Visions of the Church
As the People of God, living in the midst of this world, and therefore also exposed to the temptation of power, as all human beings are, the Church herself needs all the time also to be evangelized in order to be able to proclaim the Gospel in a credible way. That means she must never stop listening to the one who proclaimed what is the essential, the core of the message. Luke above all, but the other Gospel writers as well, show Jesus as a person who had nothing, who had no place where to lay his head, who lived a consequent solidarity with the poor. Whoever wishes to follow Jesus, must leave behind all thoughts of possessions and of domination, of exercising power over others, and together with him, seek the company of the destitute (cf. Mk 10). For the poor, the weak, the persecuted and exploited ones, shall experience and know that... ”theirs is the
If those in a position of responsibility in the
Whoever means it well with the Church will have to be worried about such pre-Vatican II longings. The credibility of the Church is at stake. What is really necessary nowadays is to re-discover the vision unveiled by Vatican Council II. The Church was defined as a community of the many local churches, each of which has its own cultural face, and all live in communion with one another. The Church as the pilgrim People of God; to whom altogether God has offered a covenant. And in whom he awakens the many charisms and ministries that are necessary to liberate the people from their servitude of guilt and from the sense of being lost. This is the Church in which all bear responsibility for the work of salvation among the people. This is the Church that seeks not to be served but to serve. This is the Church that can be generous and understanding, merciful and free and without constraints because it believes and trusts that the Spirit of God is at work within it.
That would be the
Andreas Müller OFM
The CCFMC in French-speaking
We have received a report about the growth of the CCFMC in Francophone
The CCFMC structures in French-speaking countries of
P. Pascal Fomonyuy OFMCap joined the CCFMC board for the French-speaking countries in
Togo, Benin, Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast: The coordinator for this region, P. François Lare OFM, has been making tremendous efforts to ensure the same sort of success for the CCFMC in Burkina Faso and Benin as it has enjoyed in Togo, where there has been a coordinating group in action since 2008, responsible for communication between the Franciscan Family and the CCFMC.
Democratic
The
The first of the Jubilee events in 2009 was on January 3rd when 268 Franciscan Brothers and Sisters gathered in
Grace in the Franciscan Perspective was the theme of the second talk, delivered by Father Baltazar Obico OFM. “Grace is the freely given, all-embracing help from above; it comes from God and enables us to lead a Christian life. God's Plan is love, not humiliation. Father Balthazar stressed that Franciscan spirituality is not poverty but thanksgiving.
Responsible for the organization and implementation of this event is the Inter-Franciscan Ministers’ Conference of the Philippines (IFMCP) with their Mission Partners. Other events planned for this year are Franciscan Hermitage Experience on March 9, 2009; the Common Franciscan Retreat from May 4th to 8th, 2009; A day of recollection Reflecting on the Formula of the Vows, August 8th, 2009. The great celebration of the 800th Anniversary of our Franciscan Foundation will be on
In
Father Slaven Milanović Litre OFM, coordinator of the
P. Pero initiated the discussion about the need of preparing the CCFMC National Statutes where the local goals, tasks and responsibilities could be defined. It was agreed that time would have to be spent gathering information and analyzing experiences. It is still too early to begin work on the Statutes as there is still a lack of complete clarity.
· Further decisions. From 30th April to 3rd May 2009 a seminar for animators will take place in Krk / Croatia. Each region should send four participants, if possible newcomers.
· Sister Mirjana Pinecik was elected deputy of the National coordinator.
· The next annual conference will be on November 28 in Zagreb.
Sarajevo: A successful first year of the CCFMC
Bosnia-Herzegovina and Croatia are today active and committed members of the growing CCFMC family; they have written large on their banner the spread of the Franciscan Charism. In the course of the year just past, not only have they set up the National CCFMC Bureau in Sarajevo, but also structures necessary for active work were established.
P. Pero Vrebac OFM, the national coordinator, distributed the Annual Report for 2008 at the Annual Assembly of CCFMC, which took place in Zagreb on November 29th, 2008. In this report dealing with the whole region of Bosnia-Herzegovina and Croatia, he sketched out not only the most important developments that had taken place in this period of time, but also he addressed in detail and openly the challenges to be faced in the future.
