Manatí native professes vows as Capuchin Franciscan friar

MT. CALVARY, WISC. - Francisco Javier Rodriguez has taken his first vows as a Capuchin Franciscan Friar in a Mass held in the Chapel at St. Lawrence Seminary. Br. Javier, a native of Manatí, Puerto Rico, joined the Capuchins following a career serving others, most recently as an attorney helping formerly incarcerated citizens with Legal Action of Wisconsin.

“With every job that I had, there was always a sense like there's something more, something different for me that I haven't found yet,” said Br. Javier. “Once I started discerning, that thought and that feeling kind of went away… The more I thought about it, the more at ease I felt, the more free I felt.

Br. Javier was introduced to the Capuchins, a worldwide men’s religious order, while a parishioner at St. Francis of Assisi Parish, a Capuchin-run parish in Milwaukee. Prior to joining the Capuchins, Br. Javier worked in public broadcasting in Puerto Rico and at the Administration of Vocational Rehabilitation working with people with disabilities. Br. Javier earned his law degree from New England Law in Boston and a dual bachelor’s degree in journalism and political science from Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio.

Br. Javier will reside in a Capuchin community in Chicago, where he will begin his formation for the priesthood at Catholic Theological Union in Hyde Park.

About the Capuchin Franciscan Province of St. Joseph

The mission of the friars of the Capuchin Franciscan Province of St. Joseph is one of transforming the world through reverence. Established at Mt. Calvary Wisconsin in 1857, the Capuchins are an international community of friars following the rule of St. Francis of Assisi. The brothers of the Capuchin Franciscan Province of St. Joseph, headquartered in Detroit, serve in a variety of ministries including social service, schools, chaplaincy, retreat house and parishes in Michigan, Wisconsin, Illinois, and Montana.

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