Franciscans, Pope Leo mark beginning of 800th anniversary year of St. Francis of Assisi’s death

January 10, 2026

Pope Leo XIV and the leaders of Franciscan communities marked the beginning of the 800th anniversary year of the death of St. Francis of Assisi.

Leaders of six Franciscan communities and associations gathered today in the Papal Basilica of Saint Mary of the Angels in Assisi for a ceremony marking the beginning of the anniversary year (English program). Following the ceremony, the six leaders released “A Seed of Eternal Life,” a joint letter on St. Francis of Assisi and his spiritual legacy.

In a letter for the occasion, Pope Leo expressed hope that St. Francis’s message of peace might “find a profound echo in the Church and society today.”

In the Italian-language letter, dated January 7 and released today, Pope Leo told the ministers general of the Conference of the Franciscan Family:

He [St. Francis] heard a call: “The Lord revealed to me that we should say this greeting: ‘May the Lord give you peace’“. With these essential words, he gives his friars and every believer the inner wonder that the Gospel had brought into his life: peace is the sum of all God’s goods, a gift that comes down from on high. What an illusion it would be to think of building it with human strength alone! ...

The peace that the Seraphic Father proclaims is that which Christ himself has made resound between heaven and earth. In this era, marked by so many wars that seem interminable, by inner and social divisions that create distrust and fear, he continues to speak. Not because he offers technical solutions, but because his life points to the authentic source of peace.

 

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Further information:

• Apertura dell'VIII Centenario del Transito di San Francesco (1226-2026)
• Letter of the Holy Father Leo XIV to the Ministers General of the Conference of the Franciscan Family on the occasion of the opening of the Eighth Centenary of the death of St. Francis of Assisi [10 January 2026]