IN THIS ISSUE:

God’s Holy Miser Lent at Graymoor  Graymoor Today Spring Issue Online St. Patrick's Day Card/Mass and Easter Cards and Novena April Benefactor Day at Graymoor Subscribe to Ecumenical Trends Online 2010 St. John's Atonement Seminary Reunion Announced

The Union That Nothing Be Lost (UNBL) Upon awakening on the morning of Dec. 21, 1904, the Feast of St. Thomas the Apostle, Fr. Paul heard in his mind the words that Christ said after feeding 5,000 people in the desert, “Gather up the fragments that nothing be lost.” Christ fed them with five loaves and two fishes. This led Fr. Paul to begin the Union That Nothing Be Lost, a unique ministry of the friars whose benefactors spend “the minimum on self; the maximum to give to God and neighbor.” By the time of his death in 1940, through the UNBL, Fr. Paul had been able to send three million dollars to support God’s work in missions across America and throughout the world. Each year, during Lent, the friars pay special tribute to Fr. Paul’s Union That Nothing Be Lost with UNBL Sunday and Self-Denial Week. For the past 70 years, loyal supporters of the UNBL have continued to help fulfill Fr. Paul’s commitment to God’s work. Through their charitable support, the friars’ UNBL projects have included helping the homeless through food pantries, soup kitchens and housing projects; caring for the ill and addicted; working for ecumenical and interreligious understanding; caring for and educating orphaned and at-risk children; and providing special assistance to the elderly and disabled.

From Fr. Bob ... Thoughts on The Union That Nothing Be Lost

"I wish I could send more.” I can not tell you how many times I read that phrase in letters from our benefactors. So many people make real sacrifices in order to help support the ministries of the friars. When I read these letters, I often think of the story of the widow’s mite.

The poor widow visits the temple where Jesus is sitting and puts all she has – two copper coins – into the temple treasury. And Jesus says, “I say to you this poor widow has put in more than all the rest.” Why? Because they were tossing into the treasury out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty.

This woman had trust in God - a woman of faith. I am sure that the angels stood in awe of her sacrifice and trust in God. I would like to think that she was the first member of the Union That Nothing Be Lost. She truly practiced the UNBL principle of minimum for self and maximum for God.

We give the greater gift God desires when we give our security: a part of ourselves as the poor widow did. However, our gift need not only be money, it can also be time, talent, and opportunity. It can be a smile, a touch, or a gesture of friendship to someone in need.

Don’t be afraid to reach out and give of yourself.

Yours in Christ,

Fr. Bob Warren

GOD'S HOLY MISER

LEARN MORE AND VIEW A VIDEO ABOUT JOHN REID >>

“You can’t judge a book by its cover,” so the proverb goes. These words were perhaps never truer than in the case of John Reid, the “Miser of Waterbury.” People who passed by Reid’s dairy farm saw cows grazing alongside a ramshackle barn and house. Those who visited him at night knew that, after greeting them at the door with a candle, he would blow it out once they were seated. And those who received letters from him saw that he left no margins on the paper. Truly, by any measure, John Reid was a miser!

But those who knew Reid’s heart recognized that his eccentric behavior was in the spirit of not wasting anything so that he would have plenty to send to missionaries in the United States and around the world to help them spread the Kingdom of God.

When Reid was ready to return home after meeting with Fr. Paul in December 1911, he told him he would send a check for $5,000 to help build a seminary at Graymoor. Fr. Paul responded with, “You astonish me. I thought you were a poor man.” Reid actually sent $5,200 (representing the five loves and two fishes) and became the first member of Fr. Paul’s Union That Nothing Be Lost. Later in his life, Reid became a tertiary member of the Friars of the Atonement (Br. Phillip, TSA).

APRIL BENEFACTOR DAY AT GRAYMOOR

On Friday, April 16, 2010 the Friars of the Atonement will host a special Benefactor Day at Graymoor to thank benefactors for their generosity and support. The event will include a Reception at 10:00 a.m. followed by a Celebration of the Eucharist, Luncheon and a gathering afterwards to meet the friars including Fr. Bob Warren, SA, Fr. Emil Tomaskovic, SA and others. All are welcome to attend.

Throughout the year, additional Benefactor Days will be scheduled at Graymoor and around the country.

CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE APRIL BENEFACTOR DAY FLYER >>

      St. Francis Chapel, Graymoor

Franciscan Friars of the Atonement

Headquartered at Graymoor in Garrison, NY, the Franciscan Friars of the Atonement is a Roman Catholic religious community with social, pastoral and ecumenical ministries in the United States, Canada, England, Italy, and Japan.

Graymoor Spiritual Life Center

In the Franciscan tradition of hospitality, Graymoor Spiritual Life Center welcomes individuals and groups of all faiths for spiritual retreats, meetings, conferences and pilgrimages.

Located on a mountaintop overlooking the Hudson River Valley, facilities include overnight accommodations, large dining room, a library, three chapels, as well as meeting/seminar facilities.

Centro Pro Unione
Christian Unity and
Ecumenical Research

The Centro Pro Unione, founded and directed by the Society of the Atonement, is an ecumenical research and action center. Its purpose is to give space for dialogue, to be a place for study, research and information in ecumenism: theological, pastoral, social and spiritual.

Graymoor Ecumenical & Interreligious Institute

Graymoor Ecumenical & Interreligious Institute promotes Christian unity and interreligious dialogue in North America through its monthly (except August) journal, Ecumenical Trends, Lecture Series, and Week of Prayer for Christian Unity resources.

St. Christopher's Inn
Residential Shelter & Substance Abuse Treatment Center

St. Christopher's Inn is a temporary shelter dedicated to the rehabilitation of men in crisis. Today the Inn shelters over 1,200 men per year, most of whom suffer from alcohol and/or drug addiction.

Our mission is to offer a continuum of quality health care services that facilitate physical, emotional, and spiritual healing by providing chemical dependency treatment, primary health care, and temporary housing.

The Franciscan Friars of the Atonement find both challenge and purpose in active service. We direct thriving social, ecumenical and pastoral ministries spanning three continents.

Our name — “At-One-Ment” — reflects the passion to reconcile Christians and their churches; to unite men and women with God and one another, making them
“at-one.”

If you are a man 19 to 40 years of age, who feels God’s
calling to live a life of faithfulness to the church, our
Vocations Director, Bro. John O’Hara, SA can be reached at 1-800-338-2620, ext. 2126.