These posts (1-4) are intended to serve as a summary and guide to this important document. It is also intended to assist in individual study of the document and in presentations made to our fraternities.
We encourage you to read the entire document at this link:- Through FRATERNAL SERVICE we bear each other’s burdens
- Our service mirrors Jesus’s service—he gave his life for others
- Humility and suffering
- We carry our brothers and sisters
- Servant Leaders help the brothers and sisters to:
- Understand that our plan of life must be centered on Christ and in following him. (See GC 9.1)
- Help the brothers and sisters to understand that all (the entirety) of the brothers and sisters make up the fraternity.
- Pray—recognize the word and message of Jesus and know what God wishes to say to the world with your life.
- Promote participation in the field of justice and public life with courageous initiatives and using one’s own life as an example. (Rule Art. 14) Political debate—a source of tension—must be avoided in the fraternity.
- Form the brothers and sisters through example of what is called for in Chapter 2 of the General Constitutions: “Active Presence in the Church and in the World.”
- Grow within the Franciscan family making the charism of St. Francis present in the Church and in the world. (Rule Article 1)
- Understand the importance of the Rule, General Constitutions, and Statutes regarding the orderly development of our fraternity life and of the communion of all fraternities in the Order.
- Participate unconditionally in the life of one’s fraternity.
- Understand and distinguish between: “not being able to participate in fraternity life;” “not wanting to participate;” or being “too lazy to participate.”
- Accept with serenity, humility, and the spirit of obedience the decisions of the General Chapters which are the highest expression of responsibility of our Order.
- When preparing for elections, the following must be taken into account:
- To be elected to serve it is necessary to be familiar with the Rule and the General Constitutions
- Prospective servant leaders must have and make available the time to carry out their service.
- Fraternity gatherings respond to the needs of the members.
- Brothers and sisters should participate in the fraternity gatherings. Having a large membership with little or no participation is “useless.”
- They need to maintain dialogue with the brothers and sisters and care for and engage “non-compliant” members.
- They should give due importance to Article 50.1 of the General Constitutions, developing the life of the fraternity, its presence in the world and adoption of courageous measures in the apostolic life of the fraternity.
Questions for discussion or to answer in your journal.
+ According to the items above, how do your local and regional councils serve the membership?
+ Which characteristics mentioned above do you see in yourself?
+ How might you serve your fraternity now or in the future?
(Part 2 0f 4)
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Service to our Fraternity has many facets: Servant leadership by accepting a Council position, leading prayer at monthly meetings, being “Martha” in service to others at gatherings, participating in On-Going Formation discussions in a way that stimulates the growth of Franciscan values in our brothers and sisters — there is no substitute for the interpersonal relationships that define fraternal life. But we are deeply divided and challenged in this time of pandemic. Some Fraternities cannot meet except virtually. Some cannot meet at all. We are in a transition zone these days when it comes to the use of the internet, and those who cannot or will not “go virtual” need to be embraced by more traditional means. The telephone provides a vital link to our brothers and sisters, and we need to make that call to the brother or sister who has no other option for contact.
ReplyDeleteIf our service is to mirror the service of Jesus, we must make the adjustments that make sense under the circumstances of restricted contact with each other. Social distance, masks, hand sanitizers — regardless, we are brothers and sisters who have singular needs. Those needs can often only be satisfied by a familiar voice, a voice which offers the hope of a handshake or a hug in the very near future.