Mercedarian friars proved their mettle years ago by stepping up to the plate to help victims of disease in a city overcome by despair.
Eight friars of the Order of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mercy heroically gave aid to the people of plague-stricken Palermo in 1625-26, and as a result died of contracting the disease, said Fr. Daniel Bowen, O. de M. Fr. Daniel is based at a Cleveland, OH parish and is the Order’s vocation director in the United States.
“These men generously offered their own lives to the people of Palermo,” he said, adding, “This shows that Christians have dealt with such troubles as the coronavirus before, and this will not keep us back from loving the Lord and one another.”
“Prompted by the demands of their fourth vow, these religious men centuries ago put themselves at the material and spiritual service of the plague-stricken people.”
The fourth vow of the Order of Mercy involves offering up one’s own life to ransom those Christians who are held captive because of their faith in Christ. The Order was founded in 1218 in Spain to redeem Christians held captive by Muslims.
“Other religious who had been infected went back after they recovered,” he added, “to serve those plague-stricken people without worrying about the risks.” He said that there was a ninth person in the effort who also died, a Mercedarian tertiary.
There were also three Mercedarian lay knights who voluntarily cared for victims of the plague during the 7th Crusade (13thC). Captured by Muslims and ordered to convert to Islam, they refused, were tortured and killed in Damietta, Egypt.
In response to the threat of the coronavirus, the Order’s Master General in Rome, Fr. Juan Carlos Saavedra Lucho, O. de M., wrote in a March 14 letter sympathizing with those suffering in a world that is “convulsed.” He asked that his friars around the world make a “Chain of Redemptive Love” dedicated to St. Joseph on March 19, his feast day.
This effort would be, he said, “…a sign of our concern for those most affected in the world. Together with all of you, I have the faith and hope that after testing, our faith increases and after the storm comes the calm; but we need to be signs of fraternal charity through the antidote of universal prayer in the Church. In this way, I invite you to make fraternal prayer among religious and the faithful in all Mercedarian communities be the footprints of our evangelizing mission.”
Thus, the Master General was asking his own Mercedarian friars to pray, and to pray together with their parishioners and those whom they serve in this effort.
His letter included a passage that could be used as a prayer:
“May this time of Lent en route towards Easter be a time of true fasting, conversion, and solidarity with what God wants from us. Let us follow the instructions provided by the various institutions concerned with the health of the world. Let us take care of our bodies with corporal hygiene and spiritual cleanliness. Let us help the new captives so that they can overcome the psychosis, the chaos, the anxiety and uncertainty of each day, showing that the Mercedarian is always at the side of the sick and needy.”
Friars of the Order of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mercy can be found in 22 countries, and mainly in the Americas, Italy and India. In the United States, they serve in parishes, hospitals and schools as well as marriage and prison ministry in Ohio, New York, Pennsylvania and Florida.
To learn more about the Mercedarian Friars USA, Contact Fr. Daniel Bowen, O. de M., at frdanielbowen@gmail.com, or Br. Dominic Whetzel, O. de M. at socialmediacoordinator.merced@gmail.com.
Or visit their website: OrderofMercy.org