2023_2 broFredsReflections

Dare to be holy!

A Reflection by Fred Schaeffer, OFS

People who follow Jesus Christ are called to holiness. Holiness is basically the true union with God in mind and heart. In Mt. 5:48, "So be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect."

There are signs of growing holiness, but they must never be exterior. "Now may God himself, our Father, and our Lord Jesus direct our way to you, and may the Lord make you increase and abound in love for one another and for all, just as we have for you, so as to strengthen your hearts, to be blameless in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his holy ones." (1 Thes 3:12-13) So when someone shows great aptitude for loving other people, indeed loving Jesus Christ, he is growing in holiness. And it is even better when he does so with great humility. Pope John Paul II reminded us frequently that he was a servant - that is humility coming from the Bishop of Rome.

Some people say they will never be holy. Well, think about that, because when you get to Heaven, you are holy! If you weren't holy, you would go to Purgatory... or worse, so it is good to strive toward holiness. There is another aspect to holiness ... the road toward Heaven is filled with pain. Remember when you went to grammar school, perhaps with sisters or religious brothers, and they taught you about that road filled with big boulders and bushes of thorns, those images seem to be a prerequisite to getting entry into Heaven. Our Lord suffered and died so that we may go there too.

To give you a tiny example of that thorny road - after conquering one of many temptations, at least for that one day, when we think we overcame the near occasion of sin, Satan doesn't leave us alone. He keeps bugging us to steer toward the sin because, says he, "it feels so good." Whenever I overcome a temptation, I know deep down I need to continue overcoming that temptation, and that can be so very, very hard.... and for the most part painful. Giving up the human will to follow Jesus costs effort and is painful. It is said that life is a bed of Roses (with thorns).

Daily conversion, is another sign of holiness, but since those signs aren't meant to be external signs, others will never know about it. Don't worry about it... God will know! And when you are weak and succumb to sin, God knows that too! I think that when we stand before Jesus, at the end of times, it will not be necessary for Him to tell us what we did wrong. In His presence, we will know what we did wrong and we will be ashamed and humbled. Don't let it be too late. Start working on holiness now.

Growth in holiness is a gift of God. All we really need to do is recognize His gift, accept it, and go with it (use it). There are ways to get closer to God through prayer, very frequent prayer, not just one minute a day. Prayer is when we talk to God. He wants to talk to us, and we need to talk to Him to share in the riches of his Grace, his gift to us. It is very important to be polite to God, and by that, I mean, we don't tell God what we want Him to do for us - we ask, most of the time, we beg! We recognize the greatness, the omnipotence and power of God, and then in our smallness we ask for His help. Always be humble, be forgiving, but it is OK to be confident.

When setting out to pray, quiet yourself within. Shut off the T.V., radio, lay down the novel you are reading, find a quiet place to sit, tell your spouse or children you do not wish to be disturbed for a while, relax and begin to talk intimately with Jesus. Remember when you were young, how much faith you had in people around you? Talk to Jesus like that, as a child. Talk without the "agenda". You know what I mean by an "agenda" - it is when you ask God to help you provided ... on some condition, usually a very selfish condition. That's not praying, that's not asking for His grace! Now, and this is very important, pause periodically in talking/praying to Him, to give Him time to talk to you. How does He do that so you can understand Him? Sometimes you are suddenly driven to open a book, and you read something there that sort of helps you with what you are praying about. Or, you get a sudden thought that seems to come out of nowhere. Maybe this is a trivial example because I've used it before in my writings, but one day I saw a Hawk sitting on a fence adjoining our property. And I came upon this view suddenly as I was turning the corner... I used to study hawks and tag them with numbered bands many years ago, and surely God knows that I love those animals. As the hawk came into view, a message formed within me, and I clearly heard Him say ... "and I did it just for you!" This really happened, a couple of years ago. Praise God! May God bless you, always.

Fred Schaeffer, OFS

FR-551; Rev. 10/5/2023 

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"Put out into the deep"

A Reflection by Fred Schaeffer, OFS

Our beloved pope, Saint John Paul II, left us with a great command, "Duc in altum." which means "Into the Deep" (Luke 5:4) He has spoken these words in several addresses, but it occurs most prominently in his Apostolic Letter "Novo Millennio Ineunte" (issued in 2000, at the close of the great Jubilee Year). In the Gospel of Saint Luke, you will find verse 2-6 of Chapter 5: "While the crowd was pressing in on Jesus and listening to the word of God, he was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret. He saw two boats there alongside the lake; the fishermen had disembarked and were washing their nets. Getting into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, he asked him to put out a short distance from the shore. Then he sat down and taught the crowds from the boat. After he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, "Put out into deep water and lower your nets for a catch." Simon said in reply, "Master, we have worked hard all night and have caught nothing, but at your command I will lower the nets." When they had done this, they caught a great number of fish and their nets were tearing."

