Going straight from the novitiate to philosophical and theological studies is a return to a less fraternal, more clerical form of formation.
Fraternal economy: The traditional Capuchin charism of austerity needs to be re-discovered in the Order, in poor countries as well as in wealthier countries. Values such as transparency and accountability are still not sufficiently practiced in some parts of the world.

The meeting in Tampa was preceeded by a similar meeting in San Juan, Puerto Rico, with the Capuchin Conference of the Andes (CCA) and the Capuchin Conference of Central America (CONCAM). From Tampa, the General Definitory will meet with the Capuchin Conference of Brazil (CCB) in Manaus, Brazil, where they hope not to loose too many extremities to the piranhas or too much blood to the mosquitos!

Down Under, part 2

2007-10-22T10:54:00.000+02:00

While visiting the former Capuchin seminary in Plumpton, which is now used as a retreat/conference center, I was able to visit the tomb of Br. Rudolph Blockinger. Rudolph was a member of the Pennsylvania Province who went to China as a missionary. When the missionaries were forced out, he went to Australia so that he could finish out his days as a missionary. I never knew Rudolph myself, by I heard many stories about him and I knew his younger brother, Br. Cletus.

Having basically completed my visitation, I was able to spend last Saturday seeing some of Sydney's sights. The picture below was taken outside the Cathedral of Syndey. The friars in the photo are (left to right): Thomas McFadden, me, Lam Vu, Nestor Sinaga (Medan Province), James Grant and Bernard Morawski (Warsaw Province). Robert Stewart is taking the picture.

Down Under

2007-10-19T10:36:00.000+02:00

For about the past two weeks, I have been conducting a visitation of the friars in Australia. This is my first time in the "Down Under", and I have been very impressed by the life and work of the friars here. There is a commemorative plaque in front of the provincialate in Leichhardt (Sydney) that gives a good summary of the history of the Capuchins in Australia. Here is a portion of that commemoration:

The Catholic Church, anticipating a boom in unassisted Italian migration after the Second World War, handed over St Fiacres to the Capuchin Order in 1946, to provide assistance. The first priests were Italian Americans including Fr Atanasio Paoletti. They met the boats and provided advice on housing and jobs to initially mainly single men. As well as providing religious services they became a meeting place, conducted dances, set up sporting clubs etc. Many settled at least initially in Leichhardt, some 90 families lived along Catherine Street, and many worked in local industry or construction, or established businesses here. As a consequence Leichhardt became associated with Italians.

Some 60,000 Italian migrants were assisted by the Capuchins, many married and baptised their children here. Many of the children attended St Fiacres School.
...

The San Francesco Catholic Italian Association set up sporting and social programs, ran dances, sporting clubs, built a recreation hall at St Fiacres, and a kindergarten in Styles Street, all with volunteers. The annual Australia Day picnics on the Harbour and at Clifton Gardens were major events in the 1950's. The Capuchins also started the Italian press that became La Fiamma, and Italian language programs for children, now carried out by Co.As.It.
...

As the consequence of the Italian influx, Parramatta Road boomed from the 1950s as the Saturday morning shopping strip and 'passeggiatta'. Many clubs, restaurants, cafes and shops were established along Parramatta Road and into Norton Street forming the nucleus of what is now the centre of Italian Australian culture in Sydney.

The Capuchins at St Fiacres have a central place in the history of Italians throughout Australia.

Eleven Years After, part 5

2007-10-12T09:06:00.000+02:00

The final topic the Conference representatives were asked to comment on was the perception of lay brothers in their local churches and societies. Almost all the Conferences reported that lay brothers were poorly understood and under-appreciated. Some of the phrases they used to describe the perception of lay brothers in their areas were: “failed clerics”, “relatively useless” and “useful and edifying domestic servants”. These attitudes, unfortunately, even extended to the local bishops at times, who were happy to have Capuchin priests in their dioceses, but had no appreciation for the lay brothers. Most people, even Catholics, did not understand the lay brotherhood, although often respecting the work the brothers did.

