Written by ~ Fr. Bogusław Dąbrowski, OFM Conv.

July 16-17, 2022: I participated in the Bicycle Pilgrimage from New Jersey to American Czestochowa, which is located about 20 mils from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (Doylestown, PA). I was there for the first time, and I also had a sentimental reason, because my grandmother’s cousin, the president of the American Episcopate and Cardinal of Philadelphia – the late +Most Rev. John Cardinal Krol contributed significantly to the construction of the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Czestochowa in this place.

For the eighth time, Pawel Siek organized a bicycle pilgrimage. It ran under God’s care, that is, there were no accidents and other bad adventures, with the small exception of when it rained abundantly at night and several tents were flooded and several participants “floated on mattresses.” However, this experience had a penitential dimension and did not change the joyful atmosphere.

Friar Bogus (in helmet), with his group of participants.

Our pilgrimage was attended by 20 men from the group of St. Joseph. The oldest participant in our group was 62 years old, and the youngest 18 years old. We traveled about 180 kilometers in two days. After each stage, which was an average of 20 mils, we prayed the rosary, and at 3 pm the Chaplet of Divine Mercy. At the end of the prayers, I spoke about mini-spiritual conferences, supplementing them with short examples from my missionary experiences in Uganda. Finally, several participants asked for the sacrament of Penance.

Before Our Lady Shrine, we joined a bicycle pilgrimage that came from Boston (over 350 mils) and together we entered American Czestochowa on Sunday at 11.30 am. We were welcomed by the superior of the Pauline Monastery, Father Marcin Ćwierz, OSPPE. He said, among other things, that he is glad that the pilgrimage movement to Czestochowa is returning after the pandemic. We participated in the Eucharist at midday, which was also attended by motorcyclists from Chicago. The sermon was about Saint Christopher the patron saint of travelers. After the Holy Mass, all vehicles were blessed. The atmosphere on the pilgrimage was joyful and there was kindness and understanding among the participants of the spiritual purpose of the pilgrimage.

Meet Fr. Bogusław Dąbrowski, OFM Conv.

Br. Vincent Vivian, OFM Conv. made his Solemn Profession, in our St. Hyacinth Friary Chapel (Chicopee, Massachusetts), on July 16, 2022. Our Minister Provincial, Fr. Michael Heine, OFM Conv., delegated Fr. James McCurry, OFM Conv. (the former Minister Provincial) to receive Br.  Vincent’s vows and preside at the Mass. Fr. Mitchell Sawicki, OFM Conv. and Fr. Noel Danielewicz, OFM Conv. served as the canonical witnesses. Fr. Brad Milunski, OFM Conv. served as master of ceremonies for the Mass, which was attended by the many friars living and serving in the area, followed by a festive dinner. Keep Br. Vincent and all of our friars in joyful prayer.

Note: Friar Vincent 1st Professed Solemn Vows in 1970 and served in many capacities during his time as a friar of our province, including serving as a Missionary Friar. After a short period of time away, and having been approved for re-admission to the Order by the Minister General and his General Definitory, Br. Vincent was re-invested in the habit of our Order as a member of Our Lady of the Angels Province, on September 3, 2018, by then Minister Provincial, Friar James, during Mass in the Provincialate chapel.  At that time, he began the canonically required period of probation, professing his Simple Vows in July 2019. 

July 11-15, 2022: Friar Delegates of Our Lady of the Angels Province joined the Assistant General of the CFF [Conventual Franciscan Federation] ~ Fr. Jude Winkler, OFM Conv., our Minister Provincial ~ Fr. Michael Heine, OFM Conv. (above right), our Vicar Provincial ~ Fr. Gary Johnson, OFM Conv. (above left), the Custos of our Immaculate Conception Custody (Brazil) ~ Frei Ronaldo Gomes da Silva, OFM Conv., and the Custos of our Blessed Agnellus of Pisa Custody (Great Britain/Ireland) ~ Friar Ciprian Budău, OFM Conv., for the Ordinary Provincial Chapter 2022 – Part II. {link to Part I}

Link to Friar Jude’s Post – Curia’s Website

INVESTITURE:

