Final Vows August 1 2010

On Sunday, August 1, 2010, six of our friars professed final vows.(Click here to see the whole album)

(left to right) Br. Nicholas Joseph White, Br. Justin Jesúsmarie Alarcón,
Br. Felice Maria Gavazzi, Br. Gabriel Joseph Kyte, Br. Ignatius Mary Shin and 
Br. Dismas Marie Kline radiate joy on the big day.

"The first has to do with the stained glass windows, which flood the interior with mystic light.  From the outside, those windows are dark, heavy, even dreary.  But once one enters the church, they suddenly come alive; reflecting the light passing through them, they reveal all their splendor.  Many writers – here in America we can think of Nathaniel Hawthorne – have used the image of stained glass to illustrate the mystery of the Church herself.  It is only from the inside, from the experience of faith and ecclesial life, that we see the Church as she truly is: flooded with grace, resplendent in beauty, adorned by the manifold gifts of the Spirit.  It follows that we, who live the life of grace within the Church’s communion, are called to draw all people into this mystery of light" 
Pope Benedict XVI, New York City, 19 April 2008.

In a gesture of surrender and humility, the brothers lie prostrate before the altar 
as the congregation invokes the intercession of the saints.

After professing final vows, the friars sign the official documents upon the altar. 
The life of religious consecration is an intimate sharing in the one sacrifice of Jesus 
which is renewed daily at Mass upon the altar.

Imitating Jesus who prayed from the cross, "Father, into your hands I entrust my spirit", the friars symbolically place their hands into the hands of our Community Servant 
as they profess their vows.

A theologian once wrote, "Joy is the most infallible sign of the presence of God." There is great joy in serving the Lord. Jesus said, "Whoever loses his life for my sake will find it" (Matt 10:39). Commenting on this passage, Vatican II taught, "Man can not fully find himself except through a sincere gift of himself."

Venerable Pierre Toussainte

June 30, 2010
Venerable Pierre Toussainte

Pierre Toussainte died on this day in 1853. This amazing man was a Haitian slave who became a hairdresser in New York City. His story is very inspiring. He is buried in the crypt under the main altar at Saint Patrick's Cathedral. He was declared Venerable by Pope John Paul II on December 18, 1996.

+ short biography

+ Pierre Toussainte on Wikipedia

Fr. Luke Mary Fletcher, CFR

St. Joseph Friary, New York, NY

On the Holy Spirit

If you’re an American Catholic over fifty, you certainly remember beginning and ending your prayers with the sign of the cross while saying: “In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.” If you were like me, the only ghost you knew was in the movies or in the comics. His name— Casper! He was white; he smiled, floated about, and was, well, friendly! Some other ghosts I knew were on a television show called “Topper.” Remember their names? George and Marian! Boy, are you old!

Maybe this is why some people have only a vague notion of the Third Person of the Trinity. To say that the Holy Spirit is “an invisible friend who floats around with a silly smile” —well, that’s not vague, it’s wrong!


If you can at least understand the question, “Who is the Holy Spirit?” you can then begin to answer it. We say “Who” and not “what” because the Holy Spirit is a Person, not a “thing.” The Holy Spirit is not a part of God; the Holy Spirit is God, as the Father is God and the Son is God; yet, there is only one God. Is that clear? If we’re honest, our answer would be a resounding “No!” The reason for this answer is not because we’re ignorant or uneducated, but rather, we’re human. This means we do not have the capacity to understand everything, at least not now. As people’s personal beliefs are full of myths and misnomers, our Catholic faith is full of mystery.


There are those who laugh at us and say, “How can you believe in something you don’t see and understand?” To these I reply, “How many things in life do we actually see and fully understand?” We know it is dangerous to stick a knife in an outlet; we can see the dangerous effects of a mystery which we have named “electricity.” Yet, while I am grateful for the force which keeps my feet on the floor, I don’t recall any scientist seeing or understanding the mystery we call gravity. This is the reason why since time began, mankind has never ceased to look up and out and in. Whether it is medicine or mathematics, physics or philosophy, stars or snails, astronomy or atoms—the more we look, the more we learn. Yes, mystery is certainly all around us. In fact, we are a mystery unto ourselves.


The time between Ascension Thursday and Pentecost Sunday is nine days. This is where we get the word novena; “novem” in Latin means nine. The first novena wasn’t prayed to Our Lady or to any saint, but by Our Lady and by some saints! They were praying together as Our Lord instructed them to for “the gift of the Father”. After nine days, the gift was delivered—and it didn’t drop quietly through the mail slot! “What was the gift?” you ask. No, you mean, “Who was the gift?”

Fr. Glenn Sudano, CFR

Most Blessed Sacrament Friary, Newark, New Jersey

Pentecost Novena 2010

May 13, 2010 - Ascension Thursday


The First Novena


On Ascension Thursday, we commemorate that day when Jesus, some 40 days after His resurrection, ascended into heaven at the right hand of the Father. In his final instructions to the early Church, he commanded them to stay in Jerusalem and pray, awaiting the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts of the Apostles 1). The early believers, gathered around Mary, prayed for nine days. The ninth day was the Jewish feast of Pentecost. The Holy Spirit was poured out upon the early Church.


This amazing historical event inspired Christians to pray special prayers for nine days, also known as a novena. Follow this link to find a beautiful novena for a new outpouring of the Holy Spirit in your life: Novena to the Holy Spirit.

Fr. Luke Mary Fletcher, CFR

St. Joseph Friary, New York, NY

Happy Easter! The Victory of the Resurrection:

Happy Easter! The Victory of the Resurrection:

There is something in the human heart that loves a battle and longs for victory. We all desire to win, be victorious, triumph, succeed, prevail, overcome, conquer and surmount! Every good movie, TV show, novel and story tries to tap into this eminent human quality. Beyond merely being competitive, it is as if this aspiration for victory is in the blue-print of our being.

The deification of sports is an example of this human attraction to the contest, the battle. My memories of growing up in basketball-obsessed-Indiana were rekindled as I watched Butler almost topple Duke in the NCAA Championship basketball game (A.K.A. “March Madness” or “The Big Dance”). I couldn’t fall asleep for hours after the game was over. Our brothers in Ireland were recently embroiled by controversy because they suggested it was wrong for Catholics to replace church with a rugby match on Good Friday (I guess the brothers kicked the sacred cow).

There must be something from God our creator in this human yearning for victory. The Resurrection of Jesus from the dead is the culmination and fulfillment of our deepest desire for victory …


Fr. Luke Mary Fletcher, C.F.R.
Saint Joseph Friary, Harlem, New York

The Cross by Br. Jeremiah Myriam Shryock, CFR

The Cross
The paradox of our life is simply this: if you wish to be strong, confident, and live without fear you must accept the cross in your life.  You will probably feel repulsed by this and everything within you will rebel against it.  You will try and think of a million plans to conquer this reality, more prayer, more reading, more exercise, more sleep, more work, etc, all of which may be helpful but none of which alone is the cure.


What is ironic about the cross is that it comes in different disguises and shapes.  To some it might come as an illness, a death of a spouse or friend, loneliness, feeling rejected or misunderstood, bearing with a person whom we find difficult or perhaps even something as simple as the weather or living in a place we do not particularly like.


Yet whatever disguise or shape the cross comes to us in our life, we can be assured that if we decide to carry the cross in union with Jesus it will become for us a bridge eventually leading us into a land of true freedom and peace.  The world is terrified of appearing weak and poor.  However, if you are not willing to be poor and weak then you are not willing to be strong because it is in poverty and weakness that God’s grace overflows in abundance.


It is difficult in the midst of so much suffering to be grateful for the cross.  However, as we look back on our life and review the moments of growth and happiness that we have experienced we will realize it was the cross that has always preceded those moments and has softened the ground we walk on, enabling the seeds of life and holiness God has planted to grow and bear fruit.

Br. Jeremiah Myriam Shryock, CFR

St. Leopold Friary, Yonkers, NY

Pictures from our newly invested novices

CHAIR OF ST. PETER - FEB. 22

CHAIR OF ST. PETER  -  FEB. 22
During this year of the priest, we have been highlighting one of the Apostles each month at our Associate days in the Bronx.  Our apostolic feast day for February is the Chair of St. Peter. 

Certainly we are honoring something greater than a piece of furniture, and something even greater than St. Peter himself, as great of a personal figure as he was.  We know his weaknesses.  I presume our Lord was so insistent on washing Peter’s feet at the Last Supper because He had seen that he often had his “foot in his mouth.” (!)   Yet Jesus called him blessed because he was given a word of truth, a revelation that came not from man but from God the Father (see Mt. 16:17).

