Not Freedom from, but Freedom for

For the United States and its citizens, Independence Day is a very significant holiday. Families come together to have dinner, spend time together, watch firework shows, and enjoy each other's…

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I Lift Up My Eyes

Friar Tom Smith wrote the following song based on a prayer day at Dripping Springs Recreation Area in Las Cruces, New Mexico. It was very hot that day, and Psalm…

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Crabs and Beans

In the Malaysian coastal town of Malacca, there occasionally appears a type of crab with a distinct cross-shaped mark on its shell. I remember, when I lived in that country,…

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Corda Pia

During our novitiate in 2019, we were taught two of the three songs of the Corda Pia by our novice-master, Brother Joseph Wood, and the novice-brothers performed it twice, once…

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Mary’s Garden – Part Two

Friar Solanus Mary continues taking us on a walk through Mary's Garden.  Fauna In the world of fauna the name of Our Lady also turns up. Let’s look at a…

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A Walk in Mary’s Garden
Visitation of the Virgin Mary, altarpiece in the Basilica of Saint Frediano, Lucca, Tuscany, Italy

A Walk in Mary’s Garden

Friar Solanus Mary takes us on a short stroll through Mary's Garden.  Creation It’s a very Franciscan thing to look around at creation; to see the wondrous beauty of it…

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