Pope Leo XIV visited the tomb of St. Francis of Assisi on November 20, 2025. The pope prayed for peace and spoke shortly afterwards of the upcoming 800th anniversary of St. Francis’ death, noting that “…we have the opportunity to celebrate this great, humble, and poor saint at a time when the world is searching for signs of hope.”
Later, in the Porziuncula, Pope Leo addressed the General Assembly of Italian bishops. At the end of his address he spoke about St. Francis and the first friars who fully lived in a synodal style.
This conscious choice of fraternity, which is at the heart of the Franciscan charism together with minority, was inspired by an intrepid and persistent faith.
[Read the full address at https://press.vatican.va/content/salastampa/en/bollettino/pubblico/2025/11/20/251120a.html]
At the end of the meeting, the Pope greeted each friar of the Porziuncula, and said that he will return in 2026 for the eighth Franciscan centenary.
