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... in the world, but NOT of it, for Christ!
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The Brothers and Sisters of Penance of St. Francis is a private Association of the Catholic Church whose members strive to model their lives according to the Rule and Statutes of the Primitive Rule of the Third Order of St. Francis, which was written for lay people in 1221 at the request of St. Francis of Assisi.Here is what history says: "The men and women of that village wanted to follow St. Francis?and to abandon their village. But St. Francis did not leave them, saying to them: 'Don't be in a hurry, and don't leave, for I will arrange what you should do for the salvation of your souls', and he planned the Third Order of the Continent for the salvation of all people everywhere." (Little Flowers of St. Francis) The Association was born from the original Rule of the Third Order of St. Francis as contained in the Franciscan Omnibus of Sources and the resultant Stella Matutina movement in the Secular Franciscan Order in Minnesota in the late 1980's under the guidance of Father Valerius Messerich O.F.M.. It was formally recognized in 1996 in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis with the blessing, encouragement and support of Archbishop Harry J. Flynn. The Archbishop further honored the Association by accepting the first formal professions of the first members who completed formation in Minnesota in 2003. Now both the Association and the Rule of life have been informally approved by several bishops of the Roman Catholic Church in various dioceses across the United States, and other countries. Every bishop who has been introduced to the Brothers and Sisters of Penance has supported the movement as a definitive return to the Gospel life.
May the Lord bless you and guide you into His Heart! |
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Phone: 218-897-5974 A few notes about emails: Occasionally emails are lost. If you send an e-mail and do not receive a reply within a reasonable time, please write back or phone. We do want to answer your query! If your email box accepts emails only from those in your address book, please record our email addresses in your address book or you will not receive our reply when we write back to you. |
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