This past weekend I was at a regional Secular Franciscan meeting. It’s an annual meeting of the ministers from the region (which covers most of New York state), along with a few other people from each fraternity in the region. I’m the minister of my fraternity. At the regional meeting we were approving a regional budget, hearing talks, meeting with national officials, and voting for our new council to guide our region for the next three years.
I’m part of that new council - a councilor.
I hadn’t planned on running for an office, though it had been on my mind. At our regional visitation back in May the councilor visiting my fraternity strongly suggested that a couple of us consider running for a regional office. Part of me was thinking that as a professed Secular Franciscan I need to serve the Order as best I can. I need to make use of any gifts I might have. I was aware that in almost every organization to which I have belonged I almost always end up in some kind of leadership position - president, editor, principal, minister, and so on.
When the nominations came out in the days before the regional meeting, I realized that there was just one candidate for each office. Hardly an election!
So, I decided to toss my hat in for one of the councilor positions. There are four of them, and there were four candidates. I figured if I submitted my name there would at least be a choice. I contacted the Regional Minister to say I was thinking about it, and she encouraged me. She even said she would be happy to nominate me at the meeting as I had not been on the initial approved list!
When we gathered for the regional meeting one of the other candidates for councilor approached me. She said she had decided to retire from her job and that she and her husband were planning to move back to her homeland, France, next year. Realizing she could not complete a three-year term, and knowing that I was now running, she had decided to withdraw her name. She thanked me.
Yikes.
I got elected. Today at Mass we were officially installed.
For the next three years I will be a councilor for the St. Kateri Tekakwitha Region of the Secular Franciscan Order. I will also continue as minister of my fraternity.
As a councilor I will be helping to make decisions for the region. The council will have monthly meetings - primarily by Zoom as we are scattered across New York. I will also be assigned as the councilor for several fraternities in the region. I will visit those fraternities, oversee their elections, do visitations of them, and be the contact person for them if they have questions or concerns.
All that is good. But I realized some other things about me in light of this new office.
Being in a position of authority, I am even more of a public representative of the Order. I have to be more careful about what I do, what I say, what I write. I know I have a tendency toward sarcasm and snarky comments. I tend to be somewhat critical and political as well. I need to work on all that.
I also realize I have to do more to increase my Franciscan knowledge. I need to focus more of my reading on Franciscan books - spiritual works, biographies, histories, official documents, and so on. People will be looking to me as a resource; I have a responsibility to prepare.
The next three years are going to be interesting. Lord, be with me!
Pax et bonum
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