Confraternity Of Penitents

[jimcav]

Is anyone familiar with the Confraternity of Penitents?

This confraternity strives to live by the Rule 1221, which was written by St Francis in that year. They strive to give up their own will to follow the Rule. I feel that in some ways I am already living parts of the Rule, because I find myself pulling away from worldliness more and more these days and striving to live a more disciplined devout life.

Their web-site is very comprehensive and I am continually drawn to it to get more information. They also have a long and thorough formation of 4 years which will require alot of discipline, but that is one of the very things that draws me to this group. It could give me the direction I need to live the more structured and devout life that I am striving for. I feel that the Holy Spirit could be asking me to do this, but as of yet, I’m not quite sure.

Here is their web-site - penitents.org/#The_Rule_of_1221

Any help or information would be greatly appreciated!

 

[jimcav]

bump…

No opinions, nobody feels anything towards this state of life?

 

[Sancta_Rosa]

Rule 1221 is perfect for any lay person who wishes to live in the world, but to be prayerfully apart from the world. Message them at the e.mail addresses given on the website. they are very approachable.

 

[jimcav]

Rule 1221 is perfect for any lay person who wishes to live in the world, but to be prayerfully apart from the world. Message them at the e.mail addresses given on the website. they are very approachable.

Thanks for the response!

I have to say that you put it very well. It really seem’s to be exactly what I’m looking for. I was abit afraid to contact them though, because I’m not sure that I am ready to take this step just yet. Maybe I should though, just to help me discern if this is right for me. Your answer has made me feel more comfortable to do that.

Are you a member yourself?

 

[Sancta_Rosa]

I am in process of discerning at the moment, but I have gone as far as sending away my inquirer application form as I feel that the COP would be a perfect ‘fit’ for me.

 

[jimcav]

Thats great Sancta Rosa!

I wish you God’s Blessing on your journey of discernment.

 

[Sancta_Rosa]

Thank you Jim, may God+ bless you always as you seek a path for your own feet to tread.

 

[jimcav]

I just wanted to*** bump*** this thread up one more time to see if anyone else has any opinions or knowledge of this confraternity or are members. The thread got alot of views, but not many opinions, so I was hoping to change that abit.

I won’t bother you again with it!

 

[JReducation]

I just wanted to*** bump*** this thread up one more time to see if anyone else has any opinions or knowledge of this confraternity or are members. The thread got alot of views, but not many opinions, so I was hoping to change that abit.

I won’t bother you again with it!

The Confraternity is a good community and has canonical approval by the local bishop, which is all you need to an association, recruit and receive new members. They are truly Catholic. What they have done is to take the old Rule of the Brothers and Sisters of Penance (Secular Franciscans) instead of the Pauline Rule for the Secular Franciscans written by Pope Paul VI in 1978, just before his death. Pope Paul had suppressed that rule. But the bishop has the authority to grant it life again. It is very legitimate for them to follow it.

The rule was not suppressed for any bad reasons. It was suppressed because there were two rules for the Secular Franciscans and it was very confusing. There was a rule of 1221 and a rule of 1223. Francis wrote both of them, but never abrogated the old one. As the Secular Franciscan Order grew and spread some fraternities lived according to one rule and other fraternities lived according to the other. In 1978, the Superior General of the Secular Franciscan Order asked Pope Paul VI to help unify the order. Pope Paul responded by writing a Franciscan rule of his own and abrogagted both rules, the one of 1221 and 1223, which is his right as Pope. Both rules were lifted by a papal bull. Therefore, neither could be abrogated by anyone except St. Francis or a pope. Well, St. Francis died and no pope ever touched either rule until Paul VI came along.

However, the fact that they were abrogated by the pope does not mean that they cannot be resurrected again. Abrogation means that they are no longer in-force. It does not meant that they are bad or in error. What Paul VI tried to do was to take what he believed to be the best from broth rules and put them into one document. Many Secular Franciscans did not like what that did to the Order.