On Tuesday, July 12, 2022, the friars gathered during the 8:00 a.m. Morning Prayer, led by Friar Michael and joined virtually by the other friars of our province, celebrated the Investiture of our province’s two new Novices: friar Marvin Paul Fernandez, OFM Conv. (above at center of Province’s our Delegation of St. Francis of Assisi, Canada) and friar Connor J. Ouly, OFM Conv. (above at right)
Fr. Joe Bayne, OFM Conv., our Assistant Postulancy Director, who served as a formator for friar Marvin and friar Connor during their time in the Postulancy, read from The First Letter of John. Fr. Mark Szanyi, OFM Conv., Prefect of Formation & Initial Formation Commission, then called forth friar Marvin and friar Connor, who in turn asked of Friar Michael the “clothes of probation.” They were welcomed by Friar Michael, in fraternity, to take this next step into the life of Franciscan Friars Conventual, ensuring that they will not be alone in this journey. Friar Michael reminded them that “the habit is not a sign of power, and it doesn’t bring attention to you personally, because it is the clothes of the poor man; the one who walked the roads of Assisi and preached a homily without words.” The new Novices were clothed in the habit of our Order (at right), followed by a fraternal embrace by each friar present. They were then sent forth to begin their year and a day in the North American Novitiate, where they will live in fraternity – in private and communal prayer, in classes, workshops, seminars, experiencing manual work, and other activities in line with the goals of this stage of formation.

After Morning Prayer, Br. Tom Purcell, OFM Conv. introduced Bishop John Dennis Corriveau, O.F.M. Cap. (at left, the Bishop Emeritus of Nelson, British Columbia, Canada and a former Minister General of the Capuchins) who offered a reflection, followed by Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament (below) and celebration of the Liturgy of the Eucharist.

Although the rest of the days and evenings were filled with a tight agenda of meetings, proposals, presentations, assignments, and discussions, the week was one of great fraternal joy.

[Photo Credit: Fr. Tom Lavin, OFM Conv.]

Postulancy Group Photo – Left to Right: Fr. Joseph Bayne, OFM Conv. (Assistant Postulancy Director – friar of Our Lady of the Angels Province), James (St. Bonaventure Province), Adam and Cesar (Our Lady of the Angels Province), and Fr. Paul Schneider, OFM Conv. (Postulancy Directory – friar of the St. Bonaventure Province)

On July 6, 2022, the Minister Provincial of our Province, Fr. Michael Heine, OFM Conv. (pictured at left with the two postulants of our province – Cesar Perez and Adam Wozniak) was on hand at the Welcoming Ceremony, held in the Chapel of the Postulancy for the North American Provinces, in the St. Bonaventure Friary, in Chicago, IL.

Post by Friar Jude on the Curia’s Website

Photo Cred: The top photo can be found on the Postulancy’s Facebook page; a great resource for prayerfully following along with this stage of the postulants’ formation, including their events and prayer life. The photo of Fr. Michael with the postulants of our province was taken by our own Post-Novitiate student friar Edgar Varela, OFM Conv., who is on summer assignment, residing in Chicago’s St. Bonaventure Friary.

Please continue to pray for all of the friars in formation, adding to your prayers these new postulants – and their formators, as they journey together through this initial stage of formation, discerning life as friars of our Order of Franciscan Minor Conventual.

For more information life as a Franciscan Friar Conventual or on Vocations, including links to the four provinces in North America, as well as to the friars in Malta and the Orient & Holy Land, visit FranciscanVoice.org.
To directly contact the Vocation Directors of Our Lady of the Angels Province – Br. Nick Romeo, OFM Conv. and Fr. Manny Vasconcelos, OFM Conv. – email: vocations@olaprovince.org.

Friar Rich looking out over the Spoleto Valley from the walls of San Damiano Monastery (Umbria, Italy).

Friar Richard Rome, OFM Conv. is a Solemnly Professed Friar, in formation for the priesthood. He began his 2022 Summer Assignments as one of 60 delegate friars at the May 23-27, 2022 Ordinary Provincial Chapter. Phase II of the Chapter will be celebrated July 11-15, 2022.

Friar Rich also shared: “Following the first session of chapter, I participated in the JPIC CFF Pilgrimage to Italy. I was there with Our Lady of the Angels Province Friars Tim Blanchard and Franck Sokpolie, as well as friars from the Our Lady of Consolation Province and the St. Bonaventure Province.  While we saw the major pilgrimage sites in Assisi, Padua, and Rome, we were also able to experience the outreach ministries of many of our brothers (and Franciscan sisters) in Italy, to the poor, the immigrant, the marginalized, and those struggling with addiction.  It was an awesome experience to see the places that were foundational for our Order, but also to see how our Order is still serving the Church there.” [Photo at left: Friar Rich is pictured in the top row, 2nd from left, with the JPIC CFF pilgrims, outside of the walled-up Holy Door of Papal Basilica of Saint Peter in the Vatican]

Friar Rich will again serve as a delegate friar for the second session of the Ordinary Provincial Chapter before heading to our Port St. Lucie pastoral ministry ~ St. Lucie Catholic Church, for a few weeks of a parish assignment, until he returns to the Post-Novitiate Friary (St. Bonaventure Friary, Silver Spring, MD) for the fall semester, at The Catholic University of America, in Washington, DC.

