Come & See Event Suggested Logistics, Outline and Talking Points March 2018

Transcription

1 Cme & See Event Suggested Lgistics, Outline and Talking Pints March 2018 Yur fraternity is interested in spreading the wrd abut the OFS and the members wuld like t hst a Cme & See event. Many frmats can be successful. This dcument cntains ne example frmat with sme suggestins fr planning and rganizing the event. These are just suggestins an example fr yu t use t plan such an event. These are nt required t any extent. Create an event that meets the characteristics f yur fraternity. Pre-event Planning: Start planning the event at least six mnths ahead f time. Set a date, Arrange fr a lcatin, Develp the agenda (suggested utline and talking pints are prvided belw) include times fr each prtin f the agenda. Set a time limit fr the event. This is an intrductin. Dn t expect t cver the entire three years f frmatin in ne afternn r evening. Suggest that talks be n lnger than 15 minutes each. The prayer and infrmatin segments shuld be n mre than 60 minutes with time fr scial afterwards. Assign speakers tpics and have them prepare and practice talks, and Advertise fr the event (e.g. bulletins, pulpit annuncements at yur parishes, dicesan papers, leave business cards in the back f parishes with infrmatin abut the date). Assign peple t set up, prepare a sign-in sheet, bring handuts, bring refreshments, clean-up. Arrange fr audi-vide equipment if necessary. Ask each member t invite peple t the event. Day f Event: Get there early t set up. Put up signs t direct peple t the rm. Set up a sign-in table with sign-in sheet with members t greet visitrs Set up refreshments and any audi-visual equipment. G ver with presenters the flw f the event. After the Event: Cntact the persns wh attended. Invite them t a regular gathering. Let them knw abut the next steps. Suggested Agenda Prayer Service Welcming Yu are drawn t the way St. Francis fllwed Christ. We gather tgether in a traditin that has been arund fr mre than 800 years An Order established by St. Francis, apprved by the Ppe and the Magisterium f the Rman Cathlic Church Fcus is bringing the Gspel f Jesus Christ t life in the wrld. Many aspects t learn abut s we wn t be able t cver it tday. T give yu an intrductin, we will have a few brief sessins. Discussin abut vcatin fr peple like us living ur faith mre deeply. An verview f the Franciscan family alng with a brief verview f the Franciscan Charism. Tpics fr large grup r breakut sessins: A. Vcatin B. Franciscan Family C. Franciscan Charism (see pages 2-4 fr talking pints) Scial Time ne n ne. Make sure yur members are ready t share their testimnies nen-ne. Ask the visitrs abut their jurneys and what mved them t cme t the sessin. Cnsider hlding an event annually. We want t hear frm yu s we can learn frm yur experiences. Please, share yur experiences at Francis@mail.cm. These tls may be revised based n yur feedback. Cme & See Event Suggested Lgistics, Outline and Talking Pints March 2018 Page 1 f 6

2 Talking Pints (Taken frm the Fr Up T Nw (FUN) Manual) Belw are sme suggested pints (talking pints) t share with visitrs fr the tpics listed in the suggested agenda. This is nt intended t be a script. We encurage presenters t review the pints s he r she is able t speak frm the heart. These are just guides t help presenters prepared. A. Vcatin (based n the chapter Vcatin Gd s Call by Maria Amre, OFS) 1. What is a vcatin? a. A call a functin r statin in life t which ne is called by Gd b. Nt just fr priests, deacns, nuns r sisters c. Nt just marriage 2. Jesus calls us t serve. That is the Gspel message. 3. Certain areas f the Gspel message speak luder than thers. 4. The Secular Franciscan Order r Ord Franciscanus Saecularis (OFS) - is an established Order in the Church. 5. What des it mean? a. Secular in the wrld (nt religius ne wh has taken vws) b. Franciscan fllwers f the way St. Francis f Assisi fllwed Christ, the Church and the Ppe c. Order - a bdy r sciety f persns living by cmmn cnsent under the same religius, mral, r scial regulatins r rules. 6. Secular Franciscans strive t live the Gspel mre fully each day in ur secular state by ging frm Gspel t Life and Life t Gspel in ur wn state. (single, married, widwed, divrced) T live by example t be present t help ne anther, t be gd parents, friends, cwrkers. T bring ut faith t thers with actins. 7. Prayer and Actin / Francis and Clare 8. Cme tgether in small grups t be strengthened in ur vcatin. 9. Assisted as ppsed t directed by Franciscan Religius t ensure we are staying n track. 10. Yu dn t decide n yur wn..the Hly Spirit has t plant in yur heart. 11. Frmatin prcess (learning abut the Way f Life and being a Secular Franciscan) takes years. 12. First step is t say I am interested and t cme and see which yu already did tday. 13. Next steps speak with the Minister and Frmatin Directr and let the Hly Spirit cntinue t guide yu. Handut: Card with links t fraternity and NAFRA website, Facebk, Twitter. Cntact infrmatin fr fraternity. B. Franciscan Family (based n the chapter The Franciscan Family A Brief Intrductin by Rbert Fitzsimmns, OFS) Of curse the Franciscan Family is part f the larger Rman Cathlic Church Family based n the teachings f ur Lrd and Savir Jesus Christ. 1. Funded by St. Francis f Assisi a. Francis was a sinner, just like us a regular man wanting t be hnred with Knighthd, wh experienced prfund cnversin drawn t fllw Christ s message f peace, mercy, jy, lve. b. The jurney was nt easy, just like urs in tday s wrld but, determined t fllw Christ, he inspired Men in the area wh heard abut the way Francis fllwed Christ, wanted t d the same, s jined him the First Order apprved in the Friars Minr (Tday is the Order f Friars Minr r OFM). i. OFMs ii. OFM Cnventuals iii. OFM Capuchins Cme & See Event Suggested Lgistics, Outline and Talking Pints March 2018 Page 2 f 6