"Put out into the deep," tells us, that with God's help, anything and everything can be accomplished, as it did when He told Simon “To lower his nets for a catch." The Holy Father also used these words, "Duc in altum", when he approved the General Constitutions of the Secular Franciscan Order on the 8th of December, 2000. It is necessary to look to the future and to set out: Duc in altum! (Source: Koinonia, 2003:1)

Set out into the deep! ... Together, and led by the Holy Spirit, we will deepen the true foundations of the world-wide fraternity, a community of love, and in building the Kingdom of God. To accomplish this, we Secular Franciscans need to look beyond our Fraternity, into the world and see what we can do to help other people. We help other people as individuals, as a local fraternity, and as a Regional or National Fraternity, through policy, far-reaching projects, and local apostolates. And as individual Franciscans, we pray and do good Christian works. "Duc in altum" is a rallying cry, the way Pope John Paul II meant it to be a departure from the status quo. Basically, it means, look beyond yourself, and put into active motion Jesus' very words, "... You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your being, with all your strength, and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself." (Lk. 10:27) When is it the right time to love our sisters and brothers (that is, everyone we come into contact with, everyone!) in words and deed? The answer is "Duc in altum" = Now! Just as Jesus told Simon to lower his net for a catch - we are to be fishermen of hearts, and give of ourselves to other people. How do we do that?

I will tell you how I do it, and then you can apply these small examples to your own situation. Once or twice a month, I used to visit prisoners in a local jail, to listen to them, make some suggestions if I was asked, and most of all, to pray with them. These inmates were suggested to me by the Prison Chaplain, and I saw them on a one-to-one basis. I spent anywhere from 10 minutes to an hour with them, depending how many people were on the lists provided to us. Several other men and women participated in this ministry that we did on behalf of our parish.

The "Corporal Works of Mercy" consist of:

• Feed the hungry and give drink to the thirsty. Volunteer at soup kitchens or contribute to area food banks.
• Clothe the naked. Volunteer to help out at your parish's outreach, or a local St. Vincent the Paul facility. This is where they make available clothing, household wares donated by other people who are trying to help, baby things. Very important for us is to treat those coming into these facilities with dignity and respect.
• Shelter the Homeless. Volunteer at, or contribute to, homeless shelters, or volunteer to help build homes in a "Habitat for Humanity" program. If you're a carpenter - your skills are in demand.
• Visit the sick and imprisoned. Join your parish's program to visit the sick, possibly as an Extraordinary Minister of the Eucharist, or, join an ongoing Prison Ministry team.
• Bury the dead. Assist your Parish Choir that sings at Funerals or Masses of Christian Burial. Volunteer your assistance with Bereavement services, and/or similar ministries dealing with Funerals. Many parishes also have ministries that help people who have been recently widowed. Bring comfort and understanding to people who have lost a close relative.

There are also other ways to help our neighbor. A few come to mind:

• If you know languages other than English, volunteer to teach immigrants the English language. You can do this without accepting payment.
• If you are aware of a student who is not doing so well, try to help that person.
• The blind will be very grateful if you could read to them.

In helping other people, keep in mind that a positive attitude is vital. Use common sense, knowing the difference between right and wrong, good and bad.

• A big one: Be non-judgmental - be able to take an objective view of a person’s problems – even if they’re of their own making. Be aware that people you are trying to help may not be able to express their need easily. Set a definite schedule for helping each person.

St. Francis, whose example we try to follow, was always compassionate. He had empathy with the plight of each person or situation. He was totally committed to each person he was involved with.

If your town has a local hospital, there are many volunteer positions that are looking for someone to fill them. If you are energetic, have some free time, volunteering is just as important as visiting the sick - you will be trained for a specific duty that will be very helpful to the regular staff at a hospital.

