Projects
The Seven Dolors of the Blessed Virgin Mary fraternity would like to brainstorm and share ideas on projects with other OFS fraternities that could benefit the whole Franciscan family as well as the Catholic faithful. If you have an idea for a future project that could benefit your own fraternity or the Franciscan family in general, please use our contact form or email us at 7dolorsofs@stphilipministries.com. The following list of projects range from short-term, mid-term, long-term, and ambitious projects.
For a brief explanation of project Short, Mid, Long, and Ambitious project goals:*
Short-term projects require few assets and typically can use public domain resources and can be created within a month to under six months depending on the talents of those working the project Cost may be between free to $499.00.
Mid-term projects would require some financial assets but are between $500.00 – $999.99, would likely use a professional to develop an aspect of the project. Timeframe could take from 6 months to under 3 years.
Long-term projects would require funding of $1,000.00 up to $5,000.00. The project could take between 3-5 years to complete.
Ambitious projects would require using assets of a large amount bequeathed by members of the fraternity left in a will or provided as a payout in a life insurance policy. This would be similar to the situation of King David who wanted to build a temple, but could not do it in his lifetime. We have three project ideas such as purchasing a family plot at a Catholic cemetery devoted to Secular Franciscan members in good standing, rebuilding our Late Richard Russo’s food bank and clothing center called “Casey’s Kitchen,” and purchasing a residence for a Franciscan Center.
*Note: the dynamics of each fraternity in terms of generating funds or the lack/abundance of skill sets may be different for each fraternity. The following explanation is a subjective explanation based on the passion of one of our members devotion to special projects to apply their own funds and talents, open voluntarily to the fraternity for their moral or substantial support.
For our projects related to creating brochures and posters, see our marketing webpage. Brochures and posters tend to be classified as short term projects.
Current Apostolates
To our knowledge, our fraternity is the only one that has officially been tied to a parish in Haiti.
We have a fraternity member who has made multiple visits providing medical needs and assists in fund-raising to assist this struggling parish to fund educating students and other necessities.
https://stphilipfranklin.com/ministries/#local
The Fort Campbell ministry was started several years ago by a retired military family who were members of St. Philip Parish. The family approached the chaplain of the Soldier’s Chapel (Catholic Chapel) of Ft. Campbell with an idea to provide some type of support from St. Philip to families of Ft. Campbell. The chaplain liked the idea and thus the St. Philip/Ft. Campbell ministry was born. The chaplain indicated that needs were greatest among the very young families with babies and small children and that diapers, baby wipes, formula/baby food would help fill those needs. That’s where we are today. St. Philip continues its great generosity to the families of Ft. Campbell and your generosity is much appreciated.
Short-term Projects
There are several vendors which this fraternity has used for OFS gifts for different stages in formation.
OFS CANDLES:
FRANCISCAN FRIARS CONVENTUAL of Ellicott City, Maryland produces two OFS profession candles with the choice of the San Damiano Cross or the Tau; there is a list of scents to customize the candle to the preference of the newly professed member.
https://www.franciscansoycandles.org/
Certificates, Candle, etc.
The CFP Holy Angels Gift Shop has certificates, a short brown cincture, profession candles, and a few other items. They also have a funeral banner with the San Damiano or a Franciscan Coat of arms that can be used at a wake service. https://cfpholyangels.com/franciscan/franciscan-profession-items/
BOOKS:
Smoky Valley Printing has books for both formation and to provide as a gift. The order form can be found sometimes on the back of the TAU journal or online through the NAFRA website: https://www.secularfranciscansusa.org/wp-content/uploads/Smoky-Valley-update-Dec2023.pdf
There is a leatherette OFS Rule Book that is offered with gold edging on the pages. Will provide the contact information later.
There are likely several vendors you can purchase one of several biographies of St Francis:
https://www.franciscanpublications.com/
https://taupublishing.com/book-store/ols/categories/books
There are several more. If there is a vendor which you recommend to be added, please send us an email.
We are currently in a hold status for additional fraternity logos. The difficulty in the simplified logo is that we need this for embroidery purposes and watermark. Many digitizer agencies are not able to simplify our logos enough to convert the image.
One of our members who worked as teacher assistant for a middle school worked under an ISS teacher who was appointed to be in charge of a “Sunshine Fund” that collected greeting cards for various events like baby showers, Birth of a newborn, birthdays, anniversaries, retirements, for use to recognize other teachers and staff at the school. We have appointed one member in the fraternity who has received several greeting cards from other members and a book of stamps to use for our own members and members currently inactive.
We have not yet started on creating a newsletter for our fraternity, but there are several local and regional fraternities that have provided examples of their own newsletters. This is in development. We have no suggestions at this time to assist other local fraternities with ideas of generating their own newsletters as we are still in a research capacity to understand it ourselves. Will provide links of other fraternities online newsletters at a later date to provide other local fraternities an idea of layout and possible content. However the Tau and regional newsletter are sufficient examples.
Still in process. We have about 3 workable embroidery logos ready for use.
Several years ago, more like over a decade, the National Fraternity was talking about having sister fraternities tied to fraternities in Africa. However, nothing materialized. What is hoped is that the adopt a Franciscan Seminarian will lead to networking for a possible correspondence with a Secular Franciscan Fraternity in Africa. One of our members is married to a Japanese citizen and would like to connect with a fraternity in Japan to correspond with. We do have a parish twinning program we support, but not sure if a Secular Franciscan fraternity is near the parish we sponsor.
We have a black and white logo that we have made an embosser. However, one of our members wants to purchase several reams of paper and is looking for a vendor that can make watermarks so we can use official letters for invitations, transfers, and other official business. However, we are hoping to typeset the letter head so that it can be color printed with the watermark.
Mid-term projects
We want to create a coat of arms logo to make a banner or a flag that represents our fraternity. We have a mock-up design that should help inspire, but needs careful attention to detail to ensure the coat-of-arms is representative of the Lay Order and not mixing with symbols that might show a First or Second Order connection.
We put this in the Mid-Term projects due to estimate time to network to find the right talent. The costs would likely be in the Low-Term project. There are OFS scapular out there with a large patch perhaps on Etsy; there are other Scapulars with St Francis, but not technically an OFS scapular. There are older scapulars that are reproduced taken from when the order was named The Third Order of St Francis, but these are cheaply made with a paper like cloth printed and sewn over a scapular. The idea for this project is to produce a high quality embroidery.
There is another idea for this scapular that would involve a little mortification. This would involve using burlap or a goat hair cloth in place of wool. Burlap is not a recommended for embroidery, but could be sewn on the back of the scapular. Goat hair on leather is not recommended either. There is a goat hair (mohair) fabric that might be ideal for embroidery.
Catechism of the Catholic Church 2015 : The way of perfection passes by way of the Cross. There is no holiness without renunciation and spiritual battle. Spiritual progress entails the ascesis and mortification that gradually lead to living in the peace and joy of the Beatitudes:
He who climbs never stops going from beginning to beginning, through beginnings that have no end. He never stops desiring what he already knows.
The fraternity is looking to find a vendor to make a banner which will fit the dimensions used for banner presentation at the regional Annual Regional Gathering events. Correspondence from an inquiry to my previous Regional Minister Ellen Ferrone provided the following sizes 24″W x 35″ H with example of a photo of Padre Pio without any text. The other size provided was 38.5″ W x 43″ H with the example of a banner with St Francis depicted standing with the text on the banner of “Padre Pio Fraternity Secular Franciscan Order of the BSSF Region.”
We are looking for a vendor who can assist us in making a banner with a recommendation to hang on a processional banner with base.
The fraternity is looking to find a vendor to make a banner which will fit the dimensions used for banner presentation at the regional Annual Regional Gathering events. Correspondence from an inquiry to my previous Regional Minister Ellen Ferrone provided the following sizes 24″W x 35″ H with example of a photo of Padre Pio without any text. The other size provided was 38.5″ W x 43″ H with the example of a banner with St Francis depicted standing with the text on the banner of “Padre Pio Fraternity Secular Franciscan Order of the BSSF Region.”
We are looking for a vendor who can assist us in making a banner with a recommendation to hang on a processional banner with base.
This fraternity has benefited in the past from participating in the Brother and Sister of St Francis Region 1 spiritual retreats that historically started with the Channel of Peace fraternity in Chattanooga, TN. Many times the fraternity is depending on the loaning out of liturgical items like censer, boat, censer stand, and other liturgical items. At times, the parish that the item is being requested of may have use on the same day as the spiritual retreat. Some of the members of our fraternity have felt the need to obtain our own items such as San Damiano Processional Cross, and which the fraternity has loaned out to the parish of St Philip Catholic Church in Franklin that is used during Easter and Christmas when there are multiple Masses being conducted at the same time.
Our fraternity currently owns the following liturgical items: Maple IHS Tabernacle, San Damiano Processional Cross, Two Altar Candlesticks holders, Chapel size Roman Missal and Gospel, Acolyte processional torches, a Prophora gifted pan to make blessed bread for the Transitus, Icons of Theotokos of Seven Sorrows with Christ the Pantocrator, Sts King Louis IX and Elizabeth of Hungary, Triptych of detailed crucifixion with side panels depicting Sts Dominic and Francis on the left (facing) and Sts Nicholas and Cecilia on the right, Message of God Sanctuary Bells, an Eastern Catholic/Orthodox blessing cross, and a portable wooden semantron with mallet, and two crotalus aka wooden clackers for Holy Thursday in place of sanctuary bells.