It is hard to see that perceptions have changed much in the last eleven years. If they had, this blog would have a different name. I wondered whether the situation in Italy might be different because of the long history of Capuchins there and the fact that so many of the Order’s saints were Italian lay brothers. I put the question to the participants at the meeting of the lay friars of northern Italy. According to them, perceptions are no different in Italy than in the rest of the world. In retrospect, I should have realized this. I have lost count of the number of times I have had the following conversation* in Italy:

Person: Hello, Father Mark.
Me: Uh, hello. I’m Brother Mark. I’m not ordained, you see.
Person: Oh. Okay, Father Mark.

Most of the lay brothers I know are not terribly upset by people’s lack of understanding of their vocation. They merely sigh (at least figuratively) and go on with their lives. They are happily resigned to be, in the minds of others, just a brother.

* In fairness to the Italians, the word “Padre”, which I translated here as “Father”, is used only for religious priests and brothers. Secular priests are referred to as “Don”, short for “Dominus” or “Lord”.

Eleven Years After, part 4

2007-10-12T07:58:00.000+02:00

Another topic that the Conferences were asked to report on at the 1996 gathering was the presence of lay friars in ministries of authority in the Order. Most Conferences reported having lay brothers serving as guardians. In a few Conferences, lay brothers had been elected to the Provincial Definitory. A few had been elected and confirmed as Provincial Vicars and, in one case, a lay brother had been elected and confirmed as Provincial Minister.

Today, the General Definitory receives a great number of requests each year for permission to appoint lay friars as guardians and vicars. The number of lay brothers elected as Provincial and Vice Provincial Definitors has also increased. In general, I would say that lay brothers today are fairly represented in the leadership of the Order.

The Order continues to request the Holy See to permit us to return to the original inspiration of our founder, St. Francis, by allowing us to elect both cleric and lay brothers to the office of major superior. In the meantime, many jurisdictions are not content to just patiently wait for the Holy See to change its stance. Instead, they are reviewing their own structures and traditions with a view to changing those that are more fitting for a clerical Order. For example, many, if not most provinces hold the installation of their newly-elected provincial definitory during a Mass, with the provincial minister as main celebrant and the definitors as concelebrants. This structure basically assumes that the provincial minister will always be a priest. To avoid this perception, therefore, several jurisdictions now have the installation of the newly-elected provincial definitory during morning or evening prayer. If we looked hard enough, probably we could all find other structures in our provinces that similarly presume a clerical orientation.

Eleven Years After, part 3

2007-10-10T08:13:00.000+02:00

A third topic that was addressed at the 1996 international gathering on the "Lay Dimension of the Capuchin Vocation" was ministry. In 1996, there were still many brothers involved in their traditional works, such as cooks, gardeners, porters, ecc., but most of the Conferences reported that brothers were also involved in non-traditional ministries, as well. There were teachers, bursars, formation directors, administrators of schools, and other types of ministry. This openness to new forms of ministry was not appreciated by everyone, not even by all the lay brothers of the world. Some felt that a professional education and the abandonment of manual labor would lead to the destruction of the traditional figure of the lay brother. In some parts of the world, lay brothers were criticized by others in the fraternity for accepting ministries outside the friary.

A difficulty encountered by friars in many parts of the world was a lack of ministries open to lay brothers, especially in areas of the world where the friars were heavily involved in parish ministry. In one or two areas of the world, lay friars were still not given an opportunity to do anything other than manual labor.

In regard to ministry, the situation for lay brothers has changed substantially in the last eleven years. Most friars have a range of ministerial opportunities open to them and are allowed, if not actively encouraged, to exploit those opportunities. Even in the country from which I heard the most complaints in 1996, the lay friars there today say they are very satisfied with the range of ministries open to them. Today, you will find many lay friars working in fields that require a high level of professional training. Many are involved in formation and vocations promotion.

