Ephphatha!

In the seventh chapter of the Gospel of St. Mark, we read the account of Jesus healing a deaf man who had a speech impediment. Jesus touched his ears and tongue while saying the Aramaic word Ephphatha, which means “be opened.” This beautiful gesture is repeated at every Baptism. During Baptism it carries the sense of faith healing our spiritual deafness.


Physically speaking, hearing and speaking are connected. Spiritually speaking, hearing and speaking are connected as well. The more we can hear the Word of God in our hearts, the more we can speak clearly about Him, truth and love. May the Holy Spirit help us to open wide the doors of our hearts to Christ.


God bless you,
Fr. Luke Mary Fletcher, CFR
St. Joseph Friary, Harlem, New York

We need saints!

May the Lord give you His peace!
In Hebrews 13:7-8 we read, "Remember your leaders, who spoke the word of God to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever." Take a moment to prayerfully reflect on all the people God has used to model and speak His word to you. Those who help us along our journey of faith are real spiritual heroes. NYPRIEST.COM sponsors vocations advertisements which proclaim the message, "The World Needs Heroes."
Venerable Pope John Paul II is a great hero who continues to inspire many to say yes to Jesus! He will be Beatified on May 1, 2011 (info found here). We need examples who inspire us to follow Jesus. That is why Christians have always held up the saints. Saint John Vianney would read lives of the saints every day. Not only are they inspiring, they also pray for us from heaven. There are many holy people who may never be officially canonized, who never-the-less, help us along our way. Who has helped you in your faith walk, your discernment? Parents, pastors and friends have an important influence on us. May we be inspired to answer God's call in our life.
Check it out ... + VocationBoom.com - great resource!! + Top Ten Vocations Websites + Truth and Life Audio Bible - really well done + Pope's Homily, Feb. 2, 2011, World Day of Consecrated Life + OneBillionStories.com - interesting Catholic site + LiveAction.org - great pro life group God bless you, Fr. Luke Mary Fletcher, CFR St. Joseph Friary Harlem, New York City

Pro Life Message

May the Lord give you His peace!


Recently while spending sometime with a youth group in the area, at a break in the conversation that we were having about facebook, cell phones, and the like, I asked an open ended question which provided a moving answer. “In a word, how would you describe young people today?” Busy, distracted, and bored, were among the highlights and when I thought they were done giving me their thoughts, a quiet young man mumbled, “in a word - ALONE.” Perhaps an answer worth reflecting on.


The pro-life apostolate is significant in the life of our community. Our outreach takes on many forms, but the main focus is prayer and counseling at abortion mills in the cities in which we reside. Living in Newark, NJ, I pray and counsel with three other friars on Saturday mornings in a small town close to our friary. The foundation of our apostolate is prayer as we stand across the street from the women’s choices clinic and pray for women and their babies, and also those who accompany them in their decision. In addition, brothers get the opportunity to counsel women as they are approaching the clinic, hoping to provide a presence of hope and a word of encouragement or challenge before they enter. A few weeks ago, there was a young couple who pulled into the parking lot, and as the young women got out of the car, she noticed that her boyfriend was not willing to go inside with her. As she stood standing all alone, tears falling down her face, my heart was moved with compassion for her. As she was pulling herself together our eyes met and a prayer lifted from my heart and in my gaze back to her I longed to tell her that she was not alone, there were people that cared for her and her child and that God loved her so much and would provide all that she needed to say yes to the life of her child. So many women who find themselves in this similar situation feel hopeless and alone, and they feel like there is not other option than getting an abortion. It seems like the easiest, quickest, and simplest option to take care of their difficult situation... They are afraid, confused, and alone. There is unlikely any support from their spouse or friends, and no life giving encouragement from the doctors or nurses inside. The mask they wear is one that seems harsh, tough, and even portrays confidence in their purpose for being there, but deep down we see and experience someone who is hopeless and alone.


