Who We Are - Franciscan Friars - Province of St. John the Baptist in Cincinnati, Ohio




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ministry of the month

“We call it ‘the bloodless trauma’ of Iraq and Afghanistan,” says Fr. Matthias Crehan, OFM, referring to the Post Traumatic Stress Disorder he sees each day as chaplain for the Phoenix Veterans’ Affairs Medical Center. The facility, part of the sprawling Phoenix VA Health Care System, is the first stop for many of the nation’s returning soldiers grappling with the physical and emotional impact of war. “The real mental wounds of war are a lot of what I deal with,” Matt says. “The suicide rate among troops over there [who are] coming back is high. Readjustment is very difficult for some of them. Some of them don’t understand PTSD is not a disorder but an injury. The chaplain becomes the bridge for seeking the medical help they need.” On any given day, “You never know what you’re going to encounter,” says Matt, whose rounds take him to pre-ops, the ICU, five wards, a nursing home and Hospice units. Fourteen years into VA ministry, first in Cincinnati and now in Phoenix, Matt considers his work “a ministry of presence” to those “sick emotionally or physically at the crossroads of life, bringing them hope, plugging them into faith and helping them identify the Gospel values in their life.”

friar facts

Franciscan Crown The Franciscan rosary of seven decades, differing from the five-decade rosary promoted by St. Dominic.

Welcome

Just the other day a cousin that I have not heard from very often contacted me. Her daughter was having a difficult pregnancy and she wanted me to pray for her daughter and the baby. I was glad to do so. I am happy to report that mother and baby are fine. When I was a newly ordained priest, I remember that there was one day when I received three different phone calls where each person simply wanted me to pray for some particular intention on their behalf. I have never forgotten that, for it was a powerful lesson.

I realize that there was probably some thought on their part that my prayer might somehow be more effective than theirs, which I do not believe is true, but it made an impression on me: What people wanted me to be for them and expected me to be was a person of prayer. They didn’t want me to solve their problems. They did not necessarily want me to do something for them. They wanted me to stand with them in prayer, to pray with them as they prayed. Many people entrust their prayers and petitions to us, and we friars are happy to pray with them and for them.

Each day, we pray the Divine Office and celebrate the Eucharist, and we always remember our benefactors. We also pray together for some intention. For example on the 19th day of the month we pray for our co-workers in ministry; on the 20th we pray for our friar authors and artists; on the 25th we pray for the parishes where we serve; on the 26th we pray for the effectiveness of our preachers; on the 28th we pray for young people. Each Tuesday the provincial staff gathers to read a few of the petitions that have been sent to us, as we entrust all the petitions sent to us to God’s mercy. You can send your petitions to our Friar Works Office or at StAnthony.org.

We friars have five priorities or core values that guide our lives. They are: 1) prayer; 2) fraternity; 3) minority; 4) mission; and 5) formation. You will note that prayer is first, because it is the foundation of our life.

We are happy to share that foundation with you, our friends and benefactors.

-- Fr. Jeff Scheeler, OFM
Provincial Minister


		Inspired by the life of St. Francis

The 170 friars of St. John the Baptist Province (SJB) are members of the Order of Friars Minor, a Franciscan brotherhood inspired by the 13th-century example of St. Francis of Assisi. We serve the Catholic Church as brothers and priests, devoting our lives to the search for God in a communal life of poverty, prayer, and service to others.

Globally, the Order is divided into geographic areas known as "provinces." Most of the Friars from SJB province, which has its headquarters in Cincinnati, live and work in Ohio, Pennsylvania, Indiana, Illinois, Louisiana, Michigan, Kentucky, Texas and Jamaica. Others serve in New Mexico, Arizona, Missouri and Washington, D.C. Individual friars presently minister around the world in Kenya, Japan and the Philippines.

We serve as parish and campus ministers; as hospital, military and prison chaplains; as counselors; as educators and administrators in high schools, colleges and our formation program; as preachers and retreat directors in evangelization efforts; as directors of anti-poverty programs; as skilled craftsmen and in support services; as writers and communicators; and as missionaries—all ways of spreading the Good News.