top of page

Confraternity of Penitents Monthly Newsletter: October 2015

Visitor's Vision

Give Everything to God

​

When God brought the Israelites out of Egypt, he gave them manna to eat in the desert, and they complained. “We are so tired of this wretched manna! In Egypt, we had this and that and everything else to eat. We want some meat!”

​

What is the message here? Stop your complaining! The Israelites complained, “We want some meat!” They were just not satisfied with what God has given to them. And is not that the story of our lives? We have all these desires, but we do not have everything that we desire and so for some reason, we find fault with God. “God, you have not give me what I want!” Rather, he has given us what we need. We so often see past how God is providing for us in the here and now because we have our eyesight on our future “wants,” which may not be what God wants for us. We need to learn to be satisfied. We need to learn not to miss the ways that God is working in our lives right now simply because we do not have everything that we want. We need to stop complaining! We need to not be like the people in Israel, crying out to God about things not being fair. Anyone who is a parent knows what this is like. Kids come in saying, “Why can’t we go here? Why can’t we go there? Why can’t I have this and that? Everybody else has it.” But how many blessings do we work to give our kids, but it’s never enough, is it? How much we are like little children, never being satisfied with the things that God has given us, always trying to have more for some reason.

​

What we normally hear from the Gospel of the five loaves and two fishes is see what God can do with the little we offer to him. Just five loaves and two fishes and, boom!, He feeds thousands and thousands of people. Look at that! But I think that the message for us today is that we have to bring everything to the Lord. Even though everything may be small in the eyes of the world or in the eyes of God, we need to bring everything that we have. The apostle held nothing back from the Lord. This is what they gave. They brought everything to him, and he glorified it. And he brought glory into the world through it.

​

We need to learn to do the same. We need to learn to bring everything to the Lord, not just the little things but everything. Are we giving you everything? Are we holding back a little fish and bread for our own meal? We give up, but we hold back a little bit for ourselves. Are we holding too much back, thinking of ourselves, thinking of our selfishness, our own needs? Or are we bringing everything to God, our whole heart? Think of the sacrifice that God wants from us. Are we holding back pieces of our hearts? Are we holding back? Or are we giving it all to God and watching the greatness our God will bring about in our lives if we give everything to him. And we don’t give this all just for our sake. When we give our whole to God, the Lord feeds multitudes with it. And so we need so little to become holy.

​

Every single one of us is to grow in holiness. Not just for our sake, not just so that we might continue on to heaven, but so that beauty will flow into this world through our holiness if we give everything to God. The apostles gathered what they had. They gave everything and the Lord fed the crowds.

​

There are people in this world who need to be fed through you, whether it is physically or spiritually or emotionally. Have you brought everything to God so that God can feed them? There are so many who are hungry for the Gospel so it is vital that we bring everything to the Lord, first in confession than in the love of the sacraments and then to the world with joy so that more people might come to receive him, the food that will ultimately be the strength for the journey to heaven.

​

--Father Jacob Meyer, CFP Visitor

Letter from One Who Serves the CFP

The Primacy of Acceptance


In Part II of Introduction to Christianity, Professor Joseph Ratzinger has been examining what it means to be a Christian, in other words, the “spirit of Christianity”.  Professor Ratzinger has given several principles of Christianity.  The last one is the principle of acceptance.  Professor Ratzinger explains this by contrasting Christian hope with Marxist hope. In Marxism, “redemption” is brought about by class struggle until the utopia of a classless society is achieved. Thus redemption is brought about by what we do.  Professor Ratzinger then contrasts this with Christianity. 


Accordingly, from the point of view of the Christian faith, man comes in the most profound sense to himself, not through what he does, but through what he accepts. He must wait for the gift of love, and love can only be received as a gift. It can-not be "made" on one's own, without anyone else; one must wait for it, let it be given to one. And one cannot become wholly man in any other way than by being loved, by letting oneself be loved. That love represents simultaneously both man's highest possibility and his deepest need and that this most necessary thing is at the same time the freest and the most unenforceable means precisely that for his "salvation" man is meant to rely on receiving. If he declines to let himself be presented with the gift, then he destroys himself. Activity that makes itself into an absolute, that aims at achieving humanity by its own efforts alone, is in contradiction with man's being. Louis Evely has expressed this perception splendidly:
 

The whole history of mankind was led astray, suffered a break, because of Adam's false idea of God. He wanted to be like God. I hope that you never thought that Adam's sin lay in this.... Had God not invited him to nourish this desire? Adam only deluded himself about the model. He thought God was an independent, autonomous being sufficient to himself; and in order to become like him he rebelled and showed disobedience.
 

