By: Hunter Samuelson
Contributing Writer
Beginning this Saturday, St. Bonaventure’s ministry team will kick off a weeklong Franciscan fiesta to honor the life of St. Francis, the patron saint of animals and creation.
The purpose of this annual event is to revive the message of St. Francis and enlighten faculty, staff and students about a man who exemplified inner peace and lived in a way that respected and honored nature as God’s creation.
According to Julianne Wallace, Associate Director of Faith Formation, Worship and Ministry, St. Francis is for everybody.
“No matter if you’re Catholic or agnostic or atheist, leaving here with a sense of Franciscan values is going to help you be a better person in your own life.”
Wallace mentioned that Francis Week is about “celebrating our mission as a University,” that mission is to make students aware of their God-given worth and Franciscan values such as individual dignity, community inclusiveness, and service to others, according to Wallace.
“By going to any of these events, you’re going to get a taste of what it means to be a Franciscan in the world today,” said Wallace.
On Saturday, Francis week will kick off with Family Weekend Mass in the Reilly Center Arena at 4:30 PM, so students can experience spiritual and personal growth with their parents and siblings.
On Tuesday, Sept. 30, from 8:30 AM-9:30 PM. in the Doyle Trustees room, faculty and staff can participate in “Healing Hands, Healing Hearts: Reflecting on our Life at St. Bonaventure,” for a listening and prayer session. They will be able to reflect on their time at the University, and breakfast will be included.
At 7 PM, the Chattertons, the campus Slam Poetry club will host “Franciscan Poetry Slam,” at Café La Verna.
“It will be a really special performance and an evening of Franciscan inspired slam poetry,” Wallace said.
On Wednesday, Oct. 1, the friars at Mt. Iraneus will host an introspective evening from 4-9:30 PM.
The following day, from 9:30-11:45 AM, Lady Jacoba, a supporter of St. Francis’s, will be honored outside of Plassmann Hall and the Swan Business Center.
“Lady Jacoba always brought Francis almond cookies, so we will be providing Lady Jacoba cookies and coffee that day,” Wallace said.
On Friday, Oct. 3, a speech will be provided for faculty and staff at 11:30 PM, Jonathan Mantaldo will speak at the University Club about St. Francis’s relationship with Thomas Merton.
Fr. Jerome Kelly will speak at 1 PM in the Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts, discussing Francis and Merton’s life events and personal relationships with a speech called “Learning Wisdom in the School of Your Own Life: Lessons of Praying, Loving & Living from St. Francis and Thomas Merton.” In this speech, Fr. Jerome Kelly will encourage students to “enter the school of their own lives.”
At 6 PM, a theatrical performance “The Transitus,” which depicts the death of Francis, will be held in the University Chapel.
“[“The Transitus” is] really important to Franciscans, the way St. Francis viewed death,” explained Wallace. “A lot of people in our cultural society really fear death and something that needs to be avoided, whereas Francis welcomed Sister Death and saw it as passing into the next world.”
After the performance, the Foster Courtyard will host a candlelight dinner with desserts such as banana’s foster and s’mores.
Saturday, Oct. 4, the Feast of St. Francis will be celebrated with a day of service run by Sr. Suzanne Kush. The day will offer various opportunities to give service, including a “March for Babies” walk along the Allegheny River Valley Trail, and serving the disadvantaged in Dresser Auditorium. St. Francis was a man who responded to people in a respecting and loving manner, and the Feast of St. Francis will give students the opportunity to do the same.
Finally, Sunday, Oct. 5 is the culmination of Francis Week with the Feast of St. Francis Mass at 7 p.m. followed by a fall-themed dessert reception, and it will be the only celebration on Sunday.
This year, Francis week is unique, according to Wallace.
“What makes Francis week so special this year is that it is the anniversary of Pope John Paul II appointing St. Francis, the patron saint of ecology,” Wallace said. “So we are celebrating 35 years of St. Francis being the saint of ecology, and with our current Pope taking the name of Francis, Pope Francis realized how pivotal Franciscan theology to the world today.”
Students will experience spiritual and personal growth by reviving his spirit on campus, or as Wallace refers to it, “a week of fun Franciscan partying.”
