Praise to the Living God! I have seen the Holy Spirit working and it is beautiful, humbling, and powerful! Spending the weekend with the Order of Ecumenical Franciscans amazed me to no end. It has inspired me and given me hope for the future of the Church.

The men and women of the Order welcomed me into their midst with widely open hearts and deep passionate spirits. What amazes me is the true Franciscan JOY with which they live. Believe me, it's infectious!

They come from the Assemblies of God to Quakers to Roman Catholics to members of the United Church of Christ. It is a truly inclusive community. The zeal for God and God's mission in the world is absolutely palpable. But what's most amazing: they make it work and they work hard to make it work; and it shows.

Being a Franciscan is not easy. The more you LOVE, the more you become aware of the pain in the world. The Way of the Cross for Franciscans is not life-denying, but life-embracing. It's real. It's uncomfortable. It grabs you.

And it calls to me. Deeply and in a way I have honestly never known before. It calls me beyond myself. I could run from it, but it's awakening within. It cannot and will not be denied. It must be honored and lived.

Nor is this life just active. It is contemplative, but "is not climbing a ladder, but a gazing upon the other in such a way that ultimately one is drawn into the other" (Ilia Delio, osf, Franciscan Prayer). In this drawing into the other, one meets God within. It demands relationship.

Francis loved nature so much because God is there. Nature is not God, but God dwells within it and it within God. Nature calls for protection, just as people do. Franciscans are an incarnational people!

The Franciscan charism is desperately needed today to make for justice and peace. Men and women are called to follow Francis and Clare to make this happen. Thank God the Order of Ecumenical Franciscans, along with other branches of Franciscans, exists to make this happen. May it be God's will that I walk with them.

Yes! Yes! and Yes! Being a Franciscan, growing into a Franciscan is not easy. We are always in grow mode. We are always seeking. To Bring Hope... The Order of Ecumenical Franciscans brings hope, first to those of us who engage with-in. We on purpose become a community scattered all over creation, little pockets of resistance against ...hopelessness, against evil, against injustice, and we move forward this little community in Love, and seeking to do Good. In some ways we are like hermits alone most of the time, and smiling most of time as Sister A reminds us, when we are together.

Most of our time together we spend talking about our encounters with God, even when we think we are not doing it, it is in play. We did this year have an angel about in the land of Clare and Francis holding us in prayer, which I have no doubt deepened and seasoned our time together.

Yes I admit (And Thanks Bro. Bruce) Tic Tac Toe will keep me coming back, but so will and of greater importance, is our sharing here on this site. It is our small regional gatherings, It is our holding one another in prayer. I am happy to be a novice among you.

And, oh! what a blessing it is to have you in our midst Brother Greg, and also Brother Yossi. And yes, thanks be to God for our Sister Lorraine who held us in the prayer of love from the land of Francis and Clare. Greg, I like your remark about this being like 'a regional gathering'. Perhaps it will become that for me also. With the love of God, from your brother Carlo.