Assisi Project

2012-01-27T12:03:00.012-05:00

NEW!

FIFTH ANNUAL PILGRIMAGE & RETREAT

ASSISI & ROME: NOVEMBER 3-10, 2012

Fifth Annual Pilgrimage & Retreat

For the fifth consecutive year, the Assisi Project will sponsor a week-long pilgrimage and retreat to Assisi and Rome, Italy from November 3rd through November 10th. During the fall season of 2008, 2009, and 2010, members of our group journeyed to Assisi and Rome and literally walked in the footsteps of Saint Francis and Saint Clare. And last year, twenty-eight parishioners and friends joined us for a nine day pilgrimage to the Holy Land.

This year, we will journey again to Assisi and Rome. Each morning, we will begin with Morning Prayer and Mass, followed a presentation and discussion on some facet of the Franciscan spiritual tradition. Each afternoon, all pilgrims are encouraged to explore the medieval city of Assisi at their own pace and to visit the countless cafes, churches, museums, and shops. And each evening, we will gather for Evening Prayer, then walk to a local restaurant for a delicious meal of regional Umbrian cuisine.

We will worship at the historic Basilicas of Saints Francis and Clare. Each of these great basilicas house the tombs of the saints, holy relics, and works of art. But they are also pilgrimage sites for prayer and worship. We will visit the Basilica of Saint Rufino, where Saint Francis and Saint Clare were baptized. We will visit the Church of San Damiano, where the famous crucifix spoke to Saint Francis and hastened his conversion. We will visit the little chapel known as the Portziuncula, which is considered the home church of the worldwide Franciscan community.

In addition, we will spend a leisurely afternoon or two in the Piazza de Commune, Assisi's city center, with its ancient Roman temple (now a Catholic church). And the adventurous will have an opportunity to hike to the Rocca Maggiore, the great medieval fortress with its stunning views of Assisi, the Spoleto Valley, and Mount Subasio.

Finally, on our last day in Italy, we will travel to Rome for a visit to Vatican City and Saint Peter's Basilica. In addition, for the first time, we will offer optional excursions to the Carceri (or hermitage) on Mount Subasio, where Saint Francis and his earliest followers retreated for prayer and contemplation; and to La Verna, where Saint Francis receive the stigmata (wounds of the crucified Christ).

The cost of this extraordinary pilgrimage and retreat is just $2,399 and includes all air and ground transportation, guest house accommodations (single room) in Assisi and hotel accommodations in Rome (double room; single room option), and all meals (breakfast, lunch, and supper). You don't need to be a member of our fellowship to join this pilgrimage and retreat!

Come & See Meeting: Sunday, March 4, 2012

For more information about the Assisi Project's Fifth Annual Pilgrimage & Retreat, please contact Cliff Garvey at assisiproject@ymail.com. If you would like to see photos and read about our last pilgrimage and retreat to Assisi and Rome in 2010, please click on the icon to the left. Also, all are welcome to join us for a special "Come & See Meeting" about the pilgrimage and retreat on Sunday, March 4th at 1:00pm at Saint Charles Borromeo's Parish Center. Please join us! May the Lord give you peace!

Since January 2008, more than thirty members of our parish community and other parishes have met each month for Mass, a home-cooked meal, and a period of prayer, faith formation, and discussion. These parishioners and friends have dedicated themselves to becoming "Franciscans in Spirit" and to living more faithfully as disciples of Christ through their shared devotion to Saints Francis and Clare of Assisi.

2012-01-07T00:00:00.008-05:00

NEW!

BLESSED ANGELA OF FOLIGNO

ENLIGHTENED BY GRACE

Suddenly, a divine word sounded in my soul: 'My love for you has not been a hoax.' These words struck me a mortal blow. For immediately, the eyes of my soul were opened and I saw that what he had said was true. I saw his acts of love; everything that the Son of God had done, all that he had endured in life and in death, this suffering God-man, because of his inexpressible and visceral love for us (Blessed Angela of Foligno).

Blessed Angela of Foligno

Angela of Foligno (1248-1309) was beatified in 1701 by Pope Clement XI. She was born into a wealthy family, married, raised a family, but admittedly lived an adulterous and unfaithful life for many years. In 1285, Angela experienced a conversion; and in 1288, her family (her mother, her husband, and all of her children) died by unknown circumstances.

Angela's conversion was confirmed by her prayers for the intercession of Saint Francis of Assisi (1182-1226), who died just twenty years before her birth. She wrote: "Enlightened by grace, I was seized with a great fear of being damned and I shed a flood of tears. I went to confession to be relieved of my sins, but through shame I concealed the most grievous ones, but still I went to Communion. Now my conscience tortured me day and night. I called upon Saint Francis for help, and moved by an inner impulse, I went into a church where a Franciscan priest was preaching. I gathered courage to confess all my sins to him...With zeal and perseverance, I performed the penance he imposed, but my heart continued to be full of bitterness and shame. I recognized that the divine mercy has saved me from hell, hence I resolved to do rigorous penance; nothing seemed to difficult for me, because I felt I belonged in hell. I called upon the saints, and especially upon the Blessed Virigin, to intercede with God for me."

It may seem that Angela's conscience was relieved by neither answered prayers nor sacraments. But ultimately, Angela's soul was suddenly soothed by her renewed prayers for the intercession of the Blessed Mother and Saint Francis. She writes: "It appeared to me now as if they had compassion on me, and I felt the fire of divine love enkindled within me so that I could pray as I never prayed before. I had also received a special grace to contemplate the cross in which Christ had suffered so much for my sins. Sorrow, love, and the desire to sacrifice everything for Him filled my soul."

In the wake of this spiritual awakening, Angela joined the Third Order of Saint Francis and encouraged other women to join her life of penance, prayer, sacrifice, and spiritual poverty. But Blessed Angela is best remembered and revered for her spiritual writing. In recent years, both Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI affirmed her memory as the "Mistress of Theology" for her profound message of conversion, mercy, and prayer. Pope Benedict offered Blessed Angela as a patroness for those seeking to transform their lives from sinfulness to faithfulness. For this reason, Blessed Angela of Foligno is revered as the patroness of widows and of those confronting sexual temptations.

Pilgrims can venerate the relics of Blessed Angela at the Church of Saint Francis of Assisi in Foligno, Italy, which is located approximately twenty miles south of Assisi. Her memorial is commemorated by the Catholic Church on January 4th, but also by the worldwide Franciscan community on January 7th.

As we begin this new year, let us remember the good advice of Blessed Angela of Foligno who was "enlightened by grace" and who transformed her life through faith and prayer: "The more your pray, the more you will be illumined; the more you are illumined, the more profoundly and intensely you will see the Supreme Good, the supremely Good Being; the more profoundly and intensely you see him, the more you will love him; the more you love him, the more he will delight you; and the more he delights you, the more you will understand him and become capable of understanding him. You will arrive successfully to the fullness of light, because you will understand that you cannot understand."

Let us pray for the grace to model our lives on the Gospels, to embrace Christ Jesus through our spiritual poverty, and to contemplate His love for us in all of our thoughts, words, and deeds. Like Blessed Angela of Foligno, let us pray for the grace to become true "Franciscans in spirit."

Blessed Angela of Foligno, pray for us!

Saint Francis of Assisi, pray for us!

Saint Clare of Assisi, pray for us!

Saint Anthony, pray for us!

Holy Men & Women of Assisi, pray for us!

2011-12-24T18:00:00.013-05:00

NEW!

CHRISTMAS WITH SAINT FRANCIS OF ASSISI

On Christmas Night, the clergy and people of Greccio were invited by Saint Francis to keep Christ's Nativity with him. An ox, an ass, and a manger with straw had been brought into a rustic cave where solemn Mass was sun. Then Francis spoke devoutly to the people about the birth of Jesus, after which some saw a little child asleep in the manger who woke up when the saint took him in his arms (From the Little Flowers of Saint Francis).

The First Creche

In 1223, just three years before his death, Francis traveled for Christmas to Greccio, Italy. According to Thomas of Celano, his first biographer, Francis was inspired to recreate the scene of the birth of the Christ child. In "The First Life of Saint Francis", Thomas of Celano writes:

"Saint Francis said: 'I wish to do something that will recall to memory the little Child who was born in Bethlehem and set before our bodily eyes in some way the inconveniences of his infant needs, how he lay in a manger with an ox and an ass standing by, how he lay upon the hay where he had been placed.' When the good and faithful man heard these words, he ran with haste and prepared in that place all the things Francis had requested."

"As Christmas, the day of joy, drew near, the time of great rejoicing came. The brothers were called from their various places. Men and women of that neighborhood prepared with glad hearts, according to their means; candles and torches to light up that night which has lighted up all the days and years with its gleaming star."

"At length, Francis arrived and found all things prepared. He saw the first creched and was glad. The manger was prepared; the hay had been brought; the ox and ass were led to the scene. Simplicity was honored, poverty was exalted, humility was commended, and Greccio was made into a new Bethlehem!"

"The night was lighted up like the day! The scene delighted everyone: man and beast alike. The people came and were filled with joy over the new mystery. The woods rang with the angelic voices of the crowd and the rocks made answer to their jubilation. The brothers sang their praises to the Lord! The whole night resounded with their rejoicing! Finally, Francis stood before the manger, uttering sighs, overcome with love, and filled with a wonderful happiness!"

Following this first recreation of the setting of Jesus' birth, Francis began referring to Christmas as the "feast of feasts" because he believed that through his incarnation, God brought his boundless love into the world for the first time. God brought his boundless love into the world as child born in a stable: humble, needy, and poor.

Last evening, during Christmas Eve Mass at Saint Peter's Basilica, Pope Benedict XVI said: "In 1223, when Saint Francis of Assisi celebrated Christmas in Greccio with an ox and an ass and a manger full of hay, a new dimension of the mystery of Christmas came into light. Saint Francis of Assisi called Christmas 'the feast of feasts' above all other feasts and he celebrated it with 'unutterable devotion'...Francis loved the child Jesus, because for him it was in this childish estate that God's humility shone forth. God became poor. His Son was born in the poverty of the stable. In the child Jesus, God made himself dependent, in need of human love, he put himself in the position of asking for human love, our love."

Eight centuries later, families throughout the world continue the tradition founded by Saint Francis at Greccio. When we look at our family's creche, let us be mindful, as Francis was mindful, that the Son of God was not born in a palace. Let us be mindful, as Francis was mindful, that the Son of God was not born into affluence, comfort, or wealth. Let us be mindful, as Francis was mindful, that the Son of God was born in a stable. He was warmed by the humble swaddling clothes into which he was lovingly wrapped by his mother. He was warmed by the touch of his devoted father. And he was warmed by the breath of an ox, the breath of an ass, and by the songs of angels.

During a time when Christmas is all too often a celebration of riches and worldliness, let us model our own celebrations upon the model at Greccio. Like Francis, let us pursue humility, simplicity, and poverty of spirit. Like Francis, let us be overcome with love at the sight of the Christ child's birth in a stable! Let us be filled with a wonderful happiness at the holy goodness of the Holy Family! Let us sing with all the choirs of angels: Glory to God in the highest! Peace on Earth! Goodwill to all!

May the Lord give you peace at Christmas!

Saint Francis, pray for us!

Saint Clare, pray for us!

Saint Anthony, pray for us!

Holy Men & Women of Assisi, pray for us!

2011-10-04T05:47:00.006-04:00

NEW!

MEMORIAL OF SAINT FRANCIS OF ASSISI

To Love Christ is to Share in His Passion

In Mark's Gospel, a scribe asks Jesus: "Which commandment is the most important of all?" Jesus responds: "The most important is this, 'Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord our God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength (See Mark: 28:28-30).'"

In the Early Rule, Saint Francis admonishes his followers to live in imitation of the gospels. Like Christ Jesus, Francis urges us to love God and to love others with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength. Francis reminds us that God, by his act of creation, has given us these great gifts: our hearts, minds, souls, and all our strengths and talents. According to Francis, we should use these gifts to love and praise God throughout our lives. He exhorts us to employ "every effort, every affection, every emotion, every desire, and every wish" to fulfill Christ's commandment to love (Early Rule, Chapter 23).

We, of course, are probably not destined for sainthood. We, of course, often fail in our mission to love God and neighbor with every fiber of our being. For these reasons, God shows us his love and mercy through prayer and through the Church. But God also shows us how to love through the lives of his saints -- like Francis.

Francis loved God. Francis loved Christ Jesus, his Son. He loved them as much as any human being could love their creator and redeemer. Perhaps like no other saint in the course of history, Francis prayed that he might share in the life and passion of Christ Jesus. "He wanted somehow to suffer with Jesus, and so, two years before he died, this prayer rose from the depths of his love for the crucified Christ: 'O Lord, I beg of you two graces before I die: to experience personally and in all possible fulness the pains of your bitter passion; and to feel for you the same love that moved you to sacrifice yourself for us (Little Flowers of Saint Francis)."

In response to this prayer, Francis was gifted with the stigmata: the five wounds of the crucified Christ. We may shrink from Francis's prayer that he might share "in all possible fullness" the pain and suffering of crucifixion. In our weakness, we may fear that such a prayer might just be answered!

Nevertheless, we can pray for the grace to share in some smaller way in the Lord's passion. We can pray for the grace to love, honor, and praise God with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength. We can pray for the grace to love others, even those who may not love us. We can pray for the humility to forgive, even those who may not forgive us. And we can pray for the humility to put the needs of others before our own, even when our needs are overlooked by those closest to us.

We may not be called to share in Christ's passion in the same way that Francis shared in it. But we are called to pray for the grace to grow closer to Christ Jesus. The price of that intimacy may involve some pain, some sacrifice, some suffering. And so we pray with Saint Francis:

Let us desire nothing else,

let us wish for nothing else,

let nothing else please us or cause us delight,

except our Creator and Redeemer and Savior,

the one true God...

Let nothing hinder us,

let nothing separate us,

or nothing come between us.

Let all of us:

wherever we are,

in every place, at every hour,

at every time of day,

everyday and continually,

believe truly and humbly,

and keep in our heart,

and love, honor, adore, serve,

praise and bless,

glorify and exalt,

magnify and give thanks

to the Most High and Eternal God,

Trinity and Unity,

the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.

Amen.

Saint Francis, pray for us!

Saint Clare, pray for us!

Holy Men & Women of Assisi, pray for us!

For more information about the Assisi Project and our upcoming opportunities for adult faith formation and retreat, please contact Cliff Garvey at assisiproject@ymail.com. May the Lord give you peace!

2011-08-11T15:49:00.010-04:00

NEW!

MEMORIAL OF SAINT CLARE OF ASSISI

Contemplating Clare's Love for Christ

A pilgrim recently returned from Assisi confused by the various reactions of other pilgrims as they approached the tomb of Saint Clare, which is located in the crypt of the basilica named in her honor.

When one enters the Basilica of Saint Clare and descends to the crypt by a deep granite staircase, one first encounters coolness, then dimmed lighting, then at the end of a long corridor, the bier upon which Clare lies protected behind bars and glass. Clare rests before a tabernacle. A red votive candle flickers and reminds pilgrims that Christ Jesus is present in the Blessed Sacrament. A bouquet of lilies stands at the foot of the bier. A sweet fragrance seems to permeate the glass, a fragrance that reminds pilgrims that they should bend a knee before true holiness.

Some pilgrims barely stop to consider that the figure before them is actually the uncorrupted remains of the Saint Clare, who lived and died and was canonized more than eight centuries ago. Some seem skeptical. Some walk quickly away, seemingly nervous. Some ask in a whisper whether that could possibly be Clare beneath the simple habit and masks that cover her face, hands, and bare feet. Some kneel on the cold stone floor, rest their foreheads against the bars, and pray.

These various reactions should not seem discordant. Since 1850, when Saint Clare's tomb was discovered after six centuries of mystery, pilgrims have been conflicted by the saint's mortal remains. When her tomb was opened, Clare's habit was reduced to dust, but she was not. And for more than a century, pilgrims could visit her tomb and see her dark, seemingly charred, flesh dressed in the habit of the order she founded.

Writers and locals say that some pilgrims, especially children, were horrified by the sight. Some were ambivalent. Some were skeptical. Some were reduced to tears of joy that Clare, the loyal friend and follower of Saint Francis, should remain uncorrupted by death. The times change, but the hearts of human beings do not.

In their book, "A Retreat with Francis & Clare of Assisi", Father Murray Bodo and Susan Saint Sing write that no one should have been surprised to find Clare uncorrupted or to find her flesh darkened like burned wood. They write: "Her consuming, passionate love of God, a burning too hot for mortal flesh, has left her body charred and blackened beneath its waxed and cosmeticized shell (p. 52)."

A Chaste, But Passionate Love

Today's pilgrim will not see charred and blackened flesh, but a life-like reflection of the beautiful and courageous woman who defied her times, followed her friend, and embarked on a way of life strictly devoted to the gospels. Saint Clare saw herself and her sisters as Brides of Christ, consumed by a chaste, but passionate, love for Him, who lived, suffered, died, and rose again for us, for all people, for all the world. In one of Saint Clare's famous letters to Agnes of Prague, we can begin to appreciate her ardent love for Christ Jesus:

Contemplate the unspeakable love

with which He wished to suffer upon the wood of the cross

and on it to die the most infamous of deaths.

So that from the height of the cross,

a voice is directed towards the passers-by

in order that they may stop to consider:

'All of you, who pass by upon this road,

stop and judge if there is sorrow comparable to mine.'

And we will reply to Him who calls and groans,

with one voice and one heart:

'Your memory will never depart from me

and my soul will be consumed.'

Contemplate then his unutterable delights,

his wealth and eternal honors, and shout ardently

with all your love and all your desire:

'Draw me to yourself, O Heavenly Souse!

We will follow you,

drawn by the sweetness of your perfume!'

On this day especially, let us pray together for the intercession of Saint Clare of Assisi and for the intercession of the holy women who followed her through the centuries into the cloister. Let us pray for the grace to follow Christ Jesus as Clare did. Let us pray for the grace to love Christ Jesus as Clare did. Let us pray that we, too, might be consumed by that same burning passion to do his will by loving God and by loving each other in perfect peace and charity. Amen! Amen! May the Lord give you peace!

Saint Clare, pray for us!

Saint Francis, pray for us!

Holy Men & Women of Assisi, pray for us!

2011-08-11T15:49:00.003-04:00

NEW!

ASSISI PROJECT

SECOND ANNUAL WEEKEND RETREAT

September 9th through September 11th

The Assisi Project is an adult faith formation program at Saint Charles Borromeo. Each month, our group meets for Mass, a community supper, and a period of prayerful discussion and faith sharing.

Although not affiliated with any Franciscan community, the Assisi Project looks to Saint Francis and Saint Clare for its inspiration. Working and praying together, we strive to live the gospel life more faithfully, to deepen our personal relationships with Christ, and to strengthen our fellowship with each other.

We are planning our Second Annual Weekend Retreat at the Rolling Ridge Retreat Center in Andover, Massachusetts from Friday evening , September 9th through Sunday afternoon, September 11th. The cost is $200.00 per person which two overnight accommodations; three meals on Saturday; two meals on Sunday; coffee, tea, and snacks throughout the weekend; and a guided retreat experience on a beautiful lakefront campus.

If you would like to join us for this very special weekend of prayer and fellowship, please contact Cliff Garvey at assisiproject@ymail.com. Thank you! May the Risen Lord give you peace!

2011-08-02T05:01:00.002-04:00

NEW!

FEAST OF OUR LADY OF THE PORZIUNCOLA

The Porziuncola

On August 2nd, the Franciscan Community throughout the world celebrates the Feast of Our Lady of the Porziuncola. The little church known as the Porziuncola currently stands within the Basilica of Saint Mary of the Angels in the plain below Assisi, Italy. The Porziuncola (or "little portion") is more than 900 years old, is dedicated to the Virgin Mary, and is considered the 'hearbeat' or home church of the worldwide Franciscan movement.

In 1208, Saint Francis was entrusted with the Porziuncola by the Abbot of the Monastery of Saint Benedict at Mount Subasio, which looms over Assisi and the Spoleto Valley. Francis and his first followers restored the badly dilapidated church with their own hands, begging stones, tools, and other supplies from the residents of the surrounding area. After papal approval, the Porziuncola became the home church of the Order of Friars Minor.

In 1211, on Palm Sunday, a young woman named Clare left her aristocratic family's home near the bishop's palace in Assisi. After dark and alone, Clare's courage and faith lead her to the Porziuncola, where she was welcomed by Francis and his brothers with songs of praise and thanksgiving. She dedicated her life to Christ and to following Francis' example of living according to the gospels.