I am sure, if you put your minds together, in your fraternities, you can come up with a whole slate of ideas where your Franciscan sisters and brothers can be of assistance. In my own experience with this, I have found that when fraternities try to volunteer as a fraternity, as a group, you will have a much harder time finding a suitable thing to do, and then interest wanes. It is better to set off two by two, and just ask an institution or church, if you can help. In our parish there is a "Neighborhood Apostolate" and they know pretty much what is needed and where. Go see them and tell them you want to volunteer. They'll help you find a willing recipient.

Let us follow the advice of Saint John Paul II and Put out into deep and lower your nets for a catch. Do it now!

Let us often spend time with God and listen to His voice as He speaks to us in our hearts!

Peace and Good,

bc730 rep. 2008, 2014, 10/17/2023

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How did I become a Secular Franciscan?

A Reflection by Fred Schaeffer, OFS

I’ve been a Secular Franciscan for 30+ years. People ask why I became a Secular Franciscan and that’s a good topic for a reflection. Many years before this blessed event (joining and profession), in fact, a year or two after the end of the 2nd World War in the Netherlands, when I was still a bouncing little boy on my grandpa’s knee, I had a nanny who took care of me. Mom was 38 when I made my first appearance. In 1942, Mom and I spent a short time in a German detention camp located in Amersfoort, the Netherlands, were released after a very short time because my mother was married to a Roman Catholic man. In those days, for a few months, at least, the Nazis still excused Jews for that reason. Fortunately, I was too young to remember all that, so I was spared the nastiness of these terrible years, apart from nightmares in my early years. I began to remember things when I was four or five (1945), and the following year when I was six, Truus Jansen (Dutch for Gertrude) was hired to take care of me, as my mom had been beaten in the camp and was in bad shape. Truus was a professed member of the “Derde Orde” (Third Order of St. Francis), and I remember her as if it was yesterday. This was in Nijmegen where I was born.

Truus was a courageous lady; her life had been one of grave illness, she ultimately died (ca. 1989) of tuberculosis, but not after losing both legs above the knee to this disease. She often went to a retreat home in Alverna, run by the Order, west of Nijmegen, where I was frequently invited to spend some time with her. She was married to a man who mistreated her, and the marriage did not last long; she was beaten and neglected. She worked for my Dad in his tailoring business. Mom and Dad felt sorry for her as she was a good person and needed help, so they gave her room-and-board for taking care of me.

When I was 14, my parents and I moved to New York (USA). When I was in High School, a public school, Catholic students had an hour of religion per month (only vaguely recall this), and this hour was spent with a Capuchin-Franciscan priest, who introduced me to a Capuchin Friary in East New York (part of Brooklyn). Eventually, I tried to join the Third Order there, but I was too young. Then in 1958/9, I joined the Capuchin Order, but that eventually also did not work out. I left halfway through their Novitiate in Milton, Mass. Some years later when I was in the US Army in Germany, I traveled to Nijmegen and looked Truus up, and spent a few nice days with her, talking about old times. It is clear she had a positive influence on my life. I got done with military service in 1964, moved back to New York, got my old job back, etc.

Many years of living, now as an adult, in New York, and later in Miami, Florida, took place between 1964 and 1991, where I developed my “commercial life” first in a Wall Street (brokerage) business. I worked in that hectic business for about 10 years. This was followed by working about 20 years in the Airline business, three years with KLM the airline of the Netherlands, and the rest of those years with SAS, Scandinavian Airlines. My Mom passed away in 1983, and I moved to Florida in 1984. The first three years in Miami, and then I moved to Vero Beach, a great place to live, and I joined St. Helen Catholic Church, a fantastic parish.

I was active in a Charismatic Prayer Group at St. Helen’s and on one Thursday evening when they held their weekly meetings, a lady (Jean Kurtz) came in and asked to say a few words to the group of about 35 people. She began with a question which stirred me into action: “Are there any Franciscans here?” I raised my hand and explained that I had begun with the Capuchins but really never fully joined. Her next question was, “Can you help me start a Franciscan Fraternity here at St. Helen?” The Holy Spirit moved me to say YES, and that was the beginning in late 1991, of our Secular Franciscan Fraternity in Vero Beach. Jean explained there was a professed lady from Maine, Corrine McCarthy, SFO, who had urged Jean to proceed. It took me a couple of months to get the right information, what to do to begin a fraternity, requirements, and so forth. A number of informal meetings took place but it wasn’t until late 1992 that we began in earnest. I requested and we received permission, from Msgr. Irvine Nugent, Pastor, to meet at St. Helen Parish, in Vero Beach, and first met there in November, December of 1992. Then a meeting was held on April 18, 1993, the day of beatification of Sr. Faustina. Although the name of the fraternity was drawn by lots (secret ballot), it surely is more than coincidence that this fratemity’s name is Divine Mercy. A good number of people were present. Corrine went all over the place asking people to join. Our efforts are more fully described here: A few years of Fraternity History.

