I am thankful for ...

The time surrounding Thanksgiving is such a whirlwind of work and happiness in New York City. This year was no different. The Hurricane Sandy relief effort began the movement to reach out and help. Food was handed out, prayers were said and thanks was given to God for it all.

On Thanksgiving day itself we had our usual Saint Joseph's Table meal for the neighborhood. With the help of some dear friends who own a great restaurant (Gino's Trattoria) we offered the best meal in town! Thanks to the friars who were praying in Eucharistic Adoration through out the day, no one got cut except the turkey.

This year was extra-special because Br. Timothy made a ghetto turkey piñata.  With time running out and short on materials, he used newspaper and mortar paste. That was a tough old bird! It survived many a whack before it yielded the goodies.

When Brother announced that we were offering a turkey piñata in the back yard, no one made a move to join us. So, I got on the microphone and yelled, "Hey everybody, that thing is full of CASH MONEY!" Wow - that really got everyone's attention. I kinda stretched the truth knowing that candy is like money in Candy Land!

Anyways, our guests were really interested in getting that money. The Thanksgiving/Christmas season is a great time to look into your heart and discover what you are really interested in. Then if you are like me and my neighbors, pray for the grace of a deeper conversion.

May God bless you,

Fr. Luke Mary Fletcher, CFR
St. Joseph Friary
Harlem, New York City

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Letters of hope and consolation #17

You are a beggar before God.  There is nothing you can truly call your own.  Everything is a gift from God and everything comes from him.

However, not all beggars are alike.  Some are childlike, obsessed with their own needs and anxiously try to prolong their existence and fulfill their desires as much as possible.  They demand things from God in a timely fashion and if their prayer is not heard according to their will they do whatever is necessary to make sure their needs are accomplished. Another type of beggar is one who is humble, sincere and has realized their own helplessness and in humility has turned outside of himself for the answers and for the help he needs for his life.  His “nothingness” has not led him to despair but to hope in a loving and merciful God.

Which kind of beggar are you?

If your brokenness, sins, mistakes, regrets and fears do not make you more humble than you will remain like the beggar who is never satisfied and who is always anxious and afraid.  Yet if in your poverty you can turn to God, honest about yourself and your life, you will experience the hand of a loving Father in your life.  He will change the rags that you have acquired as a beggar and will clothe you in the new and beautiful garments of the children of God.


God bless you,

Fr. Jeremiah Myriam Shryock, CFR
St. Felix Friary, Yonkers, NY
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Letters of hope and consolation # 16

We often talk about love as if it were only an abstract concept.  The problem with concepts is that they very rarely leave us with a picture to examine or an example to ponder.  So, what does love look like?

According to St. Paul in 1 Corinthians 13-4-7, this is what love looks like.  It is;


1. Patient and kind
2. Not jealous or boastful
3. Not arrogant or rude
4. It does not insist on its own way
5. It is not irritable or resentful
6. It does not rejoice at wrong
7. It rejoices in the right
8. It bears all things
9. Believes all things
10. Hopes all things
11. Endures all things

After some prayer and meditation on St. Paul’s examination of love how are you doing?  In what areas do you need to grow to allow love to become more concrete and less abstract in your life?


God bless you,

Fr. Jeremiah Myriam Shryock, CFR
St. Felix Friary, Yonkers, NY

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Letters of hope and consolation # 15

For many people reality is a burden, something they want to escape from.  Unfortunately, there are so many escape routes available to us today.

What is it about reality that so many people find difficult?  It is, I believe, the apparent boredom, the apparent nothingness that appears present to people in the midst of their lives.  Because reality appears empty so many people try to create reality according to their own designs and structures.  The ironic thing is that by escaping reality in order to try and create a better one, we forfeit the chance of ever discovering true happiness.

A question I pose to you is; how do you view reality?  Is it merely a random succession of events and occurrences?  Is reality empty, boring, devoid of anything that can stir the human heart?  If you answer yes to these questions then I can guarantee you that you are destined for a life of misery.

Reality is an encounter with Jesus Christ!  In every moment of our day, whether we are in prayer, reading, with friends, at work, on a busy street corner, fulfilling one’s duties as a parent or enjoying a walk in nature, Jesus Christ is there whispering to your heart that He is the “more” you desire from life.  By ignoring reality or trying to escape reality as soon as possible you are running from Him who is your only hope for happiness.

My prayer for you is that you could become so bold as to stand face to face with reality as it is and leave behind all your escapes, illusions and self-sufficiency.  When that prayer is fully answered there will be no reason to escape anywhere because all that you have been looking for will be directly in front of you.


God bless you,

Fr. Jeremiah Myriam Shryock, CFR
St. Felix Friary, Yonkers, NY

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