This coming weekend is the anniversary of Roe v. Wade and also the annual March For Life in Washington D.C. What an incredible event for people of all ages to gather together to pray and to witness to the dignity of every human person. To proclaim to our nation and those who are challenged with this decision before them, that they are not alone, there are people who care, and a merciful God who wants to abundantly bless them and provide for them. To participate in the pro life apostolate has been a tremendous challenge but a true blessing. God is calling us and all of you to be truly present to those who think they are alone, to bear witness to the mercy, hope and love of Jesus. To those who suffer from abortion and are struggling with the decision to choose life, you are not alone! This message of hope is definitely worth marching for, and most importantly worth living for.


    Check it out ...
+ Pro-Life Rally with the Friars!
Sunday, January 22, 2011, St. Bernadette Church, Silversprings, MD, 6:30-10:30 pm
+ MarchForLife.org
+ onemoresoul.com - great resource
+ Must read article (and video) about abortionist in Philadelphia
+ TruthBooth.org - very good


Website of Norma McCorvey, the former Jane Roe
of Roe v. Wade found here


May the Lord bless you,Br. Angelus Immaculata, CFR 
Saint Joseph Friary
523 W. 142nd St.
New York, NY 10031


For Vocation Inquiries
(212)281-4355

Old and New - Good and Bad - Past and Future

January 1st is a great day to pray. It is a day when we naturally look back on the past year. Isn't it always the case that the year was filled with good and bad? The two often mix together like the parable of the weeds and wheat (see Matthew 13:24-30). With Holy Job we accept both in faith (see Job 2:10). It is tempting to interpret bad things in a shallow over-simplistic way, thinking that somehow God is punishing us. Jesus clarified this way of thinking in Luke 13:1-5. He made reference to two events in which people suffered tragic deaths. He went on to say that it is wrong to think that they were bigger sinners than the rest of us!

In this past year I said hello to a new niece who was born in June. I said goodbye to my beloved grandfather who went to his eternal reward on June 19, the baby's due date. Thankfully baby Greta was born a few weeks earlier so they were able to meet each other! We pray that we will all be together forever in heaven, please God. While we are still here, let us make good use of the time that is given us.

January 1st is a great day to pray. It is a day when we naturally look forward to the coming year. Let us pray that this year will find us filled with greater faith, hope and love. May the newborn baby Jesus be born anew in our hearts this year!

Fr. Luke baptizes his niece Greta Ann.

Let us pray,

Fr. Luke Mary Fletcher, CFR

St. Joseph Friary, Harlem, NY

Merry Christmas 2010!!

A very merry Christmas and a blessed new year to you all from the friars!


The following quote captures our uncomplicated approach to ministry:


"This is the real commitment of Advent: to bring joy to others.
Joy is the true gift of Christmas, not expensive presents that demand time and money.We can transmit this joy simply: with a smile, with a kind gesture, with some small help, with forgiveness.


Let us give this joy and the joy given will be returned to us. Let us seek in particular to communicate the deepest joy, that of knowing God in Christ. Let us pray that this presence of God's liberating joy will shine out in our lives" (Pope Benedict XVI, December 18, 2005).


Thank you for all your prayers and support. We greatly appreciate your help. You have our prayers!


       - The Friars

Our Daily Advent

Our Daily Advent

The candles, already burning,
cry out like a voice in the wilderness,
"Prepare the way of the Lord."

The key is in the tabernacle lock
ready to spring open the heavens at the sound
of a resounding "yes"!
"Let it be done to me according to your Word."

The corporal is open and laid out
like a receiving blanket.
"She wrapped Him in swaddling cloths."

The monstrance,
made for one purpose only,
stands open, empty, waiting.
"Behold the handmaid of the Lord."

"The Spirit and the Bride say come!"
Our Daily Advent.

by Sr. Clare Matthiass, CFR

Churchads.net

Advent Like an Addict

This Advent I want to pray like a heroin addict.


