Blessed Moment: Our St. Fidelis Alumni Weekend
THANKS to all who made our Alumni Weekend such a successful & blessed Moment! We gathered on Friday, August 6th, for our Annual Fr. Bill Wiethorn Golf Outing and on Saturday, August 7th for our Alumni Mass & Picnic.
See the video collection of photos below -- and a big THANK YOU goes out in a special way to Dave Schaffner Jr. and his crew that made it happen.
On to 2022!
Cleveland Capuchin Ministries "Come Back"
Our Capuchin Franciscan Brothers Phil Bernier, David Nestler and Bob Marva invite you to worship with us and join the other women and men of faith for support and for the work of being "church." The invitation is now airing in the Cleveland Metropolitan area, and the three who pastor parishes in Cleveland, OH, are excited to "have you back." It's good for the Church, it's good for the community and it's great for you!
We're present at the Conversion of St. Paul & St. Peter Church, downtown,
as well as at St. Agnes/Our Lady of Fatima Parish and at Holy Spirit Parish. Join us!
Alumni of St. Fidelis Seminary: It's Picnic Time!
Finally, we got the message: all Alumni of St. Fidelis are invited to attend Mass and an Alumni picnic with your families on Saturday, August 7, 2021.
Reunite with old friends and enjoy the retelling of our memories growing up together!
Our Capuchin Golf Outing 2021
Join us again this year!
Golf & fun
for a great cause!
The Fr. Bill Wiethorn Memorial Capuchin Golf Outing will be held on Friday, August 6, 2021, at Birdsfoot Golf Club, 225 Furnace Run Road, Freeport, PA.
Fr. Bill Wiethorn, OFM Cap., was one of our most well-known and beloved brothers who passed away some years ago, but whose memory continues to inspire and animate us. The tournament honors the memory of this unforgettable brother & friend, and proceeds from the Capuchin Golf Outing will benefit the Father Bill Wiethorn Scholarship Fund which continues the our brother's legacy: helping to educate and support the life of those who have heard the call of our Lord & who are beginning their journeys to serve the Church as Capuchin friars.
Introducing the Portiuncula - A Port for Young Adults
A Venture in Ministry
The Portiuncula (Por-zi-OON-coo-la) in the Lawrenceville neighborhood of Pittsburgh, PA is a Capuchin Franciscan evangelization ministry. Early in his conversion, St. Francis of Assisi was given a small chapel that he had rebuilt and called the "little portion," or Portiuncula. This became home for the first followers of St. Francis.
Our "little portion" is a storefront located on Butler Street. It will be a Franciscan home in our community. We hope to be a point of connection to draw people together across a variety of interests: prayer and spirituality, art and beauty, intellectual formation, athletics and outdoor activity.
I would invite all creatures to help me to love my God . . .
Here's a look at a life that was heroic in its simplicity and goodness.
Johann Evangelist, the eleventh of twelve children to Bartholomeus Bimdorfer and Gertrud Nieder-Mayerinn of Kindlbach, was born in Venushof on 22 December 1818. He attended elementary school at Weng. At the age of sixteen he was orphaned. Together with his work in the fields he focused on deepening his spiritual life within the context of popular Bavarian Catholic devotion. He loved to participate in the missions, processions, pilgrimages and was enrolled in many groups, confraternities and pious associations. He never missed Mass. He knew all the churches and sanctuaries in the surrounding area. He used to go a long way to Mass.Very little however is known about his life when he was a secular and nearly nothing about his childhood. As his earliest biographer, Wolfgang Beyer, wrote, “ He never spoke about himself.” He was remembered as “ the little angel of Venus.” He had heaven in his eyes. His friends avoided shady conversations in his company. “Quiet now. Here comes Johann.”
Artists' Night at the Pittsburgh Capuchin Ministry Center
On Thursday, March 11th, Our Capuchin brothers Ross Henley, OFM Cap., and Matt Hindelang OFM Cap., directors of our new Pittsburgh Ministry Center in the Lawrenceville section of Pittsburgh, PA, hosted a sketch night for local artists. One of the ministries they've been working with involves an outreach to local artists. Offering them a meeting place and a "gallery" allows them an opportunity to use their talents, to share their experiences and to have an experience of enjoying one another's work: finding the joy of their art allows them to find beauty as a way to God and to share the goodness of God's beauty.
"We started a group called the Assisi Arts Community," writes Matt. "There was a desire in the group for an opportunity to sketch a friar, and Br. Jim Mungovan, OFM Cap., of the local community was willing to be a part of it. The event was open to the public and about a dozen artists participated."
Their amazing work can tell you there are some real talents in this crew. Maybe someday Br. Jim will turn up in the Louvre or the Smithsonian?
Back to Baltimore: A Free Flea Market & More
On Saturday, March 27th our brother Paul Zaborowski, OFM Cap., pastor of St. Ambrose Parish in Baltimore, MD, joined with his parishioners to sponsor a triple event: A Free Flea Market, an opportunity for those in need to obtain free produce and a Street Evangelization event to distribute information about the parish and information on mask wearing and vaccinations in their Park Heights neighborhood.
Fr. Paul wrote: "This is why I love my ministry at St. Ambrose. The people here have a tremendous love for Jesus and want to tell others and show it. Today’s Free Flea Market, Produce give away and Street Ministry was a complete success. God is good! All the Time!"
Robert E. McCreary, OFM Cap., 1937-2021
Our brother Robert E. McCreary, 84, was called to the Lord’s eternal life on Wednesday morning, March 24, 2021, at Canterbury Place Nursing Home where he was cared for in his last month. His cousin and our confrere Robert L. McCreary, OFM Cap., and his sister, Charlotte, kept company with him during the days prior to his death, supporting him with prayer and the sacraments of the Church.
The first of four children born to Judge Robert McCreary and his wife Ellen (Cain), young Robert grew up in Monaca, PA. He was born on January 2, 1937, and was baptized at St. John the Baptist Church there, attending its public elementary school. After one year at Monaca High School, he chose to enroll at St. Fidelis High School and College Seminary in Herman, PA, in 1951, the same year that his cousin Robert L. McCreary enrolled in the College program there.
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