The Pardon of Assisi

Five years later, on the night August 2, 1216, Francis, unable to sleep and praying alone at the Porziuncola, was visited by both the Lord and the Virgin Mary, who told him that anyone who visited the little church and repented would have their all of their sins forgiven. In 1480, more than two centuries after the saint's mystical experience, Pope Sixtus VI had extended the annual "Porziuncola Indulgence" on August 2nd to all Franciscan churches throughout the world.

In 1967, Pope Paul VI clarified the terms of the indulgence. The Holy Father stated that any Catholic could earn the "Pardon of Assisi" (a plenary indulgence or complete forgiveness of all sins) by participating in the Sacrament of Penance & Reconciliaton; by participating in the Holy Mass at any Catholic Church; and by reciting the Lord's Prayer, the Apostle's Creed, the Gloria, and a Hail Mary for the Pope and his intentions.

All are invited to celebrate the Feast of Our Lady of the Porziuncola and to participate in the "Pardon of Assisi" on August 2nd. Saint Francis had a deep devotion to the Virgin Mary, which was only strengthened by his prayer and by mystical experience at the Porziuncola. On this special feast day for Saint Francis and for all who seek to follow his example, let us pray as he prayed for the Virgin Mary's intercession.

Prayer for the Virgin Mary's Intercession

Holy Virgin Mary,

you are blessed among all born into this world:

Daughter of the Most High King, our Heavenly Father,

Mother of Our Most Holy Lord, Jesus Christ,

and Spouse of the Holy Spirit.

Pray for us with Saint Michael the Archangel

and with all the powers of Heaven and all the Saints

before your Most Holy and Beloved Son,

the Lord and Master.

Glory to the Father, to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit,

as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever.

Amen.

Saint Francis, pray for us!

Saint Clare, pray for us!

Our Lady of the Porziuncola, pray for us!

Holy Men & Women of Assisi, pray for us!

If you would like to learn more about the Assisi Project and our upcoming opportunities for adult faith formation, prayer, pilgrimage, and retreat in the Franciscan spiritual tradition, please contact Cliff Garvey at assisiproject@ymail.com. May the Lord give you peace!

2011-07-29T09:04:00.001-04:00

NEW!

ASSISI PROJECT

SECOND ANNUAL WEEKEND RETREAT

September 9th through September 11th

The Assisi Project is an adult faith formation program at Saint Charles Borromeo. Each month, our group meets for Mass, a community supper, and a period of prayerful discussion and faith sharing.

If you would like to join us for this very special weekend of prayer and fellowship, please contact Cliff Garvey at assisiproject@ymail.com. Thank you! May the Risen Lord give you peace!

2011-05-22T08:39:00.001-04:00

NEW!

PENTECOST DAY OF PRAYER

EMBRACING THE HOLY SPIRIT with FRANCIS & CLARE

Saturday, June 11, 2011

On Saturday, June 11th, Father Richard Flaherty, OFM will join Cliff Garvey and members of our Assisi Project in hosting a "Pentecost Day of Prayer: Embracing the Holy Spirit with Francis & Clare" from 9:00am until 3:00pm in the Parish Center.

The "Pentecost Day of Prayer" is a mini-retreat that will include Mass, Eucharistic Adoration, an opportunity for Confession, three guided meditations, and lunch (along with coffee and tea throughout the day). Each participant will be provided with their own "prayer room" for silent prayer and reflection.

Originally from Woburn, Father Richard is a Franciscan friar at Saint Anthony's Shrine in Boston. Father Richard also served for many years as campus minister at Saint Bonaventure University in Upstate New York.

A free will donation of $30.oo per person ($50.00 per couple) is requested. If you would like to participate in the Lent Day of Silent Prayer, please contact Cliff Garvey at c_garvey@rcabcuria.org. Please keep in mind that space is limited! So, if you are interested in this very special event, please contact us as soon as possible! May the Lord give you peace!

2011-05-22T08:38:00.001-04:00

NEW!

ASSISI PROJECT

HOLY LAND PILGRIMAGE 2011

Come & See Meeting: Saturday, June 18th at 6:30pm

Pilgrimage has always been a basic component of the Franciscan spiritual tradition. During his lifetime, Saint Francis journeyed throughout the known world to preach the gospel. Many believe that Francis even visited the Holy Land. This year, the Assisi Project has decided to prepare for a pilgrimage to the Holy Land from October 26, 2011 through November 3, 2011.

During this nine day pilgrimage, we will celebrate Mass each day and visit the following cities and sites: Bethelehem, Cana, Capernaum, Jaffa, Jerusalem, Nazareth, the Mount of Olives, the Mount of the Beatitudes, Mount Zion, the Sea of Galilee, the Church of the Nativity, the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, and the Wailing Wall.

You don't need to be a member of the Assisi Project to join us for this pilgrimage! The per person costs for this pilgrimage include round-trip air travel; all ground transportation; hotel accommodations; and 15 meals over nine days:

Double: $2,799

Single: $3,299

Triple: $2,769

If you are interested in learning more about the Assisi Project's Holy Land Pilgrimage, please join us for a special "Come & See Meeting" on Saturday, June 18th at 6:30pm in the Parish Center. We will be joined by a representative of Collette Vacations and by a fellow parishioner who recently traveled to the Holy Land. Refreshments will be served. Please join us! All are welcome!

If you would like more information about the Assisi Project and our opportunities for adult faith formation, pilgrimage, prayer, and retreat, please join us online at assisiproject.blogspot.com or contact Cliff Garvey at c_garvey@rcabcuria.org. May the Lord give you peace!

2011-05-22T08:30:00.001-04:00

NEW!

ASSISI PROJECT

SECOND ANNUAL WEEKEND RETREAT

September 9th through September 11th

The Assisi Project is an adult faith formation program at Saint Charles Borromeo. Each month, our group meets for Mass, a community supper, and a period of prayerful discussion and faith sharing.

If you would like to join us for this very special weekend of prayer and fellowship, please contact Cliff Garvey at assisiproject@ymail.com. Thank you! May the Risen Lord give you peace!

2011-04-24T12:00:00.000-04:00

NEW!

EASTER SUNDAY: "NEW LIFE"

Each weekend during Lent and on Easter Sunday, we will offer a reflection based on the lives and writings of Saint Francis and Saint Clare of Assisi. We hope and pray that you will find these reflections helpful as you walk with Christ Jesus on the long road toward his passion, death, and resurrection.

An Easter Prayer of Thanksgiving

Let us begin our Easter meditation with an Easter Prayer of Thanksgiving from the Earlier Rule of Saint Francis of Assisi:

All-powerful, most holy,

Almighty and supreme God,

Holy and just Father,

Lord King of heaven and earth

we thank You for Yourself

for through Your holy will

and through Your only Son with the Holy Spirit

You have created everything spiritual and corporal

and, after making us in Your own image and likeness,

you placed us in paradise . . .

We thank You

for as through Your Son You created us,

so through Your holy love

with which You loved us

You brought about His birth as true God and true man

by the glorious, ever-virgin, most blessed, holy Mary

and You willed to redeem us captives

through His cross and blood and death.

We thank You

for Your Son Himself will come again

in the glory of His majesty . . .

to say to all those

who have known You, adored You

and served You in penance:

"Come, you blessed of my Father,

receive the kingdom prepared for you

from the beginning of the world."

The Sacrament of Baptism

We mark special events and milestones in our lives through celebrations. We add birthday candles to decorated cakes to mark the passing of another year in our lives. We march across a stage or through a stadium wearing colored caps and gowns with tassels as we graduate from kindergarten, elementary school, high school, and sometimes college. These and other events commemorate changes in our lives.

In our spiritual lives, we also mark special moments with celebrations. As Catholic Christians, we have seven very special occasions that we remember: Baptism, Confirmation, Eucharist, Reconciliation, Matrimony, Holy Orders, Anointing of the Sick. These seven sacraments are special occasions where we encounter our Lord Jesus Christ, where the Lord comes to us to celebrate with us, and to change our lives.

Today, we gather to mark the holiest day in our Christian tradition: the resurrection of Jesus Christ, the Crucified now risen from the dead. As a community of faith we have come to celebrate the hope of new life which Christ has bestowed upon all who believe in Him. For "we were indeed buried with him through baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might live in newness of life (Romans 6:4)."

New Life at Easter

On this Easter Sunday, we are surrounded by signs of new life and by the symbols of our own baptism: the font of water and the Paschal Candle. During the Easter celebration, we renew our baptismal promises whereby we renounce Satan and all his works and all his empty promises. And with one voice and one heart we profess our faith in God - Father, Son, and Spirit and in the one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body and life everlasting. The renewal of these baptismal promises continues with the sprinkling of the congregation with the waters newly blessed at the Easter Vigil. In this act of faith, we are again reminded of our new life in Christ. The Risen Christ has conquered death and sin and opened for us the path of holiness and brought us into the kingdom of light.

On this Easter Sunday, we also bask in the glow of the Paschal Candle, lit for the first time at the Easter Vigil. This beautiful candle was brought into a darkened Church to help us recall the power of the Light of Christ in our lives. This light was given to each of us at Baptism. It is a sign of Christ's presence in our everyday life. The light is the sign of our rebirth in the Risen Christ through the waters of baptism. The challenge is to keep this flame of faith burning brightly in our lives. Through example and word, we are called to be bright lights of faith to one another and to the world.

New Life in Assisi

In Assisi, a pilgrim can see the baptismal font in which not only Clare and Francis were baptized but also countless citizens of Assisi across the centuries. In the Cathedral of San Rufino in Assisi, one enters the church and to the right is the alcove where the baptismal font remains to this day. There we can see where both Francis and Clare received their first call to follow the Lord Jesus, in the gift of faith given to them at Baptism. They were just babies when their parents presented them for baptism. Who could know that the seed of faith planted in their hearts that day that would grow and bear fruit for the Lord and for the world?

The gift of "new life" in the Lord would also be manifested in these two saints of Assisi. With Francis' conversion, he stripped himself of worldly goods and benefits and took the robe of a poor man, the sackcloth of sinners. In this dramatic act, in the city center of Assisi, Francis rejected his earthly father and his inheritance and professed his faith in his heavenly Father and the riches of eternal life that God offers. And throughout his ministry, his mission, his service to his brothers and sisters, Francis lived the new life in Christ with faith, hope, and charity.

In a similar way, Claire also stripped herself of her earthly riches and blessings and took the veil of new life in Christ. In her act of dedicating herself to the Crucified and Risen Christ, Claire cloistered herself in prayer and experienced the graces that flow from a humble and contrite heart, from complete trust and faith in the Lord. Even in the darkest moments of physical pain or spiritual suffering, Claire basked in the light of Christ ever burning in her heart and soul, that true light of Christ first given to her at Baptism.

New life is promised to all of us in Baptism. On this Easter Sunday, as we gather in the Church for the celebration of the resurrection, may the light of Christ continue to burn brightly in our hearts and in our lives. And in the tender compassion of our God, the dawn from high shall break upon us to shine on those who dwell in darkness and in the shadow of death and to guide our feet into the way of peace.

May the Risen Lord give you peace at Easter and alway!

Saint Francis, pray for us!

Saint Clare, pray for us!

Holy men and women of Assisi, pray for us!

2011-04-24T11:59:00.000-04:00

NEW!

PENTECOST DAY OF PRAYER

EMBRACING THE HOLY SPIRIT with FRANCIS & CLARE

Saturday, June 11, 2011

2011-04-24T08:40:00.004-04:00

NEW!

HEARTSAVER CPR COURSE

Saturday, May 21st

As part of their formation as "Franciscans in Spirit", members of the Assisi Project endeavor to give something back to our parish in terms of their time and talent. Some members of the group lector or serve as Eucharistic ministers at Mass, some volunteer as catechists or hall monitors with our youth faith formation program, and others pray for the needs of our parish family.

One member of our group, Irene Kerr, is certified as a Heartsaver CPR instructor by the American Heart Association. As part of her contribution to our community, Irene has volunteered to teach two upcoming Heartsaver CPR courses at Saint Charles Borromeo. The course includes learning CPR skills for adults and children and how to help someone who might be choking.

The next Heartsaver CPR course is scheduled for Saturday, May 21st from 8:30am until 11:30am in the parish center. The classes are free but limited to six participants each. For more information, please contact Cliff Garvey at c_garvey@rcabcuria.org. Please join us! All are welcome!

2011-04-24T08:40:00.001-04:00

ASSISI PROJECT

HOLY LAND PILGRIMAGE 2011

October 26, 2011-November 3, 2011

Double: $2,799

Single: $3,299

Triple: $2,769

If you are interested in learning more about the Assisi Project's Holy Land Pilgrimage and our other opportunities for adult faith formation, prayer, and retreat, please contact Cliff Garvey at c_garvey@rcabcuria.org. You don't need to be a member of our group to travel with us to the Holy Land! So, please join us! All are welcome! May the Lord give you peace!

2011-04-17T08:58:00.007-04:00

ASSISI PROJECT

HOLY LAND PILGRIMAGE 2011

October 26, 2011-November 3, 2011

Double: $2,799

Single: $3,299

Triple: $2,769

2011-04-17T08:58:00.006-04:00

NEW!

HOLY WEEK: "POVERTY"

Each Sunday during this Holy Season of Lent, we will offer a reflection based on the lives and writings of Saint Francis and Saint Clare of Assisi. We hope and pray that you will find these reflections helpful as you walk with Christ Jesus on the long road toward his passion, death, and resurrection.

Absolute Poverty, Absolute Love

When time permits, all are invited to pray and meditate over this familiar passage from the Gospel of John and to consider the link between the poverty of Christ and his enduring love for us:

For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son,

so that everyone who believes in him may not perish,

but may have eternal life (John 3:16)

In our world, in our times, we equate poverty with hardship. We regard poverty as the product of bad luck, discrimination, ignorance, illness, or laziness. However, Francis and Clare regarded poverty as a privilege because it allowed them to devote all of their energies to God's work: to loving the Lord and to loving their neighbor -- through prayer and good works.

As Franciscans in spirit, we are called to embrace a kind of poverty: spiritual poverty. We may not be called to renounce our possessions. But we are called to renounce being possessed by our possessions. We are called to embrace spiritual poverty so that we might also devote ourselves to God's work -- through prayer and good works.

Francis and Clare chose poverty in order to more faithfully imitate Christ Jesus, who was born naked and poor in a manger and who died naked and poor on a cross. This should be the ultimate realization: the Lord's absolute and total poverty embodies his absolute and total love -- for us, for all time! Meditate again on the scripture:

For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son,

so that everyone who believes in him may not perish,

but may have eternal life (John 3:16)

God loved us so much that he sacrificed what he loved most for our sake. God embraced the absolute poverty of the cross as an expression of his absolute love for his children. From absolute poverty comes absolute love.

The virtue of poverty (spiritual poverty) is a movement of the heart and soul, a detachment from possessions and a keen awareness of our complete dependence on God. All that we are and all that we have comes from God. This awareness is the essence of spiritual poverty. This awareness is the essence of our faith and love for our Father in Heaven and for His Son. From absolute poverty comes absolute love.

A Great & Praiseworthy Exchange

In her letters to Agnes of Prague, Clare writes:

"When you have loved Him, you are chaste;

when you have touched Him, you become more pure;

when you have accepted Him, you are a virgin.

Whose power is stronger, whose generosity more abundant,

whose appearance more beautiful,

whose love more tender, whose courtesy more gracious..."

"O God-centered poverty,

whom the Lord Jesus Christ,

who ruled and now rules heaven and earth,

who spoke and things were made,

condescended to embrace before all else."

"What a great and praiseworthy exchange:

to leave the things of this time for those of eternity,

to choose the things of heaven for the goods of the earth,

to receive the hundred-fold in place of one,

and to possess a blessed and eternal life!"

By now, we are perhaps frightened and frustrated! Poverty?! Spiritual poverty?! How can we possibly embrace what Christ embraced for us? How can we possibly imitate such poverty or such love? Francis and Clare, our brother and sister in faith, teach us by word and example that anything (even this) can be accomplished with Christ!

When we pray with Christ Jesus, we encounter Him in our daily lives. When we reach out to Christ Jesus with love, He welcomes us and alleviates our anxieties and our sufferings. When we carry our cross in His name, He walks with us. When we embrace our poverty, when we accept our absolute dependence on Christ Jesus, He offers his absolute love. From absolute poverty comes absolute love. Consider again this familiar passage:

For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son,

so that everyone who believes in him may not perish,

but may have eternal life (John 3:16)

May the Lord give you peace during this Holy Week!

Saint Francis, pray for us!

Saint Clare, pray for us!

Holy men and women of Assisi, pray for us!

2011-04-10T16:29:00.004-04:00

NEW!

FIFTH WEEK OF LENT: "TEACHERS"

From the Prayer of Saint Francis

For it is in giving that we receive;

it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;

and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.

(From the Prayer of Saint Francis)

My Teacher: Vavó

In my life, there have been many teachers, from family to school and beyond. My most influential teacher was my grandmother, my vavó. My vavó lived with my family until her death in 1988 and she taught me her values through example, through her stories, and through her work ethic.

My vavó was a second mother to me. Since my own mother had to work, vavó became the house sitter and babysitter. She helped to raise me, comforted me in distress, and reared me in the Portuguese tradition. She only spoke her native language of Portuguese. In turn, I spoke only that language, too. She constantly communicated with her family in the Azores through letters, finding out about local births, deaths, and important events. In this way, she taught me about importance of family and how to keep in touch with loved ones.

Vavó also worked hard at home: washing laundry, cooking supper, making beds, and readying us for school in the morning. Her example of hard work inspired me to strive for the best in school and in life. She was an artist, not with canvas and oils, but with crocheting. Many of the bureaus in my family's home are covered with her artistry.

Vavó's most important quality was her dedication to serve others. She raised seven grandchildren in our home at the same time. She was always ready to sew hemlines for my aunts or crochet a gift for a relative. These simple models of service encouraged me to help others in my life. Further, vavó's kindness embodied the message of Jesus Christ to serve.

During her last years, vavó struggled with diabetes and suffered much. She was strong; then she was weak. She could no longer do all that she wanted to do, but she still tried to do chores. In her struggles, vavó taught determination, perseverance, and strong will. In her last triumph, on the night before she died, vavó walked down two flights of stairs to the basement of our house (an feat she had not accomplished for a year) and ate her last meal with her family. The next morning, we awoke to discover that she had died in her sleep.

I learn by watching. My vavó was the perfect person to watch. Her work ethic was to be envied, her religious beliefs to be imitated. She led by example. She was patient, especially when a grandchild broke a dish or spilled milk. She never quit. She never forced her beliefs on others but glowed with the holiness of prayer. My vavó was my teacher in all things.

Christ: Francis' Teacher

For Saint Francis, Jesus was his teacher. For Francis, the gospels were his textbooks. For Francis, making decisions in accordance with the teachings of Christ were his examinations. After his conversion and throughout his life, Francis desired to be more like Jesus Christ in every way: compassionate, poor, obedient, and itinerant.

In his rule and in his life, Francis practiced himself and asked of his followers an austerity of life and complete poverty. He did so because his teacher, Jesus, was also poor, humble, faithful and selfless in his service to God. Francis acted upon the gospel and lived the words of Jesus: "Whoever comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes and even life itself, cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not carry the cross and follow me cannot be my disciple (Luke 14:26-27)."

Francis learned from Jesus in the classroom of faith to exhort his followers to imitate the disciples in every way: "Take nothing for your journey, no staff, nor bag, nor bread, nor money, not even an extra tunic. Whatever house you enter, stay there, and leave from there (Luke 9:3-4)." So, Francis and his followers begged for food in every town or village where they preached. Francis himself begged for food, medicines, and clothing for the poor and the sick. Throughout his life and ministry, Francis depended entirely on Jesus for guidance and inspiration. Jesus was his teacher in all things.

Stigmata: Ultimate Life Lesson

Above all things, Francis desired to be like Jesus. This desire culminated in his receiving the "touch" of Jesus. In his "Life of Saint Francis", Bonaventure describes this miraculous moment:

"Two years before Francis, the faithful servant of Christ, gave his soul back to God, he was alone on the top of Mt. Alverna. There he had begun a fast of forty days in honor of the Archangel Michael and was immersed more deeply than usual in the delights of heavenly contemplation. His soul became aglow with the ardor of fervent longing for heaven as he experience within himself the operations of grace."

"When the vision vanished after a mysterious and intimate conversation it left Francis aglow with seraphic love in his soul. Externally, however, it left marks on his body like those of the Crucified as if the impression of a seal had been left on heated wag. The figures of the nails appeared immediately on his hands and feet. The heads of the nails were inside his hands but on top of his feet with their points extending through to the opposite side. His right side too showed a blood-red wound as if it had been pierced by a lance, and blood flowed frequently from it."

