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400th Anniversary

4/29/2014

The Recollects, the first Franciscan missionaries, arrived in Tadoussac, Canada on May 25, 1615 with Samuel de Champlain.

We, the Franciscans, will be celebrating the 400th anniversary of their arrival in Canada. Some planning is happening which includes:

a solemn Eucharist to commemorate the first Mass celebrated in Montreal (possibly in Canada)
an academic event in Quebec city (where the Recollects, arrived in June 1215) is being planned by a history professor of Laval University.
a celebratory activity in Ontario, where one of the first four Recollects spent the winter, following his arrival in Quebec City, among the natives in Huron country north of Toronto.

As soon as we have more information to enable us remember in solidarity how these missionaries answered their call and eventually that of the secular Franciscans and Father Frédéric Janssoone, it will be posted on our Events page.

Learning from our past, we can forge ahead renewed, reinvigorated and inspired to do what God needs from us in the areas of justice, peace and the integrity of creation in our world today.

"Monument de la Foi" marks the 300th Anniversary of the Recollects' arrival in Quebec City.

"Le Couvent des Récollets", Trois-Rivières.

Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God - what is good and acceptable and perfect.
Romans 12:2, New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition

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Love and mercy go hand in hand

4/28/2014

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"Radically converted Christians such as St. John XXIII and St. John Paul II live their lives, not in fear but according to the incarnate love of God in the footsteps of Jesus Christ... Turn your life over to Christ and you will find this new freedom." Fr. Robert Barron.

"Good" Pope John Paul XXIII accomplished much which is often overlooked in his short tenure as pontiff with the label "caretaker of the church" so often ascribed to him. His local boyhood church's motto guided his life's mission and was later named his episcopal motto - Oboedientia et Pax. In that spirit, he:

Saved some 25,000 Jewish children during the Second World War by providing them with baptismal certificates and boat tickets to escape persecution or death, endangering his own life
Called for an Ecumenical Council which had not been convened for some 500 years. Vatican II symbolized a resurgence of ecumenical openness for the Catholic Church with non-Catholic observers in attendance and the hope of Christian unity.
Obtained close and official Catholic Christian influence on organizations responsible for international order and peace including the U.N. and UNESCO.
Contributed to the conceiving and drafting of the UN’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
Wrote the encyclical, "Pacem in Terris" in April 1963, which complements his witness to human justice in "Mater et Magistra."

Charismatic Pope Jean Paul II, whose apostolic motto was "Totus Tuus"/ "Totally Yours" will be fondly remembered for:

Toppling totalitarian regimes in Eastern Europe
Forgiving and loving the man who tried to kill him as well as seeking forgiveness for the Church
Clarifying the doctrines and teachings of Vatican II inside and beyond the Vatican
Advocating for human life at all life stages
Extending paternal embracing hands to young people
Teaching about love and family
His numerous writings
Suffering a debilitating disease with dignity and grace

We have two new saints - Saint John XXIII and Saint John Paul II. Pope Francis chose to canonize these two recent popes on Divine Mercy Sunday, 27 April 2014. No mere co-incidence.

At the heart of this Sunday, through doubting Thomas' senses, the marks of the wounds inflicted on Jesus remind of God's enduring love for each and every one of us, his abiding mercifulness and faithfulness towards us and his patience with us. Pope John XXIII and Pope John Paul II, inspired by the Holy Spirit and the salvific God made man bore witness to God's covenant to humankind.

These two very courageous men exemplified vigorous and inspired energy with a keen sense of hope for our world and justice for all. Since we are all called to be saints, may they guide us to follow Jesus more closely so that we can love others more deeply in reconciliation and unity.