We finally received Canonical Approbation to proceed in 1996. This took a long time but this process finally gave Divine Mercy Fraternity it’s identity in the Diocese. It’s a complex process at best.

How did I become a Secular Franciscan? So far, I’ve written about the fraternity. In the process of setting up the Fraternity, I joined Our Lady of Lourdes Fraternity in Melbourne, Florida, headed by Ben O’Neal, SFO, and as his representative provided Formation to Divine Mercy Fraternity in Vero Beach, where with five others, we were professed on October 4, 1994.

In the meantime, I began to have urgings to become a friar, and was having meetings in 1995 with, the late, Fr. Rock Travnikar, OFM from the Cincinatti province, and was accepted to join the OFMs there in March of 1997. But that didn’t work out for a variety of reasons, too long to explain. In December, I was back in Vero. Then I found the Monks of Adoration, whom I joined on April 1, 1998 as a Postulant. That was in Petersham, MA. I was very happy there and was a monk for four and a half years. The monks moved lock-stock-and barrel to Englewood, Florida, but in 2002, I returned back to Vero Beach, when I found out the monks were planning to cease operations. I rejoined Divine Mercy Fraternity, where I am still active, praise the Lord.

Fred Schaeffer, OFS
October 25, 2023

The SFO after our names prior to 1978 has been changed to OFS. The Order is now using the abbreviation based on the Latin name.

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The Value of Prayer

A Reflection by Fred Schaeffer, OFS

The Liturgy of the Hours (the Office), is prayed by many Secular Franciscans, and is a must for priests, deacons and religious. Secular Franciscans are not obliged to pray the Office, but those who do so realize that this prayer is a jewel for many reasons:

• Prayer of the Church
• Prayer of special love (see Eph. 5:25-26), gives it a unique value.
• A prayer that extends our love to our sisters and brothers everywhere.
• Feeds, nourishes our vocal, meditative contemplative needs in prayer and periods of silence.
  … so we don’t race through this prayer, but give it the time it deserves, if we can.
• Popes have sung the glory of this form of prayer, as have bishops and priests.

Dom Hubert van Zeller&, in “Ideas for Prayer,” © 1966, Templegate Publishers, Para. 9, writes, “God rewards only his own works. So even if it were possible for man to compose his own prayers independently of grace, God would not look at them. What God looks for in man’s prayer is himself, God. Only when God sees himself reflected in man’s prayer is there any value to the exercise. We would accordingly do better in our prayer, and give greater glory to God, if we talked less about ourselves and made greater effort to reflect him.”

This is why it is so important to praise God for his glory and omnipotence, long before arriving at the exercise of asking for favors. This cannot be done right in one short sentence. “God, I love you, I praise you, but could you just …” that’s no prayer. That’s setting conditions and one doesn’t do that. What would you do if a Pope came to visit you (a concept absurd in itself), you wouldn’t go tell him what to do… but we do this to God, and then say ‘oh well, he understands,’ or, ‘he knows me.’ That’s insulting.

The Office takes care of this process in the way it is constructed. And if prayed with attention and devotion, it is a worthy prayer of great value to the Lord.

I’ve been a Secular Franciscan for 30+ years. I pray the Office daily, morning, evening and night, and during the Seasons of Advent and Lent, I often pray the Office of Readings. My love for this form of prayer began when I was a monk for four-and-a-half years; there it was a requirement. The Office fulfills my prayer life. I hope you will come to love it also, as it is getting more popular among lay people.

Peace and Good,

Fred Schaeffer, OFS
10/28/2023

& Born in Egypt in 1905, van Zeller entered the Benedictine novitiate at the age of nineteen. At one point, he left the Benedictines to join a Carthusian monastery, hoping to experience a deeper and more intense understanding of his faith. He later returned to the Benedictines. He resided at Downside Abbey during his monastic life. Dom Hubert lived at St. Walburga's in Colorado, USA and then the Little Sisters of the Poor house in Denver, Colorado in the 1970s-1983.