Finally, after years of selfless service, itinerant preaching, reconciling warring factions, and depending only on the goodness of God, Francis became like Jesus, his teacher, even in his pain and suffering. Christ Jesus was his teacher in all things.

Carry Our Cross

Just as Francis studied the life of Christ Jesus and faithfully lived the gospel, we are called to pick up our crosses each day and to be disciples. We are called to follow Christ Jesus, who is also our teacher in all things. We may not become saints, but we can practice poverty of spirit, compassion, and service. We can be faithful to our vocations, whatever they may be.

In this spirit of being faithful to our individual vocation, Francis encourages us: "Even if you were more handsome and richer than everyone else, and even if you worked miracles so that you put demons to flight: all these things are contrary to you; nothing belongs to you; you can boast in none of these things. But we can boast in our weaknesses and in carrying each day the holy cross of our Lord Jesus Christ." In this way, Christ Jesus is our teacher in all things.

Saint Francis, pray for us!

Saint Clare, pray for us!

Holy men and women of Assisi, pray for us!

2011-04-10T16:28:00.003-04:00

NEW!

ASSISI PROJECT LENT DAY OF PRAYER:

CONTEMPLATING THE CROSS WITH FRANCIS & CLARE

Saturday, April 16, 2011

On Saturday, April 16th, please members of the Assisi Project for our "Lent Day of Silent Prayer: Contemplating the Cross with Francis & Clare" from 9:30am until 3:00pm at Saint Anthony's Church, which is located at 400 Medeiros Avenue in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

The "Lent Day of Silent Prayer" is a day-long mini-retreat that will include Mass, Eucharistic Adoration, an opportunity for Confession, three guided meditations (in both English and Portuguese), and lunch (along with coffee and tea throughout the day). Each participant will be provided with reading material for silent prayer and reflection.

A free will offering is requested. If you would like to participate in the Lent Day of Prayer, please contact us at assisiproject@ymail.com. May the Lord give you peace during this Holy Season of Lent!

2011-04-10T16:28:00.001-04:00

ASSISI PROJECT

HOLY LAND PILGRIMAGE 2011

October 26, 2011-November 3, 2011

Double: $2,799

Single: $3,299

Triple: $2,769

2011-04-03T17:00:00.002-04:00

NEW!

FOURTH WEEK OF LENT: "FAITH"

An Admonition by Saint Francis of Assisi

Suppose that you had cleverness and learning enough to know all things; that you were acquainted with all languages, the courses of the stars, and all the rest; what is there in that to be proud of? A single demon knows more on these subjects than all the men in the world put together! But there is one thing that the demon is incapable of, and which is the glory of man: to be faithful to God (Saint Francis of Assisi, Admonitions 5).

The Devil's Bag of Tricks

This Lent, members of our parish book club are reading "The Screwtape Letters" by C.S. Lewis, a modern masterpiece of both satire and spirituality. In this classic book, Lewis shares the correspondence between two demons that battle with Christ for the soul of a single believer. Just one week into our reading, several members of our group have confessed their discomfort with the book -- with Lewis' almost frightening (but sadly accurate) insight into the human condition; with his darkly humorous treatment of the subject matter; and with the ways in which the two demons tempt their target toward the darkness.

Saint Francis of Assisi knew a great deal about the darkness that infects humanity. Before his conversion, Francis witnessed the horror of war. He suffered as a prisoner of war. He cringed at and turned away from the poor and the sick. He reveled in parties, possessions, and privilege. Well into his third decade of life, Francis was a man of the world, a man of the times.

After his conversion, Francis, like C.S. Lewis nearly eight centuries later, knew about how the devil seeks to lure us away from the gospel life. If one reads "The Screwtape Letters", one could make a long list of the dark ways by which demons tempt us. They seek to turn simple pleasures into obsessions. They seek to inspire malevolence toward those we know and benevolence toward those we don't know. They seek to direct our thoughts toward the things of the world and away from the things of God. They seek to misdirect our prayer -- prompting us to focus on the self-congratulatory action of praying, rather than the object of our prayer: the triune God. They seek to guide our thoughts toward arrogance and self-satisfactions. The devil's bag of temptations seems so powerful. Our defenses seem so weak.

Francis, like Lewis, also knew about human weakness; about our weakness when compared to the tricks played by the devil, the darkness, the tempter, or however we might refer to theat unholy force that lures us away from holiness. But these two Christian men also knew that the devil's tricks fail when confronted by one simple thing. That thing is faith.

Faith: Simple & Awesome

The Catechism of the Catholic Church (in part) defines faith as "both a gift of God and a human act by which the believer gives personal adherence to God who invites his response, and freely assents to the whole truth that God has revealed."

The Oxford English Dictionary defines faith simply as "complete trust in someone or something." We might have faith in our car -- until that car fails to start on a frosty morning. We might have faith in a politician -- until that politician breaks a promise. We might have faith in many things of this world, but such faith is misplaced. Such faith is misplaced because only God -- only Our Father in Heaven; only Christ Jesus, his Son; and only his Holy Spirit -- deserve our absolute and abiding faith.

God deserves our faith and our faithfulness because God alone emptied himself for our sake when he sent Christ Jesus to live among us. God deserves our faith and our faithfulness because Christ Jesus embraced the cross for our sake. God deserves our faith and our faithfulness because he raised Christ from death, thereby conquering death and darkness.

These are simple, but awesome truths. They are the simple, but most profound realities of our faith. We might be smart. We might be powerful. We might be wealthy. But if we forget these basic truths, Saint Francis warns that we will fall prey to the devil's tricks and temptations. Again, only by the light of faith (and actions born of faith) can we conquer darkness.

Francis summarizes faith in this way: "Fear and honor God, praise and bless him. Give thanks to him. Adore the Lord...Forgive and you will be forgiven...Abstain carefully from all evil and persevere in the good until the end (Rule of 1221)."

One can imagine Francis, the Poor One of Assisi. He smiles and shakes his head at our modern world and its cleverness, conveniences and technologies. Francis, barefoot and dressed in rags, stands on a tree stump. He looks upon us from across the centuries. He look upon us with faith, hope, and love. He pleads: "Be simple! Love God because God loves you! For God so loved the world that he gave us his only son, our savior! Believe! Pray! Love God! Love Christ! Love each other! Have faith!" In this way, we give glory to God and we conquer the darkness.

Saint Francis, pray for us!

Saint Clare, pray for us!

Holy men and women of Assisi, pray for us!

2011-04-03T16:59:00.002-04:00

NEW!

ASSISI PROJECT LENT DAY OF PRAYER:

CONTEMPLATING THE CROSS WITH FRANCIS & CLARE

Saturday, April 16, 2011

2011-04-03T16:59:00.000-04:00

ASSISI PROJECT

HOLY LAND PILGRIMAGE 2011

October 26, 2011-November 3, 2011

Double: $2,799

Single: $3,299

Triple: $2,769

2011-03-27T19:00:00.001-04:00

NEW!

THIRD WEEK OF LENT: "CALLINGS"

From the Testament of Saint Clare of Assisi

Among the other gifts that we have received and continue to receive from our magnanimous Father of mercies and for which we must express the deepest thanks to our glorious God, there is our vocation, which the more perfect and greater it is, the more are we indebted to Him. Therefore the Apostle [writes]: Recognize your vocation. The Son of God has become for us the Way that our blessed father Francis, His true lover and imitator, has shown and taught us by word and example (From the Testament of Saint Clare of Assisi).

The Call to the Fishermen

Imagine the shores of the Sea of Galilee in the ancient land of Israel. It was a simpler time. Rome ruled the world. In Jerusalem, the priests of the temple still offered their sacrifices to God. And a child entered the world, a special child born to the Virgin Mary.

On the shores of the Galilee, four men fished: the brothers Simon Peter and Andrew, and the brothers James and John. Simon Peter was anxious and becoming impatient. Throughout the night, they fished and caught nothing. Now, their nets were tangled together. All of a sudden, Peter took his knife and began tearing at the tangled nets without thinking.

Nearby, on another small boat, James and John were fishing with their father. The two men bickered constantly about who was the better fisherman and who should inherit their father's possessions. Zebedee, their father, could only raise his hands to heaven and ask for a miracle that might quiet the two quarrelsome brothers.

The morning passed slowly, without any catch for the fishermen in the two boats. As they ate their lunches of bread and wine, a stranger approached from the dusty road. Like them, he seemed like an ordinary Jew. He was like them, but his eyes shone differently. He had a powerful aura around him. The fishermen were instantly attracted to him. The stranger walked by the group, turned his head, and said quietly to them: "Follow me and I will make you fishers of men."

The stranger continued on his journey while the four fishermen sat silently. After a few minutes, Simon Peter stood up and declared to them, "There is something special about that men. We have nothing to lose for a few days. Let's follow him and see what else he may say!" After a short discussion, the four followed quickly after the stranger.

The Call to Clare

Although Saint Clare lived comfortably in Assisi, she desired something different. She desired more and she desired less. She felt powerfully called by the preaching of Francis Bernadone, her fellow Assisian. Clare saw the good, but challenging work that Francis did among the lepers, the poor, and the outcasts of Assisi. Because of this, Clare felt compelled to follow Francis. She felt compelled to follow Christ. So, Clare ultimately abandoned her home, her family, her privilege, and her riches. She left the life determined for her and chose to embrace God's call to live as Francis lived.

One Palm Sunday night, Clare stood with Francis and with the brothers who also heard the call to live the gospel life. Clare demonstrated her commitment to the Lord and to living a life of poverty and simplicity by having Francis cut her long and luxurious hair. Tears filled her eyes as she saw her long locks falling to the ground. Though one may think those were of tears of sadness. But we believe that Clare wept for joy at the release she felt in trusting in God and in his call to her to follow him.

The Call to Us

Everday we receive calls and make calls. People call to remind us of an appoinment. People call us at work. People call to gossip or catch up. But there is another call, one that many fail to answer. God calls us. His first call came at Baptism when He filled us with his Spirit and his grace. And as we grew, God continued to call us to a deeper life with him.

God calls us to a particular vocation in life - married life, priestly life, consecrated life, or single life. Although each seems different, each vocation invites us to live Christ's commandment of love. Each vocation opens for us the path to love God with our whole heart, mind, and soul and to love our neighbor as ourself. Husband and wife fulfill Christ's command in their love for each other and for their children born out of that love. Priests and religious brothers and sisters follow the path of Christ by lovingly serving His people through their ministries in the Church. Single men and women exemplify the love of Christ for others in their relationships with family and friends.

Are you ready to answer God's call? Are you ready to live the vocation He has given to you? Are you ready to live your vocation with great endurance, patience, sacrifice, and love? In each vocation story, whether we remember the Apostles or Clare or Francis, we remember that each gave up something to follow Christ. However, they never gave up their personalities, their failings, their humanity. Rather, each one gave his life or her life to the call. Jesus doesn't call the perfect. He calls those who are willing to answer. Hopefully, he calls to us: to believe, to follow, to love.

Saint Francis, pray for us!

Saint Clare, pray for us!

Holy men and women of Assisi, pray for us!

2011-03-27T17:00:00.000-04:00

ASSISI PROJECT

HOLY LAND PILGRIMAGE 2011

October 26, 2011-November 3, 2011

Double: $2,799

Single: $3,299

Triple: $2,769

2011-03-20T05:01:00.002-04:00

NEW!

SECOND WEEK OF LENT: "ADMONITIONS"

An Admonition by Saint Francis of Assisi

There is a great shame for us, the servants of God, that while the saints actually performed such deeds, we wish to receive glory and honor by merely talking about them (From Admonition Six).

Saint Francis wrote the "Admonitions" as a supplement to his growing community's "Rule." The Rule governed the community's way of life. It is like the constitution of a country, the charter of a town or city, or the bylaws of any organization. The Rule of Saint Francis is a simple code of conduct for life that commands and expects obedience.

The Admonitions are a set of twenty-eight exhortations that were common among the religious orders of the thirteenth century. Then and now, an admonition can be defined as an authoritative counsel or warning; or as a cautionary reminder. One thinks of a judge admonishing a jury to consider or disregard a certain point or piece of evidence. One might also think of a parent admonishing an adolescent with a new driver's license about speeding or text messaging while driving.

The purpose and style of the Admonitions of Saint Francis, however, are singularly spiritual with titles like "The Evil of Self Will" or "The Chastisement of the Body" or "Patience" or "Purity of Heart." The Admonitions were intended to instruct the friars about how to live the life of the gospel; and to warn them against various temptations that would lead them astray. The short quotation above is from Admonition Six, which is entitled "The Imitation of the Lord" and reads in full:

"Let all of us look to the Good Shepherd who suffered the passion of the Cross to save his sheep. The sheep of the Lord followed him in suffering and persecution, in insult and hunger, in infirmity and temptation, and in everything else, and they have received everlasting life from the Lord because of these things. There is a great shame for us, the servants of God, that while the saints actually performed such deeds, we wish to receive glory and honor by merely talking about them."

Harsh Words

These are harsh words. Imagine being one of the first followers of Saint Francis: you have renounced all possessions; you have professed chastity and obedience; you have left your family and your home for a hard life of preaching the gospel and begging for shelter and sustenance. Despite these heroic acts, Francis, your father in faith, admonishes you for basking in the good works and holy deeds of others!

Harsh or not, Francis is right. During Lent, we resolve to sacrifice sweets or to fast on Fridays. We attend Mass. We volunteer or contribute funds to some good cause. We read spiritual books. We pray. We visit a sick friend or perform some sincere act of charity. We might even begin to think of ourselves as "Good Christians." And that's the problem!

Francis always worried that his friars and followers would become complacent and confident in their spiritual lives; in their efforts to live according to the gospel; in their efforts to imitate Christ Jesus. He worried that his followers -- even those just called to be "Franciscans in Spirit" -- would think of themselves as "Good Christians."

Read again these words: "There is great shame for us, the servants of God, that while the saints actually performed such deeds, we wish to receive glory and honor by merely talking about them."

As Christians, we must remember always that we are imperfect. We are wounded in heart and soul. We are weak. We are small. Despite our best intentions, we are destined to stumble, destined to fall. After Mass, we might gossip about our priest or a fellow parishioner. We might fail to forgive someone who has angered us, insulted us, or slighted us in some way. We might set aside our prayer books for our favorite television show. We might sacrifice our time for prayer itself because we believe that we are too busy or too tired. We might convince ourselves that we are "good" because we think that we are "good."

Harsh Words & Great Hope

Again, these are harsh words. They are true words. They are the timeless folly of the human experience. Francis traveled the known world -- on foot. He experienced such folly in his own life, in the lives of those who sought to follow him down the gospel's narrow path, and in the lives of those to whom he preached. Francis knew the ultimate weakness of the human will. He knew the ultimate smallness of the human heart.

Francis also knew and he teaches us through his admonitions that there is a way to overcome our weakness and our folly: the way of Christ Jesus. Read again and pray over his words:

"Let us all look to the Good Shepherd who suffered the passion of the Cross to save his sheep. The sheep of the Lord followed him in suffering and persecution, in insult and hunger, in infirmity and temptation, and in everything else, and they have received everlasting life from the Lord because of these things. There is great shame for us, the servants of God, that while the saints actually performed such deeds, we wish to receive glory and honor by merely talking about them."

There is great hope in this warning! Through this admonition, Francis teaches us that we must be ever vigilant, ever mindful of our thoughts, words, and actions. He teaches us that like the true saints (those "sheep of the Lord"), we are called to follow Christ Jesus in all suffering and persecution, all insult and hunger, all sickness and temptation, and in all things, always. As believers called to be "Franciscans in Spirit", we are called to follow the way of Christ Jesus, the way of the Cross. We are called through our smallness and through our weakness to be holy, to suffer with joy, to hunger with happiness, to forgive without reservation -- all for the sake of heaven.

In this harsh and hopeful light, we remain human. We will stumble. We will fall. But we are called to rise, to lift high our cross, and to carry it -- in imitation of the true saints, in imitation of the One who suffered for us, for love of us, for ever and ever. Amen.

Saint Francis, pray for us!

Saint Clare, pray for us!

Holy men and women of Assisi, pray for us!

2011-03-20T05:00:00.000-04:00

NEW!

ASSISI PROJECT 2011

HOLY LAND PILGRIMAGE

October 26, 2011-November 3, 2011

For the past three years, more than thirty adult parishioners have met once each month for Mass, a community supper, and a period of faith formation and discussion -- a spiritual journey dedicated to living more deeply as disciples of Christ as exemplified by Saint Francis and Saint Clare of Assisi.

The culmination of each year's formation and prayer has been a pilgrimage and retreat to Assisi and Rome, where we literally walked in the footsteps of our patron saints, prayed in their great basilicas, visited Vatican City, and also spent much time each day in prayer, spiritual discussion, and worship.

Pilgrimage and retreat has always been a basic component of the Franciscan spiritual tradition. During his lifetime, Saint Francis journeyed on foot throughout the known world to preach the gospel. Some scholars believe that Francis actually visited the Holy Land. So, in 2011, after much deliberation and prayer, our group has decided to prepare for a pilgrimage to the Holy Land from October 26, 2011 through November 3, 2011!

During this nine day pilgrimage (managed by Collette Vacations), we will celebrate Mass each day and visit the following cities and sites: Bethlehem, Cana, Capernaum, Jaffa, Jerusalem, Nazareth, the Mount of Olives, the Mount of the Beatitudes, Mount Zion, the Sea of Galilee, the Church of the Nativity, the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, and the Wailing Wall.

All adult parishioners are welcome to join the Assisi Project. You don't need to travel with us to be a part of our spiritual fellowship. Anyone interested in strengthening their spiritual life through the Franciscan tradition is welcome to join us!

In addition to next year's pilgrimage, the Assisi Project offers opportunities for adult faith formation, fellowship, prayer and retreat. If you would like to learn more about the Assisi Project, our opportunities for faith formation and retreat, or our pilgrimage to the Holy Land, please contact Cliff Garvey at assisiproject@ymail.com. May the Lord give you peace!

2011-03-13T15:57:00.005-04:00

FIRST WEEK OF LENT: "DISTRACTIONS"

Each Sunday during this Holy Season of Lent, we will offer a reflection based on the life and writings of Saint Francis and Saint Clare of Assisi. We hope and pray that you will find these reflections helpful as you walk with Christ Jesus on the long road toward his passion, death, and resurrection.

An Admonition of Saint Francis of Assisi

Let every creature in heaven, on earth,

in the sea and in the depths,

give praise, glory, honor and blessing

to Him Who suffered so much,

who has given and will give in the future every good,

for He is our power and strength,

who alone is good,

who alone is almighty,

who alone is omnipotent, wonderful, glorious

and who alone is holy,

worthy of praise and blessing through endless ages.

Amen.

Saint Francis of Assisi

Later Admonition and Exhortation to the Brothers and Sisters of Penance

Distractions

I am lucky that I do not have very far to commute in the morning to work or in the evening from work. But I have seen some strange things in the cars around me. I have seen a man attempting to spread cream cheese on his bagel while driving. I have seen women putting on make-up or lip gloss while driving. I have seen someone reading the morning newspaper while driving. And I confess: I still sometime send text messages while driving.

Distractions! Some morning commuters and their rituals exemplify our human tendency toward distractions. While the primary duty of safe driving is to focus on the road, some drivers risk their lives (and ours) by driving while distracted by other activities or concerns.

The Gospel for the First Sunday of Lent invites us to reflect on Jesus and his ability to focus on his divine mission even while he was being tempted by Satan. The forty days and forty nights Jesus spent in the desert were in preparation for his salvific work: preaching, teaching, healing, dying and rising. His entire being (heart, mind, body, and will) was singularly focused on doing the will of the Father. Yet, like us, Jesus was tempted by distractions from this mission through Satan's seductions.

Truly, Jesus was hungry, having fasted for those forty days and nights. Satan attacks Jesus first in this bodily weakness. "If you are the Son of God, command that these become loaves of bread." Bread would have satisfied Jesus' physical hunger. But his spiritual hunger is even more life-giving. Despite this temptation, Jesus remains focused on God the Father and on his spirtual need and rebuffs Satan with the Scripture: "One does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes forth from the mouth of God." Jesus passes this first temptation.

Satan tries again to distract Jesus and brings him to the top of the temple in Jerusalem. Deviously, Satan also uses Holy Scripture to tempt Christ in jumping and proving his divinity: "If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down. For it written: he will command his angels . . . to support you, lest you dash your foot against a stone." But Jesus is not so easily seduced or distracted. He answers: "You shall not put the Lord, your God, to the test." Jesus remains focused and passes this second temptation.

