The Fallen Order

Francis used to say, “The time will come in which this Order, loved by God, will be so disrespected by the bad example of evil friars that it will be ashamed to go out in public.  But they who in that time will come to join the Order, will be led only by the working of the Holy Spirit, and flesh and blood will raise no stain on them, and they will be blessed by the Lord.  Unfortunately, good deeds will not be found in them, since charity which makes the saints work hard grows cold.  Great temptations will come upon them; and those in that time will have been found more worthy than their predecessors.  But woe to those who, in the form and appearance only of religious conversation, applauding themselves in their wisdom and confident in their learning, be found idle.  These idle are not acting in the works of virtue, in the way of repentance and in the pure observation of the Gospel, which, by their profession they are bound to observe pure and simply.  For these will not persistently resist the temptation which shall be permitted to happen for the proving of the elect.  But those who have been tried and approved will receive the crown of life, which, in the meantime, the malice of the reprobate will urge them on.

                        Mirror of Perfection, Section IV, Chapter 70

Every organization shifts and focuses on a new purpose.  Every organization eventually gets caught up in a mix of dead tradition and moves ahead in purposes grown out of lowest human endeavors.   Most organizations cannot remain in the way of Jesus, no matter how godly or inspired the founders.  Organizations become redundant, self-consuming, a blight on society.  This is not a possibility, it is a prophecy, a certainty that must eventually unfold.  The only way to avoid this is to have the leaders constantly examine themselves and their work to determine if it is following the path Jesus established in the gospels.