Monthly Spiritual Message, June 2026
PP Capuchin Spiritual Assistant
Working Towards a Universal Civilisation of Fraternity and Love:
The Holy See, after the World Wars in the 20th century[1] has been striving to articulate a new universal ground plan for building a better world; a world of fraternity, justice, peace, and compassion – a worldwide Civilisation of Love [2] – the Kingdom of Heaven on earth. [3]
Franciscans who cherish fraternity have always been part of this project. St Francis of Assisi was the first saint in the history of the Church to include a missionary formula in his Rule of Life – it sent Franciscan missionaries to the Holy Land, Morocco, and across the globe. [4]
For us Franciscans, to be effective missionaries of this transformation of society, we need to understand that evangelisation begins with us. The Secular Franciscan Order is not just a “Prayer Group” that meets once a month. It is not just an added meeting to attend in our already busy lives. It is the largest Secular Order in the Catholic Church, and as with the Friars, the Poor Clares and the many Third Order Regular groups of brothers and sisters, it is a way of life.
The Outcasts of Society are my Brothers and Sisters:
We need to learn the ways of fraternal love and kindness.[5] In a very special way, it was Saint Francis who, when he was surprised by the outcast leper on the road, not only grasped that we are all brothers and sisters, but also made “gospel fraternity” a hallmark of his vision for his Order, the church and the world.
It is extraordinary that, in his Testament, at the very end of his life, Francis does not speak of all the extraordinary miracles he experienced, but rather, perfectly grounded in human reality and relationships, he recalls the incident of meeting Christ as “the elusive leper.”
“For when I was in sin,
it seemed too bitter for me to see lepers.
And the Lord Himself led me among them
and I showed mercy to them.
And when! left them,
what had seemed bitter to me
was turned into sweetness of soul and body.”[6]
Francis understood that the leper on the road, who vanished, was Christ himself. It is St Bonaventure alone, of all the chroniclers, who tells us that Francis also had a vision of the Crucified Christ[7] even before Christ spoke to him from the San Damiano Cross. In that moment Christ gave him a clear mission to see, discern, and act: “Francis, go, repair my house, which, as you see, is falling into ruins.”[8]
My enemy is still my brother:
It was St Francis, also, who, filled with a vision of gospel fraternity, did not see the Sultan of Egypt “as the enemy” but as a brother! His encounter with Al-Malik al-Kamil, the Sultan of Egypt, during the Fifth Crusade not only secured a peace (later broken by the Crusaders) but also gave Francis and his friars access to the Holy Land and enabled the negotiation of the peaceful return of Jerusalem during the Sixth Crusade. But the story does not end there, because there are historical whispers that al-Kamil, the nephew of the great Saladin, called for Franciscan friars to attend him as he lay dying. [9]
It is important for us to remember that in Chapter Twenty-Two of the Rule of 1221 (Earlier Rule) St Francis writes: “Our friends, therefore, are all those who unjustly inflict upon us distress and anguish, shame and injury, sorrow and punishment, martyrdom and death. 4 We must love them greatly for we shall possess eternal life because of what they bring us.” [10]
Cooperation with Grace:
In trying to achieve a civilisation of love, the greatest challenge is not to lose sight of the fact that Faith, Hope and Charity are theological graces, which cannot be achieved by human effort alone.[11] These three theological virtues are gifts infused into the soul by God. Therefore, despite every effort, we cannot achieve them by our own energy – we must ask for them from God. Therefore, we must earnestly pray for and cooperate with the Holy Spirit, who gives them to us in abundance and brings us into an intimate relationship with the Lord. That is the key to understanding St Francis and St Clare – nothing less than an intimate personal relationship with Jesus, the proof of which is our life in fraternity.
For this reason, in his Rule of Life for the friars, Chapter 5 The Manner of Working, St Francis places a “spirit of prayer and devotion” above all else:
Those brothers to whom the Lord has given the grace of working
may work faithfully and devotedly so that,
while avoiding idleness, the enemy of the soul,
they do not extinguish the Spirit of holy prayer and devotion
to which all temporal things must contribute.
