The Custos of the Holy Land, Brother Pierbattista Pizzaballa, together with several friars of the Saint Saviour’s community, welcomed Brother Mauro Jöhri, Minister General of the Capuchins, who is spending several days in the country.
The fraternal meeting took place in the community room. Brother Mauro arrived just as the new furniture was put in place, a sort of inauguration before the traditional exchange of greetings with other Christian communities.
It was in a much more informal and unscripted atmosphere than those visits, that the sons of Saint Francis met. After an informal exchange of greetings, the Custos addressed his welcome to the Minister General and the friars who accompanied him.
Thanking him, Brother Mauro Jöhri addressed the Custos, telling him how important he feels is the Franciscan presence in this country as a witness of men of peace.
The delegation then went up to the roof before celebrating Midday Prayer with the Saint Saviour’s community and sharing a meal in the refectory.
The Capuchins in the Holy Land
The Capuchins were sent throughout the Middle East by Richelieu’s Gray Eminence, Francis Joseph Leclerc du Tremblay, himself a Capuchin, at the beginning of the 17th century. But it was only in 1933 that the friars in Lebanon acquired property in Jerusalem’s Talbiye neighborhood, not far from Jaffa Gate, in present day Israel (1).
The Jerusalem convent was intended to receive young friars who would come to specialize in biblical sciences and for friars visiting the Holy City. But the house had barely been completed when it was requisitioned by the British during their mandate for use as a prison. Then, after the State of Israel was created (1948), it became a psychiatric hospital. In the 1980s, following a long proceeding, the Israeli government restored the property to the Order.
For the rest - everything still has to be done. The friars returned in 1986 and moved into a little house in the garden, where they still live. They presently number six, of whom five are permanent (four Italians and a Turk). Some are studying at the Flagellation; others guide pilgrim groups.
The Minister General came to gain an impression of this house: a convent that had been transformed into a hospital and 10,000 square meters of land. The Order must make some necessary decisions. Should the house renew it’s original aim as a house of formation, or should it become something else?
There is no lack of projects, and it is up to the Minister to evaluate the wealth and poverty of each one. “I could not see myself making a decision without coming. I need to see for myself.”
This is Brother Mauro Jöhri’s first visit to the Holy Land: “I am very moved and touched. Celebrating the Mass of the Resurrection this morning in the Holy Sepulcher during this time of Advent, seeing and touching the places sanctified by Christ, is a powerful experience.”
Today there are 11,000 Capuchins in 103 countries around the world.
Mab
(1) We recall that from 1291 to 1847 it was forbidden to religious Orders to establish themselves in the country.
For more information: www.ofmcap.org