Franciscan Friars Third Order Regular

" If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer.
Let him step to the music which he hears, however measured or far away."
Henry David Thoreau

VALUES: Prayer; Fraternity; Conversion of Life
STRENGTHS: Family-like; Diverse; Flexible; Dedicated

Our Franciscan life and education to religious life has changed drastically since the time of St. Francis, and yet, in many ways it has remained. The purpose is to introduce men to our story and 800 years of Franciscan Tradition. It is one thing to look at our story and it is another to be part of it. The rich tapestry of being a Franciscan Friar of the Third Order Regular of St. Francis of Penance awaits the thread of each individual member's life to enhance the tradition, therefore (formation) the time of prayer, fraternal living, education and study of our way of life is a dialogue, a dialogue between what was, and is, and what is to come. A Franciscan Tradition is waiting to be developed with each new member to the community. We eagerly receive our future which is formed by the men joining us today.

Men come from every walk of life to be part of our story, often not knowing why but knowing there is a restlessness they must attend to in their own life and the life of a Franciscan of the Third Order Regular. We take that search and help the individual continue on his journey as it entwines itself with ours.

(OUR CHARISM is taken from the Franciscan Federation's
"Led By The Lord" Eight Day Retreat designed by Fr. Jordan Hite, T.O.R.)

The life of penance is inseparable from a life of prayer, because prayer is such an important means of entering a more intimate union with God which is the goal of a life of penance. This conversion through prayer should take place in three ways.

First, by experiencing Jesus in the mystery of the Eucharist; second, by a prayerful reading of the Scriptures; third, by praying always through reflection and meditation on the goodness of God in our lives and as his beloved sons and daughters. The lives of Jesus and Francis are full of examples to help us become persons of prayer.

The call to be chaste is an invitation to have a special relationship with the Lord: one that penetrates and informs all other relationships. This is a call to imitate the chastity of Jesus for the sake of the kingdom that he proclaimed. Just as people become promised to each other in marriage, the religious is promised to God and professes his or her love for God in preference to any other love. This love is capable of changing our hearts and transforming our lives in a way that brings us into the most intimate union with God, so that our heart becomes one with his.

Being called to the chaste life also brings us to serve others for the sake of the kingdom. We are called to be generous and loving, devoted to the poor and unattractive, as God's servants. It is such a love that will make us more like Christ and allow God to make our celibacy bear fruit in his kingdom.

We are called to be God's little poor ones: people who have left everything to follow Jesus. Jesus tells us that we must give up our claims to possessions and security, and become like him. Like Jesus, we are to be meek and humble of heart. Jesus warns us against the danger of riches and the ease with which we can make money, power and possessions our god, leaving no room for the Father.

It is only in emptying ourselves as Jesus did that God can enter our lives, and fill the emptiness with his love and goodness. This poverty must have a direct relationship to our willingness to be one with the least attractive and most neglected of God's people.

The Gospel life is the main concern of St. Francis, and this life demands that one leave behind each and every possession.

Obedience is the active poverty of stripping oneself of possessions. This begins in that inner struggle of dying to self so that the Spirit of the Lord might dwell in a humble and pure heart. Obedience to another called to serve as our minister flows from obedience to the Spirit once our selfish desires have been subjected to that Spirit (1223:10)

Francis also presents the necessity of each one's interior divine inspiration to be confirmed externally by the Church. This is his fundamental vision of the inseparability of the Gospel and the Church. For him, confirmation by authority makes the inspiration ecclesial.

We cannot expect to be an instrument of conversion in the life of others unless we are also converted. We should also expect our lives to change because we speak words of repentance, reconciliation and peace. We are the Lord's voice, the Lord's living witness.

Our ministry should be humble and simple, ministering to others as their servants. Our word to them should be the word of the Lord.

We pray! Like Francis we are first and foremost called to deepen our union with God in Christ. Like the early TOR penitents we seek to make God the most important reality of our lives. From our life of prayer all else flows.

In his first letter to the Penitents, Francis says " ... How happy and blessed are those men and women when they bring forth from within themselves fruits worthy of true penance." The penitents of Assisi followed this exhortation of Francis and practiced the corporal and spiritual works of mercy.

To do this some early friars formed communities that offered food and lodging to pilgrims. They also cared for them when they became sick.

Through our ministries the friars manifest an active and practical love of neighbor. They seek to serve the poor, the sick, the elderly and youth. Our friars minister in schools, parishes and hospitals.

We believe that God has revealed himself to all people. He has made himself known as a God of Love. In Christ Jesus, we have become God’s children. Our Christian prayer is therefore not only a response to God as he shows himself to us in created reality and in people around us, it is also a response to his life giving message.

That is why Sacred Scripture is so important to us. In it, God speaks of his love. The Bible is a living word that needs to be interpreted by every person according to one's own context and circumstances. Our response to the world in which we live as Franciscans then receives a new dimension by our reflection on God's Word.

In practice, this means as Franciscans, that the reading of scripture and reflection is a regular part of our life.

Prayer is a transforming encounter wherein God shapes our lives and enables us to perceive more clearly his presence and action in our world.

We strive to make our prayer a prayer of "Christ awareness." For as Franciscans we realize that it is with Christ and through Christ that we will address ourselves ever more confidently to our God. By our loving concern for other people we strive to open ourselves fully to Christ's Spirit so that He can transform us and show us how we should live and minister to those whom we are called to serve.

MEETING CHRIST FACE TO FACE ....

The core of our Christian belief is that God became visible to us in Jesus Christ.

We know there are various aspects of inner prayer which we have in common with all religious people. This nearness of God in Christ provides new meaning to those aspects. Our awareness of deeper realities manifests itself in a special way in our participation of the sacraments. In these religious symbols we see Christ at work: at the Eucharist He becomes truly present. When we hear people cry in anguish or hope we realize it is Jesus Christ, our brother.

THE THREE KNOTS ON
OUR CORD STAND FOR
OUR VOWS IN IMITATION OF CHRIST:

POVERTY, CHASTITY AND OBEDIENCE