The experiences at the meeting of the CCFMC International Committee at Großkrotzenburg (Germany) in February 2008 had been a great encouragement, stimulating further work on the task, already begun, of promoting the CCFMC in Bosnia-Herzegovina and Croatia and also of carrying it over to the neighboring countries. "Thus it is that our CCFMC is now linked to the worldwide Franciscan Family and is part and parcel of this Family," he stressed.
Actions
Among the most significant events of the past year can be reckoned a two-day seminar for CCFMC animators, which took place in Split in the newly established OFM Students' Hostel from 1st to 3rd May 2008. There were 35 participants who attended - 18 members of the OFS, four Franciscan Sisters, five members of YOUFRA and four Franciscan friars. At the end of the seminar they voiced the wish that this seminar should become an annual event.
The preparations for the 800th Anniversary celebrations was also an important theme that was discussed during the regional coordinators' seminar. For Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina there is a concrete plan, namely an inter-Franciscan pilgrimage to Podnia in Bosnia that is to take place on August 30th, 2009.
Special attention was given in the Annual Report to two Franciscan projects in Croatia: The Third Order Secular of Trsat in Croatia opened the establishment ''Roses of St Francis", which is the first refuge for the homeless in Rijeka. A small group of volunteer helpers under the direction of a chaplain and a psychologist devote themselves to meeting the needs of the most destitute, the lepers of our time, and give them back for a while their human dignity. Up to now about a hundred have used this institution. A similar initiative of the Trsat OFS led to the 'Street Lamp' the first 'newspaper for the homeless' published in Croatia. The first edition appeared on September 19th, 2008 with a print of 1000 copies. The paper publishes addresses of places to which the homeless can turn, it lists soup kitchens and accommodation for people with limited income. The name of the newspaper is derived from the Franciscan vision that says that the poorest of the poor should be the instruments of our evangelization.
Challenges
The Annual Report deals with the challenges that arise from the present-day insufficiencies and deals with them in detail. On the one hand, there is a growing sense of commitment as well as a lively interest in Francis and Clare among members of the secular side of the Franciscan Family and also among the YOUFRA members. On the other hand, there is the negative side: a reluctance among the priests of the religious orders to devote themselves to the spiritual needs, their own spiritual needs and those of others.
In the Report it says: " We have a great deal to do; for this we are using up our energies, but we are not spending these for building up the living Church. Rather we are building g new churches and in doing so, we are losing our spirituality Instead of entrusting these worldly concerns about material projects to the experts among the lay people, we take these upon ourselves and in doing so deprive them (the laity) of their field of work. We are wasting our time on matters in which we are not competent; but for those things for which we are trained, namely spiritual matters, pastoral care, we have neither the time nor the interest to devote to them. The impression is being given that the years (of Communist rule) when the Church was banned and confined to the sacristies has left their trace in us and have affected our relationships both with lay people and with the religious sisterhoods. [...] In my opinion, that is happening because we are not really conscious of our specific Franciscan identity. We have become 'overclericalised' [...]. Our identity, whether we are ordained or not, is one of a life led under vows in a religious Order, not necessarily a life as priest, . The essence of our Franciscan identity lies not in the priestly ordination as such but in a dedicated life. This 'clerical' mentality, into which we have grown, provides a fertile soil where prejudice and misunderstandings in regard to the Secular Franciscans and the Franciscan sisters have found a fertile ground [...] Our attitude towards them is as if they were second-class people ..."
What can be done
1. Many more Brothers and Sisters from the various congregations and communities must be trained as animators so that they can be enabled to offer the CCFMC Course to those in their sphere of influence and to guide them. When and where these obviously necessary two-day training sessions are to be held, as well as other organizational details, have yet to be settled.
2. Regular meetings of the National CCFMC Council are necessary in order to make the work in all the regions more lively and relevant.
3. Given that the National Bureau has to cope with a great number and wide variety of different tasks in its efforts to spread Franciscan Charism far and wide, there is urgent need for a deputy National Coordinator to be elected. At the present moment, the sole occupant of the National Bureau is the National Coordinator.
4. The preparations for the 800th Anniversary of Franciscan Charism should also be taken into account - in addition to the spiritual aspects that it offers - there should also be practical and concrete social actions - that is, Franciscan Charism should be lived.
