A Special
Day
Fr. Bradley Baldwin, T.O.R.
�
It was one of the most
beautiful days I had ever seen, next to the day of my ordination.
The sky was clear, the sun was bright, and the stadium was full,
47,000 full. I walked through a tunnel with two Altoona- Johnstown
diocesan priests, on to the left field area that was filled with
priests from across the country. In fact, I spoke to priests from as
far away as Seattle. As you probably know, it's always a thrill for
me to be inside a baseball stadium, and this day I found myself in
left field. Some would even say that this was appropriate, for I've
been out in left field for quite some time. Now, I'm in left field
to concelebrate Mass with the Holy Father in our Nation's Capital,
where I spent five wonderful years preparing for the Franciscan
Priesthood.
As the Pope-Mobile
passed along the warning track and the crowd cheered, I was overcome
with emotion. I believe the emotion was two-fold. First,�I felt a
tremendous sense of gratitude to God for the beautiful day, the
priests and the Sacred Heart Friars that I was�with, and the
opportunity to be there. But, I also felt some sadness, as I thought
of family members and friars who had died, and all of you. I wish
all of you could have been there with me. Still,�I kept telling
myself: "I can't believe�I'm celebrating Mass with the Holy Father."
I had been to the�closing Mass of the�Eucharistic Congress in
Philadelphia in 1976, and to a Papal Audience with John Paul II in
2001; but, there was something different about today. The difference
was in celebrating Mass with Pope Benedict, and feeling that strong
sense of solidarity with Him and all 47,000 present.
We continue to face
church scandals, difficulties in our own communities, parishes
closing and merging, and�priests and religious leaving. And yet, our
love for the Holy Father seems to transcend it all. Among the
priests and other people I spoke with, there was no�complaining.
Occasionally, I expected to hear: "It's too hot; it's too
sunny;�there's not enough water; or, these things just take too
long." What I did hear was how privileged and honored people felt,
in being part of this historic day, being in the same place with
Pope Benedict, and celebrating all that is good about our Catholic
faith and unity.
The two parts of his
homily that will stay with me are these: First, when he confirmed
God's grace and peace upon us, and the hope that comes with the
Resurrection and Easter joy. I was so excited by his words, that I
immediately responded, "And also with you," much to the delight of
my fellow priests. And second, when he said that "the American
people have always valued the virtue of hope, and have preserved
their confidence in times of trial. To a great extent, the renewal
of the church in America depends on the renewal of the practice of
penance, and the growth in holiness which the sacrament both
inspires and accomplishes." As Brothers in the Third Order of
Penance, I hope we all feel encouraged by these words, as we witness
through our lives, our fraternal living, and our ministries.
Truly, this was a
special day in my life, and I pray in the life of the Church as
well. As I share these words with you, I am grateful to my brothers
of the Saint Louis Friary, particularly Father Nicholas, whose
welcome and hospitality made it possible for me to be a part of this
great day. I am also grateful to all of you, for your support and
prayers over these many years. As I participated in this special
Mass, I shared it with all who have encouraged me, prayed for me,
believed in me, and helped me to believe in myself. Certainly, the
friars and my family are at the very top of that list. As we
continue into the future, I pray that we strive to live the words of
our Holy Father Benedict, in celebrating our vocations with the
church and each other, and in approaching the challenges of our
future with a firm reliance on the power�of faith. May God bless
each and every one of you, and know that you are in my prayers
always.
�
Cultivating Interest in Our Community and Cultivating the Earth:
A
Brief Update on the Vocation Ministry and Care for Creation
Fr.
Patrick Foley, T.O.R.
�
Since spring is
finally in �full-swing� here in the Midwest and out East, I thought
the theme of �cultivating� might be an appropriate thread to weave
together two brief updates on the vocation ministry and the ministry
of caring for creation that is beginning to take root in our
fraternity. First, on the vocation ministry front, a number of
friars in Pennsylvania were recently filmed by Sr. Judy Zielinski
and her film crew for the vocation promotion DVD that is currently
under production. To give you an idea of how well things went, Judy
said that we �hit a home run!� She was
extremely pleased with the
footage that we got of the friars at the monastery and at the
various apostolates that we staff in the Pennsylvania region. I
would like to thank all the friars involved for being so generous
with your time and hospitality! The filming of this DVD, as you can
imagine, is no small undertaking in terms of coordination,
execution, and expense. However, what is hopefully being
�cultivated� is a concrete and compelling expression of who we are
and who we strive to be for the Church and world as embodied in the
newly formed mission statement (which serves as the foundation for
the DVD). I view this project as an important way of communicating
who we are and will do everything I can to distribute this DVD and
digital media as widely as possible upon the project�s completion
(January, 2009) in order to cultivate interest in our community.
On the theme of
the Franciscan charism of caring for creation, I want to highly
recommend a recent book by Ilia Delio, O.S.F. and Keith Douglas
Warner, O.F.M., entitled �Care for Creation: a Franciscan
Spirituality of the Earth.� This book spells out the Franciscan
heritage of caring for creation and our fraternity with creation and
the role of our tradition in being the vanguard for cultivating a
new relationship with the Earth. Very basically, Delio and Warner
are calling all people, and Franciscans in particular, to conversion
in the way that we see, regard, and interact with creation.
In an attempt
to cultivate this spirit of conversion in our own community, a
proposal was recently made to the Provincial Council to use part of
St. Bernardine�s property to develop a community supported organic
garden as a means to communicate the Franciscan heritage of care for
creation. In light of the above proposal, I find it ironic that we
recently gave permission for the Blair County Community Gardens to
begin raising organic produce on our property. Perhaps this is a
�precursor� for possibilities that may yet be explored and realized?
At our retreat in August there will be a presentation and discussion
on how we might develop a community supported garden and a care for
creation center, devoted to sharing our values. I would like to
invite all of our members to attend this event in order to discuss
and reflect upon the proposal as a possibility of cultivating more
deliberately our province�s charism of hospitality and our future.
Blessings on your summer!
�
�
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