Our Retreat House Readies for Hermits
Our Capuchin brothers Jim Mungovan, Mark Carter and Kip Ledger have been assigned to initiate our Provincial Hermitage in Salisbury, PA. Alverno has been a part of our Province since 1929 and has welcomed groups of friars and lay men and women throughout its history. At our Chapter of 2025, friars voted to provide a space for brothers to be assigned in hermitage and the site of Alverno was the decided location for the new community.
Renamed the LaVerna Hermitage fraternity, the brothers are in the process of planning a place for their residence on the property. 
The popular English name of the mountain is Alverno, but the brothers decided to return to the Italian name of the mountain where Francis of Assisi spent time in prayer. It was on Mt. LaVerna in Tuscany where he experienced the imposition of the Stigmata on his body in 1224.
The construction/refurbishing of their new friary began on Monday, August 3rd - and the dumpster is in place to prepare for the necessary restructuring of the residence. It will house the three men and will make space for the stay of any guest friar who can take some time for their own hermitage experience.
Our brother Manuel "on a Mission"
From July 15-22, our roving preacher Manuel Avilés got the opportunity for a mission to Chimbote, Peru. At its beginning, he wroted on Facebook:
I have seen a true rediscovery of Christ in the face of the poor, marginalized and sick. Despite the limitations, God continues to touch the hearts of benefactors and collaborators who, with generosity and love, make it possible for this mission to continue bringing hope and dignity to those who need it most.
Friars Make the Vows of a Lifetime
We'll update you with photos of the event next week!
Br. Tommy Unfolds "Capuchin Contexts"
From July 7th–8th, our brother Tommy Piolata attended a small round-table symposium—organized by our Capuchin confrere Benjamin Johnson (Province of Australia)—on the early Capuchin reform. The title of the symposium was: Early Modern Capuchins in Context: Spirituality, Culture, and Catholic Reform. Our Province was one of its sponsors. Scholars from Australia, Italy, France, and the US gathered in Durham, England, to share research on different aspects of our early Capuchin roots. Tommy's contribution was entitled: The Marian Unfoldment of Christ's Absolute Primacy in St. Lawrence of Brindisi. St. Lawrence, a Doctor of the Church, was one of a line of Capuchin friars who dedicated themselves to study and writing.
Br. Tommy discussed the way in which Lawrence's doctrine on the primacy of Christ "unfolds" through a reflection on Mary, mother of Jesus. That is, as Lawrence had written, "it includes the joint-predestination of Mary, His Mother, and ultimately provides a basis for her participation in the Passion, when she stands next to her Crucified Son. In this regard, Lawrence even speaks of Mary's spiritual priesthood."
William Graham, OFM Cap. (1946-2026)
Our Capuchin brother, William (Bill) Graham, OFM Cap., passed to his eternal life in the Lord on Sunday, July 5, 2026, at our motherhouse, St. Augustine Friary in Pittsburgh, PA. It seems only fitting that he returned home to that friary on Friday, July 3, 2026. Sandwiched between those days was the celebration of American Independence Day on the 4th of July. He had often joked that he was born on Halloween, October 31, 1946, and we were gifted with another holiday to remember the bookends of his life. Anyone who knew Bill well would know that no other day could have been more appropriate for him. At heart, he was always a political junkie and dying soon after our national holiday was icing on the cake.
Bill was one-of-kind in so many ways. We know of no other friar who was an elected delegate to a party's political convention. In February 1976, he asked for and gained permission to run for the position as a delegate to the Democratic National Convention. The permission was given, and during that convention in August he was interviewed on national television about his support for then candidate-to-be Jimmy Carter as a Catholic priest. It was a controversial choice (Bill seemed to thrive on controversy), but Bill was convinced Carter was the right candidate for the time, although the party’s stance on abortion was not ideal. Few friars knew that the following year, in August 1977, he was so energized by his political experience of making a difference that at the advise of friends, he asked the Provincial Minister for permission to run for office as a Pennsylvania congressman in the 1978 congressional elections. While the request was not granted, he remained the junkie. In the end, politics is all about relationships, isn’t it: People dealing with people?
From our Novitiate: The Caperone
Check out the final edition of our Caperone
for this novitiate year 2025-2026
at San Lorenzo Friary in Santa Ynez, CA.
The new novitiate year starts in mid-July,
and we'll be waiting for their first issue of 2026-2027.
Prayer with us for our brothers as they make their vows as Capuchins --
and for those preparing for their own year as novices!
Ite Ad Joseph: Our newest Bishop Releases hIs Coat of Arms
We were sent the Coat of Arms of our brother bishop-elect Emilio Biosca Agüero.
The traditional practice of creating a Coat of Arms expresses, in symbol, the aspirations and goals of the new shepherd of the Lord's flock. It's designed and executed with the help of an artist who, after having heard these aspirations, creates the design to be approved by the candidate for the episcopacy.
The new bishop will be consecrated and installed on Saturday, July 11, 2:00pm, at St. John XXIII Parish in Fort Myers, FL. That event will be livestreamed on the website of the Diocese of Venice, FL where he will serve.
Our Br. Jim Walks the Capuchin Way
Our Br. Jim Mungovan can certainly be proud to have "walked the walk" in April-May 2026. He and his brother Anthony went to Italy's Province of the Marches (Marche) where the first roots of our Capuchin Franciscan life were planted in 1528. We've been celebrating and remembering those roots in these years leading up to our community's 500th Anniversary in 2028.
In the photo, our brother has arrived at the final point of the pilgrimage in Ascoli Picena, Italy, having walked 210 miles of the 233 mile cammino (the path or way in English). He texted the Province: I finished! One happy pilgrim!
Our Brother Tim Visits Our Mission in Papua New Guinea
In May, the fraternity in Washington, DC, joined in prayer and farewells for confrere Tim Rubeling, OFM Cap., one of our student friars studying for the priesthood at Catholic University there. Now in Papua New Guinea, Br. Tim is visiting the Custody in a trip arranged by the Custody's Minister, Neil Blue, OFM Cap. What follows is Tim's report from the South Pacific, but we're assured that he'll be back toward the end of July before his Solemn Profession alongside our brothers Kevin Campos, OFM Cap., Philip Paulson, OFM Cap. and Sam Roberts, OFM Cap. on Saturday, August 15, 2026 . . .
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