If you are a man, read this article.

In a recent meeting with a HS principle he mentioned his work as a labor of love. I have heard this phrase before but for the first time I really took some time to reflect on the expression. Put in simple terms (my own) I would say it is doing something that you can not believe you also earn a living doing. Something that you would be doing anyway, and want to do regardless if there was pay involved, but now  get to do it for 40+hrs a week because it is also a job. Its a work that is integrated into your life - which can be a heavy burden at times, but it seems to make work also more pleasurable and fruitful.

I would argue that God has created humans to work in this capacity, but how often we get caught up with the things in life that truly don’t matter causing us to sway from our labor of love. Or maybe it is a fear or an acceptance, or something we have to prove that draws us from that love.

May St. Joesph intercede for us that we remain faithful to God’s plan and our labor of love.

Pray for us.

T$

It’s hard to believe that the new school year is upon us! I could not be more excited about all of the great blessings in store for FRATERNUS this year. It’s looking more and more like we’ll be expanding northward in the Nashville Territory, and we are looking to recruit and form more missionaries than ever to get into schools and lead our HAWC groups. To think that we had just received Bishop Choby’s blessing this time a year ago is amazing! So much growth in only one year.

Keep us in your prayers as we make final preparations in these weeks leading up to first FRAT night. God has so much in store, and I feel incredibly honored to be a part of this beautiful movement of the Holy Spirit - mentoring boys into virtuous, Catholic men!

And after three weeks of travel, I’ve decided to go on vacation. Next week: Tarpon Springs, FL, here I come!

St. Augustine, FL

The blog-sphere of FRATERNUS has been quiet for the past week because the FRATERNUS crew has been busy in prayer, planning and preparation for the upcoming year. Every year we set aside a few weeks during the summer in St. Augustine, FL to examine the past and prepare for the future or as a wiser man than I puts it - "plan our work and work our plan".

It is a time to be rejuvenated by our fellow brothers and be motivated for our part in the Apostolate. I already can not wait to be back with my brothers in Pensacola, FL.

1st FRAT Night is only 44 days away!

Pray for us.

T$

This weekend I had the great joy of attending a party celebrating the birth of one of our recent Fraternus Knights. It was simple, yet profound to me that most of the people who were there are one way or another connected through relationships within Fraternus.

Just before we left a mother mentioned that "we have lived here for years and couldn’t get plugged into other Catholic families like we are today until my son joined FRATERNUS" another mother added that, " now we have something to invite others into; something larger than just our community."

After only two years, we are beginning to see community driving a transformation in our culture.

Pray for us!

T$

For other ideas of transforming culture, http://mysteriumonline.com/

The Ranch has come and gone. It was amazing to witness the conversions. Confession for the first time in years, huge steps taken in the interior life and a new openness to vocation.
God is working in Fraternus and boys’ lives are being transformed. Now the energy is high, the excitement for the fall kick-off is over flowing, but it is time to come off the mountain and back home.

However, the beauty of this brotherhood is that it is not a one time experience; it’s not just a conversion. It is a relationship with God, our Brothers and our Captains. It is a lifestyle of becoming a disciple of Christ.
Now it is the time to practice virtue, to make the resolutions a reality and to pick up our cross and follow Him.

IHS - "In this sign thou shall concur"

Pray for us.

T$

Here are a few common assumptions about young men:

1. All they care about is girls (and not in a good way).
2. They are turned off by religion especially more than "Sunday religion".
3. They are lazy and want comfort.

Now.  Let’s look at a few facts about recent FRATERNUS events and show how they counter the above assumptions:

Fact 1 - We consistently have HUGE turnouts at first FRAT Nights which are marketed as what they are - a brotherdood (note: no girls allowed).  We also just took 150 folks to the Georgia mountains for a week of this brotherhood.  There were other camp choices, but these boys chose to go where there were no girls. HMMMMM.  Seems to me that there is a longing for brotherhood… but what kind?  On to fact 2:

Fact 2 - Catholicism is not easy.  FRATERNUS presents Catholicism full out with all the challenges to be holy and pure and all that relionony stuff.  Even after we give them the hard challenge of the cross, they keep coming back.  What’s the result?

