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ONGOING FORMATION
PROJECT MONTHLY DOSSIER OCTOBER 2010 – YEAR 1 – No. 10 |
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SECTION I: MONTHLY THEME |
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Topic II-4: Sense of Belonging to the Secular Franciscan
Order Belonging to the SFO, by Emanuela De Nunzio, SFO (n. 14 - 15) Summary and comments by Ewald Kreuzer, SFO Belonging and mission. From its very beginning, the task of the Church has
been to propose to humanity the message of Jesus, to proclaim salvation as a
gift given for the whole of humanity whicht is simply called to accept this
gift of love, and to join in God’s project of becoming live members of His
Church scattered throughout the world. n. 14. Being open to
the world. In the era of
globalization, the Church finds itself again, as in the first centuries of
Christianity, facing the task of proposing to humanity the message of Jesus.
The field of mission today is immense: the sectors most marginalized in
society, aboriginal communities, the poor in urban areas, migrants, refugees,
the excluded ... The SFO and each local Fraternity and every single
Franciscan, as “live members of the Church,” must become “witnesses and
instruments of its mission among men” in a credible way. Secular
Franciscans are asked to pay attention to the weakest and to do works of
mercy ... But be careful: “...There exists in some the idea that social
projects are meant to be acted upon with the greatest urgency, while the
things that pertain to God or the Catholic faith are more or less details
that have less priority. Nevertheless... wisdom dictates that evangelization
should take precedence, that the God of Jesus Christ should be known,
believed and loved, so that even social things can progress, for the advent
of reconciliation. Social action and the Gospel are simply inseparable."
(From the Pope’s speech at Ratisbona). Let us go forward to
announce the Good News to the world, with both words and action, remembering
that we are not simply a social welfare organization. We have been called to
build a new world of communion and brotherhood: called to build the kingdom
of God. n. 15. New forms of
intervention. Today, our
Christian duties require new ways of intervening. Socio-political
formation makes it necessary to
read again Gaudium et Spes and to revisit it in light of the most
recent teaching, above all the second part of the Encyclical of Benedict XVI,
Deus Caritas Est. Voluntary service is not to be seen as an interventional
"stop-gap" measure towards the State and public institutions, but
rather as a complementary presence, offering its own contribution to build
the civilization of love (Benedict XVI in Vienna, Sept. 2007). Attention must be given
to the young who are especially
exposed to the dangers of instability. They are ready to realize their
"courage to live and to serve" but they need those who can
accompany them in the search for the Face of Christ. In the field of
ecology, we Franciscans are called
to build a world globalized within which all can enter, where there is a
respect of creation, love among all and just relationships that allow an
honest life for all. Ecumenism and
interfaith dialogue are essential to
living the faith and a relationship with Jesus where we are all one. It is necessary to embrace the occasions to
pray together (wherever it is possible) and to find common areas of
involvement such as the struggle with poverty, peace, and safeguarding
creation through questions tied to ethics and the environment. As far as
social justice is concerned, we can walk together immediately. Mission to the people includes supportive participation with the peoples
of the earth by denouncing and fighting against every violation of the
dignity of the person. The missionary commitment of Secular Franciscans must
never be limited to World Missionary Day or economic support to the Missions. Questions for reflection and discussion in fraternity 1. How can we Secular Franciscans build a more fraternal and evangelical world? 2. Which new ways of
“intervention” should we use in our particular mission as Secular
Franciscans? |
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SECTION II:
SPIRITUAL INSIGHT |
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Topic X: Celebrating St.
Francis’ charism: Belonging to a family of ‘dreamers’ and builders. Fr. Amando Trujillo
Cano, TOR Much
has been written about Francis of Assisi and by countless people from very
diverse times, cultures, languages, places and backgrounds. In fact – even
when he regarded himself as an “ignorant and uneducated person” (Letter to the Entire Order, 39) – he
was the first one to write impassionedly about the experience of God invading
and transforming his life, calling him and those inspired by his example to
live the Gospel life. Some of his works, like the Canticle of Brother Sun, are studied in Italy’s schools since he
is considered as one of the precursors of the Italian language. During the
last forty years, Franciscan bibliography has increased considerably and, in particular,
some critical editions of the Franciscan sources have been translated and
published in several languages. The current development on the study of these
sources is a clear sign of the timeless relevance that this fascinating
troubadour of God has for the Church and the world of today. In this section,
we would like to suggest a few features of Francis’ life and message that may
be of particular interest for today’s Franciscans. Francis’ journey of conversion began when God tapped
into his frustrated dreams of human glory, inviting him to search for a
higher glory, that of serving Him. Then, the experience of prayerfully
contemplating the Byzantine-style San
Damiano crucifix and perceiving Christ’s call to rebuild his house which
was “falling down” showed him a clear, yet initial, path towards the mission for
which he had been chosen. Even though Francis first understood this call in a
literal way and devoted himself to rebuilding San Damiano’s chapel and two other small churches, his
evangelical life in fraternity awakened a wide renewal of the Church. Our
Franciscan vocation and mission should also be rooted in an authentic, soul-searching
attitude and courageous openness to the action of the Holy Spirit in us as we
meditate, contemplate Christ, poor and crucified, in prayer and liturgy and
in the events of our lives. It is the same Christ that still calls us to
constantly rebuild, repair, and renew the community of believers as the
universal sacrament of salvation. The Church to which we belong since our
baptismal consecration has always been blessed and challenged in diverse
ways. Secular Franciscans are called to be active agents of communion with
the hierarchy and to foster “an open and trusting dialogue of apostolic
effectiveness and creativity.” (SFO
Rule, 6b) Francis’ Testament
points out, right at the beginning, how the Lord himself led him to do
penance by showing mercy to lepers. This experience deeply transformed him
and the way he perceived those at the margins of society. Loving and
effective service to the poor and the sick, to the suffering and to the oppressed
has been a distinctive characteristic of many members and entities of the
Franciscan Order throughout its history. In this era of globalization when
the majority of human beings live in poverty and many of them in misery, all
Franciscans are called to be faithful witnesses of God’s compassion and mercy
to all, especially to the lowly. (Cf. SFO
Rule, 13) In the same Testament,
Francis recognized that God gave him brothers and revealed to him their call
to live “according to the form of the holy Gospel”. In the midst of our
society, marked in many ways by a crass individualism and social
fragmentation, Franciscans are also called to recognize their brothers and
sisters as gifts from God, not as enemies or obstacles of their own
realization. Countless men and women of our time survive without genuine
human relationships and long for a true sense of fraternity and solidarity in
the midst of our impersonal metropolis. We have been given a precious gift
that we are to cherish, nurture and share with the people of our time. (cf.
