Spirituality of religious orders in Catholic tradition

[jwinch2]

BINGO

GIVE THE MAN $200.00

Don’t joke about stuff like that. I could use the $200.

 

[TrueLight]

Alrighty, cool, the both of you.

I went to a meeting the other day where someone was speaking of Opus Dei and someone else asked, Well they are not an order right"? and asked it twice, as if that made them less legitimate.

I started to say, “There weren’t any other orders founded after —” then I realized I wasn’t sure so I kept my mouth shut.

 

[Oneofthewomen]

Br. Jay,
I know you’ve probably already answered this a million times ,
but what is the significance of an “order” as opposed to a “congregation”?

 

[JReducation]

Alrighty, cool, the both of you.

I went to a meeting the other day where someone was speaking of Opus Dei and someone else asked, Well they are not an order right"? and asked it twice, as if that made them less legitimate.

I started to say, “There weren’t any other orders founded after —” then I realized I wasn’t sure so I kept my mouth shut.

Opus Dei is not an order. Opus Dei is like the SSPX, but it’s in good standing with the Church. The Priestly Fraternity of the Holy Cross runs Opus Dei. They also run my alma mater in Rome. The Pontifical University of the Holy Cross, where I got my doctorate. Oh yeah baby!

Br. Jay,
I know you’ve probably already answered this a million times ,
but what is the significance of an “order” as opposed to a “congregation”?

An order is for monks, friars, nuns and Jesuits. There are certain characteristics to them.

1. Solemn Vows
2. No one may own property
3. They have a rule of life either written by a founder or one that they borrowed. For example, the Dominicans use the Rule of St. Augustine as do the Servites.
4. They have mandatory Divine Office in common (except for the Jesuits)
5. They are exempt from the intervention of bishops and laity. Bishops must protect them and laity must finance them, but neither may ever comment on them nor do the orders owe them any accountability. They are accountable only to the pope and to their major superior.
6. They must live in community (except the Jesuits)
7. They come together to live a particular way of life that may involve a ministry, but may not. For example, the Jesuits and Dominicans live a very specific way of life around the ministry of preaching. Franciscans, Benedictines, Carmelites, Augustinians come to live together as brothers. They don’t have a specific ministry. They can do anything. They can live as hermits or they teach at a university and everything in between.

Congregations are of brothers, sisters or priests. They have their own characteristics.

1. Simple vows
2. Individuals may own property, if the constitutions allow it.
3. They do not have a rule of life. They have a constitution that they can change according to the needs of the time.
4. The Church does not require them to pray in common; but their constitutions can require it.
5. They can be exempt as are the orders or they can be diocesan, in which case, the local bishop has authority over them.
6. They should live in community, but they do not have to, if their constitutions do not require it.
7. They are called congregations, because they are religious who congregated together to do a particular job or for a particular apostolate, for example the Christian Brothers came together to educate poor boys. The Missionaries of Charity came together to serve the poorest of the poor

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF

 

[jm0rr0w]

Opus Dei is not an order. Opus Dei is like the SSPX, but it’s in good standing with the Church. The Priestly Fraternity of the Holy Cross runs Opus Dei. They also run my alma mater in Rome. The Pontifical University of the Holy Cross, where I got my doctorate. Oh yeah baby!

An order is for monks, friars, nuns and Jesuits. There are certain characteristics to them.

1. Solemn Vows
2. No one may own property
3. They have a rule of life either written by a founder or one that they borrowed. For example, the Dominicans use the Rule of St. Augustine as do the Servites.
4. They have mandatory Divine Office in common (except for the Jesuits)
5. They are exempt from the intervention of bishops and laity. Bishops must protect them and laity must finance them, but neither may ever comment on them nor do the orders owe them any accountability. They are accountable only to the pope and to their major superior.
6. They must live in community (except the Jesuits)
7. They come together to live a particular way of life that may involve a ministry, but may not. For example, the Jesuits and Dominicans live a very specific way of life around the ministry of preaching. Franciscans, Benedictines, Carmelites, Augustinians come to live together as brothers. They don’t have a specific ministry. They can do anything. They can live as hermits or they teach at a university and everything in between.

