Besides their regular video conferences, the Guardians of the Province of St. Elizabeth in Germany meet once a year with the Guardians of the Provincial Custody of St. Leopold and St. Nicolas of Flüe in Austria-Switzerland.
This year’s meeting was held November 10-13, 2024, at the friary in Schwarzenberg. The Guardians of the Polish and Romanian friaries in Germany were also invited and some of them were able to accept. The friars were pleased that Friar Igor SALMIČ, the Assistant General for the Centralis Europae Foederatio (CEF), was also present.
The main theme of the formation meeting was “Moderation,” something that is especially necessary when the Guardian presides over House Chapters. A House Chapter is considered a special occasion in fraternal life and should be celebrated once a month. In practice, however, the atmosphere can be tense, sometimes characterized by silence or heated disputes that do not lead to any solution. The Guardian is particularly called to include all the friars and to engage them in dialogue.
The purpose of this formation meeting was to provide the tools needed to meet this challenge. Two speakers, Anne KURLEMANN and Hana VON BENTZEL, provided theoretical information and, above all, allowed the friars to carry out practical exercises. It became clear that the better a Guardian prepares for a House Chapter, the more familiar he is with the friars in his community, and the more everyone is involved in the discussions, the more fruitful the House Chapter will be. The good news is that through this process, one can truly learn and grow personally! The feedback from the participating brothers was very positive.
The Minister Provincial, Friar Andreas MURK and the Provincial Custos Friar Bernhard LANG, also took advantage of the formation meeting to inform their respective Guardians about some current developments in their respective Jurisdictions. There was also time for community prayer and some cheerful recreation in the evening.
Friar Andreas MURK
