Sometime in the 14th century, the Conventual Franciscan friars established a friary and built the Church of the Holy Cross in Rauma, Finland.
This was a true implantation the Order, not only on Finnish soil but in the people’s hearts. For, while the friary may have been dissolved during the Reformation, the memory of the friars proved to be as eternal as the evergreen trees that dot the landscape. Today, the local pastors are encouraging Franciscan spirituality in their congregations, while children are still being taught stories of St. Francis of Assisi in the public schools. They even have a Franciscan Christmas Choir!
The faith community in Rauma now hosts an annual Franciscan weekend of prayer and continuing formation. On October 5-8, 2023, Friars Igor SALMIČ, Emanuele RIMOLI and Michael LASKY joined in the event’s many activities, along with local parishioners, Lutheran Franciscans, Anglican Franciscans, and Catholic members of the Secular Franciscan Order. Activities ranged from the friars sharing their vocation stories and life of prayer to academic lectures exploring the law code of 1274, in which the friars are credited with influencing welfare laws in order to take care of the weakest in the society.
Friar Emanuele presided at the Vigil Mass, while Friar Igor preached at the Sunday Lutheran Service. Friar Michael’s Franciscan conference was entitled: “Francis of Assisi: Apostle of the Gospel of Peace.” It was centered on the personality of Francis of Assisi, which so clearly communicated the heart of Jesus’ life and ministry that it has become a paradigm for the way we creatively preach peace today. Focused on building a culture of radical non-violence, we explored possible ways we might prophetically call others to be true to their better selves.
In 2017, Friar Igor was invited to Rauma for the first time. His friend, the local Pastor Taneli ALA-OPAS, commented to him at the time, “If we learned to walk separately for five hundred years, this meeting [the friars’ annual visit to Rauma] has given us hope that perhaps now we can truly walk together.” For the last six years, the community of Rauma and the Conventual Franciscan Friars have continued to walk together and like Jesus, preach peace, “So then you are no longer strangers and sojourners, but…members of the household of God, built upon the foundation of the apostles” (Ephesians 2:19-21).
Friar Michael LASKY,
General Delegate for Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation (JPIC)