Congregations are of brothers, sisters or priests. They have their own characteristics.

1. Simple vows
2. Individuals may own property, if the constitutions allow it.
3. They do not have a rule of life. They have a constitution that they can change according to the needs of the time.
4. The Church does not require them to pray in common; but their constitutions can require it.
5. They can be exempt as are the orders or they can be diocesan, in which case, the local bishop has authority over them.
6. They should live in community, but they do not have to, if their constitutions do not require it.
7. They are called congregations, because they are religious who congregated together to do a particular job or for a particular apostolate, for example the Christian Brothers came together to educate poor boys. The Missionaries of Charity came together to serve the poorest of the poor

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF

So is the Secular Franciscan Order really a congregation canonically? I’ve been told that it was the first order under the name Brothers and Sisters of Penance founded for lay persons not living in formal religious community.

Thanks,
JM

 

[jm0rr0w]

So is the Secular Franciscan Order really a congregation canonically? I’ve been told that it was the first order under the name Brothers and Sisters of Penance founded for lay persons not living in formal religious community.

Thanks,
JM

Well after a bit of research, it looks like the SFO is a public association within the Church per Canon 303:

Can. 303 Associations whose members share in the spirit of some religious institute while in secular life, lead an apostolic life, and strive for Christian perfection under the higher direction of the same institute are called third orders or some other appropriate name.

Now I just have to figure out the differences between an association and an order.

 

[JReducation]

So is the Secular Franciscan Order really a congregation canonically? I’ve been told that it was the first order under the name Brothers and Sisters of Penance founded for lay persons not living in formal religious community.

Thanks,
JM

The Secular Franciscan Order is a canonically erected order of Pontifical Right. It has all of the rights as any other order: Benedictines, Dominicans, Augustinians, Trinitarians, Servites, Carthusians and so forth.

The SFO was erected for secular men and women, not just for lay people. There have always been deacons, priests, bishops and even popes in the SFO, not just laymen. The difference is that these individuals live in the world, hence the term secular order.

They were founded in 1221 when the idea of congregations did not exist. They are the first secular order in the history of the Church and the only secular order that is completely autonomous. Unlike the Lay Dominicans or the Secular Carmelites who are legally connected to the friars, the Secular Franciscans were given their own:

a. Rule of life

b. Government

c. Property

d. Financial administration

e. Constitutions

f. Vote in Church matters like any other order

g. Public profession equivalent to that of the friars and nuns

They are the only order in the Church that is allowed to represent the Sacred Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life at such international organizations such as the UN. Not even friars or monks have been given the privilege. They also represent themselves before the Holy Father, not through the friars. They have a General Superior who resides at the General Mother House in Rome. Currently, this General Minister is a Spanish secular woman.

Their General Minister sits on the council with the other four General Ministers of the Franciscan family.

They are very much an order. Bishops cannot interfere with them or suppress them. Before they enter a diocese, they must get canonical permission, just like the friars and nuns do. Once the permission is granted for them to enter, the bishop cannot rescind it. Only the pope can do that. They do not have to give an accounting to the bishop about their ministry, finances, government, formation or anything else, just like any other order. They’re even allowed to have communal assets

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF

 

[Melchior_1]

They are very much an order. Bishops cannot interfere with them or suppress them. Before they enter a diocese, they must get canonical permission, just like the friars and nuns do. Once the permission is granted for them to enter, the bishop cannot rescind it. Only the pope can do that. They do not have to give an accounting to the bishop about their ministry, finances, government, formation or anything else, just like any other order.

I’m pretty sure the Lay Dominicans are like this as well. Are there any other Third Orders which have this Right of Exemption?

 

[jm0rr0w]

The Secular Franciscan Order is a canonically erected order of Pontifical Right. It has all of the rights as any other order: Benedictines, Dominicans, Augustinians, Trinitarians, Servites, Carthusians and so forth.

The SFO was erected for secular men and women, not just for lay people. There have always been deacons, priests, bishops and even popes in the SFO, not just laymen. The difference is that these individuals live in the world, hence the term secular order.