We still need several more items to completely be independant: monstrance, censer stand, hanging censer, ciborium and linens, candle lighter with bell for snuffing out the candles, candle lighter stand, etc.
Some fraternities may not be blessed with an OFM priest with access to the Franciscan Crown as a “Gift from the Father General of Friars Minor.” This fraternity has created custom Franciscan Crowns using Vegetable Ivory with two vendors. Will provide vendors at a later time if approved by fraternity council, or you can email or use the contact page to reach out and we will provide in a follow up the vendor name and pricing we paid at time of purchase.
This fraternity has had a member commission several Byzantine icons from various iconographers. There is no guarantee that an iconographer will accept the commission of an icon. Eastern Orthodox iconographers will not write icons of Western Saints post Great Schism of 1054 A.D. Other iconographers may not have the time due to being teachers of the craft; some do not have the interest or inspiration to write an icon of the requested saint. It is also recommended to pray for the iconographer and allow them some artistic liberty as many of them know their craft well and are sensitive to writing something that falls within correct theology.
If you have a Saint prior to the Great Schism, the Convent of St Elizabeth in Etna, CA can be commissioned to write the icon. However, it takes about 2 years to complete due to the backlog of orders. The fraternity member who commissioned them highly recommends them. All the icons commissioned both with the Sisters as the St. Elizabeth Convent, Peter Murphy in the UK, and Robert Gerwing have stated in their correspondence that the one commissioning the icon has permission to use the icon image. However, please be advised that icons are depicting the archetype of the saint or Sacred Scripture/Tradition narrative. To disrespect the image is to disrespect the archetype, very similar to the offense people take when setting fire to the American flag or stepping on a poster photo of Martin Luther King Jr. Please study and apply due diligence to commission the icon with a thorough understanding of correct theology.
One other comment: it has been noted by some in the Eastern Orthodox Church not to use Monastery Icons. See here on their reasoning. There may be other iconographers that are controversial based on making icons of non-Catholic and even non-Christian figures, such as MLK, Jr. or Ghandi, or attempts to insert controversial symbology such as the Rainbow in a manner not consistent with Noah’s ark nor historical iconography standards. While it is encouraged to respect such figures as MLK or Gandhi as they represent both equality and non-violent demonstration; and making an artistic painting of them is permissible, iconography from the selection of wood without knots (similar to the O.T. selection of sheep for sacrifice), the laying on 3 coats to the surface of the board representing the Trinity to smooth the surface, and the pigments and colors used in egg tempera all have theological significance and not technically appropriate as the archetypes depicted are neither Catholic nor Eastern Orthodox therefor are not in sync with the theology of Byzantine Iconography for that level of adoration.
The following project tends to be a problematic start up project. Due to the nature of politics, there is a risk that this project could cause certain division if done incorrectly. However, the purpose of the primer is not to endorse political bills that have issues due to pork spending or compromises that contradict Catholic values; the purpose of the primer would focus on individual responsibility and actionable activities that the local fraternity could support as a community. Hence, locations of recyclable items, how to identify what can be recycled, who to call when encountering injured wildlife would be part of the primer. Such things as recommendations for purchasing a vehicle would be excluded due to the controversy between the negative effects of both petroleum fuel and the costs of electric vehicles that may create an adverse environmental impact with an increase used of coal production and the toxicity of nickel, copper, and aluminum is an ongoing debate that acts as a catalyst for toxicity in relationship within the fraternity. Also, Global Warming/Cooling/Climate Change is also a point of contingency as the Political Climate’s answer is to increase taxes or vote for a particular party or candidate. The primer would not include finding a vendor that provides the best quality for collecting recycled materials as that would make an endorsement of a business; however the fraternity or individual may purchase such recycle bins. The primer would provide images that can be used to make stickers to adhere to the recycle bin that might include an image of a Franciscan saint with a quote or prayer related to the item being recycled. It could also include a sticker to describe common items that fit in the classification and common characteristics. I.e., soup cans may be made out of tin, soda cans for aluminum, etc. The back of the primer would be a contact list for animal control and other agencies for emergency situations, recommended applications to help locate recycling centers, what items they collect, and when they are open for business.
If anyone is interested in a dialogue on making a Franciscan environmental primer, please use the contact form or send us an email.
