1. PRAYER
2. MEDITATION
https://youtu.be/-9KLB2HI9BI?si=XEIKKGqUEqC5JELv
https://youtu.be/kaqd4-5mhcc?si=s0215sj4_3Gk6Ba4
4. NARRATIVE
https://cac.org/daily-meditations/gospel-to-life-and-life-to-gospel/
Gospel to Life and Life to Gospel
Michele Dunne is the Executive Director of the Franciscan Action Network, an organization that seeks to embody Franciscan values in their work for justice for the earth and the poor. [1] In a recent issue of CAC’s the Mendicant donor newsletter, Dunne describes her deepening understanding of Franciscan witness:
“From gospel to life and life to gospel” is a phrase from the Rule of the Secular Franciscan Order that puzzled me when I first read it. I felt called to join the Order in 2013, at a time of failure and crisis in my life. [2] As I studied the Rule, I thought I understood “from gospel to life.” I was to read the gospel of Jesus and apply what I found there to how I lived my life. But “life to gospel”? What might that mean?
As I worked on those words from the Rule, those words worked on me over several years. Through his writings and example, St. Francis taught me about living in kinship with all humanity and all creation. My new spiritual path urged me to make time to study more deeply and practice contemplative prayer more consistently.
My new Franciscan path also seemed to break open my heart. Hearing the growing calls for racial and economic justice, care for the earth, and many other issues during 2017–2021, I could no longer ignore them or believe they didn’t concern me. As I stepped out of my comfort zone to show solidarity—sometimes accepting legal or safety risks in doing so—certain scriptural passages glowed for me in a new way, resonating with my real-life experiences of activism and advocacy.
For example, while I had always understood Jesus’s teaching to “take up your cross and follow me” simply as a call to bear patiently with the suffering inherent in daily life, I came to a totally different understanding after a long, frigid day spent at a climate protest in December 2019. Rereading the story (in Mark 8, Matthew 16, and Luke 9) at the urging of my friend and teacher the Rev. John Dear, I suddenly understood that Jesus was not speaking about patience with everyday suffering. As he faced escalating pressure—including from his friends—to stop speaking out against injustice, Jesus made it crystal clear that following him would require self-sacrifice, inconvenience, and possibly danger. How could I have missed that before? Maybe this new way of hearing was what “life to gospel” meant.
The Franciscan path keeps the challenges coming but also supplies companions for the way. In 2021, I left a longtime career to join the Franciscan Action Network, where we are building an intergenerational movement for justice, peace, and creation rooted in the gospel and the examples of St. Francis and St. Clare. Our dozens of Franciscan Justice Circles across the country meet monthly in small groups, where we pray and take action together, discovering over and over again what it means to go from gospel to life and life to gospel.
References:
[1] Franciscan Action Network (FAN) is a collective Franciscan voice, inspired by the Gospel of Jesus and the example of Saints Francis and Clare, seeking to transform United States public policy related to peace making, care for creation, poverty, and human rights. Find out how to join or form a Franciscan Justice Circle supported by FAN in your area.
[2] The Secular Franciscan Order is one of three religious orders formed by St. Francis of Assisi during his lifetime—the one for single or married people who would live “in the world” rather than as friars or sisters.
Michele Dunne, “Gospel to Life and Life to Gospel,” the Mendicant 15, no. 3 (2025), 2.
LI LINKS to instagram videos
https://www.instagram.com/share/_7IaWRdfa
https://www.instagram.com/share/BAO_8jtaWx
5.5. MEDITATION
https://youtu.be/Jr0pmaF6g98?si=fzl_C0HhMQRivf7W
6. 6. SHARING
7.7. INTENTIONS AND PRAYERS
Heavenly Father,
“I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.”
Lord, help me to have the same perspective in my own life, treasuring the knowledge of You above all else.
I admit that, at times, I have allowed worldly distractions and selfish ambitions to pull me away from the path of righteousness.
I want to forget what is behind and strain toward what is ahead, pressing on towards the goal to win the prize for which You have called me in Christ Jesus.
Heavenly Father, I humbly request the strength and perseverance to keep running this race of faith with endurance.
I know that the ultimate prize is the eternal life that comes through Jesus Christ, and I long to grasp it fully.
I also acknowledge, Lord, that I am far from perfect.
I have made mistakes and fallen short of your glory.
But I am comforted that my righteousness comes from faith in Christ.
Thank you for your grace and forgiveness that allow me to be justified through faith in your Son.
Help me, I want to know you more intimately, to experience the power of your resurrection in my life, and to share in your sufferings as a part of my spiritual journey.
As I conclude this prayer, I ask for Your guidance and wisdom to discern what is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, and of good repute.
Help me to focus my thoughts on these things and to live a life that reflects your love and grace to others.
In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.
Originally published at http://4foldlove.wordpress.com on November 8, 2023.
7. 8. SONG
https://youtu.be/ZLnbiyN3lqw?si=9IAoPe00py6Pmy1Y
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