St. Katherine Drexel Regional Fraternity
Regional Spiritual Assistant
St. Francis of Assisi Friary
1901 Prior Road
Wilmington, Delaware 19809
tel: (302) 798-1454 fax: (302) 798-3360 website: skdsfo email: pppgusa@gmail.com
December 2021
Dear Sisters and Brothers in St. Francis,
The Lord give you his peace!
Our Seraphic Father writes in his Testament: I see nothing corporally of the Most High Son of God except His most holy Body and Blood. I want to have these most holy mysteries honored and venerated above all things and I want to reserve them in precious places. The life of Saint Francis of Assisi, because he lived the Gospel ‘without gloss’, was a life lived immersed in the reality of the presence of Jesus. Thus, the Real Presence of the Sacramental Lord in the Eucharist was his strength and life. The mystery of the Savior, Son of the Most High God, Who became one with humanity in time at Bethlehem and for all time in the Eucharist was a mystery St. Francis sought to live and proclaim throughout his life. Greccio was but a visible sign of the deep love for the mystery of the Incarnation re-presented mystically at each Eucharist. The Christ he loved so much was the Christ Whose living image he would become for all to see on Mount La Verna.
The night of Greccio was lighted with candles, embellished with hymns, studded with people from all walks of life who followed the Poverello to ‘see’ the poverty of the One Who emptied Himself of His divinity that He might redeem our humanity and rekindle a world grown indifferent to His love. He came to His own, but His own did not receive Him. But to those who did receive Him, He gave power to become the children of God ... (John 1:11-12) Those who experienced the wonderful simplicity and childlike representation of Bethlehem’s ‘welcome’ into our world, were filled with emotions that made that night so memorable, that for centuries Christians of many religious denominations continue the practice St. Francis initiated at Greccio. The historical Christ, the Bread of Angels and Bread of God’s children, born in Bethlehem of Judah, born in ‘the House of Bread’ centuries before, seemed to come alive in the arms of St. Francis. St Francis that night at Greccio re-confirmed the total emptying of himself together with all who accepted the challenge of the Gospel Life. Greccio was but another expression of the Poverello’s response to the Cross of San Damiano: Francis, rebuild My Church. For, as you can see, it is falling into ruin. The restoration of the Church, the Mystical Body of Christ made of living stones, God’s people, once again experienced the warmth of God’s love as God’s people sought to relive with St. Francis the Sublime Humility and the Humble Sublimity of Bethlehem.
The world seemed to stop that night. Time was transported back twelve hundred years, and hearts were catapulted into thoughts of a loving God Who stopped at nothing to get our attention and to make us one with Him. The words St. Francis spoke and the Gospel he sang as Deacon at the Mass celebrated at Greccio came from a heart in love with God. That night, Love was contagious! If only it could have remained that way forever! To stay there would have been beautiful, but also selfish(?). We must not keep a moment so wonderful for ourselves alone! We must bring the joy we know and radiate it to others. With Mary, our Blessed Mother, Virgin Made Church, Francis offered his own ‘yes’ that the Real Presence of the Eucharist, and the represented presence of the Incarnation-Birth of Jesus at Bethlehem in Greccio, might be ingrained in the hearts of all. Prayerfully praising the tremendous gift of the Eucharist, our Seraphic Father simply and magnificently offers a meditation on the wonderful exchange of the humanity and the divinity in Jesus, awesomely present in the Most Blessed Sacrament of the Altar. The beauty of the prayer deserves to be read:
O admirable heights and sublime lowliness! O sublime humility! O humble sublimity! That the Lord of the universe, God and the Son of God, so humbles Himself that for our salvation He hides Himself under the little form of bread! Look, brothers, at the humility of God and pour out your hearts before Him! Humble yourselves, as well, that you may be exalted by Him. Therefore, hold back nothing of yourselves for yourselves so that He Who gives Himself totally to you may receive you totally.
We can see how intimately the Eucharist we possess today and everyday helps us reflect on the wonderful mysteries we celebrate at the beginning of the Church Year. We talk about proclaiming God Who comes to save us. The Eucharist is the God Who is already among us with the saving power of that Great Sacrifice offered once-for-all that those who look upon the one whom they pierced (cfr John 19: 37-42) may be saved. We invite everyone saying, Come, Let us adore the King Who is to come (antiphon liturgy of hours advent). We adore Him hidden in the humility of the small Host and behind the closed doors of the Tabernacle. What our senses cannot perceive, our hearts know undoubtedly that: His eyes see the depths of the soul, His ears hear the yearnings of the heart, His feet approach all who seek Him in truth, His hands embrace the sincerely penitent and those in need, His lips speak in the silence of our being, His heart is open to welcome all into the Father’s loving embrace.
