Leaving the Place Where Our Hearts Remain

This morning, we got up and celebrated our last Mass at the St. Francis Inn. In the homily, Fr. Bill stressed the importance of becoming who we are and seeing with the eyes of God. Fr. Bill must have been eaves dropping in on our reflection nights because these are two topics that we have been stressing very much as we have been doing our service. Most notably Fr. Bill said, "You each have a unique vocation, and though you may not have discovered it yet, you are on the journey to becoming that person. In fact, you already are that person, you just haven't peeled off enough layers yet!" (I'm definitely paraphrasing here a bit, but you get the idea.)

At the end of Mass, the Franciscan Volunteer Ministers (who have become our great friends this week) gave each of us a Tau Cross (a symbol of Franciscans) to remind us of our time at the Inn. We are forever changed by our experiences here and we are blessed to have this small reminder of the special times we have shared together.

The St. Francis Inn is like no other place on this earth. I highly suggest everyone take some time to serve a meal or two next time you are in Philadelphia. But be warned, those who serve at the St. Francis Inn on a "temporary" basis find themselves still there twenty years later. It's love in action, that's for sure...and who would want to walk away from that?

ASB: It's Great For Lent!

Last night in Sonia's Video Blog, she mentioned that during the season of Lent she was focusing on saying positive things about others. Her comment about Lent reminded me of our first experience of Tomato Pie this week at the Inn. Apparently, Tomato Pie is quite a delicacy in the Philadelphia area, and since it has no meat in it, it is "Great for Lent!" as the sticker says on the box.

In the past week, we have watched these 8 wonderful students go through a journey of recognizing the face of Christ in everyone they meet...no matter what that person looks like, smells like, or acts like. It was amazing to watch each student throw their entire being into helping "the other." In this time of Lent, and especially as we hear the Year A readings, we recognize the importance of transformation and conversion. Our students at Buff State have begun their own conversion process during our time in Philly, some in small ways and some in big ways. They all have walked away from the well and proclaimed the greatness of Jesus the Messiah. So, just as the Tomato Pie is a great delicacy during the Lenten Season, so ASB is also a great process for Lent. Bill and I want each student to know that we are so proud of you and we were so honored to walk with this journey with you.

Thank You St. Francis Inn!

As we leave Philadelphia we realize that we owe a huge thank you to all the staff at the St. Francis Inn. Everyone was great with us and helped us learn the ins and outs of all the ministries here in Philadelphia. We have been truly blessed by your witness of love and service. So, here is our little way of saying thanks!

Our Last Day of Service in Philly

Today was our last day at the St. Francis Inn. It was another full day...full of hard work, full of laughs and full of love. Hats off to the students, even though we were worn out and didn't have much energy left, we pulled together and had another successful day, followed by some great reflection time. During our reflection we heard the reading of the Transfiguration and we talked about the importance of coming down from our mountain to bring the joy of this experience into the valley. We also talked about "tools" that we have in our "backpacks" that will help us transition back into life in Buffalo.

One of those tools was this reading by St. Francis. The following reading can be our vision for coming back to the valley of Buffalo:

Swift to forgive, slow to grow angry, free in nature, remarkable in memory, subtle in discussing, careful in choices, Francis was simple in everything! Strict with himself, kind with others, he was discerning in everything! Because he was very humble, he showed meekness to all people, and duly adapted himself to behavior of all. Holy among the holy, among sinner he was like one of them.

-A Selection form The Life of St. Francis by Thomas of Celano

Here are our last two video blogs...Sonia and Liz!

A Campus Minister's Reflection

Here is Bill Vaughan, my partner in Campus Ministry sharing his own thoughts about our week of service.

Walking the Streets of Kensginton

Today, one of our Inn Workers, Bernie, took our students on a tour of the neighborhood of Kensington. The video follows. Please note, this shows the real-life streets of Philadelphia and includes references to drugs and to crime.