Despite these setbacks, Satan is not so easily deterred or shaken from his resolve to distract Jesus from his mission and from remaining faithful to the Father. Satan finally presents to Jesus all the kingdoms, all the glories, all the power, all the riches, and all the pleasures of the world. Insidiously, Satan offers this incredible deal: "All these I shall give to you, if you will prostrate yourself and worship me." All your heart's desires for a simple bow? Such a deal!

But not for Jesus. Jesus sees the hearts of all creatures. He sees the trap and the lure of Satan. Jesus rebukes him: "Get away, Satan! The Lord, your God, shall you worship and him alone shall you serve!" As Jesus would throughout his life and ministry, he held firm, remained focused, and defeated the darkness.

Some would argue that Jesus could resist Satan's offers and distractions only because he is the Son of God. But Jesus also remained focused and faithful to his mission because his will is so perfectly united with the Father's will. Some would argue that we are not as strong as Jesus. Indeed, we are weak. We are more easily distracted. But this is not the whole story.

We also have the power to resist Satan's allurements and distractions. We also can remain focused on doing the Father's will. We have been baptized into Christ's death and resurrection and have become children of God. Therefore, we have the power to choose the Lord! We also can remain focused like Jesus! We can be faithful like Jesus! We have his grace!

In his early life, Saint Francis of Assisi was distracted by the pleasures of his day and the worldly enticements of a life of leisure. His personal desires, such as being a knight, distracted him from listening to the voice of Jesus and his true mission. It was only after being held for one year as a prisoner of war that worldly pleasures no longer distracted him. Francis began to listen and long for something different. By opening his heart and mind to the call of Christ, Francis heard the voice of the Savior speak to him from the cross: "Go! Rebuild my church!" After his conversion, Francis was so focused on faithfully following Christ in charity, poverty, and simplicity, that he was blessed to receive the stigmata.

In our lives, we face distractions as we drive down life's highways. But by remaining focused, by putting the Lord our God first, by keeping Him first in our life, we can also say with faith and conviction: "Get away, Satan!"

For more information about the Assisi Project and our opportunities for adult faith formation, pilgrimage, and retreat, please contact us at assisiproject@ymail.com. May the Lord give you peace -- now and always!

Saint Francis, pray for us!

Saint Clare, pray for us!

Holy men and women of Assisi, pray for us!

2011-03-13T15:56:00.004-04:00

NEW!

ASSISI PROJECT 2011

HOLY LAND PILGRIMAGE

October 26, 2011-November 3, 2011

2011-02-06T05:00:00.004-05:00

NEW!

ASSISI PROJECT 2011

LENT DAY OF SILENT PRAYER

Saturday, March 12, 2011

On Saturday, March 12th, Father Richard Flaherty will join Cliff Garvey and members of our Assisi Project in hosting a "Lent Day of Silent Prayer" from 9:00am until 3:00pm in the Parish Center.

The "Lent Day of Silent Prayer" is a day-long mini-retreat that will include Mass, Eucharistic Adoration, an opportunity for Confession, three spiritual presentations, and lunch (along with coffee and tea throughout the day). Each participant will be provided with reading material and assigned their own "prayer room" for silent prayer and reflection.

The cost is $30.oo per person ($50.00 per couple) and includes lunch. If you would like to participate in the Lent Day of Silent Prayer, please contact Cliff Garvey at assisiproject@ymail.com. Please keep in mind that space is very limited! So, if you are interested in this very special event, please contact us as soon as possible! May the Lord give you peace!

2011-02-06T05:00:00.000-05:00

NEW!

ASSISI PROJECT 2011

HOLY LAND PILGRIMAGE

October 26, 2011-November 3, 2011

In addition to next year's pilgrimage, the Assisi Project will offer opportunities for adult faith formation, fellowship, prayer and retreat. If you would like to learn more about the Assisi Project, our opportunities for faith formation and retreat, or our pilgrimage to the Holy Land, please contact Cliff Garvey at assisiproject@ymail.com. May the Lord give you peace at Christmas and throughout the New Year!

2010-12-19T09:52:00.011-05:00

NEW!

CHRISTMAS

EMMANUEL: "GOD WITH US"

Gospel of Saint Matthew (1:18-24)

This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about.

When his mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph,

but before they lived together,

she was found with child through the Holy Spirit.

Joseph, her husband, since he was a righteous man,

yet unwilling to expose her to shame,

decided to divorce her quietly.

Such was his intention when, behold,

the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said,

"Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid

to take Mary your wife into your home.

For it is through the Holy Spirit

that this child has been conceived in her.

She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus,

because he will save his people from their sins."

All this took place to fulfill

what the Lord had said through the prophet:

'Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,

and they shall name him Emmanuel,'

which means 'God with us.'

When Joseph awoke,

he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him

and took his wife into his home.

Connections

In our modern world, we have numerous technological ways of being "connected" with family, friends, and colleagues: e-mail, tweeting, skyping, facebook, or texting. Yet, each of these communication tools lacks something: intimacy. There is little physical human interaction. It seems that speaking face to face, sharing a cup of coffee or tea, or enjoying a meal with another is always the better option for relationship and relating to others.

In a similar way, God has connected with his people throughout salvation history. In the scriptures, we can reflect on how God has interacted with his people: calling Abraham from Ur to the Promised Land; leading the Israelites from their slavery in Egypt through Moses; establishing his presence in the temple amidst the people of Jerusalem through Kings David and Solomon; and speaking through the prophets and reminding His people to return to their God. God constantly reached out to us. God desires to be with us.

Despite these connections, the people of God often failed to respond to the Lord. Sometimes, God's efforts at reaching out were rejected! The people of God failed to uphold the commandments, searched for other gods and idols to worship, and treated the widows, the poor, and the orphans of the world with contempt and injustice. Even when God's people refused to accept God's connections, God continued to seek a way to connect more intimately with us, with his people.

Emmanuel: God With Us

And so, as the Gospel of Saint Matthew reminds us and the Gospel Saint John will remind us on Christmas Day, God sent us his only Son: not to condemn the world but to save it. During this Advent season, we celebrate God's decision to become one like us except for sin. We prepare for Emmanuel, God-with-us. God's coming to earth is God's most intimate connection of all!

Now, through Emmanuel, we can see our God face to face! Now, through Jesus, we can hear the word of God spoken directly by Him! Now, through God-with-us, we can experience his touch through his healing miracles!

While we now can see our God in the flesh, God too can understand better our human condition. Emmanuel can understand our pain and sufferings through his own. Emmanuel can understand our temptations and struggles through his own.

In his lifetime, Saint Francis understood "God-with-us" in his ministry to the poor and lepers of Assisi. He could see the face of Christ in the outcasts and the rejected of world. And with Christ-like love and compassion, he tended to their wounds, to their needs, and to their desires for belonging. In the end, Francis experienced the most direct presence of Emmanuel through the gift of the stigmata, receiving the wounds of Christ.

In these final days before Christmas, may we continue to pray for the gift of God being with us. May we, in turn, give the gifts of God's presence to others through our acts of charity and words of encouragement. And so, let us pray:

For our parish community, we pray: Hail Mary...

For our departed brothers and sisters, we pray: Hail Mary...

For the Church throughout the world, we pray: Hail Mary....

Our Father...

Almighty God and Father,

your eternal Word took flesh on our earth

when the Virgin Mary placed her life at the service of your plan.

Lift our minds in watchful hope to hear the voice

which announces his glory and open our minds

to receive the Spirit who prepare us for his coming.

We ask this through Christ Jesus, our Lord.

Amen.

Saint Francis, pray for us!

Saint Clare, pray for us!

Saint Joseph, pray for us!

Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception, pray for us!

2010-11-28T07:31:00.012-05:00

NEW!

FIRST WEEK OF ADVENT

A GOLDEN THREAD of DEVOTION to the VIRGIN MARY

Introduction: A Story of Assisi

Two pilgrims make their way to the Carceri, the hermitage nestled high in the slope of Mount Subasio, which looms over the walled city of Assisi. Francis and his first followers retreated here from the world. They walked in these woods. They dug shallow caves in these woods. They prayed here for the courage to live according to the gospel and for the whole Church.

Eight centuries later, a small convent remains. It was built over the cave of the little poor one of Assisi. A community of friars and nuns remains, too. They live and pray and work by the rule established by Francis so long ago. They lovingly maintain the place where Francis came to pray and rest.

Our two pilgrims had been here before, but the ancient chapels and the stairway to the cave of Saint Francis had always been closed. The day is dark. Heavy rain is falling. But today, the chapels and stairway are open. They descend into the depths of the ancient convent. They pray in the chapels. They pray at the cave of the saint. They walk outside in the rain along paths covered with a thick blanket of fallen leaves.

They re-enter the convent and again approach the cave that shielded Francis from the harsh weather of this mountain retreat. An old nun appears. She waters a peace lily with a plastic jug. She excuses herself and leaves. The pilgrims climb up the low and narrow stairway and return to the chapels.

One pilgrim briefly remains behind. He sits on a stone step before a simple altar. An aged and faded fresco of the Blessed Virgin Mary is the only decoration. He prays silently. In the chapel nearby, the nun returns. She busies herself by sweeping the floor. When the pilgrim leaves, then nun greets him with a smile and watery eyes. She looks deep into his eyes. She takes him by the hand and says: "It is good that you pray to the Blessed Mother. It is good. God bless you." Astonished, the pilgrim leaves quickly, deeply moved by the goodness and simple wisdom of this woman who has dedicated her entire life to prayer and service.

Solemn Novena of the Immaculate Conception:

Praying for Our Parish Family

It is good that we pray for the Blessed Virgin Mary's intercession! As those striving to become Franciscans in spirit, this story reminds us that Francis and Clare were devoted to the Virgin Mary. They found solace and strength in her prayers for them. In prayer, they did not see Mary adorned with royal crowns and vestments. Rather, they saw her as she lived on earth: a simple maiden; always poor, humble, and ever ready to accept and act upon God's will. Her motto was their motto: "Let it be done unto me according to your word (Luke 1:38)."

Love for and devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary has been called the "golden thread" of the worldwide Franciscan community: an unbroken thread of prayer and service that extends from Francis and Clare to the present day. As "Franciscans in Spirit", some of us are single. Some of us are married. Some of us are parents and grandparents. Some of us are widowed. However, all of us share a common vocation: prayer and service.

Each year, beginning on November 29th and concluding on December 8th, the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, Franciscans throughout the world pray the Solemn Novena of the Immaculate Conception. Let us join in this annual tradition by praying this novena. Let us dedicate our prayers for our own sake, but most especially for the needs and concerns of our parish family.

Click HERE for the Solemn Novena of the Immaculate Conception!

For our parish community, we pray: Hail Mary...

For our departed brothers and sisters, we pray: Hail Mary...

For the Church throughout the world, we pray: Hail Mary....

Our Father...

Almighty God and Father,

accept the prayers we offer in preparation for the feast

of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

As we proclaim her to have been preserved from all sin by your grace,

Grant that through her intercession,

we and our parish family may be freed from our sins.

We make our prayer through Christ Jesus, our Lord.

Saint Francis, pray for us!

Saint Clare, pray for us!

Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception, pray for us!

2010-11-28T05:00:00.005-05:00

NEW!

ASSISI PROJECT ADVENT SPECIAL EVENT

THE FRANCISCAN ROSARY

Saturday, December 11th at 9:00am

Saturday, December 18th at 9:00am

All are welcome to join the Assisi Project in praying the Franciscan or "Crown" Rosary on Saturday, December 11th and Saturday, December 18th at 9:00am in the Parish Center Conference Room (second floor). The Franciscan Rosary is a perfect compliment to our life or prayer during Advent because it teaches us to meditate on seven joyful episodes in the life of the Mother of God.

In the early middle ages, most Christians were unable to read or understand the scriptures. At the dawn of the thirteenth century, a new sequence of prayer was introduced so that these believers could maintain their relationship with God through the scriptures. In this way, the Rosary was born. In short order, it became one of the most popular forms of personal prayer and devotion. At the beginning of the fifteenth century, the Franciscan Rosary was introduced.

According to tradition, a young Franciscan was tempted to abandon his vocation. He was visited by the Virgin Mary who encouraged him in prayer and in the Franciscan way of life. The Mother of God taught him to meditate each day upon seven joyful episodes in her life: the Annunciation; the Visitation; the Nativity; the Adoration of the Magi; the finding of Jesus in the temple; the encounter with the risen Jesus; and her crowning as Queen of Heaven.

The Franciscan Rosary is prayed like a normal rosary, but consists of seven decades (not five), followed by two additional Hail Marys. The total of 72 prayers represents the age reached by the Virgin Mary in her life on earth. The Franciscan Rosary concludes with an Our Father, a Hail Mary, a Glory Be, the Hail Holy Queen, and a final prayer.

If you have questions, need more information, or would like to join us in praying the Franciscan Rosary, please contact Cliff Garvey at c_garvey@rcabcuria.org. Please join us! All are welcome! May the Lord give you peace during this blessed season of Advent!

2010-11-14T06:00:00.008-05:00

ASSISI PROJECT 2010
THIRD ANNUAL PILGRIMAGE & RETREAT
NOVEMBER 6 THROUGH NOVEMBER 13

For nearly three years, 30 members of our faith community have dedicated themselves to living more deeply as disciples of Christ through their shared devotion to Saints Francis and Clare of Assisi. Their spiritual journey has included Mass, the Liturgy of the Hours, scripture and book studies, monthly suppers, and a fall weekend retreat.

From Saturday, November 6th through Saturday, November 13th, six members of our faith community participated in our third annual pilgrimage and retreat to Assisi and Rome, Italy. During their week-long journey, these pilgrims literally walked in the footsteps of Saints Francis and Clare, pray at their tombs, and tour Saint Peter's Basilica in Rome.

The trip was not a vacation or tour, but rather a serious spiritual exercise. Our pilgrims lived with the Franciscan Sisters of the Atonement, prayed together at Mass and during Morning, Evening Prayer, and Night Prayer, engaged in discussion and faith sharing, and shared simple meals.

What follows below are daily posts from our week in Assisi and Rome. We hope that these posts provide you with some sense of the peace that pervades Assisi and the awesome majesty of Saint Peter's Basilica and Vatican City.

If you would like to learn more about the Assisi Project and our opportunities for adult faith formation, retreat, and pilgrimage both at home and abroad, please contact Cliff Garvey at c_garvey@rcabcuria.org. May the Lord give you peace!

ASSISI PROJECT PILGRIMAGE & RETREAT
ARRIVAL IN ASSISI
Sunday, November 7, 2010 (Day One)

Buongiorno! After a seven hour flight from Boston to Roma on Alitalia and after a harrowing three hours on the highways of Italy, we six pilgrims have arrived in Assisi, weary and tired but overjoyed to be back! Sister Denise welcomed us with open arms to the Saint Anthony Guesthouse. We are excited about beginning this retreat and pilgrimage together and praying with the saints of Assisi, Francis and Clare!

This afternoon will be a quiet afternoon. The pilgrims will gather in the small chapel in the guesthouse for Mass and evening prayer together at 6:00pm and then head out for a delicious supper. And it will be early to bed.

Please keep us in your prayers as we will remember all of you in ours!

May the Lord give you peace!

Saint Francis, pray for us!
Saint Claire, pray for us!
Holy men and women of Assisi, pray for us!

ASSISI PROJECT RETREAT & PILGRIMAGE
BECOMING LITTLE CHRISTS
Monday Morning, November 8, 2010 (Day Two)

Buongiorno! May the Lord give you peace!

We awoke this morning to a cloudy and overcast day in Assisi. We enjoyed a simple breakfast of fresh breads and cereals and coffee and juice. Following breakfast, we gathered in the chapel for Morning Prayer and returned to the library for our first conference of the retreat.

Along with the Liturgy of the Hours and personal prayer, we are also using a small book by Albert Haase, O.F.M. titled "Reflections on the Peace Prayer of Saint Francis of Assisi." In each chapter of the book, Father Haase shares reflections on each line of the Peace Prayer (see below). In the first four chapters, Father Haase invites us to become more like Christ in our lives and follow the Divine Master. The prayer encourages each of us to move from the ego of "me" to "thee" opening and sharing our lives.

Father Haase writes:

"We realize and acknowledge that the universe was not designed to revolve around me and my petty wants and desires. Indeed, by virtue of my baptism, I am called to walk in the footprints of Jesus, who, in emptying himself, surrendering and serving God's will, has become the Lord and Divine Master of the universe. (p. 12-13)"

After the conference, we had some quiet personal time and celebrated Mass. This afternoon, we will have a pilgrimage walk through Assisi, led by a local guide by the name of Romana. And in the evening, we will gather for Evening Prayer and dinner.

We invite you to pray each day with us the Peace Prayer for your intentions and the intentions of the Assisi Project:

Lord, make me and instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
and where there is sadness, joy.
O Divine Master, grant that I many not so much seek
to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love.
For it is giving that we receive;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
Amen.

Our Father, Hail Mary, & Glory be . . .

Saint Francis, pray for us!
Saint Clare, pray for us!
Holy men and women of Assisi, pray for us!

ASSISI PROJECT PILGRIMAGE & RETREAT
FOLLOWING THE FOOTSTEPS OF THE MASTER
Tuesday, November 9, 2010 (Day Three)

Buongiorno! May the Lord give you peace!

Yesterday afternoon, we had a "pilgrim's walk" through the town of Assisi, following the footsteps of Francis and Clare. We met our guide, Romana, at the Basilica of Saint Clare and learned that it was built after Clare's death to protect her tomb and house the community of Poor C
lares. In addition, the Sisters brought with them the crucifix that had spoken to Francis in the Church of San Damiano. Today, the chiesa is still active with a cloistered community of sisters who take care of the church, the crucifix and the body of their mother Saint Clare with love and devotion.

We continued our walk to the Piazza Commune, the c
enter of town, where Francis had renounced his wealth and his earthly father. It is there that Francis begin his public ministry. We continued in our journey to the Basilica of San Francis which is actually three churches.

The original Lower Basilica was built in the 13th century immediately after Francis was canonized (about a year after his death). The Lower Basilica was built to protect Francis' remains since it would have been a prized possession. His remains remained unknown under the Lower Basilica until the 19th century when a crypt Church was built and opened for pilgrims to come and venerate the relics of Saint Francis. This morning, we will be celebrating Mass in the crypt in front of the remains of Saint Francis. Celebrating Mass in the crypt is a great honor and was arranged by our friend, Archbishop Francisco Viti who had visited Boston last month and spent time with the Assisi Project group and the community of faith at Saint Anthony's in Cambridge. We will celebrate Mass with the intentions of the Assisi Project and the parishioners at Saint Charles in Woburn and Saint Anthony in Cambridge.

Our final stop on the pilgrim's walk was the Upper Basilica where we can see the life of Saint Francis depicted in 24 frescoes painted by Giotto. Stunning! Beautiful!

ASSISI PROJECT PILGRIMAGE & RETREAT
WHERE THERE IS INJURY, PARDON
Tuesday, November 9, 2010 (Day Three)

Salve! May the Lord give you peace!

This morning's conference focused on the two seeds of injury & pardon and doubt & faith. Father Haase challenges us in his reflections about the requirement that our Master Jesus has for each of us - to forgive. We forgive, Father H
aase writes, not because it's rational but because it is a requirement. Forgiveness can be a cure for closure in our lives. We do not forget the memories of the hurts when we forgive or we are not left without scars, but the wounds are no longer bleeding. Father Haase continues that forgiving is a decision and a commitment to "thee." Again, we are moving from "me" to "you".

At the end of the chapter on his reflection about pardoning, Father Haase concludes:

"Having asked to sow the seeds of love amid hatred, I am now reminded that the hatred often grows out of an injury inflicted upon me. This prayer suggests that I possess the ability to close the door on hurts and betrayals. It is a simple act of the will: I refuse to dwell on "me" and my wounds. Indeed, I can experience a dimension of Easter peace by dedicating myself to "thee" and offering love, pardon and forgiveness consistently, freely, and unconditionally to anyone who injures me.

Take time today to reflect on the grudges and resentments in your life and ask our Master Jesus to help enlighten the choices needed to lead to dialogue, understanding and closure. And we invite you to pray with us the Peace Prayer for your own personal intentions and the intentions of the Assisi Project:

Lord, make me and instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
and where there is sadness, joy.
O Divine Master, grant that I many not so much seek
to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love.
For it is giving that we receive;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
Amen.

Our Father, Hail Mary, & Glory be . . .

Saint Francis, pray for us!
Saint Clare, pray for us!
Holy men and women of Assisi, pray for us!

ASSISI PROJECT PILGRIMAGE & RETREAT
Wednesday, November 10, 2010 (Day Four)

Salve! May the Lord give you peace!

