I'm back!!!!

Hi Folks,

I know I have taken a hiatus of about 7 months and lots has happened these past few months in my life that has kept me from blogging. Hopefully I will be able to post on my blog more frequently. So to keep you up to date here are a few things that have happened since I last posted:

December 2009-- Had a wonderful Advent/Christmas Seasons with my first time celebrating at St. Francis and also presiding the first time at the Christmas Midnight Mass. Also had the wonderful oportunity to celebrate my niece's first Christmas.

January 2010-March 2010--My pastor had a nasty fall and broke his ankle severely. Since he had to be out for some weeks it gave me the taste of running a parish on my own.

April 2010--Had my first taste of celebrating all the services during the Triduum and of course the highlight was baptizing, confirming, and welcoming new members to our church community for the first time at the Easter Vigil.

Three of the friars of my province were ordained priests. One of them being a dear friend of mine and it was a great honor to witness his ordination but also to preach at his First Mass.

May 2010--Officiated at my sister's wedding. It truly was an honor to celebrate this wondeful sacrament with them. Of course a good old Portuguese reception followed and we all went home content with good Portuguese food in our system.

June 2010--A great Jubilee celebration on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of my province. A wonderful celebration at our mother church in NYC with a beautiful Solemn Mass and a great reception afterwards.

Well, I hope you are enjoying your summer and I hope to be back soon.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

I would like to wish you and your families a blessed and joyful Thanksgiving. I am truly grateful for you and for the many blessings God has given me. Below is the Friar's Corner that I wrote for last weekend. Enjoy!

“Now thank we all our God with heart and hands and voices, who wondrous things hath done, in whom his world rejoices who from our mother’s arms hath blessed us on our way with countless gifts of love, and still is ours today.” I’m sure that this first verse from the popular hymn, Now Thank We All Our God, sounds familiar to you. It’s a beautiful hymn of thanksgiving to God and a hymn that is usually sung at the Thanksgiving Day Mass. It’s hard to believe that this Thursday we will gather around our tables with family and friends to enjoy a wonderful feast. Thanksgiving Day is one of my favorite holidays because of it’s simplicity. There are no pressure to buy gifts or prepare for weeks but instead it’s simply a gathering of loved ones, to enjoy a nice meal and more importantly giving thanks to God for the wonderful blessings that he has bestowed upon us. I believe more than ever we need a holiday like Thanksgiving in our country. We live in a time that everyone seems so busy that families no longer sit together for a meal and converse, families don’t realize the blessings they have in their lives.

As the unemployment rate increases and the economy just doesn‘t seem to be getting stronger, it’s becoming more difficult to be giving thanks but there is so much to be thankful for. We should ask ourselves and our families the following questions before we begin our Thanksgiving meal. What am I thankful for? What challenges have been sent my way that has made me a stronger person? Do I see the small “miracles” that occur around me each and everyday? Am I grateful for the people that are place in my life that truly love me?

I know in my own life I’m so thankful to God for my vocation of being a priest and a Franciscan. Which has given me opportunities to serve him in ways that I can’t imagine. I’ve had many challenges in my life that at the time I wish I wasn’t going through them but I know it made me a stronger person that can help others from my experiences. I’m blessed by the brothers in my community, the people that I minister to and my family and friends who give me so much love and support. So as I sit with my family around the table (with the delicious food that my mom has put so much love into) I will truly be grateful for another year of blessings that he has bestowed upon me and my family this past year.

May you and your families and friends have a blessed Thanksgiving and may we
“give thanks to you, O LORD, with all of my heart, for you have heard the words of my mouth; in the presence of the angels I will sing your praise; I will worship at your holy temple.” (Psalm 138)

Love,
Fr. Phil

Priesthood Sunday

The following is from the Friar's Corner column that was published this weekend in the parish bulletin.

Today, in every parish in our country we are celebrating Priesthood Sunday. It’s a day to celebrate all the priests that have made an impact on our lives. A day to say “thank you” to these men who each and everyday give themselves completely to God and his church. Now I’m not saying this because I’m a priest myself (even though it does help to understand what it is to be a priest in today’s society). I’m speaking on my own experience of the priests that were present to my family and I who have been present on different occasions in our lives. It could have been those joyous occasions of celebrating a baptism or marriage. Could have been those occasions that are as difficult as the priest gave the last rites to a dying family member or blessed their casket as it was brought into the church.

What is it to be a priest? A priest is to be a man that is in love with God. A man that spends his time in prayer He is a man that is a “father” to those he ministers to. He gives them consolation and peace. He also challenges them to love God and neighbor. He gives them a hug in times of sorrow and joy. He is there to welcome the new members of the church community by the sacrament of baptism. He hears their confessions and gives them the peace of being forgiven. He celebrates the Eucharistic feast in which his “children” are fed forever. He brings man and woman together in front of God and his church to create the bond that will bring them together until “death do us part.” He anoints the sick and comforts them in their hour of need. This is the priest that represents not his own priesthood but he shares the Priesthood of Jesus Christ. In everything that he does it is to bring the love of Christ to all those that he encounters.