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Pretending Nothing is Wrong

A Reflection by Fred Schaeffer, OFS

We are good at pretending there is nothing wrong in our soul. Yet, all except perhaps a (living) saint, will have been tempted by some form of evil today, and may have given in. Sin is a serious issue to which we commit on purpose. When we don't commit an evil act on purpose, or with purpose aforethought, as the law might put it, then we are not sinning. But this is an area which needs lots of honest self-examination.

That self-examination can be done, or is best done with the help of the Holy Spirit, in our inner consultations and conversations with Jesus. Unfortunately, due to the evil portrayed nightly on our televisions, rape, murder, theft, calumny, terror, etc., so often that we have become desensitized to this portrayal of evil, our thinking and inner peace is diverted to evil and we do not even realize it. Are we pretending nothing is wrong? God, I hope not. We must maintain a healthy understanding of what is good and what is evil so we may be able to differentiate when we are tempted.

I used to be utterly fascinated by watching surgeries, upon the human body, which used to be transmitted on television some years back. Open heart surgery is fascinating to look at and study, and it is, I suppose, less painful to do so on television, than in real life. And now we have a certain television series, where a medical examiner is plying his and her trade (two shows, actually) and one is treated to body parts, bloodied and usually dissected, and we are desensitized as we no longer regard these bloody things with real life. Similarly, those seeing fetuses after they have been aborted, often have lost total respect for human life, and that is very, very sad. We are pretending that nothing is wrong, but in reality, that fetus IS human, and is made in the image of God. The body parts, in the television series probably are animal parts or plastic. If these were human parts at one time, it would be a tragedy. Is Hollywood that insensitive? I don't know and I do not hope so.

Why do people like these stories? Because they portray actions presented for shock value, perhaps. Do these actions drive people to commit crimes sometime in their lives or make them capable of doing so? I do not know the definitive answer to that question, but the other day there was a report of an arrest of a 10-year old kid who allegedly murdered his mother with a single gunshot to the head. If this report is proven true, that is a sad, sad tragedy. I can only pray that our Lord have mercy on the soul of the accused, accused because the perpetrator hasn't had his day in court yet (At the time I first wrote this reflection).

Murder is not an uncommon crime, as is well known. However, it occurs every day in some parts of the world. The Sudan comes to mind, and we are asked to pray for the victims there, and really those committing these horrible deeds are victims too - victims of revolution and hatred. There are other nations in the world where people simply disappear when someone makes a unilateral decision to do away with them. We cannot pretend there is nothing wrong, but we are astonished there is so much evil.

The United States has the highest documented incarceration rate in the world. The U.S. incarceration rate on June 30, 2009 was 748 inmates per 100,000 U.S. residents, or 0.75%. The USA also has the highest total documented prison and jail population in the world. Furthermore, one in three released inmates get back into prison after a short interval. Those are terrible statistics ... someone is pretending nothing is wrong ... why? Because there is no attempt made, for the most part, at rehabilitating the incarcerated; convicted criminals are just caged, warehoused. And even that costs too much money... what can be done to turn this trend around? When people feel inclined to steal to make ends meet in this lousy economy, there is a lot wrong.

We cannot begin to deal with all the wrong in this world in others. We have to begin with ourselves. We have to begin to get back to this understanding what is evil and what is not. This can be done by inner conversion, by turned back to the Lord, and seeking help from a faith community. We cannot blame a church for its shortsightedness, its hypocrisy in denying sinful conditions, we must first begin at home. Ask Our Lord forgiveness, do not judge others (leave that to God); of course if you see wrongs committed against young people, that should be brought to the attention of proper authorities, but other than that, we really have to begin at home and we cannot pretend all is well with us. Incrementally we all share in the human condition, and we must take responsibility.

Our Lord Jesus Christ, in order to secure our Salvation, died for all of us on a Cross. This was no accident, it was foretold in the Old Testament. And it happened, and we can achieve eternal happiness, provided we do not mess things up further. I pray that all people who read these teachings and reflections will not pretend nothing is wrong, but will be active in the fight against evil. Remember, the eyes are the windows to the soul, so be careful what your eyes see, night after night after night.

May God bless you and keep you out of harms' way!