3 iv. Others c. St. Clare was tuched by Francis als, but culdn t jin the brthers thus Secnd Order was funded apprved in 1212 the Pr Ladies r nw The Pr Clares i. Pr Clares ii. Varius ther rders frmed iii. clistered, cntemplative life based n the Gspel, a life f prayer and penance in the Franciscan traditin f jy and simplicity privilege f Pverty d. Laypeple wanted t fllw Francis example. He wasn t a priest but he was a great witness t ur faith. Men and wmen wh were attracted by Francis' way f life, but culd nt leave their hmes and families t becme wandering preachers r clistered nuns, banded tgether Brthers and Sisters f Penitence. i. Third Order f St Francis Third Order, changed t the Secular Franciscan Order ii. Third Order Religius (priests, brthers, sisters) iii. Others Secular Institute f Mary (SIM) 2. All branches f the Franciscan Family, in their respective Rules f Life, are charged t bserve the Gspel f Our Lrd Jesus Christ. a. Three parts f the whle, like a 3 ply crd, are strnger when united tgether as equal partners t share and spread the visin f Francis. b. Relevance fr us in the 21 st Century..we all live ut ur Franciscan life in a unique way. T live by example t be present, t help ne anther, t be gd parents, friends, cwrkers. T bring ur faith t thers with actins yet we are all guided by the same visin t prclaim the Gspel, using wrds nly when necessary. Handut: Franciscan Family Tree (ne side English versin, the ther side Spanish versin) C. Franciscan Charism (based n the chapter Vcatin, Charism and Missin f the Secular Franciscan Order (pages 9-15) based n the wrk f Benedett Lin, OFS) What is a charism? It is a gift f the Hly Spirit. When speaking f the charism f St. Francis f Assisi, St. Benedict, St. Teresa f Calcutta, etc., we are referring t the unique way a particular saint was called t live the Christian life; the way he r she apprached the Hly Trinity; their emphasis in the spiritual life. There are many ways t relate t Gd; we each need t find ne that fits us. As all Franciscans are called t make the charism f St. Francis present in their lives, we need t 1) understand what that charism is; 2) discern whether r nt that is a gd fit fr ur wn persnality and inclinatins; 3) if s, discern hw t live that charism ut in ur wn circumstances. Francis charism was t be mre like Christ than any ther human being. Francis uniquely perceived Gd s lve and ttal self-giving in the Incarnatin f Jesus. Francis lived as a jyful, lving, and trusting sn f the heavenly Father, and was s cnfrmed t the life f Christ that he even received the wunds f Christ s passin. As Francis was aware f his snship t the Father, he recgnized his brtherly relatinship t ther peple and t all f creatin. The Franciscan family s rganizatin int fraternities emphasizes this shared life as children f the Father. Francis lve f humility came frm his recgnitin f hw Gd became humble t becme ne f us in the Incarnatin. Francis lve f pverty relates t his recgnitin that Gd, in Jesus, gave up everything t becme ne f us ut f lve fr us. Living the charism f St. Francis tday means relating t Gd in ways that are characteristic f Francis. Franciscan spirituality includes the fllwing elements: A very intense Eucharistic life, fcusing n Gd s self-emptying gift t us; Pverty (self-emptying in imitatin f Gd s actin in the Incarnatin) Humility/minrity; wanting t serve, nt t be served Simplicity Obedience (t the will f the Father) Chastity Cme & See Event Suggested Lgistics, Outline and Talking Pints March 2018 Page 3 f 6