The one possible exception to this otherwise very positive picture is in those countries where friars are heavily involved in parish ministry. Lay friars in these countries often feel a little like a fifth wheel. I have heard from several brothers that they have basically been told to go out and find their own job. While some friars might relish this kind of freedom, many brothers take this as a sign that they are not needed in the province. To put it another way, they are made to feel that they are not an important part of the province's mission.

Eleven Years After, part 2

2007-10-06T01:16:00.000+02:00

One of the topics that generated a lot of interest at the 1996 Gathering on “The Lay Dimension of Our Capuchin Vocation” was formation and vocation promotion. Brothers from several parts of the world reported a sense that vocations promotion in their areas tended to focus on vocations to the priesthood. As for formation, most areas of the world reported that all the friars received the same formation up to and including the novitiate. The experience of post-novitiate formation, however, varied greatly from one region of the world to another. In a few regions, all the friars had a common post-novitiate formation up to the time of their perpetual vows. After vows, those wishing to be priests began philosophical and theological studies, while those wishing to be lay brothers began either specialized studies or work. At the other extreme, some areas of the world reported there was almost no post-novitiate formation for lay brothers. In between were jurisdictions in which all the friars had a year of post-novitiate formation in common before beginning studies for the priesthood or some other ministry. Many of those reporting lamented that their formation programs were built around studies for the priesthood, and everything else was an afterthought.

As I have traveled in various areas of the world during my first year as General Definitor, I have asked many brothers about their experiences of formation to see how things have or have not changed in the past eleven years. From this limited perspective, it seems like some progress has been made in moving toward a style of formation that is adequate for all friars and that gives more emphasis to the specifically Capuchin Franciscan elements of our vocation. Most jurisdictions that I have visited have a common formation for all the friars at least until the first year of post-novitiate. No one who has gone through formation in the past eleven years complained that his post-novitiate formation consisted of working in the kitchen, as sometimes happened in the past. In many jurisdictions, lay brothers are working as formation directors.

Where there is still a great deal of uncertainty in the Order, it seems, is the question of theological training for those wishing to be lay brothers. Most jurisdictions require at least one year of theological studies for those who are not planning to be ordained. They would normally attend courses meant for the laity. Some jurisdictions, however, require lay brothers to follow basically the same curriculum as their priesthood students do, including two or more years of philosophy. While most jurisdictions are convinced of the need for all friars to have some theological training, many seem to be still searching for the right measure of such training for lay friars.

I noted, as have several other General Definitors, a disturbing trend in the Order toward a return to the old system of formation—a system that was centered around studies for the priesthood, and which everything else seemed to be an afterthought. There appear to be at least two reasons for this temptation to turn back the clock. One is the lack of trained formation personnel. Rather than identifying and training additional friars to work in formation, it is easier to assign the personnel the province does have to the “obligatory” stages of postulancy and novitiate, and offload post-novitiate formation to a seminary. The other reason has to do with the scarcity of vocations in some areas of the world, and the age of the candidates in those same areas. When provinces are shrinking in size, its leaders are naturally concerned about how they will maintain the ministries of the province. When these ministries include parishes, as they very often do, provincial leadership will want to push candidates through formation and get them ordained as quickly as possible. They are tempted, therefore, to see an extra one to three years of post-novitiate formation free from formal studies as a waste of valuable time. When you add to this the fact that many of the candidates coming to the Order in these same areas of the world are older men—in the thirties, forties or even older—there is even more pressure to get them ordained quickly. This tendency is of serious concern to many friars in the world and to the General Definitory.