But when God revealed himself, when God willed to show who he was, he appeared as love, tenderness, as outpouring of himself, infinite pleasure in another. Inclination, dependence. God showed himself obedient, obedient unto death.
 

In the belief that he was becoming like God, Adam turned completely away from him. He withdrew into loneliness, and yet God was fellowship.


This whole thing indubitably signifies a relativization or works, of doing; St. Paul's struggle against "justification by works" is to be understood from this angle. But one must add that this classification of human activity as only of penultimate importance gives it at the same time an inner liberation: man's activity can now be carried on in the tranquility, detachment, and freedom appropriate to the penultimate. The primacy of acceptance is not intended to condemn man to passivity; it does not mean that man can now sit idle, as Marxism claims. On the contrary, it alone makes it possible to do the things of this world in a spirit of responsibility, yet at the same time in an uncramped, cheerful, free way, and to put them at the service of redemptive love.
 

As Christians, we are not enslaved to a self-centered autonomy which will only destroy us.  Also, we are not enslaved to some sort of political program which will supposedly bring us “salvation”.  Our “program” is to do what the Lord wants from us at this moment. Of course, this could mean fulfilling the duties of our vocation, but it could also mean the demands of love right now. Many of us can see the results of secular programs and policies which are meant to achieve something good but trample under individuals and even groups of people.
 

Yet another point emerges from this train of reasoning. The primacy of acceptance includes Christian positivity and shows its intrinsic necessity. We established that man does not create his specific quality out of his own resources; it has to come to him as something not made by himself; not as his own product, but instead as a free exchange that gives itself to him. But if this is so, then it also means that our relation to God ultimately cannot rest on our own planning, on a speculative knowledge, but demands the positivity of what confronts us, what comes to us as something positive, something to be received.  Christians accept an event in history which occurred two thousand years ago as God’s gift of Himself to us which is of ultimate importance to us and around which we center our lives. Of course, this is a scandal to a world which cannot accept.


The principle of the Christian’s acceptance of God’s Gift of Himself in Jesus Christ, is the last of Professor Ratzinger’s six principles of what it means to be a Christian, or the “spirit of Christianity”.  These are: 1. Christians do not exist as isolated individuals but have to function as part of the whole Church.  However, Christ (the head) and the Church (the body) exist for the individual. 2.  Just as Christ came for us and died on the cross for us and not for himself, the Christian ultimately must also live for and serve others.  3.  God comes to us in the “disguise” of a Man and also a very human Church which we can very easily fail to recognize.  4.  God demands of us a response beyond measure which seems impossible, and yet He also gives us gifts beyond measure and especially the gift of Himself in Jesus Christ.  5. The finality of salvation for mankind comes from Jesus Christ and there is nothing beyond Him for us to strive towards.  6.  Christianity consists of the acceptance of salvation from Jesus Christ.  We have done nothing to achieve this.


