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| Pat Brandwein-Ball, OFS |
Pat Brandwein-Ball, OFS, took a moment to survey the hall
from the podium and said:
"From up here the room is aglow because I see in your
eyes the light of God."
Then she reminded attendees that "God wants us" to
be holy, which the first part of the Secular Franciscan Rule addresses.
"The second part of the Rule talks to us about our
presence in the world," which comes out of living the first part of the
Rule.
The Rule and Constitutions are important documents in the
life of the Order. Reading and studying them, and absorbing them internally
help shape the Secular Franciscan identity.
"Franciscanism is not something you can put on and take
off…," she said. "It's something you live and breath."
How do we get to that point? We're called to be saints,
afterall. It's in that call we need to take a look at ourselves. What do we
need to change within ourselves? Where is God calling us in our lives?"
She added: "Jesus came to make things anew. Let us not
stand in the way of him making us new… of making the order new."
Pointing to the second part of the conference theme, "Claim
the Gift," she said "it refers to our vocation" and claiming it
is part of answering the question of where God is calling us to be.