They were founded in 1221 when the idea of congregations did not exist. They are the first secular order in the history of the Church and the only secular order that is completely autonomous. Unlike the Lay Dominicans or the Secular Carmelites who are legally connected to the friars, the Secular Franciscans were given their own:

a. Rule of life

b. Government

c. Property

d. Financial administration

e. Constitutions

f. Vote in Church matters like any other order

g. Public profession equivalent to that of the friars and nuns

They are the only order in the Church that is allowed to represent the Sacred Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life at such international organizations such as the UN. Not even friars or monks have been given the privilege. They also represent themselves before the Holy Father, not through the friars. They have a General Superior who resides at the General Mother House in Rome. Currently, this General Minister is a Spanish secular woman.

Their General Minister sits on the council with the other four General Ministers of the Franciscan family.

They are very much an order. Bishops cannot interfere with them or suppress them. Before they enter a diocese, they must get canonical permission, just like the friars and nuns do. Once the permission is granted for them to enter, the bishop cannot rescind it. Only the pope can do that. They do not have to give an accounting to the bishop about their ministry, finances, government, formation or anything else, just like any other order. They’re even allowed to have communal assets

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF

Thank you very much Br. JR. I think I’m getting much closer to a clear understanding. This morning I’ve been trying to look up the definitions of each type of group. This is what I’ve come up with so far:

Institute of Consecrated Life - Made up of Religious Institutes of Consecrated Life and Secular Institutes of Consecrated Life.

Religious Institute of Consecrated Life - A religious institute is a society in which members, according to proper law, pronounce public vows, either perpetual or temporary which are to be renewed, however, when the period of time has elapsed, and lead a life of brothers or sisters in common (cf the Code of Canon Law, can. 607-709).

Historically, what are now called religious institutes were distinguished as either religious orders or religious congregations. The Church no longer makes that distinction and applies to all such institutes the single name “religious institute” and the same rules of canon law.

Secular Institute of Consecrated Life - Profess the evangelical counsels of chastity, poverty, and obedience while living in the world not in community. It is one of the forms of consecrated life recognized in Church law (cf. the Code of Canon Law, can. 710–730).

Institute of Pontifical Right - An institute of consecrated life [secular or religious] is said to be of pontifical right if the Apostolic See has erected it or approved it through a formal decree. It is said to be of diocesan right, however, if it has been erected by a diocesan bishop but has not obtained a decree of approval from the Apostolic See (Can. 589). Without prejudice to the prescript of can. 586, institutes of pontifical right are immediately and exclusively subject to the power of the Apostolic See in regards to internal governance and discipline (Can. 593). Without prejudice to can. 586, an institute of diocesan right remains under the special care of the diocesan bishop (Can. 594).

Societies of Apostolic Life - resemble religious institutes, but differ in that their members do not take religious vows. They pursue the apostolic purpose of the society to which they belong, while leading a life in common as brothers or sisters and striving for the perfection of charity through observing the society’s constitutions. In some of these societies the members assume the evangelical counsels by a bond other than that of religious vows defined in their constitutions.This type of organisation is defined in the Code of Canon Law under canons 731-755.

Private Association - A private association of the faithful exists in virtue of a private agreement among its members. A private association may or may not be recognized by the local Church authority, according to the wishes of the members. If the association wishes to be recognized as a private association of the faithful, then it must submit its statutes for review by the competent Church authority (canon 299, §§1-3).

Public Association - A public association of the faithful is established by the competent Church authority. Some associations of the faithful must be public because of the nature of their apostolate, namely the handing on of Christian doctrine “in the name of the Church” or the promotion of the Sacred Liturgy or “purposes whose pursuit is of its nature reserved” to Church authority (canon 301, §1).
Who is the competent Church authority? For associations which are universal and international, it is the Holy See. If the association is national in scope, it is the conference of bishops of the nation. If the association is diocesan, it is the diocesan bishop (canon 312, §§1-3).

Ran out of characters, will continue in another post.