Fred Schaeffer, OFS

First written in 2012, republished 9/5/2023

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The sick and needy are aching for prayer and healing
A Reflection by Fred Schaeffer, OFS

There are so many needy people in the world. I am not only referring to the poor, the indigent, in other words people without shelter, food and the basic necessities of life. I’m also thinking of people who are spiritually needy who do not know of God’s love and whose lives are devoid of the influence of His love. I often pray for those who are forgotten and who are living in spiritual poverty without knowing a way out. In addition, I pray, as all Franciscans do, for all the prayer intentions we receive. If you need prayer, you can ask Jesus or Mary directly, "Please have someone pray for me. I need help." Or just whisper to God "Help me." He will.

The purpose of my reflection today is to reach those folks who feel so alone. Who do not know God and who might visit our website out of curiosity with the hope that their hurt will be healed. Of course, I don’t know if there are many of you who feel this way, but by reading our website, you’ve made a good start. Keep reading, it’ll become apparent that we (Secular Franciscans) love Jesus, Mary and the saints.

The saints struggled through life, too. Some people who became saints had a rough time when they were alive but they came through and are recognized by the Church for their courage and valor and their faith. Saints are a great asset. We call upon them not to worship them but to ask them for their intercession. They are in Heaven. They are so close to Jesus; they will help us when we ask them for assistance in Jesus Name.

The Blessed Virgin Mary, the mother of Jesus, hence the “Mother of God”, she stands by to gladly help us when we call upon her. She is the most powerful intercessor yet. She is closer to the Heart of her Son Jesus than anyone else!

Many times, when we ask God for healing, His answer may not hit us with a thunderclap. If we are sincere in our prayer, He WILL answer our prayers provided it is in accordance with His plan for our salvation. I know there are folks who complain that Jesus never answered their prayer. Well, what about the successful knee replacement you had? "Oh," they say, "the doctor did that!" Please think again! Jesus did that for them. Jesus guided the doctor and helped that knee heal.

Then there are so-called "ex-Catholics." These folks for one reason or another have left the Church. Very often it was some small hurt, a priest who realized how serious their need was. Over the years these small hurts become big hurts. They are blown out of proportion. Worst of all, the person in question cannot come to forgive the other party. And, in not doing so cannot forgive themselves. They stew on the matter; they grind the issue into the ground and their nervous systems along with it. People, please, stop hurting yourself! Go see a priest. Discuss it and do what he suggests. Priests are wonderful people. They have our best interests at heart because they represent Christ on earth! But they are also overextended, overworked and understaffed. Ask Jesus for His blessing.

Fred Schaeffer, OFS
September 12, 2023 (bc57)

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Meditating on the Scriptures
A Reflection by Fred Schaeffer. OFS

For some people it is far easier to pick up the newspaper or a good book by our favorite author than it is to take the Holy Bible off the shelf. One of the methods to make Scripture come alive is to meditate on a small portion of it, as is advocated by St. Ignatius of Loyola in his book "The Spiritual Exercises.*" This method really consists of reading a passage of Scripture and then meditating on it, placing yourself in the scene.

My favorite passages are those where Jesus is directly doing something, such as healing or feeding the people in Palestine, Canaan or Galilee in His time on earth. Take for example in the Gospel of St. Mark (10:13-16) where Jesus blesses the little children. I imagine myself among one of those children, perhaps there are a dozen all together:

• Meditation
• “There were people bringing us to Jesus. My mother, crippled from rheumatism, struggled to get through the crowd that was ever increasing. Finally, we made it to the front, and there was Jesus, a strongly handsome man.
•  
• Strength exuded from Him, but also, I found, great compassion and love. The children were milling about in front of where He sat with some of His friends, the apostles, nearby. Adults were in this group too, and crowded around Him. Suddenly, He got up and I can still remember His deep voice: "Let the little children come to me; do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the Kingdom of God belongs. Truly I tell you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child, will never enter it."
•  
• He motioned for me to be at His side. Somewhat shyly I got up, mother prodding me to hurry, and walked over to Him. He picked me up to where I sat in the crook of his strong arms. There was something very special about this Man. I couldn't figure it out. I was in shock, no, rather I was in awe. He touched the top of my head with His fingers and I heard Him bless me.
• As He let me to the ground again, I looked at Him once more. I saw a strong man, very healthy with long hair and a very tanned Middle-eastern face. He had a very kind smile and a happy word for everyone. He caught my eye. He winked at me and I was at peace. Mother called and I went home to bring this peace to my friends.”

