On the morning of Thursday 22 May, the friars of the Custody of the Holy Land gathered in the Basilica of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem to celebrate a Thanksgiving Mass for the election of the new Pope, Leo XIV. The Eucharistic celebration was presided over by the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, and concelebrated by Mons. Adolfo Tito Yllana, the Apostolic Nuncio in Israel and Apostolic Delegate to Jerusalem and Palestine, and by Fra Francesco Patton, Custos […]
From 30 June to 28 July, the Franciscan friars who will make their solemn (perpetual) profession in October in Jerusalem spend a month in retreat in preparation for this step, which admits them conclusively into the Order of Friars Minor. This period is commonly known as the “canonical month,” as it is required by the Constitutions of the Order. “It is an instrument that the Order places at our disposal to explore in greater depth the various aspects of Franciscan […]
Br. Francesco Ielpo, OFM, current Custos of the Holy Land, has recently undertaken a series of significant visits to Christian communities in Syria, Lebanon, and Cyprus, bringing spiritual support and a message of hope in a context marked by profound difficulties. During his stay in Damascus, Br. Francesco visited the Church of St. Elias in Douilaa to express closeness to the community affected by the recent attack, and met the Patriarchal Vicar of the Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch and […]
Fr. Paul Zahner, the new Commissar of the Holy Land for Switzerland and the principality of Liechtenstein, and fr. Louis Bischof, secretary and bursar of the Commissariat, belonging to the Swiss Custody, arrived in Jerusalem from Switzerland the week before Advent. Fr. Paul Zahner, formerly guardian of the community, theologian and expert in Franciscan spirituality, succeeds in the position of Commissar his predecessor Gottfried Egger, who held this role for 20 years: this is the occasion for fr. Paul to […]
