In a recent letter to Minister General Carlos Alberto Trovarelli, Pope Francis writes:
“I associate myself spiritually with all those who shall participate, through prayer and charity, in the various initiatives being promoted for this Eighth Antonian Centenary. I hope that all of you may be able to say, along with St. Anthony: “I see my Lord!” We must “see the Lord” in the faces of all our brothers and sisters and offer them consolation, hope and the opportunity to encounter the Word of God, upon which they may anchor their lives.”
We posed the following question to some of our friars:
How do you see the face of God or “See the Lord” when you work in your ministry?
“Good to be seen, brother.”
Started by our own Br. Jim Fields 40 years ago. The Franciscan Kitchen in Louisville, KY serves over 400 meals daily. Hello, I am Friar Jaime Zaragoza. I have just finished my studies in San Antonio, Texas and am now stationed in Indiana and doing ministry in our Franciscan Kitchen in Louisville, Kentucky. I have [...]
“He is not far from us”
Fr. Joe West celebrates the Eucharist, pre-pandemic, with his parishioners at St. Anthony of Padua Catholic Church in Clarksville, IN By Friar Joe West OFM Conv. Parish Priest at St. Anthony of Padua Catholic Church in Clarksville , IN We are in an era of anxiety and worry, with a virus and violence, societal unrest [...]
“A book without end”
Pilgrims create a “sea of candles” in Carey, OH for the Procession of Our Lady, the night before the 2019 Feast of the Assumption. By Friar Randy Kin OFM Conv. Former Pilgrimage Director in Carey, OH Having spent over ten years of my religious life as the pilgrimage director at the Basilica and National Shrine [...]
“Healing in His Wings”
By Friar Ken Bartsch OFM Conv. Chaplain at the VA Hospital in Louisville, KY An elderly doctor at the VA, a veteran of Vietnam, remarking about the COVID epidemic, told me he still worked there because, “We lost that war, I’m not going to lose this one.” Then he asked why I am still there. [...]
“Will I see Him?”
By Friar Paul Schloemer OFM Conv. Vocations Director in Silver Springs, MD Pope Francis quotes St. Anthony in his exhortation to us to “see the Lord!” And certainly, recognizing Christ in the other, especially the stranger, is a cornerstone of what it means to be Christian. But there is a difference in simply physically seeing [...]