One of the side effects of the new rule written by Paul VI was the change in the name of tjhe order, from The Brothers and Sisters of Penance to the Secular Franciscan Order. This triggered a great deal of concern among the Secular Franciscans and the Regular Franciscans, because the new name can easily be interpreted to mean that the order is an order of lay people, which is not the case at all. The order has always had deacons, priests and lay members. Leo XIII, Pius X, Pius XII and John XXIII were members of the Order. They wore the Franciscan habit under their secular cassocks. There were also great lay men and women who were professed into the Franciscan Order under the rule of 1221: Thomas More, Joan of Arc, Angela Foligno, Margaret of Cortona, Elizabeth of Hungary, Louis King of France and the Martin (St. Therese’s parents). They are all Franciscan venerable, blesseds and saints who lived by the early rule.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF

 

[jimcav]

Thanks so much for the reply JReducation!

I think you really cleared up some of the confusion I felt, and maybe others to, about the split and the difference between the older Brothers and Sisters Of Penance and the newer Confraternity of Penitents. It’s obviously important to me that this confraternity has canonical approval of the Bishop in Rhode Island.

A couple of small questions though -

• How big is this confraternity? I’m not sure it matters, but from what I can gather, it sounds very small.
• Do you feel that there is much difference between these two confraternities?
• The formation of 4 years sounds very demanding. While I think I can handle it, do you know much about it?

Thanks again!

 

[BVM_1221]

I just wanted to*** bump*** this thread up one more time to see if anyone else has any opinions or knowledge of this confraternity or are members. The thread got alot of views, but not many opinions, so I was hoping to change that abit.

I won’t bother you again with it!

Sorry I missed your previous posts. Well, I am a member of CFP, sort of. I am an Associate Member. But I live by the rules of CFP with one and only one exception. I have not been able to do the four years of Catechism study due to my frequent absences from home.

But the basic drill of prayer, fasting and abstinance, dressing down, and simplicity of possessions is part of my life now. It can take some time to get used to it, which is why you are given four years.

OK, let’s see what has happened since I joined the CFP

1. I now pray the Divine Office daily, five offices. I pray only one of the Daytime Offices.
2. I am probably eating better, and feeling better as a result. The CFP does ask you to consult your Spiritual Director, and if necessary your Physician, on the amount of food when fasting. But we remember our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, and do not fast to the point of physical weakness or mental fatigue.
3. And, thanks to the CFP, I now have a Spititual Director to keep me in line
4. I dress so simply and modestly that I have several times been asked if I was a Priest. Really:blush:

Being a CFP member fits in nicely with my AA work and my prayers for the Poor Souls.

But this is not for everyone. In this day and age, the prayer requirement may well be the most daunting. I wasn’t able to get up to two hours per day until I retired last September. And, yes, the fasting requirements may seem to be daunting. You do have to ease yourself into that one. Our culture is obsessed with food. In CFP, you are supposed to eat to live, not live to eat.

Cutting back on posessions, on “stuff”, may also be a problem. We have to learn to distinguish between what we need and what we want. Now poverty does not mean destitution, just getting along with minimal requireements.

Example, I still have a soft, comfortable bed, and an electric blanket. I could try to get away with the excuse that the electric blanket is more for the comfort of my three cats, but don’t you believe it. I like to snuggle.

So I would say…go for it. You have 4 years to make the adjustments, and to decide if you want to make these adjustmnets permanent.

Oh yes, and all this has been approved by the Archbishop of Rhode Island.

 

[JReducation]

If you’re a single male and want to be a celibate Franciscan and the CP is not austere enough you can always join the Franciscan Brothers of Life, Franciscans of the Renewal, Franciscans of the Primitive Observants, Capuchins of the Primitive Observance or Franciscans of the Immaculate. But we require 8 years of formation. You only fast on Fridays, because that’s all tha the Rule of the Friars Minor asks for. But you own nothing except one habit, two changes of underwear, two sets of work clothing, a breviary, bible, some pencils and notebook and a pair of work shoes. You get to sleep on a board with a mat, no heating in the winter and no AC in summer. You take the bus or share one car for several people. You can always walk. You do get up in the middle of the night for Office of Readings and then go back to bed for another three hours. Our primary ministry is the Gospel of Life. We take obedience very seriously. You do make solemn vows at the end of the 8 years of formation. We follow the Bulled Rule of the Friars Minor of 1223. Life is pretty simple and we work with wonderful people.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF

 

[jimcav]

Sorry I missed your previous posts. Well, I am a member of CFP, sort of. I am an Associate Member. But I live by the rules of CFP with one and only one exception. I have not been able to do the four years of Catechism study due to my frequent absences from home.