 

[jm0rr0w]

For me to get an even clearer understanding I need to know the difference between taking religious vows and making the public profession in the SFO. Do both forms bring the person into consecrated life? I’m thinking that difference is what makes the SFO a public association instead of a secular institute. Both do not live in community. Can you shed some light here Br. JR?

This is what is shows in the statutes of the international fraternity of the SFO:
The Secular Franciscan Order (SFO) is a public association within the Church (cfr. GC Art. 1.5). “It consists of Fraternities at local, regional, national and international levels” (Rule 20), co-ordinated among themselves in conformity with the provisions of the Rule and of the General Constitutions.
To promote the life of the International Fraternity and to provide for its organization and functioning, the Secular Franciscan Order establishes and adopts the present Statutes (cfr. GC Art. 6.1; CIC 304.1 can.).

So I guess the big question is what makes the SFO a Public Association of Pontifical Right instead of a Secular Institute of Pontifical Right?

 

[JReducation]

I’m pretty sure the Lay Dominicans are like this as well. Are there any other Third Orders which have this Right of Exemption?

Because the Lay Dominicans are part of the Order of Preachers, they share in the their rights and privileges.

My guess is that other “third orders” (notice quotation marks, not all are third orders), that are part of an exempt order share the same rights and privileges as they order to which they’re attached.

What makes the SFO different from the Lay Dominicans and Secular Carmelites is that they were never part of the same order as the friars or the nuns. Francis always intended them to be autonomous. He set them up apart and went to Rome to get them approved as an autonomous order. Dominic did not do this. The Dominican Lay Order has always been part of the Friars Preachers. They share one Master General.

Whereas the Franciscans, each order has its own general superior. The general superior of the friars has no more authority over the secular Franciscans than he has over the Jesuits. Canon Law says that they have the obligation to moderate the Secular Order.

The word was deliberately chosen. To moderate, in Church lingo means to care for. It does not have the same meaning as it does in the secular world. It does not mean that they have the power to govern.

The friars and women religious who serve as spiritual assistants to the SFO are call exactly that, spiritual assistants. They can’t be chaplains or spiritual directors of the community. They can be spiritual director to an individual, not to a community. This was done to ensure their autonomy.

Francis never wanted any of his orders to be related to each other. We wanted a family of different orders with different charisms, visions and missions.

These secular orders brought something to the Church that still influences the Church today. They inspired Vatican II to write the decree on the Apostolate of the Laity. Had it not been for them, this would not have happened.

Many lay movements took their example from the secular orders. That’s why they’re such an important part of Catholic tradition. When the Secular Franciscans were founded, it was the first time in history that secular Catholics were given a place in the mission of the Church with their own canonical status. Not long after, the Dominicans founded their lay branch. These inspired others, until finally in the 17th century secular Catholics started their own movements without joining one of these secular orders.

Some of these movements that were founded in the 17th century grew into religious congregations. For example, Francis de Sales and John Bosco were Secular Franciscans. John Bosco borrowed from his experience as a Secular Franciscan. But instead of starting another Secular Franciscan cell, he started a small lay community that within a year became the Salesians.

Other groups remains secular such as Opus Dei. St. Jose Maria Escriva was a Secular Francisan He too drew from that paradigm, but he focused his work toward the sanctification of the ordinary things in the secular world. Opus Dei has never become religious. They remain secular,but not Franciscan. They owe Jose Maria’s inspiration to the SFO.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF :christmastree1:

 

[JReducation]

For me to get an even clearer understanding I need to know the difference between taking religious vows and making the public profession in the SFO. Do both forms bring the person into consecrated life? I’m thinking that difference is what makes the SFO a public association instead of a secular institute. Both do not live in community. Can you shed some light here Br. JR?

This is what is shows in the statutes of the international fraternity of the SFO:
The Secular Franciscan Order (SFO) is a public association within the Church (cfr. GC Art. 1.5). “It consists of Fraternities at local, regional, national and international levels” (Rule 20), co-ordinated among themselves in conformity with the provisions of the Rule and of the General Constitutions.
To promote the life of the International Fraternity and to provide for its organization and functioning, the Secular Franciscan Order establishes and adopts the present Statutes (cfr. GC Art. 6.1; CIC 304.1 can.).

