The Secular Franciscan Order was established by St. Francis of Assisi more than 800 years ago. Our purpose is to bring the Gospel to life where we live and where we work. We look for ways to embrace the Gospel in our lives and try to help others to do likewise.

San Camillus fraternity was re-activated in 2013 as one of the three Spanish speaking fraternities in the St. Margaret of Cortona Region of the National Fraternity of the Secular Franciscan Order-USA.

Our members are lay women and men, married and single who are moved by the Holy Spirit as well as commit themselves through profession to “live the Gospel after the manner of St. Francis in their secular state and following the Rule approved by the Church” (Const. 1,3).
Our journey together started in 2005 with an invitation by a secular Franciscan member of Del Camino fraternity, Washington DC. Approximately 16 parishioners from Saint Camillus showed interest in the Secular Franciscan Order. After some initial informational meetings, eight of us attended a discernment retreat and, following the retreat, we started formation classes as inquirers. After three years of formation, discernment, prayer, and fraternity four sisters and brothers made their solemn profession in April of 2008. Three years later, in April of 2011, another three sisters and brothers professed in the Order. These seven brothers and sisters, moved by the Holy Spirit and in consultation with Del Camino fraternity, requested to re-activate the St. Camillus fraternity who had been lapse for several years.  The Council of St. Margaret of Cortona Region approved our petition in 2013 and in the Winter of 2014, we elected our first fraternity council thus becoming a fully pledge Secular Fraternity in the Region.

Is “the basic unit of the whole Order and a visible sign of the Church, the community of love… the privileged place for developing a sense of Church and the Franciscan vocation and for enlivening the apostolic life of our members.” (Rule of the SFO, Art. 22)

San Camilo fraternity holds its monthly fraternal gathering on the 4^th Saturday of every month in the Fr. Grace chapel from 9:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

The brothers and sisters should love meeting God as His children and they should let prayer and contemplation be the soul of all they are and do. (Constitution of the SFO, Art. 12.3)

Every first Saturday of the month at 4:00 p.m. we gather in the Fr. Grace chapel for contemplation before the holy sacrament. We pray the Franciscan crown and finish with vespers.
 

“…The purpose of this period is the maturation of the vocation, the experience of the evangelical life in fraternity, and a better knowledge of the Order…” (Constitution SFO, Art. 40)

Initial formation is the process of discernment and education leading inquirers and candidates to profession as members of the Secular Franciscan Order.
 
Inquirers after having attended a vocational retreat / open house, are invited to begin formation. Classes for aspirants and postulants are held twice a month on a weeknight. Classes for novices (candidates) are held twice a month on a Saturday afternoon.
 
Professed members gather periodically for continued formation and reflection on topics related to our Rule and Constitutions. The fraternity also holds retreats and days of reflection annually.

Let them individually and collectively be in the forefront in promoting justice by the testimony of their human lives and their courageous initiatives. Especially in the field of public life, they should make definite choices in harmony with their faith. (Rule OFS, Art. 15)
 


Our sisters and brothers are very active in parish life and ministries. They serve as cathechist and cathechist assistance, ministers of hospitality and in the “parking” ministry. Some of our brothers and sisters belong to the Utopia Franciscana group and others are members of the Saint Camillus choir. Our members also play an integral role in the animation of Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation ministry in the Intercultural and Spanish JPICs respectively.

If you are interested in learning more about Franciscan spirituality, or perhaps find yourself discerning a call to the Secular Franciscan Order, please contact us. Inquiry is open to all practicing Catholic men and women who live in communion with the Church and cannot be a professed member of a religious order or another secular order. 

For more information, contact: Otto Perez at 301-335-9166 or [email protected]

Sandra Perez, OFS, Minister
Francisco Cartagena, OFS, Vice-Minister
Ottoniel Perez, OFS, Formation Director
Idalia Herrera, OFS, Secretary
Esther Reyes, OFS, Acting Treasurer
Spiritual Assistant - TBD