Eleven Years After

2007-09-23T09:56:00.000+02:00

I recently attended the Formation Meeting of the Capuchin Lay Brothers of Northern Italy, where I was asked to speak about the international gathering held in 1996 on The Lay Expressions of the Capuchin Vocation. It was a good exercise for me to look back at the issues that were of major concern for lay brothers eleven years ago, and how those issues have been addressed since then. I thought I would summarize my presentation in this forum. I spoke about five issues: the number of lay brothers in the Order; formation and vocation promotion; ministry; service of authority; and the perception of lay brothers in the Order, Church and society. I will present each topic in a separate blog entry.

In 1996, many friars, myself included, were concerned that the lay dimension of the Capuchin Order was headed for extinction. Paul Hinder stated in his opening address to the gathering that at 17% the percentage of lay brothers in the Order had never been as low as it was in those years. Furthermore, the percentage of lay brothers in the areas of the world with the greatest number of vocations at that time, especially Africa and Asia, was among the lowest in the Order. It looked at the time as if the percentage of brothers who chose not to be ordained would only decrease over time.

Looking back now, it appears that those fears were unfounded. The percentage of lay friars in the Order has slightly increased since 1996. In preparation for these talks, I used the General Curia’s databases to find the percentage of friars making perpetual profession between 1930 and the present who were not ordained six years after their perpetual profession—in other words, the percentage who originally chose to be lay friars. The results, shown by the blue line in the graph below, were interesting (click on the graph to open a larger version in a new window).

The percentage varied from year to year, but there was a clear cyclical trend of periods when more friars chose to remain lay and periods when fewer friars made this choice. The period of the cycle was approximately 15 years. The lowest percentage occurred in 1980, when only 11% of friars chose the lay state. The highest percentage—33%—was in 1969. On average, 20% of friars in this time period chose to be lay friars. I also studied the percentage of friars in the same time period who remained lay friars for their whole lives. On the whole, about two percent of the friars making profession during the period of the study chose to be ordained more than six years after their perpetual profession, which means that about 18% of friars ultimately chose to remain lay friars. There is a slight increase in recent years in the number of friars choosing to be ordained later in life, which is attributable, I think, to the fact that friars are now free to choose between being ordained or not, whereas in the past the choice was often made for them by their superiors.

Update from India

2007-07-25T05:08:00.000+02:00

Br. John Antony and I are into the fourth week of our visitations of the Vice Province of Andhra Pradesh-Orissa, the Vice Province of Pavanathma and the Province of St. Joseph-Kerala, where we are currently working. It has been a fascinating experience for me. The culture and social situation of India is so different from that of the United States so it has been interesting to see how the Capuchins in India have adapted the charism to their situation.

Kerala is home to the oldest Christian community in India, which is said to have been founded by St. Thomas the Apostle. The Church is very developed here. Both dioceses and religious congregations have been running educational institutions here for a long time. The schools are recognized by Hindus, Muslims and Christians alike as being among the best in the country. Because of this commitment, Kerala has the highest rate of literacy among all the states in India. The Church also has many hospitals, clinics and social service centers in Kerala. Today, you will find nurses from Kerala working in hospitals all over the world.

The Capuchins in Kerala directly or indirectly administer a few elementary schools in Kerala, especially in the north. For the most part, however, this sector is already well covered by other congregations. Due to the large number of vocations coming from Kerala, both for religious orders and the diocesan priesthood, Capuchins are only rarely needed to work in parishes. In some dioceses, in fact, bishops are reluctant to assign any parishes to religious congregations. As a result, Capuchins in Kerala work mostly in the area of evangelization. Preaching parish missions occupies many of the friars. This provides a lot of exposure to the friars, which is one of the reasons they are so successful in promoting vocations. The Province also has many missionaries working throughout the world.

The area of northern Kerala, where the Vice Province of Pavanathma is located, was opened for settlement only a few decades ago. Many people from southern Kerala moved there in order to buy land. As a result, though there are many Catholics there, the Church is less developed. Religious orders, therefore, are more likely to be asked to undertake parish ministry. The Capuchins there have a few parishes, but they are also heavily involved in ministry to the poorest of the poor. I was very impressed by the homes for destitute men and women, the AIDS hospice and the orphanage that they administer.