But one other question is still left: If one keeps one's eyes on the six principles, as we have done, will one have the same experience as the physicists who looked for the primary stuff of being and thought at first they had found it in the so-called elements? But the more they investigated, the more elements were discovered; today over a hundred are known. So they could not be the ultimate thing that it was thought had been discovered in the atoms. They, too, turned out to be composed of elementary particles, of which again so many are already known that one cannot stop at them but must launch out afresh in the hope of still meeting the primary matter. In the six principles we have identified the elementary particles, so to speak, of Christianity, but must there not exist behind these one single, simple center? Such a center does exist, and I think we can say, after all that we have said and without any danger of using a mere sentimental phrase, that the six principles finally coalesce into the one principle of love. Let us be blunt, even at the risk of being misunderstood: the true Christian is not the denominational party member but he who through being a Christian has become truly human; not he who slavishly observes a system of norms, thinking as he does so only of himself, but he who has become freed to simple human goodness. Of course, the principle of love, if it is to be genuine, includes faith. Only thus does it remain what it is. For without faith, which we have come to understand as a term expressing man's ultimate need to receive and the inadequacy of all personal achievement, love becomes an arbitrary deed. It cancels itself out and becomes self-righteousness: faith and love condition and demand each other reciprocally. Similarly, in the principle of love there is also present the principle of hope, which looks beyond the moment and its isolation and seeks the whole. Thus our reflections finally lead of their own accord to the  words in which Paul named the main supporting pillars of Christianity: "So faith, hope, love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love" (I Cor 13: 13).
 

We can say that the “spirit of Christianity” rests on love. It is true that our secular agnostic society also emphasizes love, but without faith and the hope which comes from faith.  When we detach love from faith in the God who tells us what love really is and how we are to love, we end up detached from reality and in the morass of conflicting human claims and ideas.  We need to adhere to the six principles of Christianity which Professor Ratzinger has given us, but above all, we need to adhere to the love which is behind them all.


--Jim Nugent, CFP

Monthly Letter to All Penitents

My Weakness, God's Strength

My Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

I wanted to update you regarding my progress. I have said this before; however, it bears repeating-- that I find it amazing that the closer I grow in Christ and the closer I strive to walk with Christ, I find myself with increasing frequency reminded of how so many of the Saints had suffered on their journeys. Truly, I am grateful to God that He allows me to suffer for His Love and Glory for He choose to suffer for us all because He loves us all, sinners and Saints alike, and He wishes us to be with Him in His Heavenly Kingdom. This is the way so many children learn, for what would a spoiled child learn other than to become bitter and resentful, eventually falling into the undisciplined and reckless behavior that would delight the evil one.

This human lifetime, although so brief, can nonetheless be extremely difficult and has been difficult for so many including myself as of late. I admit that I am powerless to do anything about these difficulties, that at least now, in our human eyes seem so great and at times never ending. Oh, my, Jesus, I trust in you.

It has been said; "Enter through the narrow gate, for the gate is wide and the road broad that leads to destruction, and those who enter it are many. How narrow and constricted the road that leads to life, and those who find it are few." Oh, what I would not do to remain on this suffering and difficult road to life everlasting with our Heavenly Father! How I pray and plead for your prayers, Brothers and Sisters, that I may be so fortunate as to suffer a miserable existence in this life, that I do not turn away from the God-given honor of suffering. How much better to embrace suffering than to go  in search of the broad and easy road to eternal damnation!

Yes, I am a weak and spineless worm, but I am a worm with a faith and love of Christ Jesus that will not cease or diminish regardless of any fear in this worldly life, because I know that Jesus loves all of us worms. It is my intention, until my last breath, to love and imitate Christ even though I know I will fail miserably and many times but will ultimately be rewarded in Heaven. I pray also and ask for your prayers, that with the loving intervention of Christ's Divine Mother the Virgin Mary, and with the help of all His Angels and Saints that I may be successful in my spiritual goals and avoid the temptations of the evil one.

Not my way, but your way, Jesus. Not my will, but your will, Jesus. Not in my time, but in your time, my Jesus. In Jesus name, I pray.

Your Brother in Christ,
Michael Budnicki, Novice 2
 

No Greater Love

Please Don't Give God Advice

I would like to share some random thoughts from a preacher:

Give praise for everything that happens to you.---Give praise and thanks for the ‘good’ and the ‘bad’----Praise Him for all qualities.---Don’t carry problems, leave them at the foot of the cross.---   Ask forgiveness for your contribution to the problem.--- Give Praise. Surrender. Ask Pardon first.---  All things belong to God. No leaf falls without His permission. ---Let God take over. God is always on time. ---Get God to handle things and then stop complaining about it.---God writes straight on crooked lines.---When I praise God, coincidences happen.---When I stop praising God, coincidences stop.