As pilgrims to Assisi, we hope for good weather for our walks and quiet times outdoors. Yet, the weather so far has been unpredictable this week. We arrived on Sunday with partly cloudy skies and peaks of the sun. Monday, cloudy with periods of rain and some sun in the late afternoon. Unfortunately, Tuesday brought torrential downpours throughout the day. Many of the Assisi Project pilgrims got caught in these downpours. And yet, even in the midst of the rains cascading down the streets of Assisi and battering the windows of the guesthouse or soaking the clothing of the pilgrims, there is still beauty. As Francis would sing, O Brother Rain!

There was an incredible double rainbow in the late afternoon over Assisi. These pictures were taken from the guest house. And as the afternoon waned, Brother Sun began his daily setting and provided a beautiful backdrop to the Basilica of Saint Clare.

We continue to pray for all of our families and friends back home, for the intentions of the Assisi Project, and of our faith communities at Sai
nt Charles and Saint Anthony. We invite you to pray with us the Peace Prayer for your own personal intentions and the intentions of the Assisi Project:

Lord, make me and instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
and where there is sadness, joy.
O Divine Master, grant that I many not so much seek
to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love.
For it is giving that we receive;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
Amen.

Our Father, Hail Mary, & Glory be . . .

Saint Francis, pray for us!
Saint Clare, pray for us!
Holy men and women of Assisi, pray for us!

ASSISI PROJECT RETREAT & PILGRIMAGE
SEEDS OF HOPE & LIGHT
Wednesday, November 10, 2010 (Day Four)

Salve! May the Lord give you peace!

This morning, we reflected on Father Albert's Haase's chapters on hope and light. In our lives as disciples of the Master Jesus, we encounter moments, times, and situations of pain, hurt, darkness, and hopelessness. Yet, as disciples of the Master and following in his footsteps, we are also called to hope. Hope, as Father Haase defines it, is "an emotion that literally saves us from the present moment we struggle to accept. It gives near-sighted, fixated on the disappointment or tragedy before "me", a pair of glasses to look beyond - to tomorrow, next month, next year (p. 41)."

Hope is forward looking and inspires us with God's grace to keep pushing ahead, to rebuild, to go beyond the moment. In our baptismal and funeral liturgies, the Church gives us signs of hope and of light - the Easter candle, the white garment, the holy water. All these symbols and actions of blessing with the holy water, wearing the white garment and lighting the Pashcal candle remind each one of us of the hope we have in Christ Jesus. From the moment of baptism of becoming a new creation in Christ until the moment of death, our lives look forward with the hope of eternal life with Christ in heaven. And not only life with the Lord but with all of our loved ones.

Father Haase concludes that "godly deeds such as love, forgiveness, consolation, understanding and charity mentioned in the Peace Prayer, illumine a world often darkened by the ego's hatred, revenge, callousness, apathy and greed. Such deeds flare up from these insights burning and fanned within the hearts of the enlightened (p. 51)."

Today, take time to think about those moments in your life where you may have experienced despair, hopelessness, darkness, hurt or disapp
ointment. What gave you hope? Who gave you hope? Where did the light come from?

We invite you to pray with us the Peace Prayer for your own personal intentions and the intentions of the Assisi Project:

Lord, make me and instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
and where there is sadness, joy.
O Divine Master, grant that I many not so much seek
to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love.
For it is giving that we receive;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
Amen.

Our Father, Hail Mary, & Glory be . . .

Saint Francis, pray for us!
Saint Clare, pray for us!
Holy men and women of Assisi, pray for us!

ASSISI PROJECT PILGRIMAGE & RETREAT
Thursday, November 11, 2011 (Day Five)

Salve! May the Lord give you peace!

Yesterday, we visited the sanctuary of San Damiano where Francis first heard the call to conversion through the cross hanging in that church. Later, the sanctuary would house the first community of Poor Clares with Clare, her sister Agnes and others. It is also the spot where Clare died. The sanctuary is a short walk (one mile) from the walls of Assisi and we intended to walk. However, the rains came just as the pilgrims were making their way through the Porta Nuova and out of Assisi. So, we took a taxi. We spent a few minutes walking through the convent and then prayed a holy hour in the same church where Francis prayed. There was a heavenly silence and quiet which helped us listen for the voice of Christ in our own hearts.

This morning (Thursday), we continued with our retreat including morning prayer, conference and Mass. During the conference, we reflected on the seeds of joy and trying to console, understand, and love others. These actions can help each one of us move from the "me" to the "thee" as we have prayed with the Peace Prayer.

Tonight, we are heading to the Basilica of Saint Clare for sung Vespers with the cloistered sisters. In the chapel of Saint George we will listen to the psalms sung in Italian under the San Damiano cross, the one which spoke to Francis. It is always a joy to be there for Vespers!

Finally, we will have dinner with Bishop Francisco Viti, our spiritual father and friend. It will be our last meal in Assisi as we end our retreat here and begin our journey home via Rome and Vatican City!

We continue to pray for each of you. Please pray for us! We invite you to pray with us the Peace Prayer for your own personal intentions and the intentions of the Assisi Project:

Lord, make me and instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
and where there is sadness, joy.
O Divine Master, grant that I many n
ot so much seek
to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love.
For it is giving that we receive;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
Amen.

Our Father, Hail Mary, & Glory be . . .

Saint Francis, pray for us!
Saint Clare, pray for us!
Holy men and women of Assisi, pray for us!

ASSISI PROJECT PILGRIMAGE & RETREAT
CHURCH OF SAN DAMIANO
Thursday, November 11, 2010 (Day Five)

Salve! May the Lord give you peace! Here are a few photographs from our time spent in prayer at San Damiano.

This is the entrance to the Church and to the cloister. There is still a small but active community of friars and sisters here.

In the cloister, we can walk through where Clare and her original community lived and prayed. The picture above shows the spot where Saint Clare died on August 11, 1253. A simple flame burns to remind us of the presence of such a holy woman.

Saint Francis would come numerous times to San Damiano before and after his conversion. Near the end of his life he would spend time here praying and writing the "Canticle of the Creatures." This statue sits outside the church and cloister overlooking the valley. Pace e Bene!

ASSISI PROJECT PILGRIMAGE & RETREAT
DEPARTING ASSISI FOR ROME
Friday, November 12, 2010 (Day Six)

Salve! May the Lord give you peace!

After a wonderful week of retreat and pilgrimage, we finally had to say good-bye to Assisi and to the sisters at the guesthouse and make our way home via Rome.

We celebrated a Mass of Thanksgiving at 7:00am local time (1:00am EST) with Sister Alessandra and Sister Sue. During the Mass, the pilgrims were presented with a Tau and a wood engraving print of Saint Francis as keepsakes of their retreat in Assisi. We hope these small gifts will remind the pilgrims this year's retreat and encourage them to remain close to the Lord with the help of Francis and Clare. The pilgrims were presented with the Tau with these words: "Christ is counting on you!" And the pilgrims each responded: "And I on him!" There were bittersweet tears of joy and sadness!

After Mass we had our usual simple breakfast of fresh bread, coffee, and juice. We packed our things. A few pilgrims walked to the Basilica of Saint Clare to say goodbye and we gathered for morning prayer. After many hugs and goodbyes to the Sisters, we hopped in our small van driven by a Roman local by name of Sergio. If you think Boston driving is bad, take a ride with Sergio! The handles came into much use in that car! Dio mio!

We have arrived in Roma and our hotel near Saint Peter's Basilica. The pilgrims our heading out to visit the basilica and the neighborhood surrounding Vatican City. We will gather later for a short conference and dinner. Check back later for some pictures and some final words. Tomorrow, we depart for home.

We continue to pray for each of you. Please pray for us! We invite you to pray the Peace Prayer for your own personal intentions and the intentions of the Assisi Project:

Lord, make me and instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
and where there is sadness, joy.
O Divine Master, grant that I many not so much seek
to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love.
For it is giving that we receive;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
Amen.

Our Father, Hail Mary, & Glory be . . .

Saint Francis, pray for us!
Saint Clare, pray for us!
Holy men and women of Assisi, pray for us!
Saint Peter & Saint Paul, pray for us!
Holy martyrs of Rome, pray for us!

ASSISI PROJECT PILGRIM
AGE & RETREAT
VATICAN CITY & SAINT PETER'S BASILICA
Friday Evening, November 12, 2010 (Day Six)

Salve! May the Lord give you peace!

It has been a hectic day after restful and peaceful retreat and pilgrimage to Assisi. The city of Roma has always been fast paced and noisy, even around the Vatican. But we pilgrims had a wonderful afternoon visiting the Basilica de San Pietro and enjoying a great dinner and making a quick stop at the Trevi Fountain to ensure our return to Rome! Below are a few pictures from our afternoon in the Eternal City:

View of San Pietro from the Hotel Columbus

The main aisle in Saint Peter's Basilica

In the rear of the Saint Peter's Basilica is a chapel with this beautiful stain-glassed window of the Holy Spirit. In the late afternoon, the sun come through this window and it is breathtaking!

Saint Peter's Basilica at night

As always, we continue to pray for each of you. Please pray for us! We invite you to pray the Peace Prayer for your own personal intentions and the intentions of the Assisi Project:

Lord, make me and instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
and where there is sadness, joy.
O Divine Master, grant that I many not so much seek
to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love.
For it is giving that we receive;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
Amen.

Our Father, Hail Mary, & G
lory be . . .

Saint Francis, pray for us!
Saint Claire, pray for us!
Holy men and women of Assisi, pray for us!
Saint Peter & Saint Paul, pray for us!
Holy martyrs of Rome, pray for us!

ASSISI PROJECT PILGRIMAGE & RETREAT

GOODBYE, ITALY!

Saturday, November 13, 2010 (Day Seven)

Salve! May the Lord give you peace!

With sadness in our hearts, we are finishing packing and preparing to leave for the airport in a few minutes. Our time in Italy, especially our retreat and pilgrimage in Assisi, has been a grace offered by our Master Jesus. As we leave Italy this morning, we are each challenged to live the lessons of the Peace Prayer in our lives. In a particular way, it is in giving that we receive. And this week, our Master Jesus has given us much in prayer and pilgrimage. It is now our turn to give to others and share the love of Christ with our brothers and sisters.

We are scheduled on Alitalia Flight 614 at 10:00am (4:00am EST) and we will arrive in Boston around 1:30pm. We will then have to clear customs and passport control and hopefully we be meeting our rides around 2:00pm. You can follow our progress at www.flightview.com. The airline code is AZ and flight number is 614. Pray for safe travels and return for us!

As always, we continue to pray for each of you. Please pray for us! We invite you to pray the Peace Prayer for your own personal intentions and the intentions of the Assisi Project:

Lord, make me and instrument of your peace.

Where there is hatred, let me sow love;

where there is injury, faith;

where there is despair, hope;

where there is darkness, light;

and where there is sadness, joy.

O Divine Master, grant that I many not so much seek

to be consoled as to console;

to be understood as to understand;

to be loved as to love.

For it is giving that we receive;

it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;

and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.

Amen.

Our Father, Hail Mary, & Glory be . . .

Saint Francis, pray for us!

Saint Clare, pray for us!

Holy men and women of Assisi, pray for us!

Saint Peter & Saint Paul, pray for us!

Holy martyrs of Rome, pray for us!

2010-11-07T00:02:00.000-04:00

NEW!

ASSISI PROJECT ONLINE RETREAT

LIVING SCRIPTURE WITH FRANCIS & CLARE

WEEK IV: FINAL BLESSING

Introduction

In early October, twenty-eight members of the Assisi Project participated in our first annual weekend retreat in Andover, Massachusetts. During the retreat, our group participated in a series of faith formation exercises with the theme of "Living Scripture with Francis & Clare." Last week, our four-week, online version of the retreat continued with a reflection about the enduring and eternal qualities of our Creator and the call to give him praise and thanks.

This week, our online retreat concludes with a "Final Blessing." So, take a few minutes, turn off your cell phone and television, and join us for the following spiritual exercise in prayer and reflection. And may the Lord give you peace!

Throughout this online retreat, we have prayed for the following graces: to leave behind the world's worries for a short time each weekend; to listen in silence for the Lord's voice for a short time each weekend; and to rest in the Lord's embrace for a short time each weekend. Hopefully, your prayers were answered in some way.

Final Blessing

Now is the time to move on. Go!

Do something: heal yourself; rebuild the poor person

who has been alone with so many empty wishes and dreams.

All things are possible with God!

The road home greets you with joy.

The valley spreads out below you.

The hills rise to meet you.

All creation sings praise to God!

Outside is the road home:

A different way from the way that brought you here.

Go slowly. Go safely. Go with the Lord.

Go, remembering that the Lord is always with you!

Goodbye, brother! Goodbye, sister!

May the Lord give you peace.

May the Lord be always with you.

And may you stay always with the Lord!

Our Father...

Hail Mary...

Glory be...

Saint Francis, pray for us!

Saint Clare, pray for us!

If you would like to learn more about the Assisi Project and our opportunities for adult faith formation, pilgrimage and retreat both at home and abroad, please contact Cliff Garvey at c_garvey@rcabcuria.org.

2010-11-07T00:01:00.000-04:00

NEW!

ASSISI PROJECT PILGRIMAGE & RETREAT

NOVEMBER 6 THROUGH NOVEMBER 13

For nearly three years, 30 members of our faith community have dedicated themselves to living more deeply as disciples of Christ through their shared devotion to Saints Francis and Clare of Assisi. Their spiritual journey has included Mass, the Liturgy of the Hours, scripture and book studies, monthly suppers, and a fall weekend retreat.

From Saturday, November 6th through Saturday, November 13th, six members of our faith community will be participating in our third annual pilgrimage and retreat to Assisi and Rome, Italy. During their week-long journey, these pilgrims will literally walk in the footsteps of Saints Francis and Clare, pray at their tombs, and tour Saint Peter's Basilica in Rome.

This trip is not a vacation or tour, but rather a serious spiritual exercise. Our pilgrims will live with the Franciscan Sisters of the Atonement, pray together at Mass and during Morning, Evening Prayer, and Night Prayer, engage in discussion and faith sharing, and share simple meals.

Throughout the week, all parishioners are invited to pray with us! Please visit our blog at assisiproject.blogspot.com for daily updates from Assisi and Rome. The Assisi Project meets one Saturday evening each month. If you would like to learn more about this special adult faith formation program, please contact Cliff Garvey at c_garvey@rcabcuria.org. May the Lord give you peace!

2010-10-31T00:02:00.008-04:00

ASSISI PROJECT ONLINE RETREAT

LIVING SCRIPTURE WITH FRANCIS & CLARE

WEEK III: PRAISE THE LORD!

Introduction

Earlier this month, twenty-eight members of the Assisi Project participated in our first annual weekend retreat in Andover, Massachusetts. During the retreat, our group participated in a series of faith formation exercises with the theme of "Living Scripture with Francis & Clare." Last week, our four-week, online version of the retreat continued with a reflection about Saint Clare and her devotion to the Blessed Sacrament.

This week, our online retreat continues with "Praise the Lord!", a new reflection about the enduring and eternal qualities of our Creator and the call to give him praise and thanks. So, take a few minutes, turn off your cell phone and television, and join us for the following spiritual exercise in prayer and reflection. And may the Lord give you peace!

When our online retreat began, we prayed for the following graces: to leave behind the world's worries for a short time each weekend; to listen in silence for the Lord's voice for a short time each weekend; and to rest in the Lord's embrace for a short time each weekend. Hopefully, your prayers were answered in some way.

Let Them Praise the Name of the Lord

Now, let us pray for the grace to enter even more fully into a spirit of silent prayer and reflection. It's not easy! We lead such busy lives: work, play, family, friends, and on and on. After a long day, we are often exhausted. We find it difficult to concentrate. Sometimes, we just want to lose ourselves in a movie or a favorite television show. By using Psalm 148, let us give praise and thanks to God, who created all things and who alone endures for ever and ever.

Praise the Lord from the heavens,

praise him in the heights.

Praise him, all his angels,

praise him, all his hosts.

Praise him, sun and moon,

praise him, shining stars.

Praise him, highest heavens

and the waters above the heavens.

Let them praise the name of the Lord.

He commanded: they were made.

He fixed them for ever,

gave them a law which shall not pass away.

Praise the Lord from the earth,

sea creatures and all oceans,

fire and hail, snow and mist,

stormy winds that obey his word;

all mountains and hills,

all fruit trees and cedars,

beasts, wild and tame,

reptiles and birds on the wing;

all earth's kings and peoples,

earth's princes and rulers;

young men and maidens,

old men together with children.

Let them praise the name of the Lord

for he alone is exalted.

The splendor of his name

reaches beyond heaven and earth.

He exalts the strength of his people.

He is the praise of all his saints,

of the sons of Israel,

of the people to whom he comes close.

Praise the Lord! Father Basil Pennington once wrote: "I wonder if we really know what this phrase means." In Psalm 148, the psalmist (or author) seems to agree: he reminds an array of created things (angels, kings, fruit trees, stars, and all of us) to praise the Lord, to praise the Creator of all things. So, praise the Lord! But still, what does this phrase actually mean?

Father Pennington explains that praise is an all-encompassing fervor: an emotion, an energy that consumes and assumes all of our senses, thoughts, and even our breath. After all, God's creation is awesome! And all that God has created, given us, done for us, and will do for us should leave us breathless. Breathless with praise!

God Alone is Exalted!

Why? Why praise the Lord? Why be caught up in some rapturous song of praise? One might respond that a walk outdoors on a picture-perfect fall day should answer that question, but there's more to it. Why praise the Lord? The psalmist offers us an answer: "Let them praise the name of the Lord for he alone is exalted." He alone is exalted.

All things pass. All created things pass. Snow melts. Winds blow away. Fires burn out. Mountains that once touched the heavens become short hills. All beasts, be they bugs, birds, or human beings, pass. All things pass: all earth's kings and princes and rulers, all young men and maidens, all old men and children. All things pass. All created things eventually pass.

God alone endures: "Let them praise the name of the Lord for he alone is exalted." He alone is exalted. He alone endures from age to age beyond all ages. Even when the Lord seems to be brought to the brink, even when he hangs bleeding and suffering on a cross; even when he descends to death...

Even then, God alone is exalted! Glorified! Raised up! Resurrected! Alive! Enduring! All encompassing! All powerful! All love! For ever and ever! "Let them praise the name of the Lord for he alone is exalted!"

Francis and Clare understood this staggering truth. In an almost perfect humility, Francis and Clare knew and celebrated every day that the Lord alone is exalted; the Lord alone endures; the Lord alone is here for us when all else passes.

From this knowledge and in this spirit, Francis writes the "Canticle of Brother Sun" in which he cries out: "All praise be yours, Lord, for the Sun, the Moon, and for all that lives, and for all that passes." Francis sings praise for all that passes because he knows that the Creator of things endures forever. Likewise, from this knowledge and in this spirit, Clare find that "real joy" that we read about in last week's reflection. She finds it in radiating from the Blessed Sacrament, from the "Mirror of Eternity." She finds joy in the knowledge that our Creator lives forever and made present to her and to us in the Holy Eucharist.

"Let them praise the name of the Lord for he alone is exalted!" God alone endures. God alone is here for us when all else passes. In God's love, we are never alone. In this truth, it seems, Francis and Clare find the courage to carry on as disciples of Christ, in their disciplines of poverty, chastity, obedience, and prayer. In this, Francis and Clare find the inspiration to rise each morning and to praise the Risen Lord with body, mind, and heart, in song and in silence.

As followers and friends of Francis and Clare, let us follow their example. As those striving to become Franciscan in spirit, let us praise the name of the Lord for he alone is exalted!

Our Father...

Hail Mary...

Glory be...

Saint Francis, pray for us!

Saint Clare, pray for us!

If you would like to learn more about the Assisi Project and our opportunities for adult faith formation, pilgrimage, and retreat both at home and abroad, please contact Cliff Garvey at c_garvey@rcabcuria.org.

2010-10-31T00:01:00.001-04:00

NEW!

ASSISI PROJECT

THIRD ANNUAL PILGRIMAGE & RETREAT

An Invitation to Pray a Novena to Saint Francis of Assisi

On Saturday, November 6th, six members of our parish community will begin a week-long pilgrimage and retreat to Assisi and Rome, Italy. However, all parishioners are welcome to pray with us during the coming weeks. Please join us during the next nine days in praying a Novena to Saint Francis of Assisi. As you may know, a novena is a nine day period of prayer in oder to obtain special graces, to implore special favors, or to make special petitions.

We hope that you will join us in prayer for your own intentions and for the success of our upcoming pilgrimage and retreat by praying the Novena to Saint Francis. Each day of the novena will be posted on this blog.

