Congratulations to our confreres Elizah Terua and Sylvester Namuno, pictured here with our Capuchin brother Bishop Don Lippert. They pronounced their final vows of poverty, chastity and obedience in a joyful and Spirit-filled Mass celebrated at Mother of the Divine Shepherd Cathedral, Mendi, on Wednesday, January 25th.  Custos of our Custody in Papua New Guines is our brother Neil Blue who received their vows. In notifying the Province of the blessed event, brother Neil writes:

  The Profession Mass was well attended by a good number of Capuchin brothers, religious men and women, priests of the Diocese of Mendi, and many faithful. Present in a special way were the parishioners from Ulga, Western Highlands Province, the home area of Br. Elizah Terua, as well as the faithful from Kumin and the Upper Mendi Parish, where Br. Sylvester Namuno carried out his pastoral ministry during the past year. Br. Elizah Terua also completed his pastoral ministry at Kumin Cathedral Parish.

   The celebration was prayerful and joyful, and everything went smoothly . . . We were also blessed by the presence of Bishop Don and Br. Ray, who joined the faithful in giving thanks to God for the gift of these two brothers to the Church and to our Capuchin fraternity. We give thanks to God for His faithfulness and for calling [our brothers Elizah and Sylvester] to commit themselves permanently to the Capuchin Franciscan way of life. We also thank the Province of St. Augustine for your continued support and fraternity with us.

'St. Nicholas' showed up for the evening meal at pur motherhouse, St Augustine Friary, in Pittsburgh. He left soon after his arrival, disappointed that, in spite of all the good friars we have there, no one left milk or cookies for him, An unintentional mistake, we promise . . .

    

    

More Christmas in the 'burgh . . .

Not far from New Baltimore, our brother Mark Pattock, OFM Cap., shared with us the photos of the Christmas concert in Cumberland, MD, at the Ss. Peter and Paul Shrine. Our deacon brother Ryan Schmeltzer, OFM Cap. (right), cantored and soloed for Holy Night; Assistant Pastor Mark Carter, OFM Cap. (left), led the participants in prayer and offered a reflection from the Gospel. In the program for the event, their contributions were noted:

 Thanks . . . to our cantor, Deacon Ryan Schmeltzer, who has shared his time & beautiful voice with us. . . . Our thanks to Fr. Mark & all the Capuchin Friars for their dedication & support to our community & to the Shrine as they celebrate 150 years of service in Cumberland this year

The Friends of the Shrine of SS Peter & Paul, Inc. is a 501c3 non-profit group formed to preserve, protect & maintain our holy, historic & beautiful Catholic Shrine in Cumberland. MD, a place for Saints & Sinners to worship and pray & to feel the presence of the Lord. Built in 1848, the Shrine celebrated 175 years in 2023. Our group is solely responsible for the maintenance & upkeep of the Shrine . . .

MERRY CHRISTMAS & GOD BLESS!

   

 

PNGChapter

  At their triennial Chapter, our brothers in the Custody of St. Michael the Archangel, Papua New Guinea, elected the friars who will serve in leadership for the next three years.

Neil Blue, OFM Cap., Custos
Onesmus Wambua, OFM Cap., 1st Councilor
Joseph Chacko, OFM Cap., 2nd Councilor
Al Carver, OFM Cap., 3rd Councilor
Venantius Valuta, OFM Cap.,4th Councilor

PNG Council 2025 2028
In the photo are our brothers (l-r) Venantius Valuta, Provincial Robert Marva,
Al Carver, Custos Neil Blue, Joseph Chacko and Onesmus Wambua.

  As prescribed by our Rule of Life and Constitutions, leadership is elected by the gathered Chapter of friars every three years. The Custos is the term for the minister of all the friars of a Custody. This chapter was held the week of November 24th, 2025. The presider of the Chapter was the Provincial Minister of our St. Augustine Province, Robert Marva, OFM Cap. 

  This year's celebration of our friars' Jubilees took place on Friday, October 19th. Although not all of our "celebrants" were able to be present (Puerto Rico and Papua New Guinea require quite a drive), we recalled each as the Province rendered its thanksgiving to the Lord for the graces given them in their lives and ministries. Our Provincial Bob Marva was the main celebrant, and Diamond Jubilarian Bill Gillum, OFM Cap., offered his reflections as homilist.

See more photos . . .

PeterToRot2PeterToRot3  On Sunday, October 19th in Vatican City, all attention was focused on the lives of the the men and women celebrated in the rites of Canonization. Among those elevated was Peter To Rot, the first saint from Papua New Guinea, recognized as a martyr in his roles as a tireless catechist and faithful spouse. PPNG Canonization00 Neileter was executed by Japanese occupation forces during World War II for his steadfast defense of Christian monogamy and his refusal to threaten the integrity of his ministry.

  Our friars have lived and worked in Papua New Guinea since 1955, and the event has been a special gift for the men and women of the island country. In Rome for the festivities was our brother Neil Blue, OFM Cap., First Councilor and Vocation Director of our Custody of St. Michael the Archangel there. He lives and works from Goroka's St. Hippoytus Fraternity. 

See more photos . . . and our Mendi celebration , , ,

Kyra Koons, our Cap Corps Volunteers director, related the events
of the volunteers' retreat to Alverno in October:

Here at Cap Corps we always say retreats come at the perfect time…and this one was no different! The Weekend of October 17-19, the volunteers enjoyed time away to reset as a community, pray, relax and soak up the peace of Alverno. We were joined by a handful of friars who supported the retreatants not only by cooking, leading reflections and celebrating Mass, but also by being with us in community and fellowship.

Check out the photos . . .

Check out the opportunities!
We've got some dates for you . . .

ComeSee0

See the opportunities for men who are seriously discerning
a vocation to our Capuchin Franciscan way of life. We're inviting you to join us - come and see!

 SOLVOWS Federico  SOLVOWS Pablo

Congratulations to our brothers Federico Viquez, OFM Cap., and Pablo Lopez, OFM Cap.,
on their Solemn Profession of Vows on Saturday, August 16th.

The photos from the event have arrived!
See the snapshots by our confrere Ben Duphiney, OFM Cap., on our Gallery . . . .

View the Photo Gallery!

Page 2 of 19