RIP: Friar Bede Ferrara, 86

At 9:15 on the evening of October 22nd, our brother, Fr. Bede L. Ferrara, OFM, passed peacefully to his eternal rest while in Hospice Care.  Fr. Bede was 86 years-old.

Louis Anthony, the son of Henry and Rose (Colangelo) Ferrara, was born in East Boston, MA on December 30, 1923.   Bede was received into the novitiate on July 14, 1944.  He made his first profession on July 15, 1945 and was admitted to solemn vows on July 15, 1948.  Fr. Bede was ordained priest on June 17, 1951.

Fr. Bede served as assistant pastor of Saint Anthony's in Troy for one year following his ordination; as assistant pastor of Saint Anthony Church, New York City from 1952-53 and as assistant pastor of Our Lady Help of Christians, Pittsburgh from 1953-55.

From 1955-58, while living at Saint Sebastian's in New York City, Bede ministered to the Third Order as Provincial Vice-Commissary.  In 1958 Fr. Bede was appointed Director of Vocations.  He chronicled 15 years as a "Franciscan Recruiter" in his book entitled: The Boom and the Echo.

Bede served as pastor of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church, Mount Vernon from 1973-76, and as pastor of Saint Leonard Church in Boston from 1976-79.  In January 1980 he moved to The Listening Place in Lynn.  It is from here that Fr. Bede continued his passionate ministry for preaching - retreats, parish missions and novenas - in addition to his work as writer and author. 

"We have successfully embraced in our Province men of diverse races and ethnic backgrounds, which has opened new avenues to give service through new ministries to new immigrants, reflecting the needs of today's people of God." 

"The Friars of my age are the link that connects the past to the present and beyond.  May you, likewise, share your gifts and faith with those who come after you, to show them the beauty of our Franciscan teachers of today and the years to come."

A Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated at St. Anthony Church in Troy, NY on Tuesday, October 26; and at St. Francis Friary in Andover, MA, on Thursday, October 28, with burial in the Friars' Cemetery.

"Friars must remember to offer suffrages for every deceased friar of the province, professed or novice.  In particular, each priest shall offer the Eucharist twice."  "When news of the death of a friar is received, a concelebrated Mass in his memory should be scheduled in the friaries of the province and the foundations."  On the thirtieth day after and on the first anniversary of the death of a confrere, professed or novice, the Eucharist shall be celebrated for him in the house to which he was assigned at the time of death" (PS-8, 1-3).

FRANCISCAN MISSION ASSOCIATES

Picture a Franciscan friar sitting at a desk, hour after hour, reading and writing letters to the faithful. He writes some to urge people to perform works of mercy. Others respond to spiritual questions and requests for prayers. You might say that it is a Christian image as old as St. Paul the Apostle, one that has been repeated countless times throughout the intervening centuries.

In the case of Father Bernard Dazzi, who founded the Franciscan Mission Associates in 1961, this traditional image takes an unusual turn. Nowadays, a religious order using American mass marketing techniques to exhort the faithful (and anyone else who would like to chip in) to help missionary work on a sweeping, national scale may not seem that unusual. But, back in 1961, it certainly seemed that way to Father Bernard and his fellow friars. Nevertheless, in keeping with a Franciscan tradition of "unusual undertakings" that might be said to go back to St. Francis himself (after all, Francis' final dispute with his father was about money he'd donated to the poor on his father's "behalf"), the Province gave its blessing.

Forty-eight years later - almost 25 years after Father Bernard went to meet the Lord - his missionary work continues, stronger than ever. The numbers can sometimes obscure the more important reality of Father Bernard's legacy. But they are worth considering.

• Father Bernard's first mailing - sent to 25,000 people almost 48 years ago in the Spring of 1961 - contained a holy card and a hand-painted shamrock medal in honor of St. Patrick. Another mailing went out for Christmas that year, containing 12Christmas Cards (some say the number was picked to honor the Apostles).
•  In 2008, the 40 individuals that continue the work of the Franciscan Mission Associates sent over 14 million letters and newspaper inserts to encourage men and women all over American to lend both financial and spiritual support to the Franciscan Mission through donations and prayers.
•  In the same year, FMA received almost 1 million responses from good people.
•  At the same time this was going on, FMA distributed over 44 million letters, envelopes, holy cards, spiritual enrollments and other types of literature - most of it for free - all designed to call people to learn about the Lord and the foreign missions.
•  And, in keeping with the future, FMA's website received over 16,000 visits this year - including over 3,300 people who made prayer requests as part of their visit.

One could simply jump to the "bottom line" and note that all this activity translated into significant financial resources that FMA was able to transfer to the Province for the needs of friars, both here and in the missions. But, as proud as Father Bernard would have been of this achievement, he would no doubt ask you to look beneath the surface.

Simple numbers like the ones just presented represent only the surface of Father Bernard's legacy. Beneath them rests the reality of almost half a century of countless exercises in the Lord's exhortation: "Ask and ye shall receive." And each gift, each request that someone pray for a special intention that has arrived over the years began with a decision by someone, somewhere to answer a call to act with mercy in Our Lord's name.

Father Robert Campagna, in a recent report sent to FMA's donors in his capacity as Provincial Minister put it this way:

For the past 49 years, FMA has been privileged to play a part in encouraging this process in millions of men and women.