MarCh 2026
www.CatholicPost.co.uk
Edition 51
Listening is Loving
page 2
Fingers and Feet
page 11
In the likeness and image of God page 14
St. Joseph 19th March
The Year of Francis Gwen Wiseman Saint Francis of Assisi died on 3 October 1226, near the small chapel he loved most. He did not die in a grand church or monastery. He asked to be laid naked on the bare earth. He asked for the Passion of Christ according to the Gospel of John to be read to him. He sang psalms. And then, quietly, he went home to God. Near the end of his life, broken in body, nearly blind, and exhausted by years of severe fasting, Francis did not fear death. He welcomed her as a sister: “Sister Bodily Death.” His final moments were an act of complete surrender, a last imitation of Christ who had given everything on the Cross. How a person dies often reveals how they have lived. Francis died as he lived: poor, free, trusting, and wholly abandoned to God.
Eight Hundred Years Later
On 10 January 2026, the Franciscan family across the world, together with the Church in Assisi, gathered in prayer at the Basilica of Santa Maria degli Angeli to open the Eighth Centenary of the death of St Francis. The world Francis knew was marked by violence, division, and deep inequality. Our modern world may appear very different on the surface, and yet in many ways it remains painfully similar. Eight hundred years after his death, in a fractured and restless world, his witness still calls us back to the essentials. The faithful from every corner of the globe continue to be drawn by the life of this small, unlikely man. But why? Francis refused to dilute the demands of the Gospel. He embraced it without reserve, choosing poverty over comfort, peace over power, and humility over status. The Gospel was not simply something he believed; it was the pattern of his entire life, shaping every choice he made. So completely did Francis give himself to Christ that he prayed to share both the physical suffering of the Cross and the burning love with which Christ offered himself. This prayer
was answered. Two years before his death, Francis received the wounds of Christ on his hands, feet, and side, becoming the first recorded saint to bear the stigmata. From this radical conformity to Christ flowed a life that could not be contained. Francis founded a worldwide family of friars, sisters, and lay people, now spread across every continent. Yet his influence reaches far beyond those who wear a habit.
The Franciscan Jubilee
In the context of this centenary year, Pope Leo XIV has proclaimed 2026 a Franciscan Jubilee, inviting the whole Church to rediscover the heart of the Gospel through the life and witness of St Francis. A particular grace of the Year of St Francis is the plenary indulgence attached to this Jubilee, addressed in a special way to the members of the Franciscan families of the First, Second, and Third Orders, Regular and Secular, as well as to Institutes of Consecrated Life, Societies of Apostolic Life, and associations that observe the Rule of St Francis or draw inspiration from his spirituality. At the same time, this grace is extended to all the faithful, who, with hearts detached from sin, participate in the Jubilee by making a pilgrimage to any Franciscan conventual church or place of worship dedicated to St Francis of Assisi anywhere in the world. With particular tenderness, the Church has ensured that the sick and the elderly, and those unable to leave their homes for serious reasons may also obtain the plenary indulgence by uniting themselves spiritually to the Jubilee celebrations and offering to God their prayers, sufferings, and the daily difficulties of life. In this way, the mercy proclaimed by St Francis is made accessible to all, regardless of circumstance. Most dioceses across the UK have a parish or church explicitly named after St Francis of Assisi, and every diocese has at least one church or place of worship connected to the Franciscan charism. This includes Franciscan friaries, Franciscan and Poor Clare convents, shrines and chapels, as well as churches
dedicated to other great Franciscan saints such as St Clare of Assisi, St Anthony of Padua, St Bonaventure, and St Maximilian Kolbe. In the spirit of the Jubilee decree, these places are natural local points of pilgrimage, ensuring that the grace of the Year of St Francis is accessible to all the faithful, including those unable to travel to Assisi. Ask your priest how the Year of Francis will be lived in your parish and diocese.
Veneration of the Mortal Remains of Saint Francis
As part of the centenary celebrations, pilgrims are invited to venerate the mortal remains, the bones of St Francis. After his death, and out of fear of medieval relic hunters, Francis’s body was hidden. Almost six hundred years later, in 1818, Pope Pius VII ordered a search for the tomb, which was successfully rediscovered beneath the altar of the Lower Basilica of St Francis. The tomb was last opened in 1978 under Pope Paul VI for inspection, at which time the remains were placed in a sealed protective container to ensure their preservation. Now, in 2026, Francis’s body will be exposed for public veneration for the very first time. Public veneration will take place during the season of Lent, from 22 February to 22 March. Due to the large number of pilgrims expected to travel to Assisi for this extraordinary event,
an online booking system has been introduced to manage access. Further information is available at www.sanfrancescovive.org.
A Year to Walk Alongside Francis
While praying before the crucifix in the ruined church of San Damiano, Francis heard Christ say: “Francis, go and rebuild my Church.” At first, he understood this literally. He rebuilt ruined chapels with his own hands, before slowly realising that Christ was calling him to something deeper, not the rebuilding of stone walