The holidays are difficult for those who have lost a loved one. The void left by the deceased can grow more pronounced during the festive season. To help care for those who are in mourning, ministries around the Province offer grief programs, many with special events at the end of the year. “I believe that Christmas is for healing,” Joseph Quinn, …
Franciscan Volunteer Ministers Start Year of Service
The HNP Franciscan Volunteer Ministry is beginning its 26th year with six dedicated participants and a new board president. The ministry is proud to introduce the volunteers for the 2014-15 year, who are serving the poor and marginalized in the cities of Camden, N.J., and Philadelphia. With two returning FVMs, this year has started off with a bang, and all …
Ministries Share Lessons of Community Organizing by Youth
SILVER SPRING, Md. — Students who advocated for renovation of a Camden, N.J., park in one of the country’s poorest cities spoke at St. Francis International School last week about how they used community organizing to make the area cleaner and safer. Over the past few years, the Student Leaders’ Von Nieda Park Task Force renovated a park near St. …
Ministries Celebrate the Wonderworker of Padua
The ominous reputation of Friday the 13th did nothing to dampen the spirits of the Franciscans, who celebrated the feast of St. Anthony that day. Hundreds came to venerate a precious relic of St. Anthony at St. Francis Church in New York City. Friars from the basilica in Padua, Italy, brought the relics to various parishes in the New York City …
Ministries Plan Celebrations for Feast of St. Anthony
Provincial ministries will celebrate the feast of St. Anthony, the wonderworker of Padua, this Friday, June 13. At St. Anthony Shrine in Boston, bread will be distributed to all from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. as “a reminder of our common obligation to care for the poor,” according to the ministry’s website. People are invited to take bread for themselves, …
Camden Friar Robbed at Gunpoint After Sunday Mass
CAMDEN, N.J. — On a bright, unassuming Sunday last week, children clothed in white were preparing to make their First Communion during the 12:10 p.m. Mass at St. Anthony of Padua Church. Outside of the building, Delvonte Olmo-Pagan, 20, clothed in black and carrying a gun, was making preparations of his own, readying himself to steal that day’s collection from …
Sky the Limit for Earth Day Activities
Nearly 35 years after St. Francis was named the patron saint of ecology, his followers are calling for greater care for creation. Many ministries used Earth Day on April 22 to educate about the effect that even a small change can have on the environment. In Virginia, county, state and federal officials joined friars and partners-in-ministry at St. Francis of …