I want to join a secular order but...

[joanofarc2008]

Originally Posted by Luigi Daniele

The OFS no longer allows for members "at a distance", ie, meeting attendance is mandatory (unless one is ill, obviously).

Granted but there may be a Fraternity closer than the OP realizes.

[Luigi Daniele]

Originally Posted by joanofarc2008

Granted but there may be a Fraternity closer than the OP realizes.

This is certainly true. There are a bunch of new fraternities (praise God) out here.

[iloveangels]

Originally Posted by Aydan

I'm on the East Coast of the United States.

There are a LOT of Secular Franciscan fraternities on the East Coast. Go to nafra-sfo.org and follow the "regional and local fraternities" link and you will find a LOT of them in every state.

I'm a Secular Franciscan and we have people in my fraternity who can't attend many meetings. There are a lot of things that can be done.

Our local fraternity has set up all kinds of arrangements to accommodate this--cells, hospital room meetings, home meetings and so on. Formation doesn't have to be done in a church building. What happens really depends on whether the person has a Franciscan vocation or not, rather than how well a person travels.

In your local area, there might already be such an arrangement. If you go to nafra-sfo.org and find the fraternity near yours, you can call them and find out.

[Aydan]

Okay first let me say thank you to everyone for all your responses. I'm located in Richmond Virginia and this is my diocese if that helps.
http://www.richmonddiocese.org/

My parish is the mother church for our diocese the Cathedral of the Sacred Heart. The second thing is previously I have been able to go to church on a weekly basis just like every Catholic. But now circumstances have changed because the public transportation system that I rely on has become so unreliable that it's not feasible anymore. They leave people stranded in all kinds of weather for hours and it got so bad that my fellow parishioners were concerned about my health and safety. I had no choice but to stop using that transportation. Now I can only go to church once a month since that is the only time there is reliable transportation available. I know it doesn't make up for not being able to go to church but I have been using things like the liturgy of the hours and of course I watch mass over the Internet. I figured even if I couldn't actually become a member of a secular order I could at least learn something from these secular orders to enrich my faith. But when I try to find detailed information about how secular orders work like the rules I discovered you have to be a member and that's when I posted here asking for help. Even if I can't actually be a member of any of them if somebody could just provide me with booklets or other information explaining the rules and traditions I would really appreciate that. Right now I'm open to exploring any order.
Thank you again everyone God bless you all!

[iloveangels]

Originally Posted by Aydan

Okay first let me say thank you to everyone for all your responses. I'm located in Richmond Virginia and this is my diocese if that helps.
http://www.richmonddiocese.org/

My parish is the mother church for our diocese the Cathedral of the Sacred Heart. The second thing is previously I have been able to go to church on a weekly basis just like every Catholic. But now circumstances have changed because the public transportation system that I rely on has become so unreliable that it's not feasible anymore. They leave people stranded in all kinds of weather for hours and it got so bad that my fellow parishioners were concerned about my health and safety. I had no choice but to stop using that transportation. Now I can only go to church once a month since that is the only time there is reliable transportation available. I know it doesn't make up for not being able to go to church but I have been using things like the liturgy of the hours and of course I watch mass over the Internet. I figured even if I couldn't actually become a member of a secular order I could at least learn something from these secular orders to enrich my faith. But when I try to find detailed information about how secular orders work like the rules I discovered you have to be a member and that's when I posted here asking for help. Even if I can't actually be a member of any of them if somebody could just provide me with booklets or other information explaining the rules and traditions I would really appreciate that. Right now I'm open to exploring any order.
Thank you again everyone God bless you all!

Ah, I see. Well, there are all kinds of things that people from the different third orders can recommend in the way of spiritual enrichment. I think that's what you're asking for, yes?

Third orders aren't really something you join to get just enrichment, like a prayer group or something like that. They really are orders in the Church and that's why they require a vocation and profession and so on. They're a permanent commitment and that's why they require regular and ongoing personal contact. Difficulties with travel can sometimes be worked around, as I noted before, but joining a third order is more than just taking part in an activity or a getting a resource for information.

That said, I'm sure that people from the different third orders would be happy to explain their charism to you, and offer some recommendations for reading and so on.

[iloveangels]

And if at some point, you do become interested in belonging to a third order, this forum has professed members from most of the third orders in the Church that can help you to figure out which one fits you best, as well as how to find the order in your area, etc.

The most populous third orders are:
The Lay Dominicans (OPL)
The Secular Franciscans (OFS)
The Discalced Carmelites (OCDS)
The Regular Carmelites (TOC)
The Oblates of St. Benedict

If you are attracted to the Benedictines, I believe they might require the least in the way of travel to meetings of all the third orders, but I could be wrong. I'm a Secular Franciscan but I've read a bunch about all of the third orders.

I know the nearest third order Franciscan fraternity is about 60 miles from you. Representatives from the other orders will be able to tell you more about their distances from where you are.

God bless you.

[iloveangels]

Also, living in a fairly populous area of the country, if you ask around, you might find a small group in your area, a private association of the faithful associated with your diocese maybe. You might want to ask your priest and see what he says. And check out your diocesan list of ministries and organizations.