There is a further benefit to this type of meditation the Holy Spirit inspires us (invite Him to do so) to remember these Scriptural passages and our meditative thoughts often, when we need to remember them. Then we will live by them as true children of God. Be at peace!

Fred Schaeffer, OFS
September 15, 2023

*The Spiritual Exercises of Saint Ignatius, Liguori Publications, 1997

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St. Francis: an Instrument of Mercy & Prayer of Repentance
A Reflection by Fred Schaeffer, OFS

When St. Francis “was left alone and at peace, he would fill the groves with sighs, sprinkle the ground with tears, strike his breast with his fist and having found there a kind of secret hiding place, would converse with his Lord. There he would answer his Judge, there he would entreat his Father, there he would entertain his Friend, and there on several occasions the friars who were devoutly observing him heard his groan aloud, imploring the divine mercy for sinners and weeping for the Lord’s passion as if it were there before his eyes.” St. Bonaventure: the Life of St. Francis.” Chapter 10, section 4. 1978. Paulist Press, Classics of Western Spirituality.

We have learned that St. Francis frequently hid in caves or in the woods to pray, to be alone with the Lord. A great way to pray, in a hidden place away from the distractions of life. We don’t always have that luxury, but we must seek a place where we are comfortable and won’t be bothered by interruptions. Then look for solutions with His help.

A spare bedroom with no bed is my work room. It is quiet, unless I have the stereo on, and has no television (intentionally). The only problem is that it’s too messy and that in itself is a distraction. I try to put these Reflections together in that room with lots of thought and prayer and reading. It doesn’t always go smoothly: sometimes, actually often, I get stuck and stop in the middle. The thought that St. Francis is “an instrument of Mercy” intrigues me and thus I want to develop this further. What I hope to accomplish is to share knowledge and to provide advice to those who need it.

When I first began writing these Reflections in the late 1990’s, I still had spiritual interaction with people, mostly strangers, but as time wore on, those messages disappeared. It may have been my own fault, because I allowed, in fact encouraged people to send prayer requests, but over time that became a burden as I received huge amounts of prayer requests, long messages with voluminous bible quotations, and I asked people to send smaller messages and finally there were none. I do not have the messages anymore but I remembered one set of messages that spanned several months asking forgiveness for a life of sin. I remember the messages because I could have done so much more. I could have shown more mercy, a side of my character that is not well developed.

A Prayer of Repentance 
(Attributed to St. Francis of Assisi)

• O Almighty, Eternal, Most Just and Merciful God, I prostrate myself before Thy Face, humbly beseeching Thee, who alone are Good, all good, wholly good, ever Good, that remembering the most bitter Passion and Death of Thy Only-Begotten Son, and the most sorrowful compassion of His Immaculate Mother, Thou wouldst deign to look with an eye of pity upon this most wretched of Thy creatures.
  
  
• So many treasures of nature Thou hast given me and consoled me with, and I have not heeded Thy Word and commands. So many blessings of grace Thou hast lavished upon me, and I have squandered them in vice and iniqitious selfishness. So bountiful has been Thy mercies of forgiveness and pardon to me, and I have rebelled and betrayed Thee yet again.
  
  
• Truly, am I not worthy of Thy consideration ; nay rather, do I deserve eternal damnation. Even the troubles, sacrifices, and difficulites of a thousand most bitter lifetimes are not sufficent to atone for my wickedness. Truly am I worthy, not of Thee, but of hell alone, of damnation and eternal torments. Yet I, like and inpudent swine, do still complain and murmur.
  
  
• Daring not to raise my eyes unto Thee, who are infinite Goodness and most exacting Justice, I beseech Thee, through the merits of the Passion and Death of Thy Most Beloved Son, who for mysake became a slave unto death, death on a Cross, upon which in the last moments of His most bitter agony, He didst bestow upon me His own most Beloved Mother, Thy Daughter by grace and election. In virtue of Their merits, by which I have been so many times succored in my great necessities, I beseech Thee hear this my petition.
  
  
• Have mercy upon me! Have great mercy upon me! For without Thee I can do nothing worthy of Thy consideration. I who am nothing, and by sin even less than nothing. A wretch, a swine, a cesspool of every vice and inquity!
  