So I guess the big question is what makes the SFO a Public Association of Pontifical Right instead of a Secular Institute of Pontifical Right?

A secular institute is a modern concept. It was conceived at Vatican II in response to men and women who wanted to live in community, make vows of chastity, poverty and obedience, but remain part of the secular world. They go out to work at the local bank, teach school, run the bakery, etc. These communities existed, but had no canonical place in the Church. The Church created a new category of conscrated life called the Secular Institute.

An association, public or private, is any group that is recognized by the Church, has a canonical place in the Church, either at the diocesan level or the pontifical level. For example, the Franciscan Friars of the Eternal Word are a public association of the faithful. They are not a congregation, nor an order.

Associations date back to the time of St.Benedict. The first Benedictine abbeys were associations of the faithful. It simply means a group of the faithful that comes together for a particular purpose. This can be to live the religious life, to do a certain ministry or to sanctify its members, as is the case of the SFO.

What brings a person into consecrate life is not the canonical status of association, congregation, order, society or institute.

Consecrated life is achieved by the profession of the Evangelical Counsels to be lived in the celibate state. Everyone can vow to live chastity, poverty and obedience, but not be celibate. Married people are called to chastity as well.

To be a consecrated person you must profess to live the counsels as a celibate man or woman. It can be in community or individually, such as a hermit.

Again, association, order, congregation, institute, simple describes your rights and obligations in the church as a group.

Consecration is achieved by professing the counsels in celibacy.

Now . . . I need a rest. My brain is fried, my friends. I don’t want to be in the hospital for Christmas. I’m going to rest for a few hours, then pray, then study and then come back. Bye.

Fraternally,

Br. JR,OSF :christmastree1:

 

[jm0rr0w]

A secular institute is a modern concept. It was conceived at Vatican II in response to men and women who wanted to live in community, make vows of chastity, poverty and obedience, but remain part of the secular world. They go out to work at the local bank, teach school, run the bakery, etc. These communities existed, but had no canonical place in the Church. The Church created a new category of conscrated life called the Secular Institute.

An association, public or private, is any group that is recognized by the Church, has a canonical place in the Church, either at the diocesan level or the pontifical level. For example, the Franciscan Friars of the Eternal Word are a public association of the faithful. They are not a congregation, nor an order.

Associations date back to the time of St.Benedict. The first Benedictine abbeys were associations of the faithful. It simply means a group of the faithful that comes together for a particular purpose. This can be to live the religious life, to do a certain ministry or to sanctify its members, as is the case of the SFO.

What brings a person into consecrate life is not the canonical status of association, congregation, order, society or institute.

Consecrated life is achieved by the profession of the Evangelical Counsels to be lived in the celibate state. Everyone can vow to live chastity, poverty and obedience, but not be celibate. Married people are called to chastity as well.

To be a consecrated person you must profess to live the counsels as a celibate man or woman. It can be in community or individually, such as a hermit.

Again, association, order, congregation, institute, simple describes your rights and obligations in the church as a group.

Consecration is achieved by professing the counsels in celibacy.

Now . . . I need a rest. My brain is fried, my friends. I don’t want to be in the hospital for Christmas. I’m going to rest for a few hours, then pray, then study and then come back. Bye.

Fraternally,

Br. JR,OSF :christmastree1:

Thank you very much! I hope you have a wonderful rest.

I never factored in celibacy.

Now I’ll start looking for what makes the profession of public vows(solemn, simple), and the public profession (promise of perpetual commitment) like the SFO different. Maybe it is that vows are only professed by those who live in community? I seem to remember that breaking a vow accepted by the Church can be considered mortal sin, while breaking a promise of perpetual commitment is not.

 

[Oneofthewomen]

Br. Jay,

Thanks!!!

Happy last few days of Advent!!