Even in giving permission to St Anthony of Padua to teach theology to the brothers, St Francis warns Anthony to be careful even in study of this kind, not to destroy, in himself or his students, the spirit of prayer and devotion.
Brother Francis sends greetings to Brother Anthony…
2I I am pleased that you teach sacred theology to the brothers
providing that, as is contained in the Rule,
you do not extinguish the Spirit of prayer and devotion
during study of this kind. [12]
This idea became so important for St Francis that even after the Rule had been approved in 1223, and he could not add to it, he made this statement, while he was getting a haircut:
“With God,” he said,
“there is no respect of persons,
and the Minister General of the Order,
the Holy Spirit
rests upon the poor and the simple!”[13]
St Francis also speaks of this action of the Holy Spirit in another way: He uses the phrase “the Spirit of the Lord” in his writings. Also, he uses the phrase sancta operatio, (holy activity). [14] Therefore, St Francis underscores the dynamic principle of the spiritual life; we must cooperate with the Holy Spirit, so that the Holy Spirit is ever active in our lives – a holy listening,[15] continuous dialogue. This is why St Francis gave to his followers his version of the Our Father.[16] “It is a profound, meditative paraphrase of the Lord’s Prayer, breaking down each line of the traditional prayer, expanding on its meaning to focus on God as Creator, Redeemer, and Comforter, emphasising love, grace, and eternal joy.” [17]
Civilisation of Love:
It was Pope Saint Paul VI who coined the phrase “Civilisation of Love.” For him, this concept summed up and gave focus to the Second Vatican Council’s great effort and vision for a worldwide fraternity. The Second Vatican Council was the idea of Pope Saint John XXIII. He had lived through the horrors of the two World Wars, so he understood the need for a clear vision for the Church in the modern world.
The Rule of the Secular Franciscan Order:
One of the extraordinary fruits of Vatican II was the new Rule of the Secular Franciscan Order. Its promulgation in June 1978 was one of the final acts of Pope Saint Paul VI, who died in August 1978. Prior to Vatican II the Church had never seriously examined the role of the laity in the Church or defined their sphere of influence.[18]
Pope Saint Paul VI declared the first day of each year, January 1st, as World Day of Peace, with these words, “as a sign of hope and promise… in order that Peace, with its just and salutary equilibrium, will dominate the unfolding of history yet to come“… In eleven messages addressed to the world, he progressively mapped out the path to achieving the ideal of world peace. Slowly but surely, the great Pontiff set forth the various chapters of a true “science of peace”. In many ways, Pope St Paul VI was a very serious man, deeply concerned about the future of this world.
It was Pope St John Paul II who fully developed and propagated the idea of everyone working together to build a “civilisation of truth, justice and love.” Born in 1920, he too had experienced the horrors of war and the loss of his country’s independence to Russia after World War II. He brought with him from Poland the concept of “world solidarity”.[19]
Pope Francis took up the theme of universal fraternity again with his third encyclical, Fratelli Tutti, subtitled “On fraternity and social friendship.” It was released in 2020. The subtitle really says it all: fraternity is an empty word if we are not friends! What are the ways we could make that a reality?
p.p. Capuchin Spiritual Assistant.
4Your kingdom come:
That You may rule in us through Your grace
and enable us to come to Your kingdom
where there is a clear vision of You,
perfect love of You,
blessed companionship with You,
eternal enjoyment of You.