The simplicity of the Child of Bethlehem; the trusting faith of Mary and Joseph regarding all they were told about the Child; the poverty of the half-heartedly lent dwelling because there was no place for them at the inn (Luke 2: 7) ; the confusion of the shepherds who had to go see this thing that has taken place that the Lord has made known to us (Luke 2: 15); the probing curiosity of the Magi who said Where is the newborn King of the Jews? We saw his star at its rising and have come to do Him homage (Matthew 2: 2) ; the intrigue of Herod who was greatly troubled at the news and with him all of Jerusalem (Matthew 2: 3); the heavenly joy of the angels who came to proclaim good news of great joy that will be for all people as they sang Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace (Luke 2: 10) speak to us of the One Who was born to die so that we could be born to live forever. His earthly life is re-presented over the centuries at many times in various ways in the awesome ‘Gift’ of the Eucharist. The angels proclaim His glory and adore His Presence. Humanity responds as did the people at Jesus’ time! … joy, indifference, confusion, even open animosity. The history of Bethlehem and the continued ‘Presence’ in the Eucharist speak to each one of us. We cannot separate the Crib from the Cross. The wood of the manger that embraced the Infant Jesus in Bethlehem was only a foreshadowing of the wood of the Cross on which He would be fastened by nails and lifted up on Calvary. Hidden Glory! … to be revealed to humble searching hearts in the mystery of the sacraments until the fullness of His Glory is revealed at the end of time. Only searching humble hearts find and recognize Him.
St. Francis loved the feast of Christmas. The birth of Jesus at Bethlehem was a reality that St. Francis lived every moment of his grace-filled life. In the Eucharist he saw Jesus not born two thousands years ago, but vibrantly alive. He gazed upon the mystery of the Incarnation at each Eucharist. The whole story of the Birth of Jesus at Bethlehem, and the time that leads up to that moment, is an opportunity for us to follow the example of our Seraphic Father and enter into the song of creation once again as we become players in the great symphony of life that God has written.
As spiritual Children of St. Francis of Assisi, have we allowed the precious Body and Blood of the Savior to flow through and take over every fiber of our being? Have we allowed the Lord to be ‘enfleshed’ in our lives so that each Christmas we celebrate the Savior present and alive within and among us, and not just a memory of some past event in time? Do we say with Mary, Jesus’ Mother, and with Jesus, Your Will and not mine be done (Mark 14: 36)? Do we strive each day, as Franciscans, to grow into a fresh and vibrant presence of Jesus Who makes Himself seen and known through us? Do we recognize our own incompleteness, vulnerability, and susceptibility so that we can share, support and encourage one another? With the spirit of the childlike, are we as enthused about being Spiritual Children of the Poverello of Assisi and Sisters and Brothers in the Franciscan Family and all that entails (faithfulness to the Gospel Life, Church, Rule, Constitutions, one in mind and heart with the Fraternity, and so forth)? Do we see the gift that we are to each other when we allow the spirit of our Seraphic Father to lead us closer to Jesus and Mary? Rhetorical questions that, when answered honestly in the depths of our hearts, can teach us much about ourselves and our commitment to the Gospel Life in the Franciscan Family.
Be assured that you and your loved ones will be remembered in a special way in all the Masses I celebrate during this holy season. May God bless you; Our Lady and Good St. Joseph guide, guard and protect you; and our Seraphic Father St. Francis of Assisi and our Holy Mother St. Clare of Assisi watch over each one of us, their Spiritual Children, with loving care.
In the Name of Jesus I wish all of you a Spirit-filled Advent and a Holy and Happy Christmas Season. As we enter the new calendar year with all its expectations and uncertainties, may our hopes be fulfilled in a world renewed in Jesus and filled with His Spirit.
A Child is born to us! A Savior is given to us!
Come, let us adore Him! Fear not!
It is I! I have conquered the world!
Peace and Blessings
Fr. Francis A. Sariego, O.F.M. Cap.
Regional Spiritual Assistant