SFO Rule, 13) A natural consequence of Francis’ sense of faith and fraternity
was his keen capacity to see all creatures as brothers and sisters, children
of the same almighty God. In modern times, his legacy has prompted many
Franciscans to become actively involved in promoting peace, justice and
integrity of creation. “Let us begin,
brothers, to serve the Lord our God for up to now we have made little or no
progress”. (1Cel, 103). Questions for reflection and discussion in fraternity 1.
What should our fraternity do to become more familiar with the
Franciscan sources? 2.
How has God tapped into my deepest longings and dreams of happiness? 3.
What are some of the most relevant aspects of Francis’ life and
message for our fraternity? |
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SECTION III: SOCIAL DOCTRINE OF THE CHURCH |
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Block II: Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church Excerpts and questions by Fr. Amando
Trujillo Cano, TOR Part 7 of 9: The Principle of
Solidarity 192. …In the presence of the phenomenon of interdependence and its constant
expansion […] there persist in every part of the world stark inequalities
between developed and developing countries, inequalities stoked also by
various forms of exploitation, oppression and corruption that have a negative
influence on the internal and international life of many States. The
acceleration of interdependence between persons and peoples needs to be
accompanied by equally intense efforts on the ethical-social plane, in
order to avoid the dangerous consequences of perpetrating injustice on a
global scale…. b. Solidarity as a
social principle and a moral virtue 193. The new relationships of interdependence between individuals and peoples,
which are de facto forms of solidarity, have to be transformed into
relationships tending towards genuine ethical-social solidarity […] Solidarity
must be seen above all in its value as a moral virtue that determines the
order of institutions. On the basis of this principle the “structures
of sin” that dominate relationships between individuals and peoples must
be overcome. They must be purified and transformed into structures of
solidarity […] Solidarity is also an authentic moral virtue, not a
“feeling of vague compassion or shallow distress at the misfortunes of so
many people, both near and far. On the contrary, it is a firm and
persevering determination to commit oneself to the common good.
That is to say to the good of all and of each individual, because we are
all really responsible for all”. Solidarity rises to the rank of
fundamental social virtue since it places itself in the sphere of
justice […] and is found in “a commitment to the good of one's neighbour with
the readiness, in the Gospel sense, to ‘lose oneself' for the sake of the
other instead of exploiting him, and to ‘serve him' instead of oppressing him
for one's own advantage (cf. Mt 10:40-42, 20:25; Mk 10:42-45;
Lk 22:25-27)”. c. Solidarity and
the common growth of mankind 194. The message of the Church's social doctrine regarding solidarity clearly
shows that there exists an intimate bond between solidarity and the common
good, between solidarity and the universal destination of goods, between
solidarity and equality among men and peoples, between solidarity and peace
in the world… 195. The principle of solidarity requires that men and women
of our day cultivate a greater awareness that they are debtors of the society
of which they have become part… d. Solidarity in
the life and message of Jesus Christ 196. The unsurpassed apex of the perspective indicated here is the life of
Jesus of Nazareth, the New Man, who is one with humanity even to the point of
“death on a cross” (Phil 2:8) […] In him and thanks to him, life in society too,
despite all its contradictions and ambiguities, can be rediscovered as a
place of life and hope, in that it is a sign of grace that is continuously
offered to all and because it is an invitation to ever higher and more
involved forms of sharing. Jesus of Nazareth makes the connection between
solidarity and charity shine brightly before all, illuminating the entire
meaning of this connection: “[…] One's neighbour is then not only a human
being with his or her own rights and a fundamental equality with everyone
else, but becomes the living image of God the Father, redeemed by the
blood of Jesus Christ and placed under the permanent action of the Holy
Spirit. One's neighbour must therefore be loved, even if an enemy, with the
same love with which the Lord loves him or her…” Questions for
reflection and discussion in fraternity 1.
How
can my fraternity move from a sense of solidarity as a “feeling
of vague compassion or shallow distress at the misfortunes of so many people”
to a commitment to the common good? 2.
How does the life and
message of Jesus Christ challenge me and my fraternity “to ever higher and
more involved forms of sharing”? |
