At the end of the celebration of the "Passion of the Lord" at the Holy Sepulchre, the Franciscan friars gathered for the traditional practice of the Via Crucis / Via Dolorosa guided by the Father Custos of the Holy Land Fra Francesco Patton and the Vicar of the Custody Fra Ibrahim Faltas. The Jerusalemite Via Crucis, a moment of devotion which is felt very deeply by the faithful: despite the difficult circumstances, it was attended by many local believers and even small groups of pilgrims. From […]
The month of September is important for the Franciscans in formation. Two significant events take place in this period: the ceremony of vestition to enter the novitiate and the first profession of the vows which brings to an end what is known as the “year of trial”, i.e. the novitiate. These are two of the decisive passages for access to the state of religious in the canonical sense. There were two dates this year: Saturday 3 September, the day of the first profession […]
In the Zillertal, one of the most beautiful valleys in the Tyrol, you can admire the Granatkapelle or the “Garnet Chapel”, designed by the architect Mario Botta, in honour of the Blessed Engelbert Kolland, an Austrian martyr who came from this valley. “Abuna Malak” – or “Father Angel”, as he was called in Damascus – together with Fra Manuel Ruiz Lopez, Fra Carmelo Bolta Bañuls and the eight other martyrs, will be canonized on 20 October in St Peter’s Square, […]
The celebrations dedicated to the eight hundredth anniversary of the meeting between St Francis of Assisi and the Sultan Al-Malik Al-Kamel, organized in Damietta and Cairo by the Franciscans of the Egyptian Province “The Holy Family” came to an end on Sunday 3rd March. The Egyptian setting directly evokes the meeting that took place 800 years ago between the Saint and the Sultan and which, even today, speaks to all those who have made dialogue and coexistence their everyday life. […]