Novena to Saint Francis of Assisi (Day Three)

Opening Prayer: Loving Father, you are not far from any of us since in you, we live, move, and have our being. Increase my awareness of your presence and through the intercession of Saint Francis, take care of my pressing need (pray for your intention). Amen.

Today's Offering: Throughout the day, give your cares to the Lord. In addition, pray the Lord's Prayer, the Hail Mary, and the Glory Be.

Closing Prayer: Prayer of Saint Francis

Prayer of Saint Francis

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.

Where there is hatred, let me sow love;

where there is injury, pardon;

where there is doubt, faith;

where there is despair, hope;

where there is darkness, light;

and where there is sadness, joy.

O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek

to be consoled as to console;

to be understood as to understand;

to be loved as to love.

For it is in giving that we receive;

it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;

and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.

Amen.

Saint Francis, pray for us!

Saint Clare, pray for us!

Holy men and women of Assisi, pray for us!

2010-10-30T00:03:00.001-04:00

ASSISI PROJECT ONLINE RETREAT

LIVING SCRIPTURE WITH FRANCIS & CLARE

WEEK II: THE MIRROR OF ETERNITY

Introduction

Earlier this month, twenty-eight members of the Assisi Project participated in our first annual weekend retreat in Andover, Massachusetts. During the retreat, our group participated in a series of faith formation exercises with the theme of "Living Scripture with Francis & Clare." Last week, we began a four-week, online version of our recent retreat with a reflection about Saint Clare answering the call to leave a life of materialism and privilege for a life of faith and simplicity.

This week, our online retreat continues with "Saint Clare and the Mirror of Eternity", a new reflection about prayer and devotion to the Blessed Sacrament. So, take a few minutes, turn off your cell phone and television, and join us for the following spiritual exercise in imaginative prayer. And may the Lord give you peace!

Now, let us pray for the grace to enter more fully into a spirit of silent prayer. It's not easy! We lead such busy lives: work, play, family, friends, and on and on. After a long day, we are often exhausted. We find it difficult to concentrate. Sometimes, we just want to lose ourselves in a movie or a favorite television show.

The Great Silence

For those living in monastic communities, the setting sun marks not just the end of the day, but the beginning of the "Great Silence." In the monastic tradition, the night is a time to rest and a time to pray. Clare was one of those monastics. When she left her family home near the Basilica of Saint Rufinus, when she left her life of privilege, when she followed Francis in living the gospel life, Clare's vocation brought her to the cloistered monastery of Saint Damian. It was here that Francis first heard the call to radical discipleship. It was here that Christ spoke to Francis through the crucifix and said: "Go! Rebuild my church!"

The medieval cloister at Saint Damian is set on the southwestern slope of Mount Subasio, just below the walled city of Assisi, amidst vineyards and olive trees. Within this small monastery, Clare ate, slept, worked, and prayed for forty years. As part of her rule of life (her daily routine), Clare promised to pray the Liturgy of the Hours, to pray at Mass, and to pray before the Blessed Sacrament.

Imagine Clare as an adult, as a grown woman, as one who brushed off the yoke of wordly expectations and pursued a different path of life. Imagine Clare as full of faith, full of strength, still full of energy in the years before being confined to bed by illness. Imagine her difficult life. Clare must provide for a growing community of sisters. Somehow, she mustain the disciplines of poverty, chastity, and obedience that are the core of the Franciscan life. Somehow, she must protect her community from a dangerous world beyond the walls of the cloister. But somehow, Clare succeeds.

Clare's Real Joy

Life is hard, but life is filled with joy. Imagine. Life is hard, but life is filled with real joy. Clare finds joy in the angelic voices of the sisters as they sing the psalms to mark the hours of the day. She finds joy in the little terrace garden, adjacent to her little chapel, where she grows herbs and flowers (a garden that is still maintained eight centuries later). She finds joy in the rhythm of everday things: sunrise, sunset, simple food, simple things like a flower or a bird or a butterfly. Clare finds joy, not just pleasure, but real joy in God's simplest gifts.

Imagine now that Clare comes to the end of a crisp, cool autumn day. The summer is spent. The days grow short. The nights grow long. The unheated stone buildings at Saint Damian grows cold as mountain air blows down the slope toward the cloister. Imagine that the sun has set. The day is nearly done. Clare and her sisters find themselves on the threshold of the Great Silence -- the long night, the time for prayer and the time for rest.

Imagine that Clare visits the small chapel, just beyond the dormitory where she and the sisters sleep after a long day. The chapel has a low, arched ceiling. Its walls are painted with colorful frescoes of saints and scenes from the scriptures. In the tabernacle is the Blessed Sacrament, the source and summit of Clare's joy. In the tabernacle is spiritual nourishment for one who often fasts. In the tabernacle is her warmth on the first cold night of autumn.

Imagine that Clare is alone, perhaps for the first time during the day. She is no longer young, but she remains determined, strong, and vital. She approaches the tabernacle after a long day, on the brink of a long night. She kneels. From the folds of her habit, she withdraws the breviary that contains the prayers for morning, noon, and night. She doesn't need it. She knows the psalms and canticles from memory. Still, she opens the book and begins to pray:

O God, you are my God, for you I long; for you my soul is thirsting.

My body pines for you like a dry, weary land without water.

So I gaze on you in the sanctuary to see your strength and your glory.

For you love is better than life, my lips will speak your praise.

So I will bless you all my life, in your name I will lift up my hands.

My soul shall be filled as with a banquet,

my mouth shall praise you with joy.

On my bed, I remember you.

On you, I muse through the night for you have been my help;

in the shadow of your wings, I rejoice.

My soul clings to you; your right hand holds me fast.

(Psalm 63:2-9)

Imagine that as Clare prays, she remembers being a young girl. She can still hear Francis preaching in the square just outside her window. Francis is now gone; long passed from this life. Clare misses him. She still grieves for him. However, she finds solace here before the Blessed Sacrament. She finds peace here. She finds rest here. She finds real joy here before Christ Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament.

The Mirror of Eternity

As Clare prays, Christ speaks into her heart in the silence. She doesn't hear words, but words come into her heart and into her mind. These words:

Bring your eyes before the mirror of eternity.

Bring your soul into the splendor of glory.

Bring your heart before Him

who is the image of the divine substance,

and transform yourself entirely

by means of contemplation into His divine image.

Then you will experience that which is reserved only for his friends,

and you will taste that secret sweetness

that God Himself has reserved from the beginning

for those who love Him.

Imagine that Clare rises. She bows before the Blessed Sacrament. She leaves the chapel. She lies upon her bed, a simple pallet. As Clare drifts into the sleep of the Great Silence, she finds rest in the embrace of Christ whom she encounters in the Blessed Sacrament. Behind closed eyes, Clare finds peace and real joy by gazing into the Mirror of Eternity.

That night, Clare's final thoughts are about Jesus. This night, in your own life, as you enter into your own "great silence", pray for these graces:

For the grace that our final thoughts of the day will be about Jesus;

For the grace that we find peace and joy and rest in his embrace;

For the grace to rise tomorrow, eager to live faithful and faith-filled lives.

Our Father...

Hail Mary...

Glory be...

Saint Francis, pray for us!

Saint Clare, pray for us!

2010-10-30T00:01:00.002-04:00

ASSISI PROJECT

THIRD ANNUAL PILGRIMAGE & RETREAT

An Invitation to Pray a Novena to Saint Francis of Assisi

Novena to Saint Francis of Assisi (Day Two)

Opening Prayer: Heavenly Father, your love for us never falters in spite of our transgressions and failures. Please show your mercy for me in my difficulty (pray for your intention). Through the intercession of Saint Francis and for the sake of Christ, our savior, have mercy on me. Amen.

Today's Offering: See the suffering Christ in someone around you. In addition, pray the Lord's Prayer, the Hail Mary, and the Glory Be.

Closing Prayer: Prayer of Saint Francis

Prayer of Saint Francis

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.

Where there is hatred, let me sow love;

where there is injury, pardon;

where there is doubt, faith;

where there is despair, hope;

where there is darkness, light;

and where there is sadness, joy.

O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek

to be consoled as to console;

to be understood as to understand;

to be loved as to love.

For it is in giving that we receive;

it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;

and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.

Amen.

Saint Francis, pray for us!

Saint Clare, pray for us!

Holy men and women of Assisi, pray for us!

2010-10-29T00:01:00.001-04:00

ASSISI PROJECT ONLINE RETREAT

LIVING SCRIPTURE WITH FRANCIS & CLARE

WEEK II: THE MIRROR OF ETERNITY

Introduction

Earlier this month, twenty-eight members of the Assisi Project participated in our first annual weekend retreat in Andover, Massachusetts. During the retreat, our group participated in a series of faith formation exercises with the theme of "Living Scripture with Francis & Clare." Last week, we began a four-week, online version of our recent retreat with a reflection about Saint Clare answering the call to leave a life of materialism and privilege for a life of faith and simplicity.

The Great Silence

Clare's Real Joy

O God, you are my God, for you I long; for you my soul is thirsting.

My body pines for you like a dry, weary land without water.

So I gaze on you in the sanctuary to see your strength and your glory.

For you love is better than life, my lips will speak your praise.

So I will bless you all my life, in your name I will lift up my hands.

My soul shall be filled as with a banquet,

my mouth shall praise you with joy.

On my bed, I remember you.

On you, I muse through the night for you have been my help;

in the shadow of your wings, I rejoice.

My soul clings to you; your right hand holds me fast.

(Psalm 63:2-9)

The Mirror of Eternity

As Clare prays, Christ speaks into her heart in the silence. She doesn't hear words, but words come into her heart and into her mind. These words:

Bring your eyes before the mirror of eternity.

Bring your soul into the splendor of glory.

Bring your heart before Him

who is the image of the divine substance,

and transform yourself entirely

by means of contemplation into His divine image.

Then you will experience that which is reserved only for his friends,

and you will taste that secret sweetness

that God Himself has reserved from the beginning

for those who love Him.

That night, Clare's final thoughts are about Jesus. This night, in your own life, as you enter into your own "great silence", pray for these graces:

For the grace that our final thoughts of the day will be about Jesus;

For the grace that we find peace and joy and rest in his embrace;

For the grace to rise tomorrow, eager to live faithful and faith-filled lives.

Our Father...

Hail Mary...

Glory be...

Saint Francis, pray for us!

Saint Clare, pray for us!

2010-10-29T00:00:00.002-04:00

ASSISI PROJECT

THIRD ANNUAL PILGRIMAGE & RETREAT

An Invitation to Pray a Novena to Saint Francis of Assisi

Novena to Saint Francis of Assisi (Day One)

Opening Prayer: Heavenly Father, you know all things and nothing is hidden from you. In your mercy and kindness, and through the intercession of Saint Franics, come to my assistance and grant my humble petition (pray for something or someone). Amen.

Today's Offering: Show humility by doing a good deed for someone. In addition, pray the Lord's Prayer, the Hail Mary, and the Glory Be.

Closing Prayer: Prayer of Saint Francis

Prayer of Saint Francis

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.

Where there is hatred, let me sow love;

where there is injury, pardon;

where there is doubt, faith;

where there is despair, hope;

where there is darkness, light;

and where there is sadness, joy.

O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek

to be consoled as to console;

to be understood as to understand;

to be loved as to love.

For it is in giving that we receive;

it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;

and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.

Amen.

Saint Francis, pray for us!

Saint Clare, pray for us!

Holy men and women of Assisi, pray for us!

2010-10-24T14:08:00.013-04:00

ASSISI PROJECT ONLINE RETREAT

LIVING SCRIPTURE WITH FRANCIS & CLARE

WEEK II: THE MIRROR OF ETERNITY

Introduction

Earlier this month, twenty-eight members of the Assisi Project participated in our first annual weekend retreat in Andover, Massachusetts. During the retreat, our group participated in a series of faith formation exercises with the theme of "Living Scripture with Francis & Clare." Last week, we began a four-week, online version of our recent retreat with a reflection about Saint Clare answering the call to leave a life of materialism and privilege for a life of faith and simplicity.

The Great Silence

Clare's Real Joy

O God, you are my God, for you I long; for you my soul is thirsting.

My body pines for you like a dry, weary land without water.

So I gaze on you in the sanctuary to see your strength and your glory.

For you love is better than life, my lips will speak your praise.

So I will bless you all my life, in your name I will lift up my hands.

My soul shall be filled as with a banquet,

my mouth shall praise you with joy.

On my bed, I remember you.

On you, I muse through the night for you have been my help;

in the shadow of your wings, I rejoice.

My soul clings to you; your right hand holds me fast.

(Psalm 63:2-9)

The Mirror of Eternity

As Clare prays, Christ speaks into her heart in the silence. She doesn't hear words, but words come into her heart and into her mind. These words:

Bring your eyes before the mirror of eternity.

Bring your soul into the splendor of glory.

Bring your heart before Him

who is the image of the divine substance,

and transform yourself entirely

by means of contemplation into His divine image.

Then you will experience that which is reserved only for his friends,

and you will taste that secret sweetness

that God Himself has reserved from the beginning

for those who love Him.

That night, Clare's final thoughts are about Jesus. This night, in your own life, as you enter into your own "great silence", pray for these graces:

For the grace that our final thoughts of the day will be about Jesus;

For the grace that we find peace and joy and rest in his embrace;

For the grace to rise tomorrow, eager to live faithful and faith-filled lives.

Our Father...

Hail Mary...

Glory be...

Saint Francis, pray for us!

Saint Clare, pray for us!

2010-10-17T00:00:00.008-04:00

ASSISI PROJECT ONLINE RETREAT

LIVING SCRIPTURE WITH FRANCIS & CLARE

WEEK I: CLARE'S WINDOW

Introduction

Earlier this month, twenty-eight members of the Assisi Project participated in our first annual weekend retreat in Andover, Massachusetts. Beginning Sunday, October 17th through Sunday, November 7th, all are invited to participate in an online version of our retreat. This week, take a few moments, turn off your cell phone and television, and join us for the following spiritual exercise in imaginative prayer -- back in time, across a vast ocean to the medieval city of Assisi. May the Lord give you peace!

Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light (Matthew 11:28-30).

Whenever we go away on retreat or vacation, we drive along superhighways or fly through the heavens in jet aircraft. We travel the modern way: convenient, fast, and snug in the cocoons of our cars or belted into our seats waiting for the flight attendant to bring us a snack.

Imagine these same journeys during the time when Jesus spoke the words above, in a three-mile-per-hour world, where it might have taken days to travel the distance from Woburn to Boston, weeks or months to travel from Boston to Baltimore. For those who dared to travel during biblical times, it usually meant an arduous walk along desert paths at the mercy of the elements, at the mercy of others.

Imagine Clare's Window

Imagine now the early middle ages, in Assisi, within the walled city, protected from invaders and lepers by high stone walls, but not protected from the brisk autumn breezes blowing down from Mount Subasio. Imagine Clare, a young woman, still a teenager, the daughter of affluent parents, who live beside the Basilica of Saint Rufinus, the patron of Assisi.

We believe that Clare was faithful, pious, and prayerful. We believe that she was attractive, modest, and intelligent. We believe that she rejected several proposals of marriage, much to the disappointment of her parents. What we actually know, however, about Clare's early or "hidden" life is very little.

We do know this: At some point, Clare encountered the preaching of Francis Bernadone. Francis was once the son of Pietro Bernadone, Assisi's leading clothing and textile merchant. Francis began his young adulthood as first a playboy, then as an ambitious soldier. But after a humiliating defeat in battle and a year spent in jail as a prisoner-of-war, he was a changed young man.

First, Francis rejected his friends. Then he rejected wealth and privilege. Then he rejected his father. Now he wore a coarse wool tunic. He was rebuilding crumbling little churches. He begged for his food. He kissed lepers. He was preaching the gospel. In fact, Francis often preached just outside of Clare's window in the plaza near the Basilica of Saint Rufinus.

Imagine. Clare has just finished her prayers. She is seated at a dressing table in her chamber on the second floor of her family's home. She is brushing her long blond hair (or its being brushed for her by a family servant). Through a partially opened window, Clare hears a man's voice. She has heard this man's voice before.

Francis Bernadone is back. He is proclaiming the Gospel of Matthew (Chapter 11): "Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida!" Francis is preaching against the materialism of the day; against the values of his father; against the values of Clare's father.

Imagine. Clare closes her eyes and listens. "But I tell you that on the day of judgment, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom than for you!" Clare listens, but begins to think. Such a small man. Such a strong voice. Such a courageous (or perhaps foolish) message to proclaim in this part of Assisi.

Suddenly, Francis changes his tone of voice: "I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and the intelligent and have revealed them to infants." Francis speaks now like a father speaks to his children. Clare thinks: 'He speaks like my father speaks to me, but about things that are somehow more important, more lasting.'

Imagine. Clare walks to the window, opens it wide, and sees the strange little man who was once Francis Bernadone. They call him crazy. They call him foolish. Somehow, though, Clare knows better. Francis looks up. He has seen this young woman before. While other people avoid him or mock him, she listens. She looks into his eyes. She nods in agreement. She gets it! Francis returns to Matthew's Gospel:

"Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."

Clare is captivated by this little man and his preaching. She is drawn into the gospel, drawn into the words of Jesus, drawn to the promise of peace and rest. Deep inside, Clare knows what she must do. She must follow him.

Clare knows that living the gospel will not be easy. By virtue of his poverty, Francis proves that. From her window, Clare knows that the yoke of living as Christ lived (in a materialistic world) will not be easy or light. But deep inside, Clare knows what she must do. She must follow him.

At the same time, though, Clare's life of privilege brings her little consolation, little joy. She feels imprisoned by the expectations of her parents. She feels like a prisoner in a gilded jail. Yoked by what is expected from her by the world, she realizes that the yoke described in the gospel will bring meaning and peace to her life. Deep inside, Clare knows what she must do. She must follow him.

Imagine. Francis continues to preach. "Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest." Imagine. Clare listens, but is uneasy, confused, anxious about the tension between what the world wants and what the Lord wants. Suddenly, she closes the window. She sits. She closes her eyes. She can no longer hear the sermon in the square. She feels sad. Clare realizes that she's on the wrong side of the window. Deep inside, she knows what she must do. She must follow him. She must follow Francis. She must follow the Lord's call.

Call to Retreat: Rest, Pray, Listen

Francis and Clare are saints, founders of now ancient religious orders. During the next four weeks of this online retreat, they are also our friends, our companions on the journey of faith. Like us, the lived real lives. They walked the earth. They breathed the air. They ate. They slept. They felt grief, loneliness, longing, and stress. They suffered with chronic illness and pain.

Like us, they could read. They read the scriptures. Like us, they could hear. The listened to the Word of God. Like us, they believed that Jesus Christ is the Son of God; that he lived for us, suffered for us, died for us, and rose from death for us. Like each of us, they responded in their own unique way to God's daily call to faith, good works, and discipleship.

As you approach this online series of spiritual exercises, please keep in mind that the call to being on retreat is different from the call of everyday life. When we're on retreat, Christ calls us to rest. He calls us to focus more on prayer. He calls us into a spirit of silence and stillness, because unless you're like Francis, Christ speaks to us in the silence of our hearts and souls!

During the next four weeks, please join us online, on the "right side of the window" with Francis and Clare of Assisi. In addition to Sunday Mass, please visit this blog for a weekly reflection that seeks to connect (through silent prayer and reflection) the scriptures, the spirituality of Francis and Clare, and our everyday lives of faith.

As we begin our online retreat, all are invited to pray with this passage from the Gospel of Matthew (see above) and to ask the Lord for the following:

The grace to leave behind the world's worries for a short time each weekend;

The grace to listen in silence for the Lord's voice for a short time each weekend;

The grace to rest in the Lord's embrace for a short time each weekend.

Our Father...

Hail Mary...

Glory be...

Saint Clare, pray for us!

Saint Francis, pray for us!

If you would like to learn more about the Assisi Project and our opportunities for adult faith formation, pilgrimage, and retreat in parish and abroad, please contact Cliff Garvey at c_garvey@rcabcuria.org.

2010-10-11T08:33:00.004-04:00

CELEBRATING SAINT FRANCIS OF ASSISI

Feast of Saint Francis of Assisi

On October 4th, the Catholic Church celebrated the Feast of Saint Francis of Assisi. Francis Bernardone was born at Assisi, Italy in 1182. As a teenager, Francis was known as a frivolous child of an affluent family. As a teenager, he spent most of his time among his friends: laughing, singing, and taking advantage of his family's wealth and influence. At some point, however, Francis grew more serious, but not about his faith. Instead, he harbored ambitions of heroism and valor on the battlefield. Francis was not destined to become a hero of war. Rather, he suffered defeat and humiliation and served a year as a prisoner of war. Because of these experiences and a growing sense of God's presence in his life, Francis returned to Assisi as a very changed young man.

