A Reflection on Prayer

I grew up worshipping idols and my pagan prayers were meaningless mumbo jumbo that bounced off multi-headed, stone gods. The first time I prayed and was heard was when I became a Catholic (which means I became a follower of Christ and promised to faithfully follow all His teachings in the one, universal, and apostolic Church that He established with St. Peter as its earthly head), and my very first prayer was the Our Father. A “Life of Prayer” is one of the four pillars of our Catholic faith; our Lord’s Prayer is the primary (because the Lord Himself taught us this prayer) doorway into that life of prayer, and into the depths of our Heavenly Father’s heart and love.

At Mass, the priest exhorts us to pray the Lord’s Prayer boldly and confidently. Why? Because this is a prayer of the deepest intimacy that the children of God can have with their Heavenly Father. We know sin breaks this intimacy with the Father and causes pain in the Body of Christ. When, after a good confession, the priest tells us to say a penitential Our Father, it is no trivial matter. When we do this, overflowing with the Prodigal’s contrition, love, and filial reverence, we are truly and immediately drawn to our Father’s bosom. O’ what joy, what ecstasy it is to cry out again, “Abba, Father!”

The disciples desired to pray after they had observed our Lord praying. In His humanity and Divine Filiation, He drew life and strength through prayer from the Father and the Holy Spirit. He prayed for Himself and for us. He also prayed while alone, in public, before and after meals, before decisions, before healings, after healings, at the Last Supper, in Gethsemane, and on the Cross.

St. James says that the fervent prayer of a humble, faithful, and Spirit-filled person has the power to move the Father’s merciful heart. As beggars before God let us beg for the gift of prayer and fervency. St. Thomas Aquinas says, when we pray, we “raise our minds to God.” When our minds are fixed on our Triune God, our love for Him and charity for the neighbor will know no bounds!

Deacon Raj Srinivasa

Maintenance and Repairs

Thank you so very much for your continued generosity toward the Friends of the Newark Monastery! We are immensely grateful to God for his providential care for us over this past year which has manifested itself through your generosity.

I recognize the gift of the vocation that the brothers share is one of the greatest gifts that God gives... and that we wouldn't be able to live it without the support of his people. It is a joy to live as simply as we do, along with other brothers who desire to pray and to serve our neighbors. We would not be able live this life here at Most Blessed Sacrament Friary without the work of the Friends of the Newark Monastery - providing a home for the CFR community.

We, with your help, continue to make some necessary repairs that have been placed on hold for too long. We have received a number of estimates to replace the ceiling in our courtyard (many birds were making their home by flying through the rusted out ceiling). The estimates were quite pricey, so we began the process on our own of tearing down the 2,400 sq/ft tin ceiling, which will bring down the costs significantly. It is also a great opportunity for us to work with our hands in a substantial way - part of St. Francis' original vision was that manual labor helps us to identify with the poor who have no choice but to work with their hands for their daily bread. It looks like we have some gifted brothers who will be here in our Friary next year... maybe we will be able to do all of the labor ourselves!

In the near future, it is my hope also to begin replacing the roof of the friary in sections. We have been spending about 10K/year on roof repairs and things continue to get worse. One roofer took a video of his finger going through one of the slates on our roof as if the slate was made out of sand! Needless to say, we have many buckets in our attic that we empty after every rainfall! By replacing section by section of the roof, the costs of the repairs will be transferred to paying for a new roof.

Of course, with each section that will be replaced, we will also need to rework the gutters and the dormers which shout out, "I am 142 years old!"

Thank you again for your great generosity. We are fortunate in having been able to make and continue to make necessary repairs while still able to cover our operating costs. Yes, there have been some moments when we wondered if we would be able to pay our rising basic expenses (insurance has gone up 20% just this year amongst other things)... and God always comes through with a donation that keeps us afloat. Thank you! We are Grateful.

Fr. Stephen C.F.R.

Message from the Board

The sole purpose of the Friends of the Newark Monastery is to maintain the building, walls and property of the friary, as well as, covering the cost of insurance and enhancements of the property. All of our funding remains entirely dependent on the generosity of donors. As every Friar freely dispossesses himself of any personal properties or benefits, our support allows the friars to focus entirely on their apostolate and the formation of novices. Their mission of evangelization, renewal and service to the poor of the Newark area has grown to include a soup kitchen, retreat center and novice formation and education. The work done at MBS Friary truly has a global reach. The novices formed at Most Blessed Sacrament Friary are sent out across the United States and globally.

The Most Blessed Sacrament Friary was built in 1880 and is over 40,000 square feet. Maintaining a structure like this takes a lot of work. While the friars do a lot of the work that needs to be done themselves, there are many large projects which require hiring professionals at a substantial cost. We are seeking donations for continued maintenance and several upcoming projects.

You can help by using the PayPal Donation button below or by sending your donation to:

Friends of the Newark Monastery, Inc.
Most Blessed Sacrament Friary
P.O. Box 175
South Orange, New Jersey 07079

The Friars continue striving to follow the spirit of St. Francis and their community's inspiring charism, which is now more important than ever. We hope and pray that God blesses you and that you can support the Friars of the Most Blessed Sacrament Friary.

We pray you have a safe and blessed summer season.

Yours in Christ,
The Board of the Friends of the Newark Monastery

www.friendsofthenewarkmonastery.org