Capuchin Poor Clare Sisters Melville

August Resource: Creating Holy Friendships with St Francis

We continue to celebrate the special jubilee year of St Francis 2026! St Francis of Assisi and St Clare of Assisi were known to share a special friendship: a holy friendship that was grounded in their mutual love for the poor, crucified Christ and a deep desire to live according to the gospel.

We all need friends to grow in our faith. Friendships come in many forms and some are based on mutual interests (eg sports) but when that interest is no longer there due to circumstances, the friendships often fade. Other friendships are temporary based on our state of life at the time (eg. school, university or work) but when we move on to another stage in life, these friendships often fade too.

Holy friendships have a common goal: a desire to go to heaven and to take our friends with us! Many Saints are known to have been friends with other saints during their lives: St Francis and St Clare, St Ignatius of Loyola and St Francis Xavier, St Teresa of Avila and St John of the Cross and most recently St John Paul II and St Teresa of Calcutta, just to name a few.
"Iron sharpens Iron", as Scripture tells us!

St Thomas Aquinas defined love as "willing the good of the other" and this is a perfect guideline for any holy friendship. Our Lord gave us another one: "to be willing to lay down our lives for our friends". Would we be willing to lay down our lives for our friends? And when we look at our friendships, do we think that our friends would be willing to lay down their lives for us? Let us pray for our friends and for ourselves too.

Tomorrow (11 August) is the feast day of St Clare of Assisi, the founder of the Poor Clares. It is a very special day for us every year and we will celebrate it and pray for all of you. Let us ask St Clare to pray for us to find some holy friends for us so that we can help each other on our way to heaven.

of Mariannhill - South AfricaMedia for Better World Africa

Yesterday (30 July) was the Feast day of Blessed Solanus Casey, a humble American Capuchin Friar who was well known and beloved as the Friar who answered the door of his monastery and the comfort and healing he brought to many of the visitors.

Bernard Francis Casey, nicknamed Barney, was born in November 1870 and died on the 31st of July 1957. As a child he contracted diphtheria which permanently damaged his voice and he lost two sisters to the disease as well. Father Casey nearly did not become a priest, as he struggled in the seminary in Milwaukee where classes at the time were taught in either German or Latin which he did not know.

But our good Lord had great plans for Father Casey and while praying in front of the statue of our Lady, he heard a spiritual voice telling him to go to Detroit. He then joined the Capuchin Friars in Detroit and took the religious name Solanus after Saint Francis Solanus with whom he shared a love for the violin. He was often found playing the violin in the chapel for our Lord. He was ordained a priest in 1904 but due to his academic limitations during his studies, he was only ordained as a simplex priest. A simplex priest cannot hear confessions or preach at Holy Mass.

His ministry therefore could have been limited, but he found God's plan for him unfolding as he was assigned to be the doorkeeper of the Monastery. Slowly people started to flock to him for his prayers and advice and he enrolled many thousands of people into the Seraphic Mass Association. After a while he was asked by his superiors to keep track of the prayers answered for the people which he enrolled as there were so many people reporting back to be cured of illnesses and prayers answered.

In 1929 during the Great Depression, Father Casey also played a fundamental role in the formation of the Capuchin Soup kitchen at St Bonaventure's, as thousands of people needed food daily due to losing their jobs.

Father Casey struggled with eczema later in his life and his health deteriorated over a long period during which he never complained. The friars only knew how he was feeling based on the way he was walking up the stairs. Running if he felt well or slowly limping when his health was poor.

Father Casey died from erysipelas, a bacterial infection of the skin on 31st of July 1957. His last words were reportedly: "I give my soul to Jesus Christ." Father Casey was beatified by Pope Francis in 2017 and we are looking forward in hope to the day that he might be canonized a Saint.

We can learn from Father Casey a few valuable lessons:
- Although so many people came to him and miraculous healings were reported, he always remained a humble friar, living a life of quiet holiness
- One day he was teased by a fellow friar due to his wispy voice, but his only answer was: "God can hear me!" He focused on what and especially who was most important in his life
- And lastly, he always thanked God for all the blessings in his life, the blessings he received and the blessings that were still to come. His motto was: "Thank God ahead of time!"

Let us pray for the intercession of Blessed Solanus Casey in our lives and conclude with a quote by him which might be applicable to all of us: "We must be faithful to the present moment or we will frustrate the plan of God for our lives."

Blessed Solanus Casey, pray for us!

Two of our Franciscan Brothers have been staying at our Monastery and have completed their 30-day retreat in preparation for their Solemn Vows. They are depicted with us and our Chaplain, Fr Christopher Neville below.