At the dilapidated little Church of Saint Damian, in the poor valley below the more wealthy walled-city of Assisi, the Lord spoke to Francis and call him to live a life modeled on the gospels. From that moment until the end of his life on earth, Francis practiced and preached the gospel throughout Italy and beyond, even traveling to Egypt in an attempt to negotiate peace between Christians and Muslims. He founded a religious order. He inspired countless others to live faithful and simple lives. And in answer to his prayer to be more closely united with the sufferings of Christ, Francis was the first person known to receive the stigmata, the five wounds of the crucified savior.

The Last Will of Saint Francis

Before Francis passed from this life, he wrote a last will and addressed it to his most beloved and devoted follower, his spiritual friend Clare, who had founded a cloistered community of religious women. With an almost perfect faith and humility, Francis wrote:

I, little brother Francis, wish to follow the life and poverty

of the most high Lord Jesus Christ and his most holy Mother,

and persevere in it until the end.

I beg you, and I advise you to live always

in this most holy life and in poverty.

Take great care never to distance yourself from this life in any way

because of any teaching or counsel.

As "Franciscans in Spirit", we may not be called to live radical poverty. We may not be called to receive the stigmata. In some way, however, we are called to model our lives on the gospel; to live simply; to walk humbly upon this earth; to love God, to love one another, and to be instruments of the Lord's peace.

After living a life of poverty, chastity, humility, and prayer, Francis died on October 4, 1226. Along with some of his earliest followers, Francis is buried in a crypt chapel at the Basilica of Saint Francis in Assisi. Each year, millions of pilgrims pray before his tomb, making it second only to Vatican City as a place of Christian pilgrimage and worship.

As we celebrate the Feast of Saint Francis of Assisi, let us pray for the graces to walk with Francis in spirit, to live more closely the good news of the gospel, and to be instruments of peace and reconciliation in our families, communities, and workplaces.

Saint Francis, pray for us!

Saint Clare, pray for us!

Holy men and women of Assisi, pray for us!

2010-10-11T08:32:00.001-04:00

ASSISI PROJECT 3rd ANNUAL PILGRIMAGE & RETREAT

NOVEMBER 6th-13th ~ ASSISI & ROME, ITALY

For the third consecutive year, members of our group will make a pilgrimage and retreat to Assisi and Rome from November 6th through November 13th. You don't need to be a member of our group to join our pilgrimage and retreat.

During this week-long pilgrimage and retreat, we will lodge with the Franciscan Sisters of the Atonement (aka "The American Sisters") with the ancient walled city of Assisi. We will worship at the historic basilicas of Saints Francis and Clare. We will visit the Church of Saint Damian where the famous crucifix spoke to Saint Francis. We will visit the little chapel known as the Porziuncula, which is considered the "home church" of the Franciscan Order. Finally, on our last day in Italy, we will travel to Rome for a visit to Vatican City and Saint Peter's Basilica.

There's still time to join our pilgrimage and retreat! The approximate cost is $2,199 per person which includes round trip air travel, all ground transportation, single room in Assisi, and breakfast and supper each day. At this point, please keep in mind that the cost of air travel may effect the cost of your trip. If you would like to join us on this wonderful spiritual journey, please contact us.

For more information:

If you have questions or would like more information about the Assisi Project's 3rd Annual Pilgrimage & Retreat in Italy, please contact Cliff Garvey at c_garvey@rcabcuria.org. Please join us! All are welcome! May the Lord give you peace!

2010-10-04T09:26:00.004-04:00

FEAST OF SAINT FRANCIS OF ASSISI

Living the Scriptures with Francis and Clare

On October 4th, the Catholic Church celebrates the Feast of Saint Francis of Assisi. This past weekend, in anticipation of the feast, twenty-eight members of the Assisi Project traveled to the Rolling Ridge Retreat Center in Andover, Massachusetts for their First Annual Fall Retreat. Throughout the weekend, our members lodged in simple rooms, ate simple foods, engaged in prayer and spiritual formation before the Blessed Sacrament, and walked together the length and breadth of nearly thirty acres of lakefront property.

The theme of our weekend retreat was "Living the Scriptures with Francis and Clare." In addition to Mass and the Liturgy of the Hours, our group gathered five times over the course of two days for "spiritual conferences" during which we reflected upon how our spiritual guides, Francis and Clare, lived their lives in accordance with the holy scriptures.

Beginning during the week of Sunday, October 17th, our blog will feature transcripts of some of these conferences. For now, we celebrate the Feast of Saint Francis of Assisi, who along with Saint Clare, provide the spiritual inspiration for our group, which has been working to become "Franciscan in Spirit" for the past three years.

Francis Bernardone was born at Assisi, Italy in 1182. As a teenager, Francis was known as a frivolous child of an affluent family. As a teenager, he spent most of his time among his friends: laughing, singing, and taking advantage of his family's wealth and influence. At some point, however, Francis grew more serious, but not about his faith. Instead, he harbored ambitions of heroism and valor on the battlefield. Francis was not destined to become a hero of war. Rather, he suffered defeat and humiliation and served a year as a prisoner of war. Because of these experiences and a growing sense of God's presence in his life, Francis returned to Assisi as a very changed young man.

The Last Will of Saint Francis

I, little brother Francis, wish to follow the life and poverty

of the most high Lord Jesus Christ and his most holy Mother,

and persevere in it until the end.

I beg you, and I advise you to live always

in this most holy life and in poverty.

Take great care never to distance yourself from this life in any way

because of any teaching or counsel.

Saint Francis, pray for us!

Saint Clare, pray for us!

2010-10-04T08:00:00.002-04:00

ASSISI PROJECT 3rd ANNUAL PILGRIMAGE & RETREAT

NOVEMBER 6th-13th ~ ASSISI & ROME, ITALY

The cost is $2,199 per person which includes round trip air travel, all ground transportation, single room in Assisi, and breakfast and supper each day. If you would like to join us on this wonderful spiritual journey, please contact us no later than September 11, 2010.

For more information:

2010-09-19T09:01:00.009-04:00

THIS WEEK: FRANCIS SINGS OF SEASONS

After a dry, hot summer, the children and grandchildren are back at school. The days, once long, are noticeably shorter. The nights are noticeably cooler. The leaves, once green, are changing to yellow, orange, and red. Summer ends. Autumn arrives.

The start of a new season is always a good time to reflect upon the wonder of creation and to praise the Creator of all wonders! Saint Francis of Assisi did not need a calendar to remind him to look for joy and majesty in God's works.

Wherever he went, Francis marveled at the beauty of every sunrise and sunset. He listened with delight to birdsong and the chirping of crickets. He was always amazed by the stars above and by the rush of a river's current. He gazed in awe at flowers and herbs. One can almost imagine his glee at the site of the growing grapes or olive groves in the fields below the walled city of Assisi!

Late in his short life, while recovering from an illness near the little Church of Saint Damian (where his spiritual journey began), Francis wrote a song-prayer that is remembered as the "Canticle of the Creatures." It was one of the first works of literature composed entirely in Italian.

As we mark this change of seasons, let us join Saint Francis in his song of praise and thanksgiving to the "Most High" who creates all things and gives all living things their breath and life and ultimately, their rest:

The Canticle of the Creatures

Most High, almighty and good Lord,

yours are the praises, the glory, the honor, and all blessings!

To you alone, Most High, do they belong,

and no person is worthy to mention your holy name!

Praised be you, my Lord, with all your creatures,

especially our Brother Sun, who gives us the day

and through whom you give us the light.

He is beautiful and radiant with great splendor;

and he bears the likeness of you, Most High Lord!

Praised be you, my Lord, through our Sister Moon and all the stars;

in heaven, you formed them clear and precious and beautiful!

Praised be you, my Lord, through our Brother Wind,

and through the air, cloudy and serene, and every kind of weather

through which you sustain your creations!

Praised be you, my Lord, through our Brother Fire,

through whom you light the night;

he is beautiful and robust and strong!

Praised be you, my Lord, through our Sister Earth,

who sustains and governs us;

and who produces fruits with colored flowers and herbs!

Praised be you, my Lord, through those who show mercy for your love;

and suffer sickness and tribulations!

Blessed are those who endure in peace for by you, they will be crowned!

Praised be you, my Lord, through our Sister Death,

from whom no living creature can escape!

Woe to those who perish in mortal sin!

Blessed are those whom death will find in your holy will,

for this death will do them no harm!

Praised and bless my Lord!

Give him thanks and serve him always with great humility!

Through this prayerful verse, Saint Francis reveals a deep mystical connection with God and God's creations (to which he refers intimately as "Brother Sun" and "Sister Moon", etc.). He sings of life, he sings of death, he sings of seasons.

Summer ends. Autumn begins. Day by day, night after night, season after season, Saint Francis brings us closer to God, the Creator of all things, the Father of all things.

Saint Francis, pray for us!

Saint Clare, pray for us!

2010-09-19T09:00:00.000-04:00

ASSISI PROJECT 3rd ANNUAL PILGRIMAGE & RETREAT

NOVEMBER 6th-13th ~ ASSISI & ROME, ITALY

For the third consecutive year, members of our group will make a pilgrimage and retreat to Assisi and Rome from November 6th through November 13th. We still have room for additional pilgrims!

For more information:

2010-09-12T12:00:00.001-04:00

THIS WEEK: REMEMBERING VICTIM 0001

Father Mychal Judge, Franciscan Friar & Priest

The morning of September 11, 2001 dawned brilliantly in New York City. The air was unseasonably crisp and clear. The sky was cloudless. But the brilliance of that late summer day was shattered by terrorists who hijacked two passenger jets and crashed them into the "Twin Towers" of the World Trade Center in Lower Manhattan.

The emergency response to the attacks at the World Trade Center was almost immediate. Police, paramedic, port authority, and fire fighting units arrived quickly. They raced courageously into the burning towers. Among these first responders was Father Mychal Judge, a Franciscan friar and priest, who served as senior chaplain to the New York City Fire Department.

Father Mike was known universally as a compassionate, outgoing, and relentlessly busy priest. In addition to Father Mike's active ministry as chaplain for the city's fire fighters and their families, he worked tirelessly with alcoholics, drug addicts, the homeless, and those suffering with AIDS and other illnesses.

Throughout his decades of ministry in New York City and other places, Father Mike was a bright and cheerful presence, always ready with a joke, a sympathetic word, or a humorous anecdote. On the morning of 9/11, however, Father Mike paced in the lobby of Tower One. Dressed in his firefighter's helmet and jacket, he stood clear of the first responders, fingered the beads of a rosary, and prayed. We know this because two documentary filmmakers were there, on the scene, and they provided us with the last living images of this kind man and priest.

Suddenly, an unspeakable roar shook the earth. Tower Two was collapsing, turning one of the world's great skyscrapers into a twisted wreck of dust and debris. After the tower fell, those in the lobby of the other tower began a slow and steady evacuation. Amidst the dust and darkness, a flashlight illuminated the face of Father Mike who lay still and buried under some rubble.

In an essay entitled "The Fireman's Friar" (New York Magazine), Jennifer Senior writes: "Everyone stopped. One of the firefighters aimed his flashlight low across the ground. A halo of light framed a man's face. Everyone saw it. 'Oh, my God,' they began to shout. 'It's Father Mike.'" No pulse. Father Mike was dead. The firefighters carried his body into a nearby church and rested his body near the altar. He was designated as the first official casualty, "Victim 0001" of the terrorist attacks on 9/11.

In the years since Father Mike's death, some have petitioned for his canonization as a saint. Those who knew him best, however, seem more concerned with ccontinuing his ministry than with the possibility of sainthood. Some have founded charitable organizations in his memory. One of these charities is "Mychal's Message" which provides food, clothing, and everyday necessities for homeless people in New York City. Another is the "Mychal Judge Recovery Center" at Saint Anthony's Shrine in Boston which provides counseling and other services for recovering addicts and their families.

Those of us who did not know Father Mike personally can still honor his memory and ministry by remembering and perhaps imitating his deep spirituality and his abiding faith in the Franciscan way of life.

Like Saint Francis, Father Mike seemed always busy. On a daily basis, he rushed from the bedside of an injured firefighter to the side of a recovering addict in crisis. Like Saint Francis, he reached out to those often shunned by modern society: drug addicts, AIDS patients, and the homeless. Like Saint Francis, most often because of his energy and zeal, he irritated those with power and authority. And like Saint Francis, he declined the comforts of ownership and property. Because Father Mike's wardrobe often seemed so worn and threadbare, he often received gifts of clothing. And more often than not, he gave those gifts away!

When we read about Father Mike's busy life and ministry, we're prone to ask: how did he do it? How did he keep up such a pace? How did he accomplish so much? The life and example of Saint Francis answers these questions. More than 800 years ago, Francis traveled widely, always on foot, and often barefoot, in his ministry to live and preach the gospel. He embarrassed his followers by his energy, enthusiasm, and commitment to imitating the life and ministry of Jesus. But like Jesus, Francis retreated from the world for prolonged periods of prayer and retreat.

Father Mike, a truly modern man, but still a Franciscan, did the same. When Father Mike needed to re-fuel his spiritual engines, he retreated into the city he loved. He often took long, solitary walks from his friary in lower Manhattan into the outer boroughs across the Brooklyn Bridge. From that historic bridge, he could step back from the gritty and suffering streets of the city and wonder at the grandeur of the skyline. In an urban sense, he could see the whole of the forest, not just the trees. Here, he could pray for himself and for the city he so loved.

As we strive to become "Franciscans in Spirit" and to become more dedicated to the gospel life, we can imagine Father Mike during one his long and rejuvenating walks across the Brooklyn Bridge. Let us pray with him as he prayed for himself. Let us pray his favorite prayer:

Lord, take me where you want me to go.

Let me meet who you want me to meet.

Tell me what you want me to say.

And keep me out of your way.

Amen.

This week, we remember in prayer the victims of the tragedies on September 11, 2001. We pray for all who lost their lives and for those they left behind. We pray for the soul of Father Mychal Judge and for all who were touched by his good works. We pray for all who serve our communities as first responders. We pray for all who serve our country in uniform. We pray for peace.

Saint Francis of Assisi, pray for us!

Saint Clare of Assisi, pray for us!

2010-09-12T11:00:00.000-04:00

ASSISI PROJECT 3rd ANNUAL PILGRIMAGE & RETREAT

NOVEMBER 6th-13th ~ ASSISI & ROME, ITALY

For the third consecutive year, members of our group will make a pilgrimage and retreat to Assisi and Rome from November 6th through November 13th. We still have room for additional pilgrims!

For more information:

2010-08-29T10:53:00.006-04:00

THIS WEEK: THE WISDOM OF PEACE

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace...

This is the first line of the "Prayer of Saint Francis," also known as the "Peace Prayer." When we ask the Lord to make us an instrument of his peace, what do we mean? Are we to become pacifists? Are we to become protesters against any form of military action (whether such actions may be in self-defense or not)? Taking the prayer at its word, maybe. Taking into account the totality of our Catholic tradition and its teachings, maybe not.

As we strive to become "Franciscans in Spirit" in the tradition of Saint Francis and Saint Clare, we, like them, can look to sacred scripture for guidance. For example, yesterday (August 28th) was the Feast of Saint Augustine. As a Bishop and Doctor of the Church, Saint Augustine is perhaps best known for his writings, especially the "City of God" and the "Confessions." The latter work chronicles his conversion from worldly sinner to saintly Christian.

On the Feast of Saint Augustine, we read the following passage from the Letter of Saint James during the Evening Prayer Vigil:

The wisdom which comes from above is marked chiefly indeed by its purity, but also by its peacefulness; it is courteous and ready to be convinced, always taking the better part; it carries mercy with it, and a harvest of all that is good; it is uncensorious and without affectation. Peace is the seed-ground of holiness, and those who make peace will win its harvest (James 3:17-18).

One can imagine this passage ringing in the ears of a confused Francis as he walked through the plains below Assisi as he struggled with his own conversion from worldly youth to faithful and faith-filled manhood. Born to wealth with dreams of glory on the field of battle, Francis returned to Assisi having largely failed in this ambition. Now he was drawn somehow to the gospel life. Despite having served courageously in battle and having survived more than a year as a prisoner of war, Francis still feared one thing -- the leper.

During the early 13th century, lepers (those suffering with leprosy) were the outcasts of society. They were shunned by their community, family, and friends. They were restricted from entering the bustling town square; and they were forced to wear bells around their necks to announce that they (and their dreaded disease) were approaching.

Francis feared the lepers who walked the plains below Assisi. He feared the disease that so disfigured its victims. He feared the wretched visages of those stricken. One day, while walking through an olive grove near the Church of Saint Damian, Francis heard the bell of an approaching leper. He planned to hurry past and to avoid all contact. Instead, Francis felt compelled to stop, to approach the leper, and to bestow a kiss upon his forehead. One wonders who was more shocked: Francis or the leper?!

By kissing the leper, Francis overcame his own fears and prejudices. He reached beyond his own "comfort zone" and reached out to someone much in need of human love and compassion. He became an instrument of the Lord's peace.

In his book, The Way of Saint Francis, Father Murray Bodo explains that Francis' encounter with the leper is the beginning of a lifelong practice of peacemaking. Father Bodo writes: "That is Francis' formula for peace: you have to come out from behind your defenses and risk embracing what is seemingly repulsive and dangerous. Only then there will be peace, and only love can make it happen. For Francis, peace is inseparable from peace of soul, and neither can be achieved without the risk of loving your supposed or real enemies (The Way of Saint Francis, Chapeter 2)."

The wisdom of peace, then, is the realization that we must overcome our own inner prejudices to reach out in love to those in need. We must be open-minded and open-hearted. We must overcome ourselves to become what we are called and what we wish to be: instruments of Christ's peace on earth. By doing so, we plow and nurture the "seed-ground of holiness" and win for ourselves and our neighbors the "harvest" that is our home in heaven.

Saint Clare, pray for us!

Saint Franics, pray for us!

Saint Augustine, pray for us!

2010-08-29T09:42:00.001-04:00

ASSISI PROJECT FALL WEEKEND RETREAT

OCTOBER 2nd-3rd ~ ROLLING RIDGE RETREAT CENTER

NOW FULL!

The Assisi Project is an adult faith formation program at Saint Charles Borromeo. Each month, our group meets for Mass, a community supper, and a period of prayerful discussion and faith sharing.

This year, we are planning a weekend retreat from Saturday morning, October 2nd through Sunday afternoon, October 3rd at the Rolling Ridge Retreat Center in Andover, Massachusetts. The cost is $175.00 per person which includes a single room (or double room for couples); three meals on Saturday; two meals on Sunday; coffee, tea, and snacks throughout the weekend; and a guided retreat experience on a beautiful lakefront campus.

The Assisi Project Fall Weekend Retreat is now full. If you would like to make a retreat with us at some point in the future, please contact us!

ASSISI PROJECT 3rd ANNUAL PILGRIMAGE & RETREAT

NOVEMBER 6th-13th ~ ASSISI & ROME, ITALY

REGISTRATION DEADLINE: SEPTEMBER 11, 2010

For the third consecutive year, members of our group will make a pilgrimage and retreat to Assisi and Rome from November 6th through November 13th. We still have room for additional pilgrims!

For more information:

If you have questions or would like more information about the Assisi Project's Fall Weekend Retreat in Andover or our 3rd Annual Pilgrimage & Retreat in Italy, please contact Cliff Garvey at c_garvey@rcabcuria.org. May the Lord give you peace!

2010-08-22T12:59:00.005-04:00

THIS WEEK: SAINT CLARE AND THE NARROW DOOR

Today is the 21st Sunday of Ordinary Time. At Mass, we hear the following passage from the Gospel of Luke:

Through towns and villages, Jesus went teaching, making his way to Jerusalem. Someone said to him, "Sir, will there be only a few saved?" He said to them, "Try your best to enter by the narrow door, because I tell you, many will try to enter and will not succeed. Once the master of the house got up and locked the door, you may find yourself knocking on the door, saying, 'Lord, open to us' but he will answer, 'I do not know where you come from.' Then you will find yourself saying, 'We once ate and drank in your company; you taught in our streets' but he will reply, 'I do not know where you come from. Away from me, all you wicked men! There will be weeping and grinding of teach, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, and yourselves turned outside. And men from east and west, north and south, will come to take their places at the feast of the kingdom of God. Yes, there are those now last who will be first, and those now first who will be last (Luke 13:22-30)."

Similarly, Jesus' teaching in this passage is echoed in the Gospel of Matthew:

"Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the road is easy that leads to destruction, and there are many who take it. For the gate is narrow and the road is hard that leads to life, and there are few who find it (Matthew 7:13-14).