In his homily, Pope Francis said: "In these two men, who looked upon the wounds of Christ and bore witness to his mercy, there dwelt a living hope and an indescribable and glorious joy (1 Pet 1:3,8)... In convening the Council, Saint John XXIII showed an exquisite openness to the Holy Spirit. He let himself be led and he was for the Church a pastor, a servant-leader, guided by the Holy Spirit... In his own service to the People of God, Saint John Paul II was the pope of the family... I am particularly happy to point this out as we are in the process of journeying with families towards the Synod on the family. It is surely a journey which, from his place in heaven, he guides and sustains.
May these two new saints and shepherds of God’s people intercede for the Church, so that during this two-year journey toward the Synod she may be open to the Holy Spirit in pastoral service to the family. May both of them teach us not to be scandalized by the wounds of Christ and to enter ever more deeply into the mystery of divine mercy, which always hopes and always forgives, because it always loves."

If there is light in the soul,
there will be beauty in the person.
If there is beauty in the person,
there will be harmony in the house.
If there is harmony in the house,
there will be order in the nation.
If there is order in the nation,
there will be peace in the world."
- Chinese Proverb

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What would life be like without them?

4/25/2014

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Inspired by the vanishing of the honey-bee, filmmaker Louie Schwartzberg's TED talk shows a trailer from "Wings of Life" which highlights the intricate world of pollen and pollinators with magnificent and moving high-speed images. "Beauty and seduction are nature's tool for survival because we will protect what we fall in love with. Their relationship is a love story that feeds the earth."

Pollination, which we can hardly see, is vital to life on our earth and we cannot afford to take it for granted or our very existence is at stake.

Did you know that over a third of the world's fruit and vegetable supply depends on pollination by the increasingly endangered bees, bats, humming-birds and butterflies? Scientists believe that this is a serious issue.

What motivates the pollinators? It's about risk and reward - the desire to regenerate to survive - it's mystical.

What risks can we take for the gift of life? How about cultivating a bee, bat, humming-bird and butterfly friendly garden? Smell the flowers? Eat your own home-grown fruit and vegetables this year? Wonder at the hive of nature busy at work in your own yard? Support green-growers?

It's up to us to look after the little guys!

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Have your say for Fair Elections in Canada

4/24/2014

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The Globe and Mail's series on the Fair Elections Act counters the Democratic Reform Minister's many concerns:

Voter fraud threat: if vouching is eliminated and people cannot use the Elections Canada Information Card as part of the identification process, thousands of voters will be disenfranchised. In 2012, in Toronto, the Supreme Court urged Elections Canada to improve when it found that the voters were ligitimate and had voted in good faith. An Elections Canada compliance review came to the same conclusion.
Campaign expense costs
Appointment of election officers
Elections Canada impartiality
Elections Canada public outreach & research

What are the real issues?
The Globe and Mail believes that the real issues are not being addressed: 1) consistent training for election officials; 2) complex rules; and 3) low voter turnout.

Living in Canada, we expect to experience all that democracy has to offer including the right to vote in transparent elections. On the 4th February 2014, the Democratic Reform Minister, Pierre Poilievre, "introduced a sweeping bill designed to protect the fairness of federal elections."

The Fair Elections Act promises to "ensure everyday citizens are in charge of democracy, by putting special interests on the sidelines and rule-breakers out of business. ... The bill also makes it harder to break elections law. It closes loopholes to big money, imposes new penalties on political imposters who make rogue calls, and empowers law enforcement with sharper teeth, a longer reach and a freer hand.” In short, it will implement thirty-eight of the Chief Electoral Officer’s past recommendations.

After all that happened in the last federal election, these statements sound really promising. Why then is there such outcry especially from academia?

Questions to ask ourselves
What powers has the Chief Electoral Officer? Why would the Democratic Reform Minister want to limit those powers and freedom of speech? What do you think? Do you feel you should have been consulted? Please tell us what you think and feel.

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Call for help in setting up an Advocacy group

4/23/2014

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A member of the secular Franciscan, St. Francis fraternity, Toronto seeks to set up an advocacy group to support people who are hard of hearing as well as living with deafness and/or mental health issues. They will also focus on ecological issues too.

If you know how to set up an Advocacy group and/or have talent with organizing discussions, workshops and presentations, please contact Margaret Maines, ofs.

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400th Anniversary

Love and mercy go hand in hand

What would life be like without them?

Have your say for Fair Elections in Canada

Call for help in setting up an Advocacy group

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