The preacher told this story:

A farmer in some remote area had a horse, and this horse was of great value because it did the bulk of the farm work such as assisting with ploughing etc. One day the farmer discovered that the paddock gate had been left open and the horse had gone. The farmer told all his neighbours about his terrible bad luck, as he couldn’t afford another horse. A local wise man heard his story and stated, "Bad luck? Good luck? Who knows?"

Two or three days later, his horse not only returned to the paddock, but a goodly number of wild horses from a vast plain area had followed him home and were in the paddock. The farmer went around all his neighbours and told them of his wonderful good luck. But the local wise man heard his story and said, "Good luck? Bad luck? Who knows?"

The farmer realised that the wild horses would need taming and breaking in, so he asked his son if he would saddle one up and break it in. When the son managed to mount the strong horse, it went wild and raced around and managed to throw the son from the saddle, and he fell heavily to the ground. In doing so, he broke several bones which put him seriously out of action for farm work and everything else. The farmer went and told his neighbours of this terrible stroke of bad luck, but once again the wise man listened and said, "Bad luck? Good luck? Who knows?"

A local war lord needed to create an army of soldiers to fight the threat of criminal attacks on any of the nearby people. He sent teams around to all local people to virtually shang-hie all young men into the military, but when they saw the son, the recruiters emphatically stated that in no way would he be called up. Later, during the much fighting in these local wars, some were killed or seriously injured. The farmer told his neighbours about his son’s Good luck. 

Good Luck?  -----    Bad Luck?   ----   GOD KNOWS.
 

Sometimes when God is working in our lives, His starting point might be a long way back before we ever knew it was leading somewhere. When I set out for a brief holiday in Eire, I never dreamed what might come from it. On the way to the ferry, my car developed problems. This changed my plans from making a tour of Ireland to staying in Dublin. What followed this was a conversion experience in a Dublin church which changed the course of my life. 

Good luck? Bad luck? With God, is there any such thing as "luck"?

--David Curry, CFP Affiliate

Following Francis, Following Christ

You Have Knit Me Together in My Mother's Womb

​

How would St. Francis have responded to the revelations coming forth from the undercover videos of the Center for Medical Progress? These videos clearly show that Planned Parenthood is trafficking in aborted baby body parts by selling these “donated” parts to research. Moreover, by their own admission, some Planned Parenthood abortionists are also doing research using these parts.

​

Planned Parenthood is not the only abortion business involved. A Massachusetts abortionist, who owns and operates her own abortion clinic, “co-authored a 2011 paper that studied the brains of 22 aborted babies, aged 14 to 22 weeks, to explore why those with Down syndrome experience mental retardation and early onset of Alzheimer’s Disease. The study was funded with public money from the National Institutes of Health. Of the 22 baby brains used for experimentation, 11 were harvested from five boys and six girls with Down syndrome, while the other 11 brains were harvested from five boys and six girls without the genetic disorder. The latter were used as control subjects during the experimentation process. All 22 aborted babies’ brains were used for experimentation within 2-4 hours after their deaths. This means that the brains were rushed to researchers who were standing by and had likely been notified that the brains were going to be available.” (http://www.operationrescue.org/archives/massachusetts-abortionist-experiments-on-fresh-brains-of-down-syndrome-babies/)

​

When one looks at the published chart of aborted fetal brain tissue used in this study, one sees that the children were reduced to gestational age, chromosome type, gender and how many hours the child had been dead before the experimentation took place. One looks at the statistics and wonders who these children would have been had they been allowed to live. At the time of this newsletter, those 22 children, had they all survived, would be around four years old. One wonders what their personalities and talents were, how they might have smiled and talked, and what they could have taught us by their enthusiastic yet childish ways.

​

How would Francis respond to abortion? We can only imagine his anguish at it, for he used to pick up worms from the roadside and put them on the side of the road so that they would not be crushed by the hooves of the horses. He felt pity for lambs being taken to market and exchanged his tunic for them, then gave the lambs away, asking that they be cared for and not killed. When someone gave him a rabbit caught in a trap, presumably for the friars’ dinner, Francis released it with the instructions to the little creature that it be careful not to be caught again. The same thing happened to a fish that someone had caught when Francis was in a fishing boat. Francis returned to the water the flapping fish that the gift giver intended to be for the friars’ supper.

​

If we are to follow Christ, to whom the very hairs of our head are all numbered, then we need to realize how precious each one of us is in God’s sight. If the life of a a fish or lamb or a rabbit was so important to Saint Francis that he preferred to be hungry or cold than to have that life taken, how much more important to him would be the lives of innocent children? We can picture Francis calling “Peace and all good” to everyone as his way to bring peace to the warring factions of his time. Would not he be opposed to killing innocent, defenseless human life trapped in the confines of the womb? Francis gave away the friary Bible to a widow who needed money. Would he not have done whatever he could to help women in pregnancy crisis to have their children?

​

As followers of Christ and of St. Francis, we believe that God, Who "knit me together in my mother's womb" (Psalm 139:13) made each of us with a plan in mind. Naturally, we advocate for the protection and support of all human beings. In light of the world’s abortion mentality, we penitents can pray, work to end this Holocaust, and be beacons of love and hope to those who have bought the lie of abortion.

​

May God have mercy on us and St. Francis pray for us. Madeline Pecora Nugent, CFP

Reflection on the Rule

RULE:

33. Married women are not to be received except with the consent and leave of their husbands.

CONSTITUTIONS

​

33. In keeping with section 33 of the Rule:

​

33a. Those married are not to be received except with the consent of their spouses, provided they are living with said spouse. If separation, annulment, or divorce has occurred, spousal consent is not required.

​

33b. A divorced penitent should seek either to reconcile with the spouse or to apply for an annulment of the marriage following regulations of the Roman Catholic Church.

REFLECTION
 

For some, this section of the Rule and Constitutions has prevented their entrance into the Confraternity of Penitents, because their spouse opposed their entry. Those in this difficult situation can offer up the penance of living with a spouse who wants to control their spiritual life. We encourage such people to pray for the conversion of their spouse and to offer up all their sacrifices and penances for that person. If the spouse prefers to remain indifferent and will say neither, “Sure, go ahead” nor “Absolutely no way,” then the individual is free to enter formation as an Associate. They will not be able to pledge, however, without spousal permission. We have had the situation where a spouse refused to oppose nor approve entry, but, as the years of formation progressed, so did the spouse’s spiritual life. By the time profession drew near, the spouse consented to a life pledge. This was a great grace for both parties.

Affiliate Action

Those who lack spousal approval to enter formation may choose to become Affiliates of the Confraternity of Penitents. Some of our Affiliates fall into this category. Affiliates should also be praying for their spouses. Always we must remember that our spouses, whatever may be their personalities or quirks, are nevertheless God’s gift of grace to us to help us to grow in the spiritual life. What graces are you gaining through your spouse? Whoever your spouse is, he or she deserves your prayers.

Reflection on the San Damiano Crucifix

Heaven and Earth

​

Consider the shape of a cross. A cross beam stretches horizontally like arms to take in all of humanity, and the upright beam stands vertically in a line that joins heaven to earth. We can see in the cross the love of God in the vertical beam and the love of neighbor in the horizontal one. The San Damiano crucifix, in contrast to most other crosses, has a wider section at the top which shows the Ascension of Jesus into heaven surrounded by angels. This section parallels the wider section below it where several individuals are pictured as standing under the arms of the crucified Christ. Both top and bottom sections show that heaven and earth are linked through Christ who triumphantly reigns over all on the San Damiano crucifix. As penitents, we are to remember that the Church Triumphant in heaven was once the Church Militant on earth. We who stand under the arms of Christ now hope to ascend with Him to eternal glory. May His grace make it so.

Saint of the Month

Saint Junipero Serra (1713-1784)

St. Junipero Serra is remembered as the Franciscan who evangelized California in the United States. What is little-known is that he began this work at the age of 56 when he was plagued with asthma and a chronic sore on his leg. Nevertheless, by the time he died fifteen years later, he had traveled 24,000 miles, had established nine California missions, and had baptized 10% of the Native American population of California, about 6000 people. How did this remarkable man of poor health and short stature achieve these staggering results? By the grace of God evident through his prayer life and his deep love of people.

