Franciscan Friars of the Sacred Heart Province

At the present time, three friars are in hospice care: Fr. Jim Hoffman, OFM, Fr. Elric Sampson, OFM, and Fr. George Musial, O.F.M. In addition Fr. Andre Schludecker, OFM, has been hospitalized with congestive heart failure, and Brother Pauli Johnson has tested positive for the coronavirus. The community is Brazil has several friars struggling with the coronavirus including Fr. Vianney Miller, OFM and Fr. Bob Mizicko, OFM. We really need a storm of prayers at this particular moment. Please pray for these friars who are dying or are struggling to live.

Homily for the 3rd Sunday in Ordinary Time The Third Sunday of Ordinary Time has been designated by Pope Francis as the Sunday of the Word of God. The Holy Father chose this particular Sunday because it is on this particular Sunday that we begin the continuous reading of one of the synoptic Gospels for the current cycle of the Lectionary. In Cycle B of the Lectionary for Sunday Mass, St. Mark’s Gospel will hold our attention for most of the Sundays of Ordinary Time. Today’s G...Continue reading

The Rite of Christian Burial will be celebrated for Brother Daniel Piasecki, O.F.M., on Wednesday, January 20. Burial will follow in the friars' plot of Calvary Cemetery in Manitowoc, Wisconsin. The funeral will be private. Please keep Brother Dan in your prayers and give thanks to God for his years of faithful service as a religious brother.

Homily for the 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time I Can Do All Things in Him Who Strengthens Me From January 25th of 2008 to June 29th of 2009, the Catholic Church observed a special year in honor of St. Paul at the behest of Pope Benedict XVI. The year was meant to commemorate 2,000 years since the birth of St. Paul. Just a few month before the Holy Father made this proclamation, I had been asked to serve as Administrator of CUSA. So as a way of introducing myself to the members o...Continue reading

Homily for the 26th Sunday in Ordinary Time - Day of Prayer for the Refugees and Migrants of the World Today, Sunday, September 27, has been set aside as a Day of Prayer for the Refugees and Migrants of the World by our Holy Father Pope Francis. So while we will use the readings assigned for the 26th Sunday in Ordinary Time, we will use the appropriate prayers from the Masses for Various Needs and Occasions. Today’s reading from the Letter to the Philippians should be familia...Continue reading

Homily for the 24th Sunday in Ordinary Time For this is why Christ died and came to life, that he might be Lord of both the dead and the living. While these words from St. Paul’s Letter to the Romans might not be difficult for us to accept, they would certainly have raised an eyebrow or two in the first century. In the earliest biblical traditions, we learn that while the ancient Israelites believed that God exercised absolute rule over all that was living, they did not hav...Continue reading

General Council Elects New Provincial Council Because of the Covid19 pandemic, the friars of Sacred Heart Province were not able to meet for their triennial Province Chapter at which they were to elect a new Provincial Council. Accordingly, the General Council of the Order elected a new council after reviewing the straw ballots of the friars. We congratulate Rommel Perez Flores, Edward Tverdek, John Dombrowski, Dennis Schafer, Michael Ward, and Douglas Collins and thank them for their willingness to serve as councilors to Provincial Minister Thomas Nairn. (Picture of Ed Tverdek not available.)

22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time Whenever we read from the Book of the Prophet Jeremiah, one has to keep one biographical fact in mind; namely, Jeremiah was a mere teenager when he was called by God to be a prophet. Listen to the words that open today’s first reading with that fact in mind. He accuses God of duping him, of misleading him by calling him to this role. Jeremiah’s call is recounted in chapter one of his book. Among other things, God said: Today I appoint you over na...Continue reading

Homily for the 21st Sunday in Ordinary Time The magnificent doxology that we read from the Letter to the Romans today comes at the end of St. Paul’s discussion of Israel’s place in salvation history. St. Paul draws the words of this doxology from the Hebrew Scriptures, from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah and from the Book of Job, as well as from other Hebrew writers whose writings don’t appear in the Scriptures. All Biblical theology is an attempt to reflect on the ways of Go...Continue reading

Homily for the 20th Sunday in Ordinary Time In his book, Biblical Meditations for Ordinary Time, Fr. Carroll Stuhlmueller, C.P., begins his meditation for the 20th Sunday in Cycle A with these words: What we take for granted within Christianity, universal mission and world salvation, was spotted only as flashing insights within the Old Testament. In the early church it turned into a major controversy with St. Paul pitted against many others. It was not even clearly announced...Continue reading

Beautiful interpretation of the Assumption.

Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary The passage from the Book of Revelation begins with the description of a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. These verses loosely correspond to a dream that Joseph, son of Jacob, describes in the Book of Genesis. In that dream, the sun, the moon, and eleven stars bow down to Joseph who is himself the twelfth star. While the story from the Book of Genesis speak...s of the twelve tribes of Israel, the description from the Book of Revelation shows us that the woman is giving birth to a new Israel. The passage from the Book of Revelation tells us of the woman in the throes of labor who gives birth to a son. We are told of a monster or dragon who lies waiting for the birth of the child and intends to devour the baby once she gives birth. This story corresponds to a widespread myth throughout the ancient world that a goddess pregnant with a savior was pursued by a horrible monster; by miraculous intervention, she bore a son who then killed the monster. The similarity between this passage and the ancient myth cannot be denied. Jesus did, in fact, defeat the dragon, a personification of death. After she gives birth, the woman flees into the desert where God has prepared a special place for her. Today we celebrate the fact that Mary, the Mother of God, has arrived at that special place because God could not allow the body of the Virgin mother to suffer corruption after that body had harbored the very Son of God. The Church’s dogma about the Assumption presumes that we understand the Scriptural basis for this doctrine. This dogma is not born out of sentimentality or out of a sense of privilege for the Virgin. It is based upon the Scriptures which teach us that just as Mary gave birth to Jesus, ancient Israel gave birth to the Church, the New Jerusalem. The Scriptures do not spend a great deal of time telling us about the woman herself. She is simply described as a young maiden of Nazareth. When she opens her mouth to sing God’s praises, she lifts the words directly out of the Hebrew Scriptures and the song that is sung by Hannah, the mother of Samuel, in the opening chapters of the Book of Samuel. Mary is the model of the new Israel. The dogma also tells us something about ourselves. We will go where Mary has gone before. St. Paul tells us that death, which came through Adam, will visit us all. However, because Jesus has been raised from the dead and is the first fruits of God’s plan of salvation, all who place their faith in Jesus will follow where he has led his mother and his disciples. We are all destined to find that secret place in the desert where our hopes will find fulfillment. So, like Mary, we too proclaim the praises of our God who has loved us so much and so well that we will live forever with Jesus and his Mother. Fr. Lawrence Jagdfeld, O.F.M.

We commend to your prayers the repose of our brother, Fr. Lambert Leykam, O.F.M., who passed away in Manitowoc, Wisconsin, on Monday, August 10. A private funeral will be held on Saturday, August 15, followed by burial in the friars' plot of Calvary Cemetery. Please remember him in your prayers.

19th Sunday in Ordinary Time

August 2 - Solemnity of Our Lady of the Angels As I mentioned yesterday, because the chapel here at St. Francis Woods Convent is named for Our Lady of the Angels, today's feast day gets notched up to a solemnity for us and takes the place of the 18th Sunday in Ordinary Time. According to a legend, the chapel dedicated to Our Lady of the Angels and known as the Portiuncula was built in the fourth century during the reign of Pope Liberius by hermits from the Valley of Josaphat....Continue reading

Funeral Arrangements for Fr. Kenneth Capalbo, O.F.M. Thursday, July 30, St. Peter's Church in the Loop 9:00 AM - Reception of the Body... 9:30 AM - Liturgy of Christian Burial Interment at Queen of Heaven Cemetery, Hillside, immediately thereafter. May Fr. Kenneth and all the deceased friars of Sacred Heart Province rest in peace.