THE IMPORTANT ROLE OF THE FORMATOR IN THE INITIAL FORMATION TO BE A FRIAR MINOR

Abstract

In this article, the writer argues that to form the candidates or the young Friars to be a mature Friar Minor, it needs to have a good and qualified formator. He has to be trained in this field. Good character or has a special degree in other fields will not be enough to be a good formator. In order to carry out his ministry, he has to understand a suitable pedagogy and Christian anthropology of the human person. Moreover, in his training, he needs to understand the world of subconscious or unconscious which often blocks the process of self-transcendence in the candidates or the young Friars. Through his own formation to be a formator, he himself can know and embrace his own strengths and his vulnerability or limitation. This insight and experience enable him to form the candidates or the young Friars according to the spirit of the Order of Friars Minor.