Born into a family of devout Catholic farmers on the island of Majorca, Miquel Joseph worked hard as a young boy and entered a Franciscan friary at the age of 16 . During his novitiate, he fervently read the biographies of Franciscan missionary Friars. These would prove to be later inspirations for him. When he was almost 17, he entered the Franciscan Reform Order, Alcantarines. Here he received the name Junipero after one of St. Francis’s early and energetic followers. St. Francis’ Brother Juniper had many interesting encounters and some close calls, and his namesake Junipero Serra would follow suit.

In 1737 Junipero was ordained a priest and began to teach philosophy. At the end of his three-year course, he said to his students, "I desire nothing more from you than this, that when the news of my death shall have reached your ears, I ask you to say for the benefit of my soul: 'May he rest in peace.' Nor shall I omit to do the same for you so that all of us will attain the goal for which we have been created.”

The brilliant Junipero received his doctorate, but instead of remaining in Majorca to teach, he wished to become a missionary and so set sail for Mexico, arriving in Veracruz in 1749. Before he had left he had written a long letter to his parents, advising them, “Now is not the time to muse or fret over the happenings of life but rather to be conformed entirely to the will of God.”

Upon his arrival, he walked from Veracruz to Mexico City. The leg infection which she acquired on the journey plaqued him the rest of his life. In Mexico City, he entered a college for missionaries where he insisted as living as a novice to humbly wait on tables, read to the community at dinner, pray often, and eat sparingly. Volunteering to go to a Mexican mission in the mountains, where the previous missionaries had all died, Junipero was sent as the mission’s leader, once his year of training was complete. He and fellow missionaries set about rejuvenating the faith, which had fallen by the wayside for many, and assisting the people with their agricultural, household, marketing, legal, and farming needs. They advocated for the Native Americans to be treated fairly within the marketplace and on their farms and successfully when a legal battle for lands which are contested by Spanish soldiers and settlers. Working among others with his own hands, Junipero assisted in the construction of a magnificent church in Jalpan, and edifice which took seven years to complete.

In 1752, Junipero was appointed inquisitor, but only two instances of any activity in this area are recorded. Instead histories make mention of his tremendous preaching missions that moved the people to penance.

In 1768, Junipero was appointed leader of 15 Franciscans who are set to evangelize Southern California, taking over from the Jesuits who had been expelled by the King. In 1769, the Spanish governor wanted to colonize Northern California, so Junipero and his band Friars moved north to build settlements and establish missions. When he ran into difficulty with the military governor of California, Junipero had to bring the case to court, and he won the case.

Junipero the Friars consider the Native Americans as children of God would make good Christians if they knew about Christ. For this reason, Christians were given places to live apart from non-Christians, so that their faith would remain pure and so that they would have the support of fellow believers. Serra advocated for laws to protect Native Americans from abuse by soldiers and others. During the American Revolution, Junipero took up a collection of $137 among the Native Americans for the American troops. When one of the forts burned, Junipero sought to protect the Indians from punishment. He always advocated for the Native Americans above the soldiers and governors, and this created some enemies in powerful places.

St. Junipero Serra, pray for us
 

Quote from a Saint
 

I pray God may preserve your health and life many years. (Saint Juipero Serra)

While we think of all that Saint Junipero achieved and of the many miles he traveled in his life time, when we read his journals detailing what was seen, discovered, and experienced, it is a temptation to become absorbed in the drama and to forget that the saint bathed with prayer all that he did and all that transpired. Not only did he think about his own efforts and difficulties, but he also thought of others and asked God's blessings on them. In this quote, Saint Junipero prayed for our mental, physical, and emotional health and that we might serve God many years as fully alive people.

Poetry

Quote from Scripture

Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age. (Jesus final words to His disciples. Matthew 28: 19-20)

Like all sincere missionaries, Saint Junipero Serra took these words to heart. He must have felt that he was truly going to the end of the world in a literal sense when he set out for the west coast of what is now the United States of America. We have not far to go today to find people who know next to nothing about Jesus except the little they have run into in the media or by observing or hearing. Many in our culture simply have never met the person of Christ. You can't give these people faith, just as Junipero Serra could not cause anyone to believe. But you, like he, like John the Baptist, can "prepare the way of the Lord" by your witness in words and deeds. A program of spiritual renewal is built around the themes of Love, Listen, Discern, and Respond. Go out into the world with love for each one you meet. Be attentive and listen to the needs and to the voices of others. Discern what the Lord is asking of you in each encounter. Then respond as the Spirit leads. You don't have to go far away to be a missionary. You just have to go out the door.

South Pacific

 

 

Off to war vast millions went

Across the earth they circumvent

My Dad among them in this war

Never spoke of what he saw

 

My mother home side

Prayer betide

Work and rosary

By her side

 

Combat, landings, jungles, snake—

All the souls would undertake

Just how much the world would bleed

Only God could intercede

 

The bomb was dropped

In sky black rain

Home at last

And peace again

 

This generation thus proclaimed

The greatest ever

So were named

 

All the lessons they have taught

Yet never spoke of how they fought!

 

--Joseph Matose IV, CFP Affiliate

Humor

Words of Wisdom

If at first you don't succeed, try doing it the way your wife told you.

If there's a bar where everybody knows your name, you're probably an alcoholic.

I'm up! If you were expecting bright eyed and bushy tailed, go catch a squirrel!

If we were not meant have midnight snacks, why is there a light in the fridge?

My decision-making skills closely resemble that of a squirrel when crossing the street.

Childhood is like being drunk. Everyone remembers what you did except you.

I cannot wait until I am old enough to pretend I can't hear.

Yard sale sign: our junk could be your junk.

I am absolutely convinced that socks that go missing from the dryer turn into extra Tupperware lids.

Common sense is a flower that does not grow in everyone's garden.

Confraternity Photo Album

CFP 12th Anniversary of Refounding Mass

On August 24, 2015, Our Lady, Cause of Our Joy, Chapter of the Confraternity of Penitents sponsored a Mass of Thanksgiving for the twelve year anniversary of the Refounding of the Confraternity. The Mass was held in the house Prayer Chapel at the CFP Headquarters. Father Jacob Meyer, CFP Visitor, celebrated the Mass. At the Mass, Kerrie Comeaux was inducted into the August Postulancy of the Confraternity of Penitents. After Mass, all participated in a pot luck supper of celebration and joy.

Enjoying the pot luck dinner outdoors on the covered picnic area behind the CFP House.

Father Jacob Meyer, CFP Visitor, inducts Kerrie Comeaux into the August Postulancy for the Confraternity of Penitents.

All those at the House Mass of Thanksgiving for the 12th Anniversary of the Refounding of the CFP, with the exception of Tim who is a volunteer worker for the CFP and who took the photo. Father Jacob Meyer, CFP Visitor, kneeling at far right. Photo taken in the CFP House.

Happy Birthday to:

Julia K 10/3

​

Doreen D 10/5

​

David R 10/6

​

Rita F 10/9

​

Andy P 10/10

Jo-Jo V 10/22

​

Paul F 10/23

​

Catherine A 10/23

​

Madeline N 10/24

​

Joanne H 10/28

Benjamin D 10/12

​

Sandra R 10/12

​

Ramior C 10/12

​

John S 10/19

Featured Items CFP Holy Angels Gift Shop

The Confraternity of Penitents Holy Angels Gift Shop offers a wide variety of Catholic gift, book items, jewelry, sacramentals, rosaries, chaplets, etc. All proceeds go to support the Confraternity of Penitents. Some new items are shown below. See www.cfpholyangels.com for more items and to place your order. Or send your order (please include a donation for postage) to CFP Holy Angels Gift Shop, 1702 Lumbard Street, Fort Wayne IN 46803. God bless you for your support of the CFP!

Divine Mercy and Our Lady of Guadalupe on same medal. Limited quantity. 50c

Divine Mercy Medal, full color image with gold border. 1.00

Silver Oxidized Divine Mercy Medals with "Jesus, I Trust in You" on back. Made in Italy. 50c

bottom of page