5Your will be done on earth as in heaven:
That we may love You
with our whole heart by always thinking of You,
with our whole soul by always desiring You,
with our whole mind by always directing all our intentions to You,
and by seeking Your glory in everything,
with all our whole strength by exerting
all our energies and affections of body and soul
in the service of Your love and of nothing else;
and we may love our neighbour as ourselves
by drawing them all to Your love with our whole strength,
by rejoicing in the good of others as in our own,
by suffering with others at their misfortunes,
and by giving offense to no one.[20]
[1] World War I (28th July 1914 – 11th Nov 1918). World War II (1st Sept 1939 – 2nd September 1945)
[2] It is important to realise that all the popes one after another, were members of the Third Order of Saint Francis of Assisi. From Pope Pius IX (Papacy began1846), Pope Leo XIII (1878), Pope Saint Pius X (1903), Pope Benedict XV (1914), Pope Pius XI (1922), Pope Pius XII (1939), Pope Saint John XXIIIand Pope Saint Paul VI were all “Secular Franciscans” and promoted the Order even among diocesan priests. For this reason, it is conjectured that a French diocesan priest, Fr Esther Auguste Bouquerel (1855-1923), wrote the “Peace Prayer” because it appeared first in his small magazine “La Clochette” (The Little Bell) in 1912. All these popes understood that peace, provided the environment, in which good things could flourish – hence the emphasis on: PAX ET BONUM (Peace and Good).
[3] The Our Father prayer taught by Jesus includes the petition: “Thy kingdom come”. Jesus himself, in St John’s Gospel, 12:31 “Now sentence is being passed on this world; now the prince of this world is to be driven out.”14:30 “I shall not talk to you much longer, because the prince of this world is on his way. He has no power over me.” 16:11: “the prince of this world is already condemned”. Jesus calls him “The Prince of this world” to describe the devil’s role as temporary; he does not have sovereignty. He is already condemned.
[4] In 1246 Br Giovanni da Pian del Carpine arrived at the court of the Great Khan in China. 25 years later, Marco Polo arrived in China in 1271.
[5] It is one thing to tell people to be kind, it is an entirely more effective formation to demonstrate that kindness. Cf: Tom Bennett. Running the Room: The Teacher’s Guide to Behaviour.
[6] Testament: At the end of his days, he recalls his time with the lepers, his recognition that they are his brothers and sisters. They are sick, isolated by society, and dying and terribly lonely, they are real people, desperately in need of fraternal love and compassion.
[7] Legenda Major of St Bonaventure Chapter One No 5. The story of the elusive leper and the vision of the crucified Christ are both in Chapter One. “From that hour, whenever Christ’s crucifixion came to his mind, he could scarcely contain his tears and sighs, as he later revealed to his companions when he was approaching the end of his life.”
[8] Legenda Major of St Bonaventure Chapter Two No 1. “For one day, when Francis went out to meditate in the fields, he walked near the church of San Damiano, which was threatening to collapse because of age. Impelled by the Spirit, he went inside to pray.” With the words “went out to meditate in the fields”St Bonaventure places the San Damiano Cross experience in a romantic setting from the OT story of Isaac and Rebekah Genesis 24:63.
[9] The Little Flowers of St Francis Chapter 24 “How Saint Francis converted the Sultan. “The Sultan fell ill, and waiting for the promise of Saint Francis, he had guards placed at certain passes, commanding that if two brothers in the habit of Saint Francis appeared there, they should be brought to him immediately. At that time, Saint Francis appeared to two brothers and ordered them to go without delay to the Sultan and obtain his salvation just as he had promised him. The brothers set out without delay and, having crossed the sea, they were taken to the Sultan by those guards. When he saw them, the Sultan was filled with the greatest joy, and he said: ‘Now I truly know that God has sent His servants to me for my salvation, according to the promise that Saint Francis made to me by divine revelation.’ From these brothers, he received instruction in the faith of Christ and holy baptism. And thus reborn in Christ, he died in that illness, and his soul was saved through the merits and prayers of Saint Francis. To the praise of Jesus Christ and the little poor man Francis. Amen.”
[10] Admonition [IX. Love] The Lord says: Love your enemies [do good to those who hate you Mt 5:44 and pray for those who persecute and slander you]. 2For that person truly loves his enemy who is not hurt by an injury done to him, but, because of love of God, is stung by the sin of his soul. Let him show him love by his deeds.
