On May 22-23, 2024, and May 29 to June 1, 2024, Francis PARK, the Delegate of the Minister General for the Secular Franciscan Order (OFS); Tibor KAUSER, the OFS Minister General; and Friar Ștefan ACATRINEI, a representative of the Conference of Spiritual Assistants, made a fraternal and pastoral visit to the National OFS Fraternity in the Philippines.
The first part of their visit was held at the Manresa Retreat House in Quezon City, Metropolitan Manila, the Philippines. The retreat house is run by sisters of the Daughters of Jesus.
The visit started on Wednesday, May 22, at 9:30 a.m., with introductions between the visitors and the National Council. The visit continued according to an established program: the regional fraternities gave reports on their activities and apostolate. This was followed by a discussion between the visitors and the members of the National Council.
On Thursday, May 23, the visitors reviewed formation documents and discussed the formation program and the material provided for this purpose. In the afternoon, the visitors met with Friar Gregorio REDOBLADO, a Minister Provincial of the Friars Minor. At 7:00 p.m., after dinner, Friar Ștefan met with the National Spiritual Assistants, namely, Friars Wilfredo SASAN BENITO, OFM; Friar Basil MATIAS, OFM Conv.; and Friar Allan SAMSON, OFM Cap.
The visit was paused for a formation course but resumed on Wednesday afternoon, May 29, when the visitors met with the local St. Anthony of Padua OFS Fraternity in Las Pinas City, Metropolitan Manila. The meeting took place at the headquarters of the Fraternity, where representatives of other OFS Fraternities were also present, namely, the St. Andrew OFS Fraternity in Parañaque; the St. Bernardine OFS Fraternity in San Pedro, Laguna Province; and the San Agustin OFS Fraternity in Parañaque.
The Visitors, together with some members of the National Council and five OFS sisters from Singapore, departed Thursday, May 30, for the Province of Quezon. On Friday, May 31, members of the “Que-Mar” OFS regional fraternity had a special day as they met with the visitors and other guests in Lucena City on a tract of private property named “Rivo Torto,” which was owned by an OFS sister. At 7:30 a.m., the local fraternities gave a presentation on their activities. Regarding the apostolate, everyone was wonderfully surprised to learn that the OFS local fraternity in Sariaya had been offering the poor free medicine and specialist medical examinations every Saturday for more than fifty years. At 8:30 a.m. Friar Ștefan presided over Mass. It was celebrated with great enthusiasm by over sixty OFS members. At 9:45 a.m. the visitor Francis PARK gave a lecture on the topic, “The Animation of Fraternities,” while Friar Ștefan spoke about “The Challenges of St. Francis and the Franciscan Path in Our Time.” Between 11:30 a.m. and noon, a fraternal discussion was conducted with the visitors. The meeting concluded with lunch. Five local OFS fraternities from four cities were present: Lucban, Sariaya, Lopez and Lucena, plus the OFS fraternity from Boac on Marinduque Island. Around 3:00 p.m., the visitors departed for Manila where, on the following day, Saturday, June 1, the visit concluded with a meeting with the Custos of the Provincial Custody of the Immaculate Conception and Bl. Bonaventure of Potenza in the Philippines, Friar Emmanuel GIVA, OFM Conv.
Friar Ștefan ACATRINEI, General Assistant of the Secular Franciscan Order
