of the Roman Catholic Church

LETTER FROM HIS HOLINESS POPE LEO XIV 
TO THE MINISTERS GENERAL
OF THE FRANCISCAN FAMILY CONFERENCE ON THE OCCASION OF THE OPENING OF THE EIGHTH CENTENARY OF THE DEATH OF ST. FRANCIS OF ASSISI

[ASSISI JANUARY 10, 2026]

---

To the Ministers General of the Franciscan Family Conference,

“Our sister death,” exclaimed Saint Francis on October 3, 1226, at the Porziuncola, as he went to meet her like a man finally at peace. Eight centuries have passed since the death of the Poor Man of Assisi, who inscribed the word of Christ's salvation in indelible characters on the hearts of the people of his time. 

In commemorating the significant occasion of the Eighth Centenary of his passing, I wish to spiritually unite myself with the entire Franciscan Family and with all those who will participate in the commemorative events, hoping that the message of peace may find a profound echo in the Church and society of today. 

At the beginning of his evangelical life, he had heard a call: “The Lord revealed to me that we should say this greeting: ‘The Lord give you peace’” [1]. With these essential words, he entrusts to his friars and to every believer the inner wonder that the Gospel had brought into his life: peace is the sum of all God's blessings, a gift that comes from above. What an illusion it would be to think of building it with human strength alone! And yet it is an active gift, to be received and lived every day [2]. 

It is the same greeting that the risen Lord addressed to his disciples on Easter evening, frightened and locked in the Upper Room: “Peace be with you” [3]. It is not a formula of courtesy, but the certain announcement of Christ's victory over death. Like the voice of the Angels on Christmas night – “Glory to God in the highest heavens, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests” [4] – so the peace that the Seraphic Father proclaims is the peace that Christ himself made resound between heaven and earth. 

In this era, marked by so many seemingly endless wars, by internal 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. 

The Franciscan vision of peace is not limited to relations between human beings, but embraces the entire creation. Francis, who calls the sun "brother" and the moon "sister," who recognizes in every creature a reflection of divine beauty, reminds us that peace must extend to the entire family of Creation. This insight resonates with particular urgency in our time, when our common home is threatened and groans under exploitation. Peace with God, peace among men, and peace with Creation are inseparable dimensions of a single call to universal reconciliation.

Dear brothers and sisters, may the example and spiritual legacy of this Saint, strong in faith, irm in hope, and ardent in active charity towards his neighbor, inspire in all of us the importance of trusting in the Lord, of dedicating ourselves to a life faithful to the Gospel, of accepting and illuminating with faith and prayer every circumstance and action of life. 

In this Year of Grace, I wish to offer you a prayer so that Saint Francis of Assisi may continue to instill in all of us perfect joy and harmony: 

Saint Francis, our brother,
you who eight hundred years ago 
went to meet sister death as a man at peace, 
intercede for us with the Lord. 

You recognized true peace in the Crucifix of San Damiano,
teach us to seek in Him the source of all reconciliation 
that breaks down every wall.

You who, unarmed, crossed the lines of war and misunderstanding, 
grant us the courage to build bridges 
where the world erects borders. 

In this time afflicted by conflicts and divisions, 
intercede so that we may become peacemakers: 
unarmed and disarming witnesses of the peace that comes from Christ. 
Amen.

With these sentiments, I express fervent wishes for well-being, especially for all of you who follow the charism of the Little Poor Man of Assisi and for all those who will commemorate in various ways the anniversary of his death, while I wholeheartedly send the desired Apostolic Blessing. 

From the Vatican, January 7, 2026 

LEO PP. XIV

It is with joy that we announce the promulgation of the Decree establishing a special Jubilee Year in commemoration of the Eighth Centenary of the passage of St. Francis of Assisi. His Holiness Pope Leo XIV has arranged that, from the 10th January, 2026 to the 10th January, 2027, this Year of St. Francis will be celebrated, during which all the Christian faithful are invited to follow the example of the Saint of Assisi, becoming models of holiness of life and constant witnesses of peace. The Apostolic Penitentiary grants the plenary indulgence under the usual conditions to those who participate devoutly in this extraordinary jubilee, which represents an ideal continuation of the Ordinary Jubilee of 2025. This Jubilee Year is addressed especially to members of the Franciscan Families of the First, Second and Third Regular and Secular Orders, as well as to Institutes of Consecrated Life, Societies of Apostolic Life and Associations that observe the Rule of St. Francis or are inspired by its spirituality. However, the grace of this special year is also extended to all the faithful without distinction who, with their spirits removed from sin, visit in the form of a pilgrimage any Franciscan conventual church or place of worship dedicated to St. Francis in any part of the world. The elderly, the sick and those who for serious reasons cannot leave home will also be able to obtain the plenary indulgence by spiritually joining the Jubilee celebrations and offering their prayers, pains or sufferings to God. In this time of celebration that culminates eight hundred years of Franciscan memory, we cordially invite all the faithful to take an active part in this exceptional Jubilee. May the shining example of St. Francis, who knew how to make himself poor and humble in order to be true alter Christus on earth, inspire our hearts to live with authentic Christian charity towards our neighbor and with sincere longings for concord and peace among peoples. Following in the footsteps of the Poverello of Assisi, let us transform the hope that made us pilgrims during the Holy Year into fervor and zeal of effective charity. May this Year of St Francis be for each one of us a providential occasion for sanctification and evangelical witness in the contemporary world, for the glory of God and the good of the whole Church.

Conditions for receiving the Indulgence:
(for oneself or for the deceased) 

• Sacramental confession to be in God's grace (in the eight days before or after);
• Participation in Mass and Eucharistic Communion; 
• To visit in the form of a pilgrimage any Franciscan church or place of worship dedicated to St. Francis anywhere in the world, where one renews one's profession of faith, through the recitation of the Creed, to reaffirm one's Christian identity; 
• The recitation of the Lord's Prayer, to reaffirm the dignity of children of God, received in Baptism; 
• To pray for the intentions of the Holy Father, to reaffirm belonging to the Church, whose foundation and visible center of unity is the Roman Pontiff.