Secular Franciscan Order
Coat of arms of the order.
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| Abbreviation | OFS, Secular Franciscan |
|---|---|
| Motto |
Pax et bonum ("Peace and the good") |
| Formation | 1221 |
| Type | Catholic public association |
| Headquarters | Rome, Italy |
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Minister General
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Kauser Tibor [1] |
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Key people
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Francis of Assisi – founder |
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Main organ
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International Council |
| Website | CIOFS |
The Secular Franciscan Order (Latin: Ordo Franciscanus Saecularis, postnominal abbreviation O.F.S.; also called the Third Order Secular) is a community of Catholic men and women in the world who seek to pattern their lives after Jesus in the spirit of Francis of Assisi. Secular Franciscans are tertiaries, or members of the Third Order of Saint Francis founded by Francis of Assisi 800 years ago.
Originally known as the Brothers and Sisters of Penance, the Order is open to any Catholic not bound by religious vows to another religious order and is made up of both the laity (men and women non-clergy) and secular clergy (deacons, priests, and bishops).
Although Secular Franciscans make a public profession and are consecrated, they are not bound by public vows as are religious living in community. The Third Order Regular (TOR), which grew out of the Third Order Secular, do make religious vows and live in community.
Because the Order belongs to the spiritual family of the Franciscans, the Holy See has entrusted its pastoral care and spiritual assistance to the Franciscan First Order (Order of Friars Minor, Order of Friars Minor Capuchin, and Order of Friars Minor Conventual) and Franciscan Third Order Regular (TOR), which belong to the same spiritual family.
The preaching of St. Francis, as well as his example, exercised such a powerful attraction on people that many married men and women wanted to join the First or the Second Order, but this being incompatible with their state of life, Francis found a middle way and gave them a rule animated by the Franciscan spirit. In the composition of this rule St. Francis was assisted by his friend Cardinal Ugolino di Conti, (later Pope Gregory IX).
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Wikipedia