We continue to pray for our brothers January Kasereka Saambili and Paul Kileya Kapinga and we pray for vocations to all three orders of the Franciscan Family.

St Francis, pray for us.

July Resource of our Franciscan Calendar for 2026 to honour the special Jubilee year of St Francis: making friends with Lady Poverty

St Francis of Assisi and St Clare of Assisi thought of poverty as essential in imitating the poor and crucified Lord Jesus Christ. St Francis talked about his "Lady Poverty" at all times and was especially fond of her. How can we in this month of July make friends with Lady Poverty to get ever closer to our Lord?

Maybe in this month we can concentrate on reducing waste in our lives. Whether this is wasting money, resources or our time, is an individual choice. Scarceness makes creative and we would like to share some ways of making the most of whatever little one might have:

- carrier nets of oranges make excellent kitchen scourers
- yoghurt and ice cream containers can be used as storage containers instead of throwing them away (or can be donated to soup kitchens which are often grateful to receive them to pass them on)
- even paint buckets can be used to grow spinach or herbs in them as one of our sisters shows us in her "little garden"

Maybe this month before throwing an item away, look at it and think: can I use this for something or pass it on to someone that might use it?

Poverty can come in many ways. Even our bodies get "poorer" over time and we need to find ways to accept it. St Clare of Assisi was ill for many years of her life but still spent her time making liturgical items like purificators from her bed which she sent to the poorest parishes. God loves us in our weakness and we are loved and cared for by Him from conception until natural death. Our suffering can be redemptive if we allow Him to use it.

Pax et Bonum, and pray for us as we pray for you.

of Mariannhill - South AfricaMedia for Better World Africa

On Friday, 10th of July 2026 we celebrated the Feast day of St Veronica Giuliani, a Capuchin Saint which is also the Feast Day of our Abbess. Every year on the feast day of our abbess we present the work of our hands. The Capuchin nuns here at Melville have been working for weeks to present their offerings which include liturgical vestments and linen, rosaries and chaplets, bracelets, baked goods, plants from the garden, knitted and beaded items.

Every year this is a special occasion for us as we can thank our abbess for all that she does for us every day.
Please pray for us as we continue to pray for all of you.

of Mariannhill - South AfricaMedia for Better World Africa

June Resource: Repairing the house of the Lord with St Francis

When St Francis stepped into a derelict church and saw the St Damiano Crucifix in 1205, he heard a voice that told him:

"Francis, go and repair my house, which, as you see, is falling into ruin".

We are all called to build up the church as we are living stones (1 Peter 2:5) and the first step of any kind of activity should always be prayer. St Francis was a man of prayer and a deep spiritual life and like him, we should ground any activity in prayer first.

St Francis in his testament urged the friars to pray this prayer whenever they entered a church and it is a great reminder for us of his presence in the tabernacle whenever we enter a church also:

"We adore you,
Lord Jesus Christ,
in all your churches
throughout the whole world
and we bless you
because by your holy cross
you have redeemed the world."

Do we pray daily for the Catholic Church? And our Pope? And all our priests? And for all Christians? Because we are all the living stones that make up the church.

For June, to celebrate the Year of St Francis, it would be good to visit our Lord more in the tabernacle. Why not make time for a holy hour in front of the tabernacle? We could arrive half an hour early before Mass and stay a little longer if there is not enough time during the week. Or we could attend a weekday Mass and stay a little longer if the church is still open.

We are blessed here at Melville where our Lord is continually with us in the Blessed Sacrament exposed on the Altar. Let us make more time for visiting Him who is always waiting for us.

We would like to extend an invitation to all Junior Franciscan Girls of the ages of 16 and above to join us for one week during this special jubilee Year of St Francis. Pray with the sisters, learn more about St Clare and the life of the Capuchin Poor Clares in South Africa.

For more details contact us on 072 571 8700 or 063 116 2875

Franciscans Mariannhill DioceseYoung Franciscans - Durban RegionDiocese of Mariannhill - South AfricaDiocese of KokstadArchdiocese of DurbanUmzimkulu Diocese YOUTHMedia for Better World Africa

Resource for May: in the month of May pray the Franciscan Crown Rosary!

The Franciscan Crown Rosary also known as the Rosary of the Seven Joys dates back to the year 1422 when a young man after entering the order of the Franciscans as a novice was not allowed to decorate a statue of our Lady with fresh flowers as he was used to do.

As he contemplated leaving the order because he feared he was lacking in devotion to our Lady, he saw a Vision of the Blessed Virgin who told him to weave for her a crown of roses from his prayers instead.