The Church in Andhra Pradesh, as a whole, is also less developed than in southern Kerala. There, schools are still in great demand. Accordingly, the friars currently administer two elementary schools, which are attached to their parishes. They also have care of several other parishes in the state. Very early in the history of the Capuchin mission in Andhra Pradesh-Orissa, the Province of St. Joseph-Kerala began a seminary at the request of the local bishop. This institute of philosophy and theology now has over 300 students from several dioceses and religious congregations of men and women. Though it is a young jurisdiction, the Vice Province of Andhra Pradesh-Orissa is growing quickly.

A visit to India

2007-07-01T17:51:00.000+02:00

On July 2nd, I leave for a month-long visit to the Vice Provinces of Andhra Pradesh-Orissa and Pavanathma, and the Province of Kerala-St. Joseph. This will be only my second time in India; the first was over ten years ago. Those ten years have been a time of great change in India so it will be interesting to compare the two experiences. I must admit to being a little apprehensive about the trip—foreign foods and customs aren't as exciting to me as they once were. On the other hand, the hospitality of the Indian brothers is legendary so I do not expect any major problems.

With over 1300 friars and a high rate of growth, India has become an important source of growth and vitality for the Order. Indian provinces have not only opened presences in new areas of India and begun new missions in Africa, but are supplying missionaries to many already-established missions and even to some long-existing provinces. That alone makes it in interesting place to visit.

I also have a special interest in India because it is one of the countries of the world where the Order has been less successful in attracting candidates to the non-cleric state. (I purposely use the term "non-cleric" here rather than "lay" because it is the preferred term in India. That is the subject for another post.) There have been many reasons given for this situation—it is a culture that values education and status, for instance—but there are many cultures that value education and still regularly receive candidates who choose to be non-clerics. I would like to understand what is different about India in this regard.

I do not mean this as a criticism of the Indian friars. If after careful discernment one feels called to the priesthood, who am I to say that they made a bad choice? Furthermore, the non-cleric brothers from India that I have known have all been wonderful friars. In a sense, it does not even matter whether a friar is a priest or a non-cleric since we all have the same vocation. On the other hand, I believe that the existence of non-cleric brothers is essential to the spirit of the Order. When the non-cleric element of our charism is proportionally small in one of the largest and fastest-growing countries of the Order, I become concerned.

Or am I overreacting?

Getting to know you

2007-05-15T17:10:00.000+02:00

Since being elected general definitor, I have presided at two provincial chapters (Mid-America and Central Canada), attended one NAPCC meeting and completed the visitation of one province (Central Canada). This hardly qualifies me to draw general conclusions about the area of the Order I serve, but I want to address one topic seems to keep arising—how to handle the diminishment and aging of our provinces.

At the recently-concluded chapter of the Central Canadian Province, the friars made the courageous decision to begin moving toward much greater collaboration, and possibly even amalgamation with another province. Their discussions could have been used as a case study of Kubler-Ross' five stages of grief. I did not hear much anger, but there were certainly traces of denial, bargaining, depression and acceptance. Actually, there was much more acceptance than I had expected—clearly, they have been contemplating this issue for some time already.

During the General Chapter, one of the topics that the NAPCC committed itself to discuss during the present sexennium was the reorganization of the number of jurisdictions in the Conference. The topic came up at the fall 2006 meeting, but was tabled until the spring 2007 meeting. At the spring 2007 meeting, we ran out of time so tabled it until the fall meeting (with the suggestion of bringing in a speaker to address the issue). Perhaps I am reading too much into it, but I sense some reluctance on the part of the members of NAPCC to tackle this issue.

No one was talking about amalgamation at the chapter of the Mid-America Province (in the interest of full disclosure, this is the province to which I belong). The work of the chapter, however, was to prepare the friars for the unavoidable changes that will need to be made because of the province's declining numbers and increasing median age. A study I did a few years ago projected that the number of friars in the province will fall to about 40 before it finally levels off—provided that we get and keep at least one new vocation every year. It is clear to me that my province will also need to start talking about an amalgamation in the near future.

Unless there is a sudden and massive change in the number of vocations to the Order, all the provinces of the NAPCC will eventually face this discussion. It is not an easy discussion to have. It evokes failure (Why don't more young men want to join us?). It threatens our carefully cultivated identity (We're more traditional/progressive than they are. We're more scholarly/ministerally active/social justice oriented/fraternal/contemplative than they are.). It upsets the balances and compromises that we have spent years putting into place in our provinces.

Most of all, talk of combining with another province evokes a fear of the unknown. I imagine it is similar to what a young man and woman must have experienced when their parents announced that they had arranged a marriage. I am no stranger to the provinces of the NAPCC. As the Executive Secretary of the Conference for several years, I had the opportunity to travel to all the provinces and meet many past and present provincials and vicars. I met other friars while working on Capuchin Heritage Programs in Italy. Still, there are many friars that I have never met, and many more that I do not really know well. Most of the friars of any given province in the NAPCC know only a handful of friars in the other provinces. This, I believe, is the real source of the distrust of other provinces and of the fear of further collaboration. The common novitiate will be a great help in overcoming some of this fear and distrust, but it only reaches the youngest friars. Maybe it is time to organize some opportunities for the older friars of our provinces to meet one another. In fact, as the first step toward joining with another province, the Province of Central Canada resolved at its chapter to organize gatherings between its friars and those of the Quebec and Detroit Provinces. The Heritage Program once served this purpose, albeit unconsciously, but the number of friars making the Program has been decreasing for the past ten years of so. Either the Heritage Program needs to be revitalized or another means of increasing contacts between provinces needs to be found. Could provinces hold a joint retreat, for instance?

It's an idea. What do you think?

Some people...

2007-04-30T02:07:00.000+02:00

seem to think there is a rule stating that a blog must have at least one entry each month. I, however, would never stoop to posting an entry merely for the sake of having an entry.

Welcome

2007-03-25T18:10:00.000+02:00

Welcome to my blog, “Just a Brother”, or JAB, for short.
You may find the title a little provocative. I hope so; otherwise all the time I spent thinking it up was wasted. Let’s talk about the title a while (actually, I’ll write about it; you’ll sit quietly and read).

I have been asked many times during my nearly 27 years of religious life if I was a priest. When I replied that I was not, the person often responded with, “So, you’re just a brother then”. One person actually responded by saying, “Don’t worry. You’ll make it someday!” I suppose I felt a little offended the first couple of times this happened, taking the response to mean that the questioner did not value my form of life. It does not bother me any longer, however. Most of the people who respond in this way, I believe, are not making a value judgment. In fact, I now consider it a badge of honor. I am just a brother.

In his acceptance speech after his election at the General Chapter of 2000, our former General Minister, John Corriveau, said words to this effect: “If you want to know how to address me, I’d like you to call me ‘Brother John’, for I consider Brother to be an honorary title.” And why should it not be? After all, Francis of Assisi wished that he and his followers be called brothers, and Jesus became incarnate in order to become our brother. If it is good enough for Jesus and Francis, it is good enough for me!

I am well aware that I was elected to be a General Definitor for all the friars of the Order, not just for the lay brothers. I intend to do that to the best of my abilities. Moreover, I want to avoid recreating the artificial distinctions that the Order has worked so hard to eliminate during the last few decades. At the same time, I cannot ignore the opportunity that I have been given to bring to the General Definitory a view of the Order that may differ from that of a priest-friar. Furthermore, if I can support and encourage in any way this form of life that I love so much, I feel it is my duty to do so.

It is great to be just a brother!