On Sunday, February 22, all the friars of the Custody present in the houses in Italy – Naples, Rome (Delegation), and Montefalco – together with our students from Assisi and Florence, gathered for a day of fraternity on the occasion of the ostension of the body of Saint Francis of Assisi at the Basilica of Saint Francis in Assisi.
The day began with lunch together in Montefalco, a joyful and fraternal moment shared also with the five postulants of the Custody. During the meal, the Custos devoted about fifteen minutes to updating the friars on his recent trip to Syria, focusing in particular on the situation in the villages of the Idlib region.
In the afternoon, all the friars went to the Upper Basilica of Saint Francis. In the striking setting of the frescoes by Giotto, the Holy Mass of the First Sunday of Lent was celebrated at 3:30 p.m. Immediately afterward, accompanied by the Custos of the Sacred Convent of Assisi, the friars went to venerate the mortal remains of Saint Francis during the ostension. Thanks also to the hospitality of the friars of Assisi, it was possible to remain for a long time in prayer before the Saint’s body, entrusting to the Lord the Custody, the friars, and the intention for peace throughout the Middle East.
At 7:00 p.m., the Custos presided over Second Vespers of the First Sunday of Lent at the Porziuncola, together with the Custos of Saint Mary of the Angels and the Provincial of the Seraphic Province. The day concluded fraternally with dinner at a pizzeria.
It was truly a beautiful and intense day, lived in fraternity, prayer, and in remembrance of our origins. Standing before Francis meant standing before our founder, before the origin of our charism and our vocation.
Photo of Fr. Gianfranco P. Ostuni
