Friday, August 08, 2008

The pilgrims who arrive in Rome: admire...


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11 comments:

Lady Lauren said...

Classic.

7:00 PM
Anonymous said...

Love it. Looks like a Franciscan, but I haven't seen a Franciscan that looked like that since the paintings of St. Francis. Is he an actual religious, and which community?

3:37 AM
John Paul Sonnen said...

He's a layman.

5:17 AM
Anonymous said...

Very disappointing to hear he's a layman. Hoping he was of a new Franciscan Order or community, even a new cloistered group.
Pointless for a layman to dress up like this UNLESS he is trying to start a new religious Order or community.
If not, it more than alittle peculiar. (Even though impressive).

1:34 PM
John Paul Sonnen said...

They're just a lay community living in Assisi.

2:02 PM
Anonymous said...

"Pointless for a layman to dress up like this UNLESS he is trying to start a new religious Order or community."

Or unless he wants to do penance and make reparation for sin and experience a pilgramage.

The habits of pilgrims were for penance and renunciation of worldly things while making pilgramage.

I rather hope that there are many, many souls doing this for the salvation of souls wordlwide.

9:23 PM
Anonymous said...

I wonder whether Francis himself must have looked a little "scary" like this guy? I mean, yes he looks like a pilgrim and holy man, but maybe he's a little off his rocker. Didn't they say that about St. Francis?

7:42 PM
Rachel said...

Wasn't St. Catherine of Siena, a doctor of the Church, a Dominican Tertiary? She wore the holy habit and lived in her father's house.
http://www.catherineofsiena.com/page.cfm?Web_ID=21

I don't think anyone who does public penance, or makes a special pilgrimage, especially in the footsteps and charism of saint they have a devotion to is off their rocker.
Too many people these days frown upon public displays of piety. A lot of priests do also. They say it's best not to draw attention to yourself,(assuming wrongly these are the people's intentions), it makes people uncomfortable, all that matters is whats in your heart, ect. ect....

Maybe people don't have to dress like this man, but I see nothing wrong with it especially on pilgrimage. Maybe people can also start a different form of public penance not as noticeable, but still edifying and effective for the practicing it and the people who witness it, modesty, especially when it is hard in the summer months.
I think that was applauded on a previous post on this blog by some religious who were wearing full habit despite the heat. Lay people can follow.

8:34 PM
Anonymous said...

I would join a new penitential Franciscan or Dominican inspired community if they were contemplative (or even cloistered), and dressed like this (especially if they had the tonsure).
IN the present day Franciscan history, I don't think there is any male branch of the Franciscan family dedicated to cloistered contemplation and prayer. There should be though.
There are presently 4 male branches of the Franciscan family.
The Friars Minor ( about 14,600 members, down from close to 29,000 before Vatican II),
The Capuchins (about 10,000 members, down from close to 17,000 before Vatican II),
The Franciscan Friars Minor Conventuals (about 4,400 members, down from roughly 5,500 before Vatican II), and lastly
the Franciscan Third Order Regular friars ( about 870 members world wide, down from 1,950 before Vatican II).
Then we have the Franciscan Friars of the Immaculate, with about 350 friars (a new, strict interpretation of the Franciscan rule and rather traditionalist in their leanings...using the TLM as well as the NO),
the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal, with about 90 friars (they seem to be running out of steam abit growth wise, many suspect because they have occasional bizarrre improvisational prayer practices, don't use the TLM, and although strict and observant, are very much a VATICAN II group, and also have some youth minstries and "ministers" who are odd people to say the least (Fr. STan Fortuno etc.)
The Franciscans of the Primitive Observance in the USA have only about 20 members, and are very strict but apparently don't use the TLM, the Franciscane Rinnovati in Italy (basically the Italian inspiration of the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal (about 50 members), live a "monastery" composed of an abandoned set of trains, and also have a foundation in Sicily. They try to recapture the Franciscan spirt, but again...use only the Novus Ordo.

Of all the male Franciscan branches, there are none (either ancient or recent) communities dedicated to cloistered contemplation. The original Capuchins came the closest, but of coourse all that beautiful tradition was discarded after Vatican II.
There should be established at least 1 Order in the Franciscan (or Dominican) tradition for men which is cloistered and contemplative. There are literally dozens of female cloistered branches of both the Franciscans or Dominicans...but none of friars.
Does anyone know of any branches possibly being established anywhere?

7:16 AM
Anonymous said...

The SSPX-associated Dominican Fathers in France are a mostly contemplative community that you are looking for.

9:49 AM
psieve2 said...

I would join one like what "anonymous" after Lauren P would join. I think there is a traditional order with the tonsure, but whether they're schismatic, I don't know.

9:22 PM

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