I realize that this statement may require some explanation. On Thanksgiving Day I was eating dinner across from a man and woman at St. Ann’s soup kitchen where we usually help out on Mondays and Wednesdays. As the novice brothers were playing a song in the background with some powerful lines about blessing the Name of the Lord in good times and in bad, I noticed the man quietly singing along with tears in his eyes. After dinner both of them asked for prayer. Both of them are heroin addicts who desperately want to be freed from their slavery to that drug. Both of them were fervent in seeking the Lord’s help, humble in asking pardon, direct in acknowledging their weakness and just so real in their plea for Christ to come and take control of their lives.


How casually most of us usually pray those words in the Lord’s Prayer, “Thy kingdom come.” How will it come? Certainly we must do our part to put the gifts that the Lord has given us at His service, our time and energy into helping others to respond to the gift of salvation. But as the author Carlo Caretto points out, the Kingdom of God is not brought about so much by great feats of the intellect or displays of strength or other resources. If that were so, then the Kingdom of God would belong primarily to the strong and the wealthy. Rather, the Kingdom of God is brought about primarily by the heartfelt cry to the poor man who puts his whole being into the prayer “Thy Kingdom come! Come Lord and save us!” Indeed the first Beatitude promises the Kingdom of God first to the poor in spirit, and what they are awarded because of the depth of their longing they win not only for themselves, but for the rest of the Church and the world.


The beginning of Advent and a new Church year is a good time to begin again with a real, heartfelt, wide-awake prayer for Jesus to save us who are all addicted to sin, but who trust in His power to save. Please pray for heroin addicts in particular when you lift up your heart with them and plead with real intensity, “Come Lord Jesus!”


Fr. Richard Roemer, CFR


(re-posted from November 29, 2005)

Advent

(Re-posted from December 9, 2005)


This is the season of Advent, a time of waiting and watching and pondering the mystery of the great feast of the Incarnation—the birth of the God-man. So, being a person of faith and deep devotion, I know exactly what you’re doing during these weeks before you celebrate the birth of the Savior.


Yes, as the winter’s first snow flakes fall, you are snug at home sitting in your rocker before the warm fireplace. Enjoying a cup of tea, you are taking a casual stroll down memory lane as you open and carefully read Christmas cards sent by family and friends. Since yours were sent out the day after Thanksgiving, you now have ample time to happily bake your holiday pies and cookies and clean the entire house from top to bottom. Thank God you were also prepared weeks in advance as all your gifts, purchased months ago, are meticulously wrapped and carefully arranged about your decorated tree. Yes, Advent is here and you have weeks to simply relax and drink in the deep mystery and the true message of the Christmas season.


Okay! Everybody wake up! Sorry to jar you from such a wonderful dream, but let’s get with reality. Am I the only one running the annual Advent marathon? Remember the rules: the last one to collapse in exhaustion wins! No, not even friars experience Advent as a “spiritual oasis.” You should see the poor seminarian friars with whom I live; they’re all up to their ears with their studies, preparing for their finals, and staying up late to finish their term papers. They’re bleary eyed when they stumble into the chapel for 6 AM Morning Prayer!


It’s true for many people, whether your a monk or married or anything in between, the weeks of Advent can be quite hectic and often devoid of real spiritual preparation for Christmas. While we may wish we had planned ahead, we often end up with a long “to do” list which keeps us very busy. For this reason, we can ask an appropriate question, “What can we do to make Advent less hectic and more holy?”


It may be helpful to point out that we must face the fact that since the sixties, the spiritual landscape of our American culture has been changing. The dry desert winds of secularism and so-called “progressive” thinking began to affect or “infect” first, higher education, then the media, then the political arena, and obviously certain sectors of the Church. Thus, the days when all people, even non-Christians, were positively influenced and invigorated during the Christmas season through cultural osmosis are over.


This being said, we now must exert an extra effort to possess some semblance of an authentic religious focus. So, where do we begin to gain back the ground we have lost? Well, if charity begins at home, so too does spirituality. So right now let’s not look at out our window, but within our own four walls. Let us be honest and ask ourselves if the dry and salted sand of secularism has taken over our once fertile garden of faith.


For example, as lawyers and legislatures wrestle over Christmas decorations being permitted in public parks, why not look at your own front lawn? What message are you giving if you have light-up reindeers and candy canes? Would you spend as much money on a crèche as you would a Christmas tree? Are the cards you are sending Christ-centered or simply cute? Have you chosen gifts for family members and friends based solely on what they want or what they really need?


To practically prepare for Christmas during Advent means we continually keep in mind the purpose of all our efforts and activities. It means creating a spiritual environment which helps us keep our focus. The lives of the saints teach us that activity need not make us forgetful of God. Like the hub of a rapidly turning tire, a heart centered on God can be at peace and in prayer despite the twists and turns of the road. So, during your Advent adventures, try to keep your heart centered on God within. Let’s not forget, the very first Advent was for Joseph and Mary very hectic, but then, one night it became very, very holy.


Fr. Glenn Sudano, CFR


 Advent Meditations by Fr. Groeschel - order here

The Pope and Condoms

Here are a few links which clarify the confusion of the media reports regarding comments on condoms by Pope Benedict XVI.

Actual text from the book, "Light of the World", found here.
Article by Dr. Janet E. Smith found here.
Article by blogger Lisa Graas found here.
Order the book from Ignatius Press here.

I hope this helps.
God bless,
Fr. Luke Mary Fletcher, CFR
St. Joseph Friary, Harlem, NY

Know Your Need & Silence

Know Your Need

Pray for the grace to know your need.

The greatest obstacle in the spiritual life is not knowing your need for God, your need for a savior. In what ways am I in denial of my deepest need? If we are honest, we will discover that there is a part of us that does not like to acknowledge our need for God, our need for a savior. The hardness of heart which prevents spiritual growth is rooted in this unholy ignorance of the truth. If the truth “sets us free” then lies “hold us bound”. The idea that I do not need God, do not need a savior, is a damn lie.

An essential grace is to know your need for God, your need for a savior. “Jesus addressed this parable to those who were convinced of their own righteousness and despised everyone else” (Luke 18:9). An honest self-assessment of one’s sins, weaknesses and failures can open the heart in humility to receive the life-giving healing that only comes from God’s grace.

Pray for the grace to know your need, to know it in your head and your heart.

God bless,
Fr. Luke Mary Fletcher, CFR
St. Joseph Friary, New York, NY

Silence and Prayer

November is the month when the road of life leads us through the colorful change of leaves and apparent dying of creation. It is a month which sees nature in an ostensible quiet, contemplation, silence and stillness. It is also a month when we remember to pray for the holy souls in purgatory and make visits to the graves of dear ones who have made the journey to eternal shores. Below is a powerful quote from Pope Benedict on the importance of silence and listening in prayer.

"At times, however, we are tempted to close in on ourselves, to doubt the strength of Christ’s radiance, to limit the horizon of hope. Take courage! Fix your gaze on our saints. The diversity of their experience of God’s presence prompts us to discover anew the breadth and depth of Christianity [...] Dear friends, the example of the saints invites us, then, to consider four essential aspects of the treasure of our faith: personal prayer and silence, liturgical prayer, charity in action, and vocations [...] There is another aspect of prayer which we need to remember: silent contemplation. Saint John, for example, tells us that to embrace God’s revelation we must first listen, then respond by proclaiming what we have heard and seen (cf. 1 Jn 1:2-3; Dei Verbum, 1). Have we perhaps lost something of the art of listening? Do you leave space to hear God’s whisper, calling you forth into goodness? Friends, do not be afraid of silence or stillness, listen to God, adore him in the Eucharist. Let his word shape your journey as an unfolding of holiness"
(Pope B16, 19 April 2008, Yonkers, New York).

God bless,
Fr. Luke Mary Fletcher, CFR
St. Joseph Friary, New York, NY