On May 12, 2007, I celebrated my “First Mass”, at my home parish. Of course this was an overwhelming experience. The day before I was ordained a priest and now here I was returning as a priest to the place where I was baptized, received First Communion and Confirmation. The place where I would gather with my family every week to celebrate Mass. In this place where I met friends and enjoyed many festive moments at parish events. Here I was coming back to preside for the first time at my “First Mass”. As communion was finished being distributed I returned to my chair and the choir began a hymn that was personally composed for this grand event. I would like to share with you the verses of the song. “Thank you, my Lord for your peace and love. For all that you have done for me: for the great happiness of being a priest today; the vocation that you have given me. Each day that passes I ask for strength from your grace. For your love, your kindness; that you have always given me strength to follow my journey in walking on your way. On this my journey searching your way, I sense your love. Always stay by my side! Many times do I say ‘thank you’. Thank you my Lord!”

On this Year for the Priest and Priesthood Sunday I truly give God thanks for all that he has given me. I thank him for this beautiful vocation to the Priesthood that even in my two and half years I have seen him working great things in my life. I also thank you my dear brothers and sisters. You are my support on this journey. You have truly welcomed me with open arms and for this I’m ever grateful. Let us thank God for the beauty of the Priesthood and let us encourage our young men to pursue a life of peace and joy in the Priesthood of Jesus Christ.

Love,
Fr. Phil

Friar's Corner

It was hard to believe when I turned the page on my calendar that right there in bold words it read “October”. Even though the summer went too quickly, I do enjoy this time of year. I love the beautiful color of the leaves, the brisk cool weather, and just the beauty of change from one season to the next. Even though it seems so natural for mother nature to change it’s not as easy for us to change. I know that when a new superior comes to the scene if that might be at our workplace, our schools or even at our church community we worry about change. What are they doing? We always did it that way? What’s wrong with the way that it’s been done?

Even though we don’t care for change, it’s good for us. In my religious community we don’t usually stay in a place for very long and it’s always difficult to leave a ministry both for the friar and the faithful that the friar ministers too. Even though it’s difficult, there is a wisdom behind this practice. It’s good for the friar to not be attached to a ministry and for the people to be exposed to different styles of being led to God.

This leads to reflect on how have we changed. We all need to change, it makes us grow especially in our faith journey. Are we still working on our bad habits? Do we have any desire to break away from them? How are our prayers lives coming along? Have they become stagnant? Are we so stubborn in our prayer lives, that we refuse to spice it up a little bit. As Emeril Lagasse, a well known American chef (born and raised in my hometown) says in his program, when he adds spice to his dishes, “BAM!!” We need to “BAM!!” our prayer lives that constantly need change. We need to be open to different prayer models. Are we open to constructive criticism? Even though we might not see are own faults, we need to be open to others who can give us an objective opinion on what needs to be changed in our lives. I know this can be difficult because we tend to be proud even if we are not prideful people, it’s not always easy for someone to tell us our own faults.

So my dear brothers and sisters as we enjoy this beauty of autumn with it arrays of change and color may we always be open to change and to the betterment of ourselves especially when it comes to our spiritual lives. Also as we continue to celebrate Mary in a particular way this month may she intercede for us. O Virgin Mother give us the grace to do the will of your son and if there is anything in our lives that keeps us from completely loving him let us be aware of that and be given the strength to let go and to change from ways that are not holy to a sanctified life. We ask this in your son’s name who lives forever with the Father and his Holy Spirit. Amen.

Love,
Fr. Phil

Solemnity of our Holy Father Francis of Assisi

The homily that I delievered for the feast of St. Francis of Assisi. Happy feast day!

Throughout all Franciscan churches and chapels throughout the world the Solemnity of St. Francis of Assisi is being celebrated. I believe that St. Francis of Assisi is a saint that is known by many people even including non Catholics. Unfortunately St. Francis at times is portrayed as a bird bath. Francis was a man beyond loving the animals and creation even though it was a part of who he was. He was a man that made such an impact that 800 years later there are men and women who profess his way of life.

Who is this little man who lived in Assisi so many years ago? As I shared in my Friar’s Corner last week, he was a man that loved to party and spend his father’s money, who was a merchant in town that sold exquisite fabrics. Francis dreamed of being a soldier but instead was captured during the fight in the neighboring town of Perugia. He returned to Assisi in which he became very ill and was bedridden for many months. After these incidents he began to search for spiritual meaning in his life. One of his most intimate moments was at the church of San Damiano in which the cross that was over the altar spoke to him and said, “Francis, go and repair my house, which as you can see is falling into ruins.” Francis began brick by brick rebuilding the church but God was calling him to rebuild not the building but the church itself. After his dramatic scene in the courtyard of the bishop’s residence in which he strips himself of his clothes to symbolize that he no longer belongs to the world but to God. Francis begins to live a life devoted to God in a manner of simplicity. His radical way of life began to attract followers; which in the beginning began with a few brothers that grew to hundreds and by his death thousands were professing this life of the poverello.