  
• Therefore I beseech Thee, O Most Blessed Trinity, to shed the fire of Thy merciful love upon this most frigid heart, to let shine upon this most darkened mind, the light of the Son, in whom alone is every grace and truth. Have pity on me, most Merciful God, and regard not my sins and offenses, but in Thy mercy forgive me yet again, and grant me the graces to serve Thee now in fidelity and truth.
  
  
• I am not worthy to serve Thee, but Thou dost deserve all my service. In the Name of Jesus, Thy Mercy, therefore, I beseech Thee. In the name of Mary, I pray. Amen.

• From: The Franciscan Archive (Public Domain)

Very nice prayer. Unfortunately it is in 'old English' but when prayers are modernized they often lose their original flavor and intent. I have all (?) the prayers of St. Francis in a text file and plan to make it available on this website.

Fred Schaeffer, OFS
September 19, 2023

 Index

People involved in our Lives

A Reflection by Fred Schaeffer, OFS

There are hundreds of people who are involved in the human family who unwittingly touch us in some way. Take the food chain, for example. There are people who farm the foods we consume, the farmers; those who milk the cows, butchers who prepare meat, transporters who get the food from the field or barn to the market, packers who prepare it for the stores, storekeepers who make it ready for sale, stackers who place it on the shelves, cashiers who ring it up as we purchase it in the Supermarket, and so on. If you think about the hundreds or perhaps thousands involved with each one of us, that becomes a sizeable sum of people whom we do not know personally, but who have something to do with us. We ought to ask God's blessings on these good people, to keep them healthy, employed, willing to serve, so that we will continue to have something to eat. Actually, we should pray for all people we share this planet with, for their well-being, their peace of mind, because when all people pray for one another, there is less likely to be conflict.

Generally, we pay attention to people much closer to us. The family circle, and widening out a little, the work circle, people in our church. Perhaps people in our community, or even the town where we live. But that is generally too big a group. We have this idea that when we pray for people, we have to worry about them. No, not really, do not worry, do not be afraid. It is alright to take a chance on other people. It isn't going to hurt. It may even benefit ourselves. Community leads to a special relationship - "the Body of Christ." We are the "Body of Christ." The faithful, the believers! Okay, if you will, the righteous! The trouble with that word, I feel, is to use it in such a way that there are people who are not righteous, thus excluded from our group. There is no reason to exclude anyone. Judgement is up to God, not us.

There are doctors and nurses on staffs we have never been introduced to, people who work "in the background" and have a hand in our healing. Let us be grateful to them too. But most of all, let us remember all that our Lord does for us, in his infinite love that never ends. We know He is there but we really do not know Him. We know of Him, we know of His Love, and we do know that we want to get to know Him much better. Then why is it, I must ask myself, that outside of prayer times, sometimes the entire day passes by, and I have not even thought about Him once? I try to remember Him. I know He remembers me. Because the minute I thank Him, or think about Him, I know He is listening. That He is listening is not just an abstract concept. It is not just a fact established in our brain, but we believe this with our whole heart! When I tell someone, very seriously, that Our Lord tells me what to do, they wonder if I have "lost it." No, I have not. He DOES communicate with me, just as He communicates with all of us, but if we are too wrapped up in our own affairs, our brains will be too busy to recognize His voice. Always make time for Him. After you've said some prayers, perhaps Morning or Evening Prayer, just sit quietly. Be sure nothing is distracting you, and tell Him: "Lord, your servant is listening." Then do nothing else for a period of time, do not pray, speak, just be still and you know He will be there. Even if you physically hear nothing, don't let that worry you. The closer you get to Him, the easier hearing His voice will become.

Give Him time. Make Time for God! He heads our extended family! The Father, Son (Jesus) and the Holy Spirit, three persons ONE GOD - and the Virgin Mary, the earthly mother of Jesus - don't forget her; she is a strong ally or intercessor for us, to bring us closer to her Son. And for us, Franciscans, how could we forget St. Francis, St. Anthony, St. Bonaventure and perhaps other particular Franciscan holy people we have been remembering for years.

There are also still other people, your pastor, his vicars, the deacons in your parish, spiritual advisors, people involved in administration, liturgical committees, religious education in our parishes, who all have our best interest in mind. Please continue to pray for them. And if you haven't begun, now's the time to do so. A former pastor, used to refer to a "cast of thousands" and they are. Who knows, you may just be one of those, and then someone will pray for you, too.

God bless you!

Fred Schaeffer, OFS

2012, rev. 9/22/2023