Franciscans of the Primitive Observance

[littlesister]

Yes, hitchhike they do. Can't help remembering one bitter, icy, January evening in Massachusetts not long after the community started. About six of them were along a main road with their thumbs out. They all looked like St. Francis incarnate: beards, rough blanket-cloaks, and barefoot sandals. The police finally picked them up themselves, saying that they were a traffic hazard. Too many drivers were craning their necks for a look instead of watching where they were going - and instead of taking them in themselves. They did look like something out of a movie. The rest of us were at the end of the road, waiting for a Youth 2000 weekend to begin.

[MithLuin]

I've got a new hard core Franciscan order for you gentlemen! My guess is that it is closest in character to the FPOs, which is why I am adding them to this thread, rather than the FI thread. I suppose I could start a brand new one, but I don't have very much info in order to do that...this is merely an out-of-the-office e-mail auto reply and a news article.

[quote]By the call of God and the grace of our Lady, I have recently begun, together with 7 young men, the institution of a new Franciscan community, the Franciscan Brothers Minor. Together we will seek to live, as closely as possible, the original Rule of St. Francis. Henceforth I will not be available by phone or email. If you wish to contact me, please write to:

Fr David Mary, F.F.M.
Our Lady of the Angels Friary
412 West Avenue
Mt. Carmel, PA 17851

Please pray for us as we begin this new venture in the Lord. Be sure of our prayers for you, and feel free to write or visit anytime.

Pax et Bonum, Fr. David Mary Engo, F.F.M.[/quote]

Very awesome, no? Fr. David Engo was with the FPOs back in 2000, and most recently he was with the Capuchins. If you'd like to read some of his homilies, click [url=http://www.penitents.org/frdavid.html]here[/url]. He is an amazingly solid and authentic priest, so I hope this new venture will be showered with blessings. Please pray for them!

[url=http://newsitem.com/news/a-great-gift-eight-franciscan-brothers-move-into-mt-carmel-look-to-serve-community-1.482627]"A Great Gift" - 8 Franciscan Brothers Move into Mount Carmel[/url]

[MithLuin]

And the above address is already defunct! Ah well...here's the update on the FFM: they are following Bishop Rhoades to Fort Wayne, Indiana. They left Mount Carmel, PA this week.

http://newsitem.com/news/franciscan-brothers-leaving-mount-carmel-will-relocate-in-indiana-1.657220




In the meantime, I thought I'd post a facebook page about the FPOs:

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=18285728655

There's at least one new article on there that hasn't been posted here before.

[quote]Hudson church holds 5-day ‘confessathon’

By PATRICK MEIGHAN

(Captions of photos)
[i]The Franciscan Friars of the Primitive Observance from Lawrence, Mass., visited Saint Kathryn Parish in Hudson this week. Brother Felix was one of the members attending. Father Andrew was available during the parish Confess-a-Thon. The four knots tied into the cord that binds their habit represent their vows of poverty, chastity, obedience and consecration.[/i]



Father Gary Belliveau looked at what’s been happening at St. Kathryn Parish over the past five days as a good spring cleaning.

“A lot of cleaning up is going on around here. A cleaning of souls and of the grounds,” said the Rev. Belliveau, known to his parishioners as Father Gary.

The outdoor cleaning came courtesy of two Franciscan brothers who raked up pinecones and sticks dropped by the recent windstorm.

The cleaning of souls happened through a 42-hour “confessathon” heard by Father Gary and two priests belonging to the Franciscan Friars of the Primitive Order, based in Lawrence, Mass.

The Franciscans visited the Roman Catholic parish in south Hudson as part of a Lenten mission.

It marked the second time the Franciscans had come to St. Kathryn’s, but the first for the confession marathon.

Confessions were heard 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Saturday, Monday and Tuesday, from noon to 9 p.m. on Sunday, and finally a 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. session on Wednesday.

Given that he alone had heard 70 confessions on Tuesday, and three confessionals were in use most of the time, Father Gary figures that more than 1,000 people, including 200 children, participated in the sacrament of penance over the five days.

One of the Franciscans, Father Andrew Beauregard, surveyed the schedule when he arrived at the parish on Friday.

“It doesn’t look like there’s time to eat,” he thought.

That proved prophetic, as Father Andrew chose to forego his scheduled half-hour dinner break on Tuesday because of a dinner-hour surge of confession-goers.

He finally had something at 10 p.m. that night.

After such a long day, “it tasted really good,” he said.

During the Lenten season, the parish typically makes extra time available for confessions, Father Gary said.

“We haven’t called it a confessathon in the past,” he said.

“I’ve been a priest for two years, and this is the busiest I’ve experienced,” Father Andrew said.

The two Franciscan brothers might have had the easier task given the fine weather – if you consider manual labor easier than sitting in a small room for hour after hour.

“It’s great weather, plus, I love it,” said Brother Felix Waldron, who was working outside with Jim Robson, a friend interested in joining the Franciscan faith community as a lay person.

Parishioners see them working outside and witness their faith and service, Father Gary said.

The Franciscans live simple lives of prayer and study, and in Lawrence work with the poor. While Father Andrew drove to Hudson from Rhode Island, the other Franciscans walked here from Lawrence as part of their Lenten observance.

During the walk here on Friday, a parishioner offered them a ride, Father Gary noted. They declined, but did say she could bring their food – crusty brown bread, as on Fridays in Lent they eat only bread and drink only water, Father Gary said.

While the confessathon makes it convenient for people to find time in their busy lives to take part in the sacrament, the mission itself encourages parishioners to renew their faith, and the dedication and service of the Franciscans provide a model, the parish priest said.

Besides the confessions, a Mass and mission talk were offered each day at 9 a.m. and 7 p.m.

“I want to go deeper in my love of God and for my neighbor,” said Jackie Hynes, who came to have her confession heard on Wednesday morning.

It’s easy to fall into the trap of being lukewarm with faith, said Hynes, who has attended the parish for seven years.

“Mediocrity is the name of the game. But this charges us up. I came for a spiritual shot in the arm,” Hynes said.[/quote]
http://www.nashuatelegraph.com/news/667046-196/hudson-church-holds-5-day-confessathon.html

Edited March 25, 2010 by MithLuin