MEETINGS
Fraternity meetings are held at a minimum, once a month. Our monthly meeting is held every second Sunday of the month at 3:00pm in the basement level of St. Peter's Friary. Fraternal contact is by no means limited to this general monthly meeting. Due to need or out of inspiration, other meetings are typically scheduled that may or may not involve all members of the fraternity. For example, we may schedule a meeting for a particular prayer intention or to further organize an awareness effort or to assist in a commissioned project. Our general monthly meeting is not the end all of our fraternal life.
Monthly General Meetings
Our fraternity meets every second Sunday of the month between 3:00pm - 5:30pm. Typical meetings include: news and current information regarding our fraternity activities, meeting agenda, updates from our regional fraternity, Divine Office prayer, constitution reading, Spiritual Assistant's reflection and social.
Project Meetings
Project meetings are held to plan and organize commissioned projects. Commissioned projects involve two or more fraternity members whose project idea has been approved and commissioned to proceed by the fraternity council. This effort could be with respect to a cause, an awareness campaign, hospital visitation, help for the poor/homeless, or some other inspired action. As Franciscans we must place our God given gifts at the service of others and do good in our community, for our country and throughout the world. The General Constitutions under section Active Presence in the Church and in the World, Article 21.1 states, “The fraternities should engage themselves through "courageous initiatives", consistent with their Franciscan vocation and with the directives of the Church, in the field of human development and justice. They should take clear positions whenever human dignity is attacked by any form of oppression or indifference. They should offer their fraternal service to the victims of injustice.”
Commissioned projects due to their nature of not involving the entire fraternity typically will require further meetings between participants to put the respective effort forward. Commissioned projects are a great benefit to the fraternity because they do not burden the entire fraternity. Those who are inspired and motivated are provided with an opportunity to take action. Once the effort has been completed, some sort of information feedback to the fraternity is provided in the form of documentation and/or a presentation.
God called St. Francis and said, “...repair my house...” We as followers of our Seraphic Father seek opportunities to repair God’s house in today society.
Other Meetings
Other meetings may come about for a variety of reasons. It may be the result of inspiration arising from a monthly general meeting, a prayer request, a Mass for a fellow Franciscan, a hospital visitation, for those unexpected events that come about in fraternal life and other reasons.