5. It would be highly desirable to have a website in Croatian. To take on this task - for which the International Center in Würzburg has already provided the necessary technical assistance - there must be a special team chosen for this purpose.
Latin America
The Second CCFMC General Assembly in Brasilia (continued from the November and December editions of the NEWS)
The theme of the General Assembly and the great discussion forums that followed on its heels was: "How can we fill the dream of St Francis and St Clare with life? What has the Franciscan Movement brought into being and what changes has it brought about?" Only if we tackle these issues seriously and honestly can we reach an understanding of what they mean for us today, not theoretically and speculatively but in real terms with pragmatic actions undertaken in the real world in which we live. Therefore, we will have to build a bridge, linking the world of eight centuries ago and our present-day world, and try to translate the ideas of our Founder into terms that suit our socio-economic, cultural, and religious situation. We will have to make a skilful adjustment that will transpose an enthralling idea that once gripped a whole world into one that will still be effective in the multi-facetted realities of our world. Or, to put it another way: today we must think globally in a world that has been transformed into a global village, yet at the same time we must always act locally in our own small world.
Therefore, the issue at stake is to know what significance the Franciscan Movement has today in the reality of the Church, in the social situation, in the midst of the wide variety of differing cultures and given the social processes that we are undergoing in each of our countries. To relate this concretely to the CCFMC family: is the Course a suitable and adequate instrument to start off the necessary process
The following summary gives the key ideas of a very stimulating talk. There are three aspects that we should consider.
1. Society with firm roots: That is the world as it has been for a long time. It prefers established permanence, large buildings, solid values, vows and promises that last a whole lifetime, stable families, great schools, feudal structures with all-powerful lords on high and obedient servants below, a culture that is bound to tradition that is passed on from generation to generation. Vocation, which is a decision that lasts a whole life versus a profession, that may be changed.
This is the image of the hierarchical Church. A stable Church that is not to be questioned. Canonical Law is the established norm. Missions are defined and prescribed. What must be maintained are tradition and the integrity of truth. The Catechism, the rubrics and the sacramental pastoral are important.
2. The industrialized society (an in-between society): its characteristic feature is the capitalistic economic system. It dispenses with its physical, intellectual, emotional religious and cultural roots. In the fields of the economy and technology it values rapid changes, its stability rests on laws that guarantee some degree of security. In the field of politics power is based on elections, no longer on inherited rights and blood-relationship. Divorces are possible through courtroom decisions. Professionalization, (competence, efficiency, and acknowledged social status) receives great significance. Culture is strongly influenced by science (research, genetics, information technology) and by subjective values (truth is always a matter of interpretation from a fixed point of view).
The Church in the intermediate societal structure is its counterpart. It is the result of the changes that the Second Vatican Council brought about. Existing structures are maintained, but are now flexible. The synods play their significant role. The Catechism is now understood as a guide. Ecumenical and interreligious dialogue have become current practice. The laity are involved in official organs.
3. The post-industrial society - a knowledge-based society: This society is deeply marked by flexibility. It is the neo-liberal society: a stage characterized by a shift from realistic goods to virtual ones; shares traded on the stock exchanges, credit-card transactions. The world is governed by electronic technologies. Stability in the workplace and in one's profession disappear: workers change their place of work within a firm or they move from one firm to another. The means of production demand the acquirement of new knowledge-based skills. Families build on emotional relationships that are based on the factor of self-realization. Culture is characterized by consumerism and finds itself in a state of permanent movement. Subjectivism, marketing, body cult, good looks, nano-technology, all these shape the face of this society.
In keeping with this is the virtual Church. It is deeply influenced by people's mobility and interests. Example: " www.partenia.org - Notre Dame in internet"; or 'Igreja Pólo', which deal with the expectations of the people who turn to them. There are centers for spirituality, for counseling, for further education, for silence, meditation, for music - to name but a few.
After this stimulating beginning followed a lively discussion in groups. What must we do to transpose the Franciscan heritage into this post-modern era? We were all agreed that we will have say goodbye to a great deal, to structures and tasks handed down to us from earlier generations, to places and
It was also clear that the CCFMC is a suitable instrument to be used in furthering such processes. Of course, all those involved must be open towards making the necessary mental adjustments to meet these new demands in individual regions; we must be open towards making the required further extensions to the course in order not to avoid new themes. It is important to recognize the reality in which we want to be Franciscans of today. Francis shows us the God that is near to His people, free of structures. We ought to become freer in order to be again where our poor of today are, where they are often ignored and scarcely receive any encouragement. This is the mystic quality of our spirituality, which is so necessary today.
