Father Joseph Eddy Shares His Thoughts on 800 Year Celebration of Mercedarians

St. Raymond Nonnatus Foundation Celebration the Mercedarian's 800 Years

The St. Raymond Nonnatus Foundation for Freedom, Family, and Faith was founded in 2015 through the guidance of the Holy Spirit. After years of prayer and discernment by the friars of Mercedarian Religious Order, an initial planning group made up of Mercedarian Friars and Third Order members came together in prayer and fellowship. The result was the "birth" of the new foundation. Fr. Matthew H. Phelan, O. de M. – the current Spiritual Moderator – and Fr. Joseph Eddy, O. de M. were the two friars assigned to the initial Board of Directors.

The foundation is proud to be associated with the Order the the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mercy, the Mercedarian Religious Order. The fourth vow of the Mercedarian's is to "give their lives for those who may be in danger of losing their faith."

Father Joseph's Thoughts on the 800 Year Celebration

In St. Petersburg, Florida, a big celebration of the "800 Year Anniversary of the Mercedarian Religious Order" was celebrated the first weekend of May. Other wonderful celebrations were held in the other Mercedarian communities this past year, as well.

Father Joseph offers his thoughts:

"Since 1984, the Order of Mercy has been present in St. Petersburg, FL. We have been involved in a number of ministries including parochial work, prison ministry, and outreach to the hispanic Catholic community. The friars present for 34 years in the “sunshine state” have bought their redemptive spirit and devotion to Mary to everything that they do.

On May 5th, 2018 the Florida Mercedarians formally celebrated the 800 Year Jubilee of the Order. Bishop Gregory Parks celebrated a Mass of Thanksgiving in the Cathedral of St. Jude the Apostle. Present were Mercedarian friars from various locations, the Mercedarian Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament, and the St. Petersburg Chapter of the Third Order. Various laity and benefactors of the Order were also present to give thanks to God for the give of the charism of redemption given to the Church for nine centuries.

After the Mass, a reception was held in the parish center of the cathedral. The event was meant to be entertaining and educational. First, Fr Tony Fortunato and Fr Ken Breen spoke about the opening of the first house in St. Petersburg in 1984. This was followed by a video showing pictures of the various Mercedarians present in the US Vicariate.

The next hour of the reception was filled with artistic expressions related to the foundation of the Order in Barcelona, Spain 1218. A short skit was presented on the life of St. Peter Nolasco. It focused on the profound call given to St. Peter to free those captives in danger of losing their faith. Young Peter struggles to discern if this “spirit” is really from God. There is resolution when Our Lady of Mercy appears to him confirming the desire of the Blessed Trinity.

After the skit, the Order’s connection to Spain is depicted by traditional Spanish dance. Carolina Esparza, a profession flamenco dancer, left the attendees in awe as she presented this 300 year old art form of Southern Spain.

The event paid homage to the Mercedarian evangelization of the Latin American peoples through tradition Mexican folk dance. The Ballet Folklorico Raices de Mexico directed by Adan Pintor was composed of over 20 children dressed in colorful native costume. For over a half an hour, these children brought joy and appreciation through their choreographed pieces.

All in all, the Florida 800th Anniversary celebration was a joy-filled opportunity to give thanks to God for the gift of the Redemptive ministry in the Church. Although the event was free, special collection was taken to support the Order’s non-profit: St Raymond Nonnatus Foundation for Freedom, Family, and Faith. The website for the foundation is www.nonnatus.org"

Pray for Us

Please pray for our friars both in the St. Petersburg area and our entire Order. We appreciate our friends, benefactors and our own "Mercedarian Family". We promise to keep your prayers close to our hearts as Mercedarians.

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