Here's a Benedictine monastery not far from you and you can see their newsletter here. It will give you a little peek at Benedictines.

http://www.osbva.org/html/Oblates.html

[Aydan]

I didn't convey what I meant very well in the last post. Allow me to clarify I'm not looking for a prayer group or anything of that sort. I grew up agnostic and knowing absolutely nothing about Jesus from the first day of formation I understood that being Catholic means commitment so I do not take that responsibility lightly. I fully understand that secular orders are in very serious commitment you are making with God so I would never take it lightly. I don't know if the secular orders are right for me that is why I want to explore and discern whether or not I'm being called by God to do this. Now for some good news I knew about the monastery here but I didn't realize it was now open. It turns out that I actually know the vocations director there she has assisted me in the past with other issues when she was a staff member of our perish. So I think I will be able to get advice in my diocese now. Thank you very much for your help everyone.
Peace

[FCEGM]

Originally Posted by Aydan

I didn't convey what I meant very well in the last post. Allow me to clarify I'm not looking for a prayer group or anything of that sort. I grew up agnostic and knowing absolutely nothing about Jesus from the first day of formation I understood that being Catholic means commitment so I do not take that responsibility lightly. I fully understand that secular orders are in very serious commitment you are making with God so I would never take it lightly. I don't know if the secular orders are right for me that is why I want to explore and discern whether or not I'm being called by God to do this. Now for some good news I knew about the monastery here but I didn't realize it was now open. It turns out that I actually know the vocations director there she has assisted me in the past with other issues when she was a staff member of our perish. So I think I will be able to get advice in my diocese now. Thank you very much for your help everyone.
Peace

Aydan, these links will give you some information about Secular Discalced Carmelites (there is a Community of O.C.D.S. in Richmond):

http://www.ocdswashprov.org/

http://www.helpfellowship.org/ocds%2...esson%2015.htm

Regarding your lack of reliable transportation, have you contacted someone at the cathedral office to see if they have volunteers offering rides to and from Sunday Mass?

[Aydan]

Thank you for the information. I live in in a home for people with physical disabilities and yes the Eucharist is made available to all Catholics here. Ministers of the sick bring it over each Sunday. Now regarding the transportation I am wheelchair-bound and I require a vehicle with a wheelchair lift so it would be impossible to get a ride with someone from my parish. The home is able to provide transportation once a month so we are able to go to church occasionally. The only other option is public transportation and as I said it is highly unreliable at the moment. Unfortunately if you are wheelchair-bound in Richmond there just are not many options because wheelchair taxis when they are available are extremely expensive and I along with many other people simply cannot afford them.

Originally Posted by FCEGM

Aydan, these links will give you some information about Secular Discalced Carmelites (there is a Community of O.C.D.S. in Richmond):

http://www.ocdswashprov.org/

http://www.helpfellowship.org/ocds%2...esson%2015.htm

Regarding your lack of reliable transportation, have you contacted someone at the cathedral office to see if they have volunteers offering rides to and from Sunday Mass?

[Aydan]

I just discovered that the community you mentioned is not located in Richmond. It is actually located near Bridgewater and I have a friend who lives there. It is about a 3 to 4 Hour Drive depending on traffic. The thing is that the diocese of Richmond covers a very large portion of Virginia.

Secular Discalced Carmelite Community of Blessed Elizabeth of the Trinity
18 College Woods Drive
Bridgewater, VA 23812

Originally Posted by Aydan

Thank you for the information. I live in in a home for people with physical disabilities and yes the Eucharist is made available to all Catholics here. Ministers of the sick bring it over each Sunday. Now regarding the transportation I am wheelchair-bound and I require a vehicle with a wheelchair lift so it would be impossible to get a ride with someone from my parish. The home is able to provide transportation once a month so we are able to go to church occasionally. The only other option is public transportation and as I said it is highly unreliable at the moment. Unfortunately if you are wheelchair-bound in Richmond there just are not many options because wheelchair taxis when they are available are extremely expensive and I along with many other people simply cannot afford them.

[Aydan]

Originally Posted by iloveangels

Also, living in a fairly populous area of the country, if you ask around, you might find a small group in your area, a private association of the faithful associated with your diocese maybe. You might want to ask your priest and see what he says. And check out your diocesan list of ministries and organizations.

Here's a Benedictine monastery not far from you and you can see their newsletter here. It will give you a little peek at Benedictines.

http://www.osbva.org/html/Oblates.html

Actually the monastery isn't near me when I checked the address I discovered that in is not located in Richmond either. They say Richmond because it is located in the Diocese of Richmond but it is actually located in another city.
Saint Benedict Monastery | 9535 Linton Hall Road | Bristow, VA 20136 | 703-361-0106

[iloveangels]

Originally Posted by Aydan

I didn't convey what I meant very well in the last post. Allow me to clarify I'm not looking for a prayer group or anything of that sort. I grew up agnostic and knowing absolutely nothing about Jesus from the first day of formation I understood that being Catholic means commitment so I do not take that responsibility lightly. I fully understand that secular orders are in very serious commitment you are making with God so I would never take it lightly. I don't know if the secular orders are right for me that is why I want to explore and discern whether or not I'm being called by God to do this. Now for some good news I knew about the monastery here but I didn't realize it was now open. It turns out that I actually know the vocations director there she has assisted me in the past with other issues when she was a staff member of our perish. So I think I will be able to get advice in my diocese now. Thank you very much for your help everyone.
Peace

Excellent, Aydan. Peace to you and God bless you in your journey closer to Him. Pax et Bonum.