What can we get out of this man that professed this way of life so many years ago? I believe St. Francis did not just speak to those so many years ago but he speaks to us directly today. I think of the wonderful classes that are being held on Mondays nights in our parish. Classes that make us aware of the injustices that are being done to our brothers and sisters and to our planet. Francis cared so much of God’s people that he would do anything for them even care for the leopards that he despised so much in his early life. He appreciated creation and saw how God was present through it.

We as a society still are not doing enough to save our plant that has been given to us as a gift from God and are not doing enough to protect the dignity of the human person. We can also learn Francis’ prayer life. In the second reading from St. Paul to the Galatians he says, “Brothers, may I never boast of anything but the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.” St. Francis definitely boasted of the cross of Christ. He at the end of his life was reminded constantly by the passion of Christ as he himself bore the wounds of Christ that he received on Mount La Verna as he was in deep contemplation with our lord.

There is a beautiful prayer that is attributed to Francis that was to believed to be prayed originally before the crucifix at San Damiano. “Most high, glorious God, enlighten the darkness of my heart and give me, Lord, a correct faith, a certain hope, a perfect charity, sense and knowledge, so that I may carry out Your holy and true command.”

My dear brothers and sisters may we always give praise to our Most high and glorious God who goes beyond our imagination of what God is. May we pray constantly that we are not led into the darkness that is not from God but to be true to our selves and to others. To lead lives that are full of truth and to follow the truth that only God can give us. May we bear always the correct faith that the church gives us. The faith that should nourish us constantly and the faith that we pray each and every person we encounter will share in that same true faith that we hope to embody. May we have hope in our risen Lord who died for our sins and have given us a share in his resurrection. May we not fall into despair as those that have no faith but to have hope in a God that is ready to bestow his mercy upon us and give us his consolation and peace. May we have perfect charity in which we love others as Christ would bestow his love on those that he met. May not anger enter into our hearts but may they be hearts that bleed out of love as Christ bled on the cross because he “laid down his life for his friends.” May we have that sense and knowledge of our faith. May we not become ignorant that we fall from following God completely and truly by the commandments that he gave us. May they not be commandments that becomes a rule book but let them become commandments of love in which we know that if we are faithful to them then we become closer to him that we should desire more completely.

St. Francis of Assisi intercede for us and as Psalm 16 states, “Keep me, O God, for in you I take refuge; I say to the Lord, “My Lord are you.” O Lord, my allotted portion and my cup, you it is who hold fast to my lot.”

Friar's Corner

Next weekend is a special weekend for Fr. Mike, myself, and all our Franciscan brothers and sisters throughout the world. We will gather together in different churches and chapels to commemorate the passing of Francis of Assisi and his entry into heaven with a transitus service, blessings of animals and Solemn Masses. It truly is a great celebration for us as friars since St. Francis of Assisi is our founder and also for the church at large because of the impact that he left on this earth.

Francis, the son of Pietro di Bernadorne and Pica Bourlemont was born in Assisi and was baptized Giovanni after John the Baptist but the father always referred to him as Francesco because of his great interest in all things French and did not appreciate the association of Giovanni (John) to a religious leader. Francis grew to be a man that enjoyed hanging out with friends, appreciating the beauty of the ladies of the town, throwing grand parties and also wanted to be a great soldier. In 1201 he joined an expedition to Perugia but was captured. He returned to Assisi and in 1205 became very ill. After these incidents he began his journey of converting from his old ways. His most intimate encounter with God was at the church of San Damiano where the image of Christ on the cross was made alive and spoke to Francis in these words, “Francis, go and repair my house, which as you can see is falling into ruins.” Francis thought these words were referring to repairing the actual church but God was calling him to great things.

After Francis was touched by the words from Matthew 10:9 which Jesus tells his disciples, “Do not take gold or silver or copper for your belts; no sack for the journey, or a second tunic, or sandals, or walking stick.” Francis was attracted to a way of life in which he had no possessions. By the end of his first year he had 11 followers. Where they went out in two throughout the world to live out the gospel message. In 1209, St. Francis and his followers went to Rome to meet with the pope to get approval for his way of life. The pope did not immediately give him permission but after having a dream of Francis holding the basilica of St. John Lateran (the cathedral of Rome). The pope saw this as a sign of greatness and he granted him permission.

Today in the Order of Friars Minor (Franciscans), 15,000 friars minister in parishes, hospitals, schools, soup kitchens, and the list goes on ministering to our brothers and sisters in Christ in the name of the gospel that we profess. May we follow that great example of St. Francis of Assisi to truly preach the gospel and live out as humble and obedient servants. "Most high, all powerful, all good Lord! All praise is yours, all glory, all honor, and all blessing. To you, alone, Most High, do they belong. No mortal lips are worthy to pronounce your name. Be praised, my Lord, through all your creatures.."(Canticle of the Sun).

Love,
Fr. Phil

St. Joseph of Cupertino

Today in the Franciscan liturgical calendar we celebrate the Memorial of St. Joseph of Cupertino. He is one of my favorites. A simple but humble and prayerful friar. Below is a clip of the movie The Reluctant Saint. Enjoy!