CCFMC Center, Würzburg
Sister Reginarda Holzer is no longer in the CCFMC Team
On December 31st, 2008 Sister Reginarda left the Team in the CCFMC Center. She has taken on an important task in the leadership of her Congregation's Retirement and Nursing Home in Oberzell. In the months that followed she wanted to find out whether she could combine the time-consuming duties involved in the management of that Home with a continuation of her work with us in a meaningful and responsible way. Unfortunately, this has proved impossible as her new duties did not allow her to be tied down to a definite timetable.
Sister Reginarda has been with us at the Center, working part-time, since the middle of March 2003. She has been responsible for the editing of the CCFMC NEWS, for fostering contacts with Asia and Africa, for the promotion of the Course in Africa and was part of the general administration. We are indebted to her for her many practical suggestions and new ideas, which have been a valuable contribution to the service we are rendering worldwide. We are indeed very grateful to her. We wish her all the best in her new field of the apostolate and hope that the fact that Oberzell is not too far away from Wuerzburg will mean that there will still be a lively and productive interchange between us and her.
A new member on the editorial board of the CCFMC
We are delighted to introduce Ms Hedwig Maurer as the successor to Sister Reginarda in the CCFMC NEWS editorial board. Since the beginning of this year she has been responsible for editing the news and the reports that come in from the world of the CCFMC. She gives a brief personal résumé here.
My professional career: After my studies of English and Spanish I spent a year in Spain working as a translator before taking up a post in the News Broadcasting Department of the German radio station 'Deutsche Welle', where I remained for thirty years working and mastering the editorial tasks. Through a third-party recommendation, I got to know about the Mission Centre of the Franciscans in Bonn and met P. Andreas. For almost six years I was able to continue my journalistic activities in working on the MZF publication 'Missionsdienst' and in doing so I was able to acquaint myself with Franciscan life and thought. From Bonn my path in life took me to Colombia in 2005. For six months I was on the 'Franciscan Commission for Justice, Peace and the Preservation of the Created World'.
I am indeed happy that I have found my way back to a Franciscan ambience and I hope to receive many helpful suggestions and new ideas from NEWS readers and authors. I can be reached through hmaurer@ccfmc.net
Bare-footed in the Foot-prints of Jesus -
The Christ-Experience of Francis and how he followed Him
Br. Niklaus Kuster OFMCap
Why is a church-going young man around 1200 living 'as if there were no Christ'? And this in the centre of a city that could boast of more than a dozen churches and monasteries in a population of some 2000 inhabitants? The answer may perhaps be found on the doorway of the Cathedral Church of San Rufino that was just under construction at that time: It shows the common idea of God around 1200 AD. The Romanesque God, Ruler of the World, on His throne, flanked by the sun and the moon, immeasurably high above all else. What has this image of the All-powerful world-dominating Christ to do with the everyday life of the Assisi citizens, with their mundane worries, business plans, festivals and dreams for a successful career?
Francis, 'the most human of all the saints', writes about the first half of his life that he had lived 'without Christ'. Raoul Manselli translates into modern language what Francis expresses in his Testament by 'cum essem in peccatis'. No doubt, the young merchant carries out the religious duties appropriate to the merchant middle-class, goes to Mass on Sundays, takes part in the religious processions and also goes on pilgrimage to Rome with his extended family. But, in retrospect, for him his faith seems to have no influence on his life, his actions and his decisions. Religion is a matter for the clergy, of whom there were many representatives in the town, yet these are hardly keeping pace with the rapid changes that time is bringing. But performing liturgical acts does not necessarily mean that there is a living spirituality behind it!
God shows himself infinitely patient with the young man, who enjoys living on the sunny side of life for a number of years. The “Highest” wait until people seek him of their own accord. And often he waits in unexpected places for the one who is seeking him. But of this more later.
___________________________________
NOTE
In the coming months we shall be printing excerpts from a longer essay by Brother Niklaus which will serve as an inspiration during the Jubilee Year '800th Anniversary of the Franciscan Movement'. To be continued until the end of 2009.
back
print