Fact 3 - Boys are taking up this extremely demanding challenge.  Just like anything that speaks to a man’s heart, if it doesn’t demand sacrifice and result in glory, it doesn’t appeal to them.  Almost as if God made them that way… If they seem to be lazy, they might not have had the challenge that they’re called to presented to them in a way they can receive it.

This says something about our boys.  They are eager for this.  They want a brotherhood full of challenges.  They want a Christianity that still has a cross.  That boy you know who seems bored with life, turned off by religion, only focused on one thing (especially if it’s a bad thing) - that boy is probably just waiting to hear the Call of the King, he’s awaiting to hear about the great challenge to holiness that he is called to.  Tell him about it.  Or send him to FRATERNUS .

Want to help?  DONATE!

J. Michael Craig

I have already received several emails from parents this week, blown away by the amazing transformation in their sons after last week’s Ranch. Below is part of the text from two such emails. I have only changed the names to protect privacy:

“I just got off the phone with my mother in law, telling her all about Derek’s wonderful experience at Ranch! For me, and for our situation, I cannot tell you how grateful I am that God has put you and the FRATERNUS group in my sons’ lives. No matter what is going on in life, we all need God. Derek has gone on and on about Father Michael and Fr. Joe… about how he loved their homilies and how he loved them! Every day, Derek recalls with excitement something about Ranch… he misses it. Yesterday, he HAD to go to St. Mary’s Bookstore (not his usual choice of stores) and after a long time of shopping, I had to be the one to tell him it was time to go! That has never happened before… usually I drag them in to St. Mary’s and they drag me out. It’s exciting for me to see how God is using you and FRATERNUS.”

“We had 3 of our boys go to Ranch, and I am amazed and in complete awe of the impact it had on each of their lives. The freedom they feel in talking about prayer and their relationship with God is remarkable. As a parent, to know our children our walking into this world as leaders with a wonderfully ingrained moral compass, is so very comforting. I am so proud of all these boys. And, Jimmy, I can’t thank you enough. I wish all young teens would do this!”

After months of preparation, it has already come and gone.

It may or may not have looked like the above ranch located thousands of miles from Tiger, GA.

And the rapids may or may not have been similar to the above class 5’s in the Grand Canyon.

All things considered… it was easily the most amazing week of the entire summer. Every day involved high adventure - from white water rapids and high ropes courses to epic games of capture the flag and nighttime obstacle courses. Spiritual formation was at its best, with Fr. Joe and Fr. Michael hearing Confessions for several hours a day and celebrating some of the most beautiful, powerful liturgies imaginable. We even had a group of 30-50 brothers who woke up an hour before breakfast every day to pray a holy hour before the Blessed Sacrament.

God moved in profound ways. Many late night talks with our brothers made it clear how deeply the Spirit penetrated hearts. Some men are in the state of grace for the first time in months and years, and there is no doubt that lives were changed for eternity.

Simply put, souls were reclaimed and restored in Christ. And last Friday’s mud pit was easily one of the most intense moments in FRATERNUS history.

I’m still finding new layers of dirt in my ears.

Summer is here. It is hot and humid, the ocean is clear blue and there is no surf. Surfers in NW Florida consider this time of the year as the "100 day flat spell". Thankful my job does not rely on surf - although, wouldn’t a Fraternus surf team be su-weet?!

While the surf maybe lousy, HAWC has been kickin’ with over 20 guys every week. To add to the mix we are blessed to have 7 seminarians join in on the discussion of prayer. It has been a challenging summer as we look at the prayers our Church has to offer and learning to integrate our lives more fully as men of prayer - it is a challenge, but a challenge I love. Nothing is more encouraging to me to be apart of a brotherhood who is sincerely seeking a live of holiness.

Pray for us next week as 150 Brothers and Captains venture off to North Georgia for what is going to be the best week of the summer.

T$