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[Franciscans of Divine Providence] 1995-2010
The Mission of Saint
Francis Seraph
Rocky Hill, Connecticut USA
(L) +Bishop Russell F. Coates, Jr., FDP,
Guardian General (R)
Very Rev. Father Timothy W. Biskupiak, FDP,
Provincial
Guardian, Diocesan Director of Vocations
(Shown wearing our earlier Habit upon a visit to Weston Priory in Vermont-1995)
The Mission of Saint Francis Seraphhas the distinction of being the first Mission established for the Order.
It is the residence for our Guardian General, The Most Reverend Russell F. Coates, Jr., FDP and
the Very Rev. Father Timothy W. Biskupiak, FDP. The Mission residence contains the Episcopal Chapel of St. Francis and also serves as the Provincial Center for the Franciscans of Divine Providence
as well as the Headquarters of the Trinitarian Catholic Church (USA).
Within our Friary, the small Episcopal Chapel of St. Francis offers us a quiet space where we may pray and meditate, as
also celebrate the Mass. One of the goals of our Mission, is to increase the membership of our Order in Connecticut and throughout New England. We are especially interested in finding new
members to our Order from the Greater Hartford, Connecticut area to
participate in our prayer life and our ministries.
Besides growing our Order
on a regional level, we are
seeking for people from Connecticut and New England who are interested in taking part in a
bi-monthly or monthly prayer group which would include a Eucharistic Liturgy. We
can accommodate a small group for prayer and would generally gather in
the evening at 7:00pm for members of the Order and anyone else who might like to join us for prayer and fellowship. One aspect of
a prayer group is to provide an opportunity for fellowship and
friendship and to plan social and liturgical activities together. We are also seeking local people who
have a desire to work with us to grow a diverse, open and affirming faith and worship community whose goal would be to
create an inclusive, open and welcoming independent Catholic parish. We know this is a
challenging concept for many Catholics who are accustomed to going to a church
building where they have all the "trappings" of a church readily available and in place. We
can't offer you a "Crystal Cathedral" or stained glass windows or church pews.
Our goal is to gather dedicated people who want to plant the "seeds of faith" and
have the desire to find others who are willing to help us grow them. We are not seeking to lead people away from their present Church.
While anyone is welcome to pray and worship with us, we are mainly seeking those Catholics and others who have become estranged from the Church, who have not been to Church in years, or who feel alienated and disenfranchised by the mainline Church for one reason or another and who desire to
renew their relationship with God within an emerging Catholic family of faith that is open, inclusive and Spirit-led.
So,
whether you're interested in joining our Order, or a prayer group, or
becoming an active member of a mission or a parish in our Jurisdiction, please contact us. We'd love to hear from you.
We are also interested in meeting people from other open and affirming Independent Catholic
communities in Connecticut and elsewhere. We belong to a new Independent Catholic Jurisdiction called the
Metropolitan Diocese of Hope
of the
TRINITARIAN CATHOLIC CHURCH. We
feel obliged to remind people that we are not the Roman Catholic Church.
We are a Canonical Religious Order with valid Apostolic Succession through the Trinitarian
Catholic Church. Information about the
T.C.C. can be found on our
website.
Our Order
celebrated its tenth year anniversary on March 15, 2005. We held our first General Chapter Meeting at Wisdom House in Litchfield, Connecticut in May 0f 2005 for all the members and candidates to our Order.
In addition,
the FDP adopted a beautiful, new Rule which can be downloaded from this website.
We encourage you to use the prayer book daily in order to join in the
spiritual life of the Order.
Pax et Bonum!
TRINITARIAN CATHOLIC CHURCH
Metropolitan Diocese of Hope
Franciscans of Divine Providence
Mission of Saint Francis Seraph
Res: 967 Elms Common Drive, #212 Rocky Hill, Connecticut 06067-1816
