May 2024
- Mary's Little Portion
St. Francis devotion to Mary, the Mother of Jesus and of the Church, was deep. There is no doubt that this devotion was instilled in him by his parents as they were devout people. - The Beauty of the Soul
The soul is reserved for a special relationship with Jesus, a strong relationship of total love with God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. That means God ALWAYS comes first. - Mary the Mother of God and our Mother
Saint Francis love for the Blessed Virgin Mary and how Secular Franciscans love here too. - Mental Images in Holy Scripture
There are some very powerful images in Holy Scripture. These are not necessarily pictures or photographs but descriptions of ideas that form a logical mental image. Take for example, the mental image of the Eagle hovering over it's brood. “As an eagle incites its nestlings forth by hovering over its brood..."
April 2024
March 2024
- How we view the persons of the Holy Trinity 04Mar
- The Brief Day of Our Lives 05Mar
- God's Love for us: The Holy Spirit 07Mar
- Weeks before Holy Week 08Mar
- Jesus is totally present in the Tabernacle 09Mar
- Jesus was Betrayed 15Mar
- With Humility and Simplicity 16Mar
- The Soul is God's workplace 18Mar
- He gave His only Son 27Mar (Repub. from 2014)
January 2024
February 2024
- Clothed with Gladness 03Feb
- Reflection on the Soul 04Feb
- The Joy of Suffering 13Feb
- Disappointments and pain in life: preparation
for Heavenly Joy 21Feb - If today you hear His voice, harden not your hearts 25Feb
November 2023
- What good did you do, today?
- Be a child of Light 11/10
- The Silence of Peace 11/18
- My Grace is sufficient 11/21
- Praying for Intercession 11/28
October 2023
Special Reflections on the OFS Rule
2020 Rev. Edition
Reflections by Fred Schaeffer, OFS
September 2023
# Republished from previous website
August 2023
- In His Presence 8/5
- Interior Life is for all Franciscans!
- The Real Presence in the Eucharist
- Saint Francis of Assisi excluded no one 8/12
- The Four Great Dogmas of Mary 8/14
- Let's make this a "kinder" world! 8/18
- God Invites Us To Pray 8/22
- God's Love for us:
A cure for people who feel alone 8/23 - His Everlasting Love 8/25
- God's love for us: The Holy Spirit 8/26
- Jesus asks us to forgive and forget! 8/26
- A Moment of Silence please: be still and know that I am God
8/31
Franciscan Feast Day Reflections
Index to Franciscan Reflections - previous months
- Be a Person of Integrity
- He accepted His Cross
- God's deep love for all of us
- God's Presence strongly felt
- A Handshake and a Hug
- Mary's Little Portion
- There are different types of Prayer
- Love Yourself?
- We accept all people as a gift of the Lord.
- The Eyes Have It
- Inner Peace
Fred Schaeffer, OFS is a member of: Divine Mercy Fraternity
Come & See
A Reflection by Fred Schaeffer, OFS about joining the Secular Franciscan Order
You've met a lay Franciscan at your parish and you think you might be interested too. Your friend has invited you to one of our meetings, and now you are there as a visitor or observer. You listen to all that is said, and you pray with us as we pray. There's usually a social in the middle or end of the meeting, so you talk to some people. When you go home you have a faint idea that perhaps you ought to come back to the next meeting. But you really do not know why. You're already so involved and perhaps you're cautious about joining yet another committee or club. more...