 

[mylo]

This has to be my favorite thread on CAF. Br. JR, thank you so much for your posts! :tiphat:

 

[jwinch2]

The friars and women religious who serve as spiritual assistants to the SFO are call exactly that, spiritual assistants. They can’t be chaplains or spiritual directors of the community. They can be spiritual director to an individual, not to a community. This was done to ensure their autonomy.

While they are obviously different, there are some similarities here with the Lay Dominicans (LD). For example, while the friars and sisters do have an obligation to serve as spiritual guides/directors, they are not permitted to interfere in the local governance of the chapter. They can and do serve as guides, sounding boards, etc. but when it comes down to a decision being made, it is up to the chapter Moderator and the professed members to vote on it. Overall, the LD are not nearly as autonomous as are the SFO, as they do fall under the Master of the Order. However, at the provincial or local level, they are more autonomous than might otherwise be apparent.

Peace,

 

[iloveangels]

Thank you very much! I hope you have a wonderful rest.

I never factored in celibacy.

Now I’ll start looking for what makes the profession of public vows(solemn, simple), and the public profession (promise of perpetual commitment) like the SFO different. Maybe it is that vows are only professed by those who live in community? I seem to remember that breaking a vow accepted by the Church can be considered mortal sin, while breaking a promise of perpetual commitment is not.

Even though the SFO is an order, members don’t take vows, but make promises. This is an exception to protect them from being bound under pain of sin. This should not be viewed in a minimalistic way, saying that they’re only promises. This is for our protection, so that we can’t, by failing, get ourselves into mortal sin difficulties that we could find it hard to get back out of, and we are very grateful for that.

The words used are also interesting. Profession occurs in Mass and the priest may be Franciscan or diocesan, but the Mass is intentionally said for the profession(s) that are taking place. During that mass, we profess ourselves to the Order and to the Rule, rededicating ourselves to our baptismal promises at the same time. The promises aren’t specifically in words to chastity, poverty and obedience, although that is understood because it’s clearly in the rule, and indeed, that intent is made very clear in even the most basic formation. All these things are worked through and all impediments are taken care of before one is allowed to profess.

Here is the text, p. 10. This is in the SFO Ritual, English translation.
franciscan-sfo.org/ofcdocs/rt85enos.pdf

At the SFO 2008 General Chapter in Hungary, Fr. Felice Cangelosi, OFM Cap., gave a presentation on SFO profession where he stated, “The Church recognizes Secular Franciscans as belonging to a real Order … Their profession to live the Gospel life is so extraordinary that, it too, is regarded as a sacred act that is no less important than the profession that friars and sisters make.”

And yes, we do have General Chapters just like the other big old branches of the Order, the OFMs, the Poor Clares and the TORs. We also have a a Minister General, and as Br JR says, she sits at the table with the General Minister of the OFMs. We are one of the autonomous branches of the Franciscan Family. The TORs came from us originally; we are their parent group.

The Secular Franciscan Order is an “odd duck” that really doesn’t fit the categories that came later. That’s why it’s kind of hard to get a handle on when you try to understand how it fits into the whole organizational scheme of third orders.

 

[iloveangels]

What’s interesting is that there have always been third order Franciscans, even though we’ve been called a number of things and our lives have taken a number of forms. The TORs are secular Franciscans who took up living in community (regular life instead of secular life), yet their claim to Franciscan heritage comes through their parentage, which is the secular Franciscans.

Secular Franciscans, meaning third order Franciscans not living in convents and community houses, have sometimes been eclipsed in visibility and importance by their offspring which are all the many kinds of regular third order Franciscans there are, and sometimes not.

One of the things that has happened during several historic periods is that the order has sometimes been used as a vehicle in attempts to increase the general holiness of laypeople. Sometimes that’s been accompanied by poor formation. Sometimes the specific Franciscan character of the charism has been diluted. That’s really no longer the case.

The Rule of 1978 made much more explicit the original nature and meaning of the SFO. Formation is being improved, regionalization has occurred bringing all the fraternities into closer communication with each other, and the order is rising to its feet again.