We know very little about Saint Clare. What we believe comes largely from legend, from the "Little Flowers of Saint Clare" and from the documents related to her canonization. What we know for sure comes from her writings, especially her heartfelt letters to Agnes of Prague.

In the "First Letter to Agnes of Prague", Saint Clare reflects upon the gospel metaphors of the "narrow door" and the "narrow gate." She explains that the imitation of Christ Jesus through the gospel life is the narrow passage by which we might pass from perishable life to eternal life.

Saint Clare writes approvingly to Blessed Agnes: "You have cast aside your garments, that is, earthly riches, so that you might not be overcome by the one fighting against you, that you might enter the kingdom of heaven through the straight path and the narrow gate."

For Saint Clare, as for her friend and spiritual father and friend, Saint Francis, that straight path and narrow gate is a life of poverty: a rejection of worldly possessions, powers, and pride. The gospel life of poverty is to be taken and lived literally: no possessions, no property, and no positions of temporal power.

For us, this means not a rejection of hearth and home, but a serious and sincere detachment from the problematic effects of the material things of this world and a focus on the spiritual things of the next. As "Franciscans in spirit," then, we are called to lives of simplicity, lives of humility, and lives of childlike dependence on the God who is the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of God!

Saint Clare, pray for us!

Saint Franics, pray for us!

Blessed Agnes of Prague, pray for us!

2010-08-22T12:58:00.003-04:00

ASSISI PROJECT FALL WEEKEND RETREAT

OCTOBER 2nd-3rd ~ ROLLING RIDGE RETREAT CENTER

NOW FULL!

The Assisi Project is an adult faith formation program at Saint Charles Borromeo. Each month, our group meets for Mass, a community supper, and a period of prayerful discussion and faith sharing.

The Assisi Project Fall Weekend Retreat is now full. If you would like to make a retreat with us at some point in the future, please contact us!

ASSISI PROJECT 3rd ANNUAL PILGRIMAGE & RETREAT

NOVEMBER 6th-13th ~ ASSISI & ROME, ITALY

REGISTRATION DEADLINE: SEPTEMBER 11, 2010

For the third consecutive year, members of our group will make a pilgrimage and retreat to Assisi and Rome from November 6th through November 13th. We still have room for additional pilgrims!

For more information:

2010-08-15T10:23:00.006-04:00

THE TAU CROSS

Followers of Saint Francis throughout the world wear the "Tau" as a sign of their faith and friendship with the little saint from Assisi. Tau is the last letter of the Hebrew alphabet and means "mark." But what are the origins of the Tau as a sign of faith?

As a sign or symbol of faith, the Tau first appears in the Old Testament's Book of Ezekiel in the following passages, which we heard at Mass on Wednesday, August 11th (Feast of Saint Clare of Assisi):

The Lord cried loud for me to hear: Come, your scourges of the city! With that I saw six men coming from the direction of the upper gate which faces the north, each with a destroying weapon in his hand. In their midst was a man dressed in linen, with a writer's case at his waist. They entered and stood beside the bronze altar. Then he called to the man dressed in linen with the writer's case at his waist, saying to him: "Pass through the city, through Jerusalem, and mark a 'Thau' on the foreheads of those who moan and groan over all the abominations that are practiced in it." To the others I heard the Lord say: "Pass through the city after him and strike! Do not look on them with pity nor show any mercy! Old men, youths and maidens, women and children, wipe them out! But do not touch any marked with the 'Thau'; begin at my sanctuary." So they began with the men, the elders, who were in front of the temple. "Defile the temple," he said to them, "and fill the courts with the slain; then go out and strike in the city."

Then the glory of the Lord left the threshold of the temple and rested upon the cherubim. These lifted their wings, and I saw them rise from the earth, the wheels rising along with them. They stood at the entrance of the eastern gate of the Lord's house, and the glory of the God of Israel was up above them. Then the cherubim lifted their wings, and the wheels went along with them, while up above them was the glory of the God of Israel (Ezekiel 9:1-7; 10:18-22).

This scripture reading is somewhat frightening! However, it was not so frightening for Saint Francis. In November 1215, while attending the Fourth Lateran Council in Rome, Francis listened as Pope Innocent III raised the Tau as a symbol of Christian faithfulness. The pope said: "The Tau has exactly the same form as the Cross on which our Lord was crucified on Calvary, and only those will be marked with this sign and will obtain mercy who have mortified their flesh and conformed their life to that of the Crucified Savior."

From that moment, Francis used the Tau as the sign and symbol of his faith and the faith of his followers. Over the years, he painted it on the walls of the caves where he retreated to pray; signed documents with the Tau; and traced its form upon those whom he blessed. For more eight centuries, the Tau has been the "mark" of the worldwide Franciscan movement. For Franciscans, the Tau represents not just the Passion of Christ, but also their aspiration to live like him in poverty, chastity, and obedience. May the Lord give you peace!

2010-08-15T10:21:00.002-04:00

ASSISI PROJECT FALL WEEKEND RETREAT

OCTOBER 2nd-3rd ~ ROLLING RIDGE RETREAT CENTER

NOW FULL!

The Assisi Project is an adult faith formation program at Saint Charles Borromeo. Each month, our group meets for Mass, a community supper, and a period of prayerful discussion and faith sharing.

The Assisi Project Fall Weekend Retreat is now full. If you would like to make a retreat with us at some point in the future, please contact us!

ASSISI PROJECT 3rd ANNUAL PILGRIMAGE & RETREAT

NOVEMBER 6th-13th ~ ASSISI & ROME, ITALY

For the third consecutive year, members of our group will make a pilgrimage and retreat to Assisi and Rome from November 6th through November 13th. We still have room for additional pilgrims!

For more information:

2010-08-08T12:29:00.008-04:00

THIS WEEK: CLARE BECOMES A "HOSTAGE OF HEAVEN"

During the day, when the friars were working and preaching, the Portziuncola and its environs were deserted. At night, however, the area was lit brightly by both torches and by the sounds of the friars singing praises to Our Lady. On one Palm Sunday Night, all was especially bright and joyful as Clare and a friend approached from Assisi. Still dressed in their finest feast-day gowns, the girls followed the friars along a wooded path toward the Portziuncola.

At the door of the tiny chapel, Francis waited and welcome them. Clare knelt before Francis and received his blessing. Clare's gown, jewelry, and shoes were replaced with a coarse habit with a rope about the waist. Her feet were bare. Clare was led into the chapel and onto her knees before the altar. According to custom, Francis took a razor and shaved her head. Her long blond curls fell to the floor. Afterwards, Francis covered her head with a wool cloth.

While Clare was being divested of her worldly beauty, the friars, dressed as always in their rough habits and shaved heads, chanted softly the Office of the Dead. They sang for Clare, a young noble lady who was delivered from the world and had become a hostage of heaven.

From "The Little Flowers of Saint Clare"

2010-08-08T12:29:00.001-04:00

FEAST OF SAINT CLARE OF ASSISI

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2010

On Wednesday, August 11, the Catholic Church will celebrate the Feast of Saint Clare of Assisi. Clare was born in approximately 1193 in Assisi, Italy. Claire was the daughter of a local nobleman. Her deep faith was apparent from an early age through unusual acts of charity and penance. While still a teenager, Clare left her life of affluence and privilege and followed in the footsteps of her friend, Saint Francis. She founded an order of religious sisters (known as the Poor Clares). Clare was cloistered at the Church of Saint Damian where she lived a life of chastity and poverty. She died in 1253.

Prayer to Saint Clare

Saint Clare,

ardent lover of Jesus

in the Most Blessed Sacrament,

help us to grow in our love for Jesus.

With your strong faith and unwavering hope,

gather our wounded Church,

our suffering world, and all people

into your loving heart.

Lift us in prayer to Jesus

with your absolute confidence in his merciful love.

Help us to be as you were:

gentle, kind, patient, peaceful, and persevering

in the face of difficulties.

Trusting in your powerful intercession,

we confidently praise and thank God

for the blessings we have received.

Praise, glory, wisdom and thanksgiving,

honor, power, and might to our God

for ever and ever. Amen.

Coming soon: More about Saint Clare of Assisi

2010-08-08T12:28:00.001-04:00

ASSISI PROJECT FALL WEEKEND RETREAT

OCTOBER 2nd-3rd ~ ROLLING RIDGE RETREAT CENTER

The Assisi Project is an adult faith formation program at Saint Charles Borromeo. Each month, our group meets for Mass, a community supper, and a period of prayerful discussion and faith sharing.

ASSISI PROJECT 3rd ANNUAL PILGRIMAGE & RETREAT

NOVEMBER 6th-13th ~ ASSISI & ROME, ITALY

For the third consecutive year, members of our group will make a pilgrimage and retreat to Assisi and Rome from November 6th through November 13th.

The cost is $2,199 per person which includes round trip air travel, all ground transportation, single room in Assisi, and breakfast and supper each day.

For more information:

2009-11-30T17:59:00.002-05:00

ASSISI PROJECT 2009

SECOND ANNUAL PILGRIMAGE & RETREAT

NOVEMBER 7th THROUGH NOVEMBER 14th

DAY ONE

Logan Airport, Boston; 4:40pm EDT: Earlier this afternoon, more than 30 parishioners joined us for Daytime Prayer before we departed for Logan Airport. Father Shea, our pastor, offered a special blessing for those who are traveling to Assisi and for those who will be on retreat in their homes in Woburn.

In a few minutes, our eight pilgrims will board their flight for the seven hour flight to Rome. Upon our arrival in Rome, a small chartered bus will carry us north to Umbria and the medieval city of Assisi.

Saint Francis of Assisi, pray for us!

Saint Clare, pray for us!

Holy men and women of Assisi, pray for us!

ASSISI PROJECT 2009

SECOND ANNUAL PILGRIMAGE & RETREAT

DAY TWO

Assisi, Italy (1:07pm CET): Our eight pilgrims arrived safely in Assisi after a long, 7 hour overnight flight from Boston to Rome; followed by a 3 hour drive from Rome to Assisi. The weather is unsettled: periodic rain showers and brisk, chilled breezes. The mountains north of Assisi are already topped with snow!

Everyone is well, but weary. We're looking forward to an afternoon nap, a walk through the medieval city, followed by Sunday Mass and our first community supper.

Be blessed of the Lord, O you holy city, faithful to God, because many souls will be saved through you, and may servants of the Most High will dwell within you, and from you many will be chosen for the eternal kingdom (Saint Francis).

Prayer for the 32nd Sunday of Ordinary Time

Almighty God,

remove the obstacles that stand in our way,

so that unimpeded in body and soul,

we may freely devote ourselves to your service.

We make this prayer through Christ Jesus, our Lord.

Amen.

From the Liturgy of the Hours

ASSISI PROJECT 2009
SECOND ANNUAL PILGRIMAGE & RETREAT
PHOTOS FROM ASSISI

Pax!
May the Lord give you peace!

Basilica of Saint Francis

ASSISI PROJECT 2009
SECOND ANNUAL PILGRIMAGE & RETREAT
DAY THREE

Assisi, Italy (11:52am CET): Our group began the day with Morning Prayer at 7:00am, followed by a simple breakfast with our hosts, the Franciscan Sisters of the Atonement. Afterward, we pilgrims walked (through a light rain) to the Basilica of Saint Francis for Mass at the saint's tomb.

Father Jim served as principal celebrant of the Mass. We were very blessed that Monsignor Francisco Viti concelebrated the Mass and offered the final blessing. Monsignor Viti is Archbishop Emeritus of Huambo, Angola and has been a good friend and inspiration to the Assisi Project since its beginning almost two years ago.

After Mass, five members of our group participated in a guided tour of the basilica by one of the Franciscan friars who lives there. Later today, after a free afternoon of private prayer and exploration, our group will meet for a spiritual conference, Evening Prayer, and our community supper at a family-owned local restaurant.

As midday approaches, the rain has ended, the skies are brightening, and we feel very blessed after our celebration of the Holy Eucharist at the tomb of Saint Francis of Assisi. As our pilgrimage and retreat continues, be assured of our group's prayers for all of our friends, families, and fellow parishioners at Saint Charles Borromeo. May the Lord give you peace!

Saint Francis walked the world like the pardon of God. I mean that his appearance marked the moment when men could be reconciled not only to God but to nature and, most difficult of all, to themselves in short, the coming of Saint Francis was like the birth of a child in a dark house, lifting its doom, a child that grows up unconscious of the tragedy in the house, and triumphant over it by his innocence...It was such an amnesty and reconciliation that the freshness of the Franciscan spirit brought to all the world (G.K. Chesterton).

Today's Prayer

Almighty God,
you have made us guardians and cultivators of the earth,
you have sent the sun to shine on us and help us.
Grant that today we may work for your glory
and for the good of our neighbour.
We make this prayer through Christ Jesus, Our Lord.
Amen.

From the Liturgy of the Hours

ASSISI PROJECT 2009
SECOND ANNUAL PILGRIMAGE & RETREAT
DAY FOUR

Assisi, Italy (12:36pm CET): Greetings from Assisi! Our day began with breakfast, followed by Morning Prayer and our spiritual presentation and discussion. Today, we focus our prayerful attention on the San Damiano Crucifix, which hangs in the Basilica of Saint Clare, which can be seen from our guesthouse. Our morning concluded with Mass in honor of Saint Clare.

Later this afternoon, we pilgrims will visit the tomb of Saint Clare, see the relics on display in the crypt of the basilica (including one donated by Saint Charles Borromeo), and spend an hour in quiet prayer before the San Damiano Crucifix. Afterward, we will join the Poor Clares in their sung celebration of Evening Prayer. Our day will conclude with a community supper, followed by Night Prayer. May the Lord give you peace!

O Lord, I beseech you that the fiery, honey sweet force of your love might absorb my spirit, drawing it away from everything that lies beneath the sky, so that I might die of love for your love, who for love of my love deigned to die (Saint Francis of Assisi).

Today's Prayer

Lord, increase our faith in you,
so that the praise we give to you,
may constantly yield its fruit from heaven.
We make this prayer through Christ Jesus, our Lord.
Amen.

From the Liturgy of the Hours

ASSISI PROJECT 2009
SECOND ANNUAL PILGRIMAGE & RETREAT
PHOTOS FROM ASSISI

View of the Basilica of Saint Clare
From Saint Anthony's Guest House

Olive Grove
Plain Below the Basilica of Saint Clare

Piazza de Commune
Assisi's Town Square

ASSISI PROJECT 2009
SECOND ANNUAL PILGRIMAGE & RETREAT
DAY FIVE

Assisi, Italy (12:06pm CET): Greetings from Assisi! Today's weather is brilliant: bright blue skies, light breezes, and crisp, cool air! After our morning retreat schedule (Morning Prayer, Mass, and a spiritual presentation & discussion) five of our pilgrims set out again for the Basilica of Saint Francis. They will meet their new friend, Father Noel, a Franciscan friar from Connecticut, who will continue his two-day, in-depth tour of the basilica. Our other pilgrims are planning a quiet afternoon of personal prayer and exploration.

Later this afternoon, we pilgrims will visit the Church of San Damiano, where Francis experienced his profound conversion before the crucifix which spoke to him. It was here, too, that Clare lived out her vocation of contemplation and prayer. In addition to a self-guided exploration of the church and its cloister, we will join the friars and sisters for Evening Prayer. Once again, our day will conclude with a community supper, followed by Night Prayer. May the Lord give you peace!

When she came from prayer, her face looked brighter and more beautiful than the sun, and her manner of speaking was of such inexpressible sweetness that her life seemed to be wholly of Heaven (From the Process of Canonization of Saint Clare, Virgin).

Hail, spouse of God, sacred virgin, Clare, root of the Friars Minor, you who are a vessel of purity, guide and model of the Sisters, lead all of us, O Clare, through your prayers, to the Kingdom of Heaven (From the Liturgical Office of Saint Clare).

Today's Prayer

Most high, glorious God,
cast your light into the darkness of my heart.
Give me, Lord, right faith, firm hope,
perfect charity and profound humility,
with wisdom and perception,
so that I may carry out what is truly your holy will.
Amen.

The Prayer of Saint Francis Before the Crucifix of San Damiano

ASSISI PROJECT 2009
SECOND ANNUAL PILGRIMAGE & RETREAT
PHOTOS FROM ASSISI

Church of San Damiano
Site of Saint Francis' Conversion

Cloister at San Damiano
(Please pray for the mean friar who wouldn't let us into Saint Clare's dormitory!)

Basilica of Saint Clare

ASSISI PROJECT 2009
SECOND ANNUAL PILGRIMAGE & RETREAT
DAY SIX

Assisi, Italy (12:13pm CET): Buongiorno! Our last day in Assisi! Another beautiful day (cool, crisp and sunny) in the medieval city of Assisi, although a thick blanket of fog covers the vast plain at the base of Mountain Subasio. After our morning retreat schedule (Morning Prayer, Mass, and a spiritual presentation & discussion), our pilgrims left Saint Anthony's Guest House for a final afternoon of pilgrimage -- and shopping!

Some are walking back down to the Basilica of Saint Clare, some are making the trek up to the Cathedral of Saint Rufino, and some are heading to the Church of Saint Stephen, whose bells announced the death of Saint Francis nearly 800 years ago. Each of our pilgrims was hoping to spend some quiet time in personal prayer in the places that touched them most deeply during their time in Assisi.

Our final evening in Assisi promises to be among the highlights of an already blessed week! We will begin with Evening Prayer and our final spiritual conference in the guest house's library, which offers a truly incredible view of the Basilica of Saint Clare. After that, we will travel beyond the walled city to the farm of Anne Robichaud and Pino Alagana, who are preparing a traditional "Umbrian Feast" in our honor. We feel very blessed that Archbishop Viti and Father Noel will join us for this final night of good food, fellowship, and prayer! Once again, our day will conclude with a community supper, followed by Night Prayer.

Tomorrow morning, we pilgrims will depart Assisi after breakfast, Morning Prayer, and Mass. Our last day of pilgrimage and retreat will bring us to Rome for private tours of Saint Peter's Basilica, the Sistine Chapel, and part of the Vatican Museums! We are not sure that our hotel in Rome offers internet service, but we'll do our best to keep you posted about our final day in Italy! May the Lord give you peace!

Day and night they kept their gaze ever fixed upon the cross of Christ, taught by the example and the words of the Father, who often spoke to them about the cross of Christ. When the friars asked him to teach them to pray, he said: "When you pray, say the Our Father, and also, We adore you, O Christ, in all your churches in the world, and we bless you, because by your holy cross you have redeemed the world (Saint Bonaventure's 'Life of Saint Francis')."

Today's Prayer

Almighty God,
let the knowledge of salvation enlighten our hearts,
so that freed from fear and from the power of our enemies,
we may serve you faithfully all the days of our life.
We make this prayer through Christ Jesus, our Lord.
Amen.

A Prayer of Saint Francis of Assisi

ASSISI PROJECT 2009
SECOND ANNUAL PILGRIMAGE & RETREAT
DAY SEVEN

Rome, Italy (9:40pm CET): Greetings from Rome! After an early morning Mass and breakfast, we pilgrims departed Assisi and arrived safely in Rome shortly before noon today. We had just enough time for a quick lunch before meeting our new friend, Gabriella, for a tour of part of the Vatican Museum, the Sistine Chapel, and Saint Peter's Basilica.

By the time our tour ended at 4:00pm, our pilgrims were tired and ready for a late afternoon rest before supper. We enjoyed a sometimes bittersweet, sometimes raucous, but always delicious community supper during our last night in Italy at a family owned trattoria just a short walk from Saint Peter's Basilica. After supper, five members of our group drove to the Trevi Fountain, tossed coins over our shoulders, and thereby assured our return to Rome (perhaps for next year's Assisi Project Pilgrimage and Retreat!).

Speaking of next year, we reserved rooms with the sisters at Saint Anthony's Guest House for our 3rd Annual Assisi Project Pilgrimage & Retreat in November 2010. Oh, by the way, our "Umbrian Feast" at Anne and Pino's farm was fantastic! Ann can cook for us anytime and may visit us sometime next spring!

Anyway, this will be our last post before leaving Italy for the USA. We depart tomorrow morning at 7:00am. Please pray for our safe travels home! May the Lord give you peace!

We have come to believe in God's love. In these words, the Christian can express the fundamental decision of his life. Being Christian is not the result of an ethical choice or a lofty idea, but the encounter with an event, a Person, which gives life a new horizon and a decisive direction. To know Him is the most beautiful experience. Let us communicate to everyone our friendship with Him (Pope Benedict XVI).

Saint Francis, pray for us!
Saint Clare, pray for us!
Holy men and women of Assisi, pray for us!