The Chair of Peter reminds us that we don’t belong to a man-made Church.  We are not left on our own to answer the question of who Jesus is.  We are not left to “sola-Scriptura,” the Bible alone, which ends really in “O solo mio….”, to my own interpretation.   Vatican II taught us that Sacred Scripture and Sacred Tradition are two branches of the same fountain, the same Divine Word.

Although human nature tends to rebel against religious authority, the fact that Christ gave authority and a guarantee of truth in matters of faith and morals to another human being is a great blessing.  We have someone who can say for certain what it means to be a Catholic, which not every world religion has.  (For example, some Muslims will say the problem with any dialogue with Islam and other religions is that no one can definitively say what it means to be a Muslim.)  A personal authority, a Body with a head, means also that theology can develop with language and understanding.   We are not left to keeping everything exactly as it was, in the liturgy for example, in 35 AD.  We have a continuity of authority which means that theological understanding can “change to remain the same” as language and societies change.

We can think of four facets of papal infallibility like four legs of this Chair.  One is for truth in doctrines of faith, one for truth in doctrines of morals, one for bringing unity, and one for the authority to “bind and loose” in regard to sin and penalties.  How amazing that Christ gave such authority to men, beginning with his fisherman friend.  The perseverance of this chair, this office, over the ages is another way that Christ is with us always, even until the end of world.
- Fr. Richard Roemer, CFR

To Be or ...

To Be or ...


In Matthew 13 we read about the people of Jesus' native place. They were so overly familiar with him that they took offense at his teachings and miracles. "Where did this man get all this?", they stated. "But Jesus said to them, 'A prophet is not without honor except in his native place and in his own house.' And he did not work many mighty deeds there because of their lack of faith."


Many people have a "been there, done that, got the t-shirt" attitude towards Christianity. Inspired by this dynamic, Mel Gibson wanted to film The Passion of The Christ in Aramaic. He wanted Christ to strike us afresh, in a new way. When I type "To be or ..." You automatically know the rest, "or not to be. That is the question." Gibson believed that many people do the same thing with Jesus. We are so overly familiar with him that we lack faith.


Pray for the grace to experience the life-giving radicalness of Jesus and his Gospel anew so that he may work many mighty deeds in your life.

God bless,

Fr. Luke Mary Fletcher, CFR

The Words of Jesus

The Words of Jesus


Perhaps one of the greatest struggles in embracing the gospel is the command of Jesus to let go of our entire life.  The control we think we have, the anxiety we often create, our disordered desires that only serve to hurt us, our ideas about ourselves and others and our own will often reveal themselves in the light of the gospel as an illusion, a mask that is surrounded in unreality.


Jesus reminds us that everything that is true and beautiful about life comes from Him.  His words alone remove the veil that we so often remain trapped behind.  "Everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock.  The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and buffeted the house.  But it did not collapse; it had been set solidly on rock."  Mt 7:24-25


A wise person is one who looks at their life and realizes that by himself they are incomplete and in need of an "other."  Jesus Christ is therefore not a crux for "weak" people but the cure and the remedy for the blindness and sickness we live in without Him.  Those who listen to His words and build their life upon Him will not be moved despite the trends and fashions that blow through society and leave so many people lost and wandering aimlessly for direction in their life.   

Br. Jeremiah Myriam Shryock, CFR

St. Leopold Friary, Yonkers, NY

A Christmas Prayer

Merry Christmas from the friars. For those of you who read Magnificat, this beautiful prayer will be familiar...

On that holy night,
Somehow
It happened.


Somehow,
God took a handful of humanity:
Proud, petulant, passionate;
And a handful of divinity:
Undivided, inexpressible, incomprehensible:
And enclosed them in one small body.


Somehow, the all too human
Touched the divine.
And was not vaporized.
To be human was never the same,
But forever thereafter,
Carried a hint of its close encounter with the perfect.
and forever thereafter,
God was never the same,
But carried a hint of the passion of the mortal.


If God can lie down in a cattle-trough,
is any object safe from transformation?
If peasant girls can be mothers to God,
Is any life safe from the invasion of the eternal?


If all this could happen, O God, 
What places of darkness on our earth
are pregnant with light waiting to be born this night?


If all this could happen, O God, 
Then you could be, and are, anywhere, everywhere,
Waiting to be born this night in the most
unbelievable places,
Perhaps even in our own hearts. Amen.


- Ian Oliver
We Ask Your Blessing: 100 Prayers For Campus Occasions