Of the three old main-line Franciscan orders, the third order is the largest. Of all the members in the third order, the Secular Franciscan Order group is the largest. Most of the Franciscans in the world are Secular Franciscans.

 

[JReducation]

What’s interesting is that there have always been third order Franciscans, even though we’ve been called a number of things and our lives have taken a number of forms. The TORs are secular Franciscans who took up living in community (regular life instead of secular life), yet their claim to Franciscan heritage comes through their parentage, which is the secular Franciscans.

Secular Franciscans, meaning third order Franciscans not living in convents and community houses, have sometimes been eclipsed in visibility and importance by their offspring which are all the many kinds of regular third order Franciscans there are, and sometimes not.

One of the things that has happened during several historic periods is that the order has sometimes been used as a vehicle in attempts to increase the general holiness of laypeople. Sometimes that’s been accompanied by poor formation. Sometimes the specific Franciscan character of the charism has been diluted. That’s really no longer the case.

The Rule of 1978 made much more explicit the original nature and meaning of the SFO. Formation is being improved, regionalization has occurred bringing all the fraternities into closer communication with each other, and the order is rising to its feet again.

Of the three old main-line Franciscan orders, the third order is the largest. Of all the members in the third order, the Secular Franciscan Order group is the largest. Most of the Franciscans in the world are Secular Franciscans.

The Secular Franciscan Order makes up 33% of the Franciscan family. It is the largest of the Franciscan orders and congregations with over 500,000 brothers and sisters in 114 countries and more than 400 provinces (regions as they are called in the USA).

In the USA the problem cam with the translation of the name. The actual name of the order is Order of Franciscans, Secular (OFS). The Americans felt that it sounded clunky and switched the order of the wording to Secular Franciscan Order.

I believe that this was a mistake. Americans tend to look for the easiest way of doing things. Why cook when you can microwave? Why walk to the corner store when you can drive? Why go out and play when you can use the XBox?

By putting the term secular at the beginning, many people lean on that. “We’re seculars, we’re not bound to do this or that.” Love is not a matter of what we’re bound to do. Love exceeds what is expected.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF :christmastree1:

 

[iloveangels]

The Secular Franciscan Order makes up 33% of the Franciscan family. It is the largest of the Franciscan orders and congregations with over 500,000 brothers and sisters in 114 countries and more than 400 provinces (regions as they are called in the USA).

In the USA the problem cam with the translation of the name. The actual name of the order is Order of Franciscans, Secular (OFS). The Americans felt that it sounded clunky and switched the order of the wording to Secular Franciscan Order.

I believe that this was a mistake. Americans tend to look for the easiest way of doing things. Why cook when you can microwave? Why walk to the corner store when you can drive? Why go out and play when you can use the XBox?

By putting the term secular at the beginning, many people lean on that. “We’re seculars, we’re not bound to do this or that.” Love is not a matter of what we’re bound to do. Love exceeds what is expected.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF :christmastree1:

Br. JR,

You are 100% right on the “secular” word. Many SFOs don’t know what it means, and there are several popular interpretations around, and not only locally. Some frankly don’t like it because they conflate it with secularism in a bad way. But on the other hand, some take it to mean only pertaining to laypeople in an almost militant way, which is really odd. But for the first time in a long time, I can see the light at the other end of the tunnel. If we give this time, this will come out alright. Continuity and obedience are the keys.

I can also say that I’ve learned a whole lot in the past month, much of it from you. Thank you very much. Some of the things I never learned that I needed I have now found. And one of the most important of those is the excellent description of the lived charism that I’ve read here in your generous contributions.

I’ve also been reading. I have here Ivan Gobry’s “St. Francis” & Raffaele Pazzelli’s “St. Francis and the Third Order.” I also found a wonderful old copy of a book about the SFO in the US in 1935, called “Survey of a Decade,” which helps me to understand the recent past (last 100 years or so) a bit better. And I rustled up my old copy of the Ritual, LOL. And I read a couple of old copies of the Rule, so I could see what happened over time.

PS. It’s really hard to find numbers of Franciscans. LOL. It’s almost as bad as trying to find out how many kinds of Franciscans there are.