Our fraternity created a Wax Seal to use for fancy invitation letters for our Centennial Celebration back in 2015. We recommend using Dexter Rings due to the high quality to get that 3 dimensional look. Most wax seal companies just have a monogram laser engraving, but cannot give your seal texture. This is in the Mid-term projects as it costed us $726.06 USD; the company is based in the UK. If you find a vendor that can product the same quality 3D wax seal rings at a competitive price, please send us an email so we can verify and provide their name as well. We are not endorsing any company, only providing information as to what our search was able to find.
Long-term Projects
Currently in production. We will be creating our own Byzantine Franciscan Crown based on Open Domain sources of Eastern Catholic/Orthodox prayer books; it will also include a completely customizable experience with future radio buttons and checkboxes to allow people to pray the Franciscan Crown that fits their preferenced language, additional prayers, chants, and other additions like scripture reading, meditations and reflections, and even a leader with responses.
We also intend to diligently compare current modern Franciscan prayer books and Franciscan books in the open domain that are not in print and easily accessible. We will provide a list of Franciscan prayers and devotions with a history and “how-to-pray” that are not currently in modern publication. We will likely add to our fraternity website as well.
We have already made two marionette puppets of St Dominic and the Hound of the Lord. Currently on loan to Pope John Paul II High School in Hendersonville, TN to promote interest to the youth to build skill sets for performing arts.
We intend to make puppets of St. Francis, St. Clare, the Wolf of Gubbio, and other Franciscan figures, perhaps Brother Juniper or Brother Giles.
This project intends to save up between $3k to $5k with the intent of making a presentation to either St Mary’s Catholic Bookstore downtown Nashville or a Catholic artisan/craftsman to loan for free in the month of May so long as they pay the vendor fees to sell their wares at the local RenFest in Arrington, TN near the I840 Nolensville exit.
We can use the tent at outside parish festivals, fraternity or joint Third Order picnics, and other special events. If a Gospel centered Renaissance anachronism is established the tent can be used for anachronistic events.
This project is actually completed.
Currently one of our members has unofficially adopted a Franciscan OFM Conv Seminarian who is attending St. Bonaventure University in Lusaka, Zambia. Provided a laptop to the seminarian and occasional monies for necessary expenses such as new shoes, etc. The OFM Conv Seminarian comes from Tanzania.
This is mentioned above under fraternity logos (complex). However, the details for an artist and the amount of research needed to ensure it represents only the Secular Franciscan Order, the name of our fraternity, and our location in Middle Tennessee will require an expense commission price.
Ambitious Projects
We have contacted Calvary Cemetery and would require permission from the Diocese of Nashville to purchase a plot of ten plots. We are hoping to get a rough estimate just for the plot of land in the near future, the other ideas can be built later on as funding becomes available. Ths project idea has several parts as it would be desired to have a gazebo set up in the center or adjacent to the grave sites, with a surround seating arrangement. Would like to place a statue of St. Francis with the Blessed Virgin in the center of the gazebo. Also, since we have over 100 fraternity members buried in Calvary Cemetery from the 1920s onward, we would like to have a display showing each member’s plot location.
Richard Russo, OFM who passed away in November 2014 established Casey’s Kitchen out of the residence of his own home in Old Hickory. He used his own money and donations received by his family, fellow fraternity members, and friends at the local parish to deliver food to low income senior citizens and to the poor. He had a small chapel made in one of his guest bedrooms, and used the living room to store clothes. However, he never set up a 501c3, nor a will, and had no term life insurance or assets to sustain his vision when he passed away. We could easily resurrect this apostolate if the fraternity members were able to coordinate and store perishable foods for distribution with a stream of financial support from others. The third ambitious project for establishing a Franciscan Center would move this resurrection of an apostolate from dispersed and shared responsibility to something more permanent.
This ambitious project is the most ambitious of them all. It would require a bequeathment of assets derived from a will, a payout of a term life insurance policy, or a generous patron. It could also just be that a celibate fraternity member is able to purchase their own residence and in similar fashion to Richard Russo convert a portion of their residence to be used for fraternity gatherings. It would necessitate a person live at the residence to maintain and could provide a rent at cost to the property taxes and utility expenses if the residence is paid outright by the fraternity. This project is so complex and so future oriented that even the suggested proposals cannot factor in the unique circumstances. However, if such a center were to be built with some certainty to its continued use almost indefinitely, it could house donated Franciscan and Catholic books, have its own small chapel, apostolate space, and could provide a small retreat center. It could very much be modeled after the Frassati House in Nashville.
The OFS tartan project is considered ambitious due to the need to have a professional design the pattern with symbolic meaning that best represents the Secular Franciscan Order, a council to approve the design, and a vendor who can make the premium wool in bulk to make it inexpensive to the consumer. The project is at present only a proposed idea.