Our Lady requested the young friar to say one Our Father and ten Hail Mary's in honor of seven joyous occasions in her life: (1) the Annunciation, (2) the Visitation, (3) the birth of Christ, (4) the adoration of the Magi, (5) the finding of Jesus in the Temple, (6) the resurrection of Our Lord, and (7) the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin into Heaven.

The young novice prayed as instructed and as the novice master passed by, he saw an angel weaving a wreath of roses. After every tenth rose, he inserted a golden lily. When the wreath was finished, the angel placed it on the head of the novice.

The novice master demanded under holy obedience that the novice explain to him the meaning of the vision. The Crown of seven joys soon spread to the entire Franciscan order. Later, two Hail Marys were added to make the total of the Hail Marys equal to seventy-two, the number of years that Our Lady is said by Franciscans to have lived on earth. At the end of the Rosary, a Hail Mary, Glory be and Our Father were added for the intention of the Pope.

How to pray the Franciscan Crown:

1. Make the Sign of the Cross.

2. Pray the Opening Prayer“O God, come to my assistance. O Lord, make haste to help me. Glory be tothe Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning,is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.”

3. Start at the Bead closest to the centre piece: Our Father and announce the first mystery. Pray 10 Hail Marys. 1x Glory Be.

4. Repeat for the other 6 mysteries listed above.

5. Below the centre piece say the additional 2 Hail Marys to make the total number of Hail Marys 72.

6. Pray for the intentions of the Pope 1x Our Father, 1x Hail Mary, 1x Glory Be.

7. There are different ways to finish the rosary. You can use the usual prayers at the end of a rosary, or make a simple sign of the Cross or say St. Francis of Assisi’s Prayer before the Cross: “We adore you, Most Holy Lord Jesus Christ, here and in all your churches throughout the world, and we bless You, because by Your holy cross you have redeemed the world.”

What a beautiful devotion to honour our Lady in this month!

We are still in the Season of Easter. How do we know that? Just look at the colour of your priest's vestments on Sunday!

We have gone in a few weeks from Lent (purple for penance and rose for rejoicing at the midpoint at Laetare Sunday) to Easter (white/gold for joy) and will after the red of Pentecost (red for passion/Martyrs and Holy Spirit) soon be back to green for ordinary time. Everything at Holy Mass has meaning. Whether the flowers are opulent at High Feast days or missing like during Advent and Lent, it all signals to us what is going on in the Church's calendar.

As Capuchin Poor Clares one of our activities of simple work in the monastery is to sew liturgical vestments. A few examples of Chasubles and Stoles are shown below, but we also make Albs, Chalice veils, Palls, Purificators and Altar cloths. And of course, our own habits are also made by us here in the Monastery.

If you are interested in ordering any liturgical items, please Sr Irene via WhatsApp on 063-116-2875. Prices vary based on materials and designs but Sr Irene will be able to assist you with any questions you may have. Please note that items are made to size so we do not keep any stock. Ordering in advance is essential.

Hopefully you still have a few Easter eggs left to celebrate the Easter season before it draws to a close. Please remember to pray for us as we are praying for you.

of Mariannhill - South AfricaMedia for Better World AfricaArchdiocese of Durban

Finding Joy with St Francis - Desert Days Part 3 - final part

"Be still and know that I am God" - Psalm 46:10

Our plates are full. So full that nothing else can fit. How do we hunger for God when we are always full to the maximum?

We need silence. To empty ourselves out. It might feel impossible right now to find even one day to go to the "desert". That alone tells us that there is too much on our plate. We need very little but we want it all.

St Francis teaches us to let go of all of it. His life is a testimony on detaching from everything that is unnecessary. But how could we live like that? Maybe it is not so much about giving everything away but about owning nothing. So that we are not owned by anything. Even the good things in our life can own us when they have a hold on us. But we need to be free so we can follow the Lord truly.

Everything we have is temporary. God entrusts everything to us but we do not own it. We need to detach from everything to be free. We need to spend time with the Lord to be able to hear his voice. How do we recognise the Shepherd's voice when we do not listen for it by reading Scripture regularly? Because we do not make the time?

A desert day could be spend at a Monastery, following the time table of the Monastery. Praying along the Liturgy of the Hours, attending Holy Mass, praying the Rosary and the Divine Mercy Chaplet and spending time in front of the Blessed Sacrament are the best ways we can spend our time. It might take a lot to take a day out but it will always be worth it.

A visitor that was at our Monastery for a week on retreat last year said the following when he left: "I am leaving reality and I am going back to unreality." Come and See.

of Mariannhill - South AfricaMedia for Better World Africa