4 Fraternity (as mentined when describing the charism f Francis, this is the natural utgrwth f the experience f being sns and daughters f the Father) Fllwing the ttal Christ in cmplete simplicity The specific way that Franciscan spirituality is lived depends n the situatin f each individual. Questins fr reflectin: 1. Which f the elements f Franciscan spirituality listed abve resnate with yu? 2. Which elements d yu find mre difficult? Why? Handuts: Digests: Prfessin Pathway: 17 Essential Elements: Cme & See Event Suggested Lgistics, Outline and Talking Pints March 2018 Page 4 f 6

5 Other items fr handuts, if desired: San Damian Crss 1. Francis f Assisi did nt start ut life as a fiercely devut and pius man. 2. His early years were spent indulging in the extravagances available t thse brn t mney and privilege. As he apprached adulthd, hwever, he fund himself in crisis, searching fr deeper meaning in his life. 3. This inner cnflict led him t the deserted church f San Damian in his hmetwn f Assisi. a. It was here, praying befre the San Damian Crss, that Francis first heard the Wrd f Gd. "Francis, g and rebuild my huse, which is falling int ruins." b. When Francis heard these wrds, he respnded by quickly taking up a cllectin t restre the churches f Assisi, which were in disrepair. Thrugh his effrts, many chapels and churches were rebuilt. 4. Francis realized that Gd was nt merely asking him t restre chapels, but t rebuild His Church arund the wrld as a cmmunity. a. Francis embraced a life f pverty, prayer and service b. began t preach the Wrd f Gd. 5. Because it has s meaning t St. Francis, let s lk deeper at the Crss a. "icn crss," meaning it cntains nt just a depictin f Christ, but icns f varius peple and scenes relevant t the stry f the Crucifixin and Resurrectin. b. It is made f painted walnut and measures 75 inches high, 47 inches wide, and slightly less than 5 inches thick. c. The riginal Crss is nw lcated in the Basilica f St. Clare in Assisi. 6. Symblism nt enugh time t discuss all f it but here are the highlights a. What d yu ntice abut the images? i. Many figures in the icn many biblical stries represented. ii. Christ central figure 1. eyes are pen - representatin f the living Gd. 2. Standing upright 3. Bld dripping iii. Ascensin iv. Hand f the Father v. Mary and Jhn Handuts (examples): Hly Card with San Damian Crss. Tau Crss - Symbl f the Secular Franciscan Order 1. TAU, as a symbl f sanctity a. cmes frm Ezekiel 9:4, "G thrugh the city f Jerusalem and put a TAU n the freheads f thse wh grieve and lament ver all the detestable things that are dne in it." b. It is the last letter f the Hebrew alphabet and lks very much like the letter "T". c. Ppe Inncent III pened the Furth Lateran Cuncil n Nvember 11, 1215, with these wrds: "I have desired with great desire t eat this Passver with yu." (Luke ) Inncent annunced that fr him, fr the Church, and fr every Cathlic at the time, the symbl they were t take as the sign f their Passver was the TAU Crss. 2. Likely that St. Francis was present at the Cuncil a. heard Ppe Inncent III when he said, "The TAU has exactly the same frm as the Crss n which ur Lrd was crucified n Calvary, and nly thse will be marked with this sign and wh have mrtified their flesh and cnfrmed their life t that f the Crucified Savir will btain mercy. b. Frm then n, the TAU became Francis' wn cat f arms and he ften used it as his writings as his persnal signature. 3. Francis preferred the Tau abve all ther symbls: Cme & See Event Suggested Lgistics, Outline and Talking Pints March 2018 Page 5 f 6

6 a. utilized it as his nly signature fr his letters, painted the image f it n the walls f all the places in which he stayed. 4. TAU recgnized and accepted Franciscan symbl amng Franciscans f varius denminatins and f all rders within thse denminatins fr centuries. 5. The TAU carries with it all f the symblism f the Crss f Christ as well as Francis' ideal f life and dream fr himself and his fllwers. 6. The TAU is the designated as the distinctive sign f the Secular Franciscan Order. Hand ut little card with - In the famus blessing f Brther Le, Francis wrte n parchment, "May the Lrd bless yu and keep yu! May the Lrd shw His face t yu and be merciful t yu! May the Lrd lift up His cuntenance upn yu and give yu peace! Gd bless yu Brther Le!" Francis sketched a head (f Brther Le) and then drew the TAU ver this prtrait. Cme & See Event Suggested Lgistics, Outline and Talking Pints March 2018 Page 6 f 6