It’s a magical place, established by the Spanish Franciscans in 1786 shortly after the death of St. Junipero Serra. Today, the Old Mission of Santa Barbara is home to the novitiate of the Order of Friars Minor in the United States, an archives and research center for scholars of Native American and Franciscan history, and a parish community that worships in the Old Mission church.
John Cusick, OFS, of St. Anthony of Nagasaki Fraternity and his wife Evelyn Rivera Cusick, OFS, of San Camilo Fraternity, spent a week at the Old Mission leading up to the Transitus, soon to be followed by the Unity Chapter of OFM friars in Kansas City, inaugurating Our Lady of Guadelupe Province comprising the six former, major OFM provinces of entire United States.
As guests of Fr. Erick Lopez, OFM, who presided at their wedding, the two Seculars lived, prayed and shared meals with the friars and three novices and, in between, enjoyed the glorious vistas along the Southern California Coast.
John expressed gratitude for the friars’ hospitality one evening after prayer. “Never have we felt so welcome or fully embraced as members of the Franciscan family,” he said.
For the benefit of the novices – Jason Peterson, Richard Gaunt and Dan Rey – he gave a brief description of the OFS and planted a seed of hope that they might one day consider becoming OFS spiritual assistants.
“Our charism is different from yours, in that we continue to live in the world without the daily contact and support of our Franciscan brothers and sisters,” Cusick explained. “Nevertheless, we make promises of poverty, chastity and obedience as befits our secular state, and we are consecrated through our profession to spend the rest of our lives living the gospel in the manner of St. Francis, in service to Our Lord and brother Jesus and to all as sisters and brothers in Christ.”
He acknowledged that one day as fully professed and perhaps ordained friars, the novices would be quite busy working in parishes or other assignments.
“But we want you to know who we are,” John said. “We are the only self-governing Third Order in the Catholic Church, canonically bonded to the friars to whom we turn for spiritual assistance and support. We are not a club or parish organization. We are Franciscans who love and welcome you – and we need you in our lives.”