[11] Catechism of the Catholic Church. Article 7 The Virtues: II. The Theological Virtues: 1812 The human virtues are rooted in the theological virtues, which adapt man’s faculties for participation in the divine nature: for the theological virtues relate directly to God. They dispose Christians to live in a relationship with the Holy Trinity. They have the One and Triune God for their origin, motive, and object. 1813 The theological virtues are the foundation of Christian moral activity; they animate it and give it its special character. They inform and give life to all the moral virtues. They are infused by God into the souls of the faithful to make them capable of acting as his children and of meriting eternal life. They are the pledge of the presence and action of the Holy Spirit in the faculties of the human being. There are three theological virtues: faith, hope, and charity.
[12] Thus, Francis describes the environment of Franciscan Theology, Study and Work. It is not outside an intimate relationship with the Lord. For Francis, nothing could be outside his relationship with Jesus – and more and more towards the end of his life, that focus was on his crucified Lord. Asked if he wished to have someone read the Gospel to him, he replied: “No, I know Christ crucified!”
[13] Celano, Second Life. 193: When he was having his head shaved with a tonsure, he asked to have the smaller tonsure of a Lay Brother so as to make the point that even the simplest friar was called to an intimate relationship with God, meaning that true wisdom is not about knowing but about loving – not about the head, but about the heart.
[14] “Spirit of the Lord”: Admonitions 1 12; Adm XII 1; First Letter to the Faithful 1 6; 2nd Letter 48; Later Rule X 9. And the phrase “sancta operatio” (holy activity), First Letter to the Faithful 11 21; 2nd Letter 53; Later Rule X 8; Testament 39. The reference to this is found in
Footnotes a. & b. on page 42 of The Saint. The Exhortation to the Brothers and Sisters of Penance (First Version of the Letter to the Faithful) is truly important. This Exhortation, now a preface to the Rule of the OFS, was written by St Francis about 1209 – 1215. It is an absolute masterpiece of transitional mystical spirituality, and in its second part, it shows the failure to follow this upper spiral into the way of kindness and compassion.
[15] It is extremely important, especially for religious in vows, to understand that the English word “obedience” originates from the Latin oboedire and audire, which literally mean “to completely listen” or “to hear towards”. In this sense, for St Francis true obedience is rooted in receptivity and paying close attention to the guidance of the Holy Spirit. For this reason, St Francis’ Admonition No. 3 (Perfect Obedience) is very important: “whatever he does and says which he knows is not contrary to his [Guardian’s] will is true obedience, provided that what he does is good.”
[16] HYPERLINK TO “THE OUR FATHER OF ST FRANCIS”: https://ofsaustralia.org.au/the-inner-prayer-life-of-saint-francis/
[17] This is an AI Overview.
[18] The Decree on the Lay Apostolate (Apostolicam Actuositatem trans: Apostolic Activity) is mentioned six times in the Rule of the OFS.
[19] The word “solidarity” occurs once in OFS Legislation. See: Statutes of the International Fraternity of the OFS 2024. Patrimony Article 61. 1) a. solidarity with those most in need. However, in the Constitutions of the Friars, it occurs 5 times in the OFM Constitutions; 15 times in the Capuchin Constitutions and 35 times in the Constitutions of the Conventual Friars.
[20] The Our Father of St Francis: This style of prayer forms a “catechism of prayer” offering strong attitudes toward, as well as images of, God. In fact, this writing is perhaps the only instance in which we find Francis responding to his brothers’ request to teach them how to pray. St Bonaventure Legenda Major Ch 4:3: “When the brothers asked him to teach them to pray, he said: “When you pray, say ‘Our Father . . .’ and ‘We adore you, O Christ, in all your churches throughout the whole world, and we bless you, for by your holy cross you have redeemed the world.’ ”