2020 Extraordinary Chapter of our Province’s Blessed Agnellus of Pisa Custody

2019 Immaculate Conception Custody – Brazil – Formation Meeting

Questions are often presented about the varying colors of
grey (light to almost black) of our Order’s habit.
As you can see from these photos,
the friars of our Province and our Custodies wear varied greys.

The 2022 Ordinary Chapter Delegates representing the 169 friars of Our Lady of the Angels Province

Entering the cortile at the entrance of our Ellicott City, MD ministry ~ The Shrine of St. Anthony, as you look to the left, you will see this statue of St. Francis of Assisi and St. Anthony of Padua. This piece was originally created as one of the liturgical works of art for the chapel of the Franciscan Friars Conventual Theological Seminary, St. Anthony-on-Hudson, in Rensselaer, NY, which closed in 1989. Professor Corrado Ruffini (1913-1979), a sculptor from Rome, created this piece as well as the chapel’s altar, tabernacle, candelabra, crucifix, ambo, and the way of the cross.  Ruffini’s statue “symbolizes the spirit of prayer and study, which are united in seminary life.”

When you visit our Shrine, take a few moments to prayerfully admire this beautiful work of art. The complex surrounding The Shrine of St. Anthony is full of beautiful and historic artwork. You are encouraged to spend time walking the property, and exploring the beauty, both manmade and natural.

Read more about, and see photos from, the former Seminary in the book:
“Saint Anthony-on-Hudson Seminary.”
[photo of the statue and the artist can be found on page 23]

June 20-25, 2022: Two friars of our Province’s Immaculate Conception Custody, Frei Jesus Rodrigues do Amaral, OFM Conv. (left)and Frei Ricardo Elvis Arruda Bezerra, OFM Conv. (right) attended the Union of Conventual Franciscans of Brazil’s Quinquennio; a meeting for young friars who were Solemnly Professed within the past five years. Frei Jesus can be seen below serving as deacon at Mass.

READ MORE

Thoughts presented by Simply Professed student friar Sebastian:

The former St. Anthony-on-Hudson Seminary, in Rensselaer, NY

Because of COVID and the nature of the program, it was a rare fact, but when a friar would visit us in the novitiate, we were tremendously grateful and happy. A friar visiting was a breath of fresh air, an inspiration to persevere. Cheered on by the novice master, some of those friars shared intriguing stories about two famous and memorable places in our Conventual history on the East Coast: Granby and Rensselaer.

At a given moment, we searched the library for picture books and vocational brochures of a time long gone, hoping for a little nostalgia. I particularly remember a hardcover picture book published right after the seminary opening in Rensselaer in 1967. The not-so-spontaneous pictures featuring friars studying in a library void of books or friars involved in scholastic conversations with each other were ok, but it was the chapel that intrigued me. I’m one of the few who enjoy brutalist church design, and the altar and ambo struck me in a particular way. Later, I learned that despite the seminary’s closure in 1988, there is still lots of activity on the grounds of St. Anthony-on-Hudson, not in the least the community of friars living in the old Beverwyck Manor.

So, when our prefect of formation asked me if I had a preference for my summer assignment, I spontaneously mentioned Immaculate Conception Friary in Rensselaer, NY. A diverse community, beautiful grounds, historical significance: it all appealed to me. As a social work student, I was mainly looking for a community that could help me make things real and concrete. It’s one thing to delve into social work theory, it’s quite something else to give hand and feet to social work values.

That said, I’m not here as a social worker but as a brother. I’ve been in Rensselaer for about seven weeks. So far, it has been a wonderful experience for which I am genuinely thankful—helping friars run errands, driving them to doctor’s appointments, or going to the movies and just having fun. Ultimately, it’s about sharing our lives and being attentive to each other’s needs – nourished and challenged by the gospel and St. Francis’ example of minority. That’s beautiful but not as simple as it sounds.

Fr. Adam Keltos, OFM Conv., an artisan and one of nine friars in residence at Immaculate Conception Friary, explaining to friar Sebastian, the meaning of his artwork, which he painted in the 1960’s.

What helps me to grow in this? The longer I am a friar, the more I am convinced of the importance of the stories we share with one another. About a year ago, a friend introduced me to a podcast called “The Place We Find Ourselves.” It features a social worker and a wide array of guests, discussing subjects like story, trauma, and attachment. Together, they try to navigate the guest’s story toward healing, wholeness, and restoration. Before interviewing the guest, Adam, the social worker, says something to the liking: “Any time you share a story from your life, you’re taking a risk. And so, as you are listening to this story, what does it mean to hold with honor the story of another human being? How can you receive the story with a sense of sacredness and gratitude?” Here in Rensselaer, as a brother to my brothers, I aspire to hold with honor the stories the friars share with me and the story we’re writing together.