But the basic drill of prayer, fasting and abstinance, dressing down, and simplicity of possessions is part of my life now. It can take some time to get used to it, which is why you are given four years.

OK, let’s see what has happened since I joined the CFP

1. I now pray the Divine Office daily, five offices. I pray only one of the Daytime Offices.
2. I am probably eating better, and feeling better as a result. The CFP does ask you to consult your Spiritual Director, and if necessary your Physician, on the amount of food when fasting. But we remember our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, and do not fast to the point of physical weakness or mental fatigue.
3. And, thanks to the CFP, I now have a Spititual Director to keep me in line
4. I dress so simply and modestly that I have several times been asked if I was a Priest. Really:blush:

Being a CFP member fits in nicely with my AA work and my prayers for the Poor Souls.

But this is not for everyone. In this day and age, the prayer requirement may well be the most daunting. I wasn’t able to get up to two hours per day until I retired last September. And, yes, the fasting requirements may seem to be daunting. You do have to ease yourself into that one. Our culture is obsessed with food. In CFP, you are supposed to eat to live, not live to eat.

Cutting back on posessions, on “stuff”, may also be a problem. We have to learn to distinguish between what we need and what we want. Now poverty does not mean destitution, just getting along with minimal requireements.

Example, I still have a soft, comfortable bed, and an electric blanket. I could try to get away with the excuse that the electric blanket is more for the comfort of my three cats, but don’t you believe it. I like to snuggle.

So I would say…go for it. You have 4 years to make the adjustments, and to decide if you want to make these adjustmnets permanent.

Oh yes, and all this has been approved by the Archbishop of Rhode Island.

Glad you found this thread!

You gave a very informative answer to my questions and you gave us all a real feel for what the confraternity is about.

I think you are right about the prayers, they can be daunting to people, especially working people like myself. I’m not sure you can actually work and commit to that much prayer. That is something I’m going to have to really think about. Not only do I work, but I’m a Grand Knight in the Knights of Columbus which can also take up alot of time. I don’t see the fasting being much of a problem for me though, so thats a plus. I have never liked gluttony. As far as moving away from materialistic “things” of this modern life we lead, I already see myself moving away from them. As a matter-of-fact, I’m beginning to see all of this junk as a drag on my time and energy and I find it drawing me away from my prayer life and God in general, so take it all!

I like the idea of having a spiritual director very much. Sometimes I feel as though I’m all over the map spiritually and I need some focus. The CFP seems to be a way to find that.

I have some thinking and praying to do on this move. I feel as though the CFP would be good for me, as I love structure in my life, but I’m not sure if the timing right now is right. Am I to busy? Can I commit to the study time? Will my wife even understand? Some of the questions I have to ponder. Can you tell me how much studying is involved and how much time does it take?

Anything else you can add would be great. Anyway, it’s nice to hear from a CFP member!

 

[jimcav]

If you’re a single male and want to be a celibate Franciscan and the CP is not austere enough you can always join the Franciscan Brothers of Life, Franciscans of the Renewal, Franciscans of the Primitive Observants, Capuchins of the Primitive Observance or Franciscans of the Immaculate. But we require 8 years of formation. You only fast on Fridays, because that’s all tha the Rule of the Friars Minor asks for. But you own nothing except one habit, two changes of underwear, two sets of work clothing, a breviary, bible, some pencils and notebook and a pair of work shoes. You get to sleep on a board with a mat, no heating in the winter and no AC in summer. You take the bus or share one car for several people. You can always walk. You do get up in the middle of the night for Office of Readings and then go back to bed for another three hours. Our primary ministry is the Gospel of Life. We take obedience very seriously. You do make solemn vows at the end of the 8 years of formation. We follow the Bulled Rule of the Friars Minor of 1223. Life is pretty simple and we work with wonderful people.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF

No, I’m a married man and a father, so I think the CFP is pretty much all I can go. But I do like the way it sounds! And at this point in my life, I think it is austere enough. I havn’t even talked to my wife about this, which is another thing to take into consideration…

 

[BVM_1221]

Anything else you can add would be great. Anyway, it’s nice to hear from a CFP member!

Well, I sent a copy of my Forum posting to Madeline, and here is her reply…

@@@@@@@@@@@@@

It’s great, Harry. Thanks for promoting the CFP. You also promoted our bishop, too. He’s BISHOP Tobin, not Archbishop. But it was kind of you to upgrade him!

And the correct term for your status is Affiliate, not Associate (Associates do formation but you’re not doing it now)–that’s a technicality that won’t matter much on the forum.

God bless and thanks for sharing your post! Madeline (sr. Margaret)

 

[BVM_1221]

No, I’m a married man and a father, so I think the CFP is pretty much all I can go. But I do like the way it sounds! And at this point in my life, I think it is austere enough. I havn’t even talked to my wife about this, which is another thing to take into consideration…

As a matter of fact, you ARE required to have permission from your spouse to enter formation in CFP. The spouse need not be a member of CFP, or adhere to the CFP way of life. But you new way of life will impact the family, and this needs to be understood.

In my case, as a confiirmed bachelor, I only have to answer to my three cats. And as long as I do not try to impose fasting requirements on them, they go along with it.

NOW, about the prayer requirements. You do have five options, and can freely mover from one to another as circumstances warrent. Here is a link to our page of rules…

penitents.org/statutesref.html

Scroll down to where it discusses the five prayer options, and see if you can squeeze one of them into your life. Yes, this can be daunting at first.

 

[albertziggy]

What Paul VI tried to do was to take what he believed to be the best from broth rules and put them into one document. Many Secular Franciscans did not like what that did to the Order.

One of the side effects of the new rule written by Paul VI was the change in the name of the order, from The Brothers and Sisters of Penance to the Secular Franciscan Order.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF

Hi Br. JR:

Happy New Year!

This is a bit off-track but I just have a question/clarification. Wasn’t the Order’s name changed from ‘Third Order Secular Franciscans’ (TOSF) to ‘Secular Franciscan Order’? The Pauline Rule still mentions the term ‘Brothers and Sisters of Penance’.

Based on my observations, one other side effect is that many find the new rule a bit(?) lenient, but to my mind, it is because the Rule is composed of high level statements that must be supported by a good Constitution. Privately I guess, any secular franciscan may use the early rules as his ‘personal statutes’.

In Christ,
albertziggy

PS. You are always in my prayers, brother!

 

[Sancta_Rosa]

With formation in the CFP you’re not thrown in the deep end and left to sink or swim. If you have a good read through the year by year course of study over the four year period you’ll see that you’ll be gently led into living by the Rule as it’s all about growing you into this deeper walk of faith.

 

[BVM_1221]

Hi Br. JR:

Happy New Year!

This is a bit off-track but I just have a question/clarification. Wasn’t the Order’s name changed from ‘Third Order Secular Franciscans’ (TOSF) to ‘Secular Franciscan Order’? The Pauline Rule still mentions the term ‘Brothers and Sisters of Penance’.

Based on my observations, one other side effect is that many find the new rule a bit(?) lenient, but to my mind, it is because the Rule is composed of high level statements that must be supported by a good Constitution. Privately I guess, any secular franciscan may use the early rules as his ‘personal statutes’.

In Christ,
albertziggy

PS. You are always in my prayers, brother!

The CFP is NOT NOT NOT connected with the Franciscan Order in any way, shape, or form. The Franciscans themselves do not use the Rule of 1221. This a private Catholic Association, of those who have chosen to try live the Rule of 1221 in the 21st Century, quite sepeate from any Third Order. (Which the CFP is emphatically not.)

 

[albertziggy]

The CFP is NOT NOT NOT connected with the Franciscan Order in any way, shape, or form. The Franciscans themselves do not use the Rule of 1221. This a private Catholic Association, of those who have chosen to try live the Rule of 1221 in the 21st Century, quite sepeate from any Third Order. (Which the CFP is emphatically not.)

Dear Friend,

Yup. I never stated that it was. Please go over my post.

In Christ,

albertziggy