Friars & Nuns live in true poverty & pure harmony?

[Poor Friars]

YES, it's true! 
If you don't believe it, the smiles below may prove it to you...
(See also the video's below)

 

 

https://vimeo.com/179343955

https://vimeo.com/179090429

 

Edited August 18, 2016 by Poor Friars

[Antigonos]

May I ask what sort of plans you have for when you are elderly, in poor health, and unable to beg?

[Poor Friars]

Peace and Good "Antigonos",

It is indeed very interesting the way you put "Unable to beg" as a phrase for the elderly and ill in health - Our understanding of these states of life are that they are "prime time" for begging! We are all very much poor and in need of God's help, and our weakness is indeed an ideal opportunity for us to Evangelize and trust in God's unfailing help.

It is a very good question though for someone who may not live as we do in total dependence on God and experience the abundance of God's providential care as we do.. Our plans are that of the Lord. We will continue to beg. Now we can not personally take money nor keep a safe keeping, but the lay association affiliated with our community the "Allies of the Little Ones" may take donations to help us with situations that may be of a "greater" need. They directly make the payments of such things like the payments for the rent and utilities of where we live and also the purchase of flights when needed to get to our brothers in Italy.

Here in the United States we have had many people VERY concerned about our health care, and especially in the case of a catastrophic event and for this reason the local bishop has asked us to find Health Insurance. For the past 16 years in Italy this has never been an issue that anyone has ever confronted us with (different the case in America where the government demands it), so as Jesus says to give Cesar what belongs to Cesar (Luke 20:25) and asking Peter to pull a coin out of a fish's mouth (Matt 17:27), we too have benefactors that pay for these things here in the States. We hence therefore have to beg for our health care - and the people are very happy to do that for us as they love Christ in the work we do and want to be involved.
 

[Antigonos]

Well, I wish you well, but since I am now 70, have chronic health problems that were unthinkeable even 2 decades ago, I see a future quite differently from the way a young adult does.  At some point, you are going to have to have a resident facility, and hopefully, enough young vocations to care for those no longer able to wander about, soliciting donations.

Just as the old saying is that no one over the age of 30 is a revolutionary, no one younger ever thinks of being old and infirm <g>

[Guest]

Point of interest: St Mary of The Cross MacKillop (first Australian saint) wanted to live her sisters to live in strict poverty relying on Divine Providence and initially her strict rule was approved by her then bishop, but when Mary sought approval from Rome, she was forced to alter the rule on poverty calling for reliance on Divine Providence.
 

Quote

 

http://saintjohns.weebly.com/mary-mackillopthe-excommunication--the-episcopol-commission.html

Excerpts: The rules written up by Mary Mackillop and Father Woods for the Sisters to live by were an emphasis on poverty, a dependence on divine providence, no ownership of personal belongings, a faith that God would provide and the sisters would go were ever they were needed. The rules were approved by Bishop Sheil.

Mary Mackillop then travelled to Rome in 1873 to seek papal approval for the religious congregration and was asked to work by Pope Pius IX. The authorities in Rome made changes to the way the Sisters lived in poverty, declared that the Superior General and her Council were the authorities in charge of the order and assused Mary Mackillop that the congregation and their rule of life would recieve final approval after a trial period. The alterations to the rule of life caused a breech between Mary Mackillop and Father Woods who felt that the revised rule compromised the idea of vowed poverty and blamed Mary Mackillop for not getting the rule accepted in the original form.

 

 

[Poor Friars]

These are beautiful observations, and thank you for your interest.... I am so fascinated Barbera by the life of St Mary of The Cross MacKillop given that I am Australian born and raised - in fact in the Diocese of Adelaide where St. Mary's rule was first approved (and where she was later unjustly temporarily excommunicated). I am very familiar with her story and was present at St. Peter's for her canonization.

We too began much "stricter" than we are now, and mostly due to our earlier misunderstanding of the motivation behind Evangelical poverty. When we first started (I have had the honor of being with the founder since the first 6 months of the community's existence some 16 years ago) we lived on candle light and without electricity, scraped off the sesame seeds of our Sicilian bread when fasting on bread and water and wouldn't have even considered our groups of prayer having a safe keeping for donations. 

Today, we use electricity, the internet, eat "what ever is put before us" (Luke 10:8) and even have our groups of prayer "the Allies of the Little Ones" help us with their non profit association. We understand now that the reason behind our poverty is not only to demonstrate a detachment from the material things of this world but also (and most of all) as a means of meeting people and EVANGELIZING. Our need becomes the means of transmitting the Gospel.

We understand that the Lord himself had a safekeeping (John 13:29), so if it means having one too for the sake of imitating Christ, well so be it. We don't own any of the money, nor do we touch or distribute it.. The groups of prayer help us for the larger needs with the help of benefactors, whilst we live day by day on directly with the help of benefactors for our every day needs. We maintain Hitchhiking and refusing to accept a cent from the people to give WITNESS to the PROVIDENTIAL CARE of our LORD and to meet people to EVANGELIZE. 

As for being revolutionary - here is the Italian Episcopal Conferences TV channel interviewing our founder only a few months ago on a program called "REVOLUTION":

https://vimeo.com/163008283

 

Edited August 23, 2016 by Poor Friars

[Spem in alium]

I pray for your mission. I see poverty more in the lines of our reliance on God, as well as the way we use our possessions rather than a complete lack of them. We tend to be fixated on possessions as being purely material, but I think they also include things like our time, our talents, our family and friends, etc). I have been asked (and have heard my sisters be asked) why I have a phone, internet, etc. if I am committing myself to a life of poverty. These things are not unhealthy in themselves and can be wonderful tools in spreading God's love, but if they are over-used, or used in the wrong way, or prioritised over God, they become unhealthy. Our tendency is certainly to equate "poverty" with "not owning anything".

[Antigonos]

I have a tendency to think that if Jesus had access to the internet, cellphones, etc. he would have used them.  It wasn't allthat long ago that the only way politicians had to get their message  across was through mass rallies, or speaking from the back of trains.  Wasn't it FDR who first used radio?

Jesus, also, you should excuse the observation, didn't have to cope with senile dementia or other debilitating diseases of old age, which are commonplace today.  So, as times change, so does our response to them.  That is not necessarily a rejection of poverty.  I'm sure the first Renaissance monk to wear a pair of spectacles was reproved for worldliness or indulging in luxury.

[Poor Friars]

We have found that technology actually helps us live the spirit of poverty better... for example, we do not need to have extensive libraries in each of our community because we can find/store/save our work and the work/books of other on line or on a hard drive. With the online services and storage we can travel free of a computer and simple ask to use someone else's computer whilst traveling. 

[Guest]

18 hours ago, Poor Friars said:

we do not need to have extensive libraries in each of our community

You do have residences from which you travel out?

[Poor Friars]

Peace and Good Barbara,
Yes, of course we need a place to reside, though we can't own them. Here in Louisiana our sisters live in a convent on a Parish Church property and we brothers are in a house some 3/4 of a mile down the road. Because we have no money, the lay non profit association helps us by paying the rent (for us brothers, only $1.00 a year!).