Franciscan Renewal Center

Newspapers, magazines and blogs are writing about us all the time! Watch our Facebook page to see the most current articles about the Franciscan Renewal Center.

Ministry & Liturgy Magazine ~ "2006 Visual Arts Awards: Devotional Art & Spaces Best of Show: St. Clare Blessed Sacrament Chapel"

Architecture designed to blend with the existing architecture of the Franciscan Center. Exterior of exposed and hand-finished plaster concrete masonry. Interior of walnut tongue-and-groove flooring, siding, and built-in seating with vinyl seat cushions. Full text here (off-site link)

The Environmental Excellence Award ~ March 2005

The Valley Forward Association presents The Environmental Excellence Awards Program, Award of Merit to the Franciscan Renewal Center... for St. Clare Blessed Sacrament Chapel, In Recognition Of Outstanding Environmental Achievement.

Food Establishment Inspection "Gold" Seal Award ~ January 2005

The Maricopa County Environmental Services Environmental Health Division inspections for the last three inspected dates awarded the Franciscan Renewal Center the top "Gold" seal award, which means that this food establishment scored in the top 25% range.

Phoenix New Times Best Of Phoenix Award, September 2003 ~ "Best Place to Find Peace of Mind"

The growing city we live in always seems to be in a state of building. With that comes a lot of noise and debris, and the traffic seems to be getting worse, too. Finding a quiet spot to sit and collect your thoughts seems like an impossible dream... except we have the Franciscan Renewal Center. The former tourist resort has been a place to retreat to for solace since the '50s. The lush and spacious gardens are the desert's version of Eden within our urban sprawl. Fountains trickle sweet melodies and the breeze whispers through the trees. Come sit, smell the flowers and remember that there is more to life than work, bills and responsibility. Relax and clear your mind in an oasis amidst the concrete jungle.

Phoenix New Times Best Of Phoenix Award, September 2003 ~ "Best Place to Walk Away Your Worries"

As a rule, we snicker at anything resembling a religious experience -- particularly one that's being used as the center of a friend's birthday celebration. But when another guest insisted, "Oh, be a good sport," we rolled our eyes and went to the unusual fete -- at a labyrinth located behind the Franciscan Renewal Center.

It wasn't so bad. Peaceful, actually. Not that walking a labyrinth will change your life -- at least not in our book. Still, we did find it invigorating, in spite of our cynical selves. The act of walking a labyrinth is an ancient one, practiced by people for centuries. It is not a maze; there is no way to get lost. The journey of twists and turns through the labyrinth is thought to represent the journey through life. Some people say they find their god; others believe the act can heal.

This particular labyrinth, located in a quiet patch of desert at the foot of Mummy Mountain, is constructed of river rocks; it is roughly the size of a small residential swimming pool. Each of the nine guests in our party took turns slowly walking between the rocks, winding around and around and ending up in the middle, where folks have left trinkets and notes scrawled on scraps of paper and business cards, à la Jerusalem's Wailing Wall. Then back again.

Maybe it was the beautiful, almost-spring day, maybe the company, maybe the labyrinth itself, but we felt happy and peaceful upon completing our short journey, which lasted no more than five minutes round-trip. We didn't snicker once.

Around the outside of the labyrinth, people have used rocks to leave their own messages: "Love" -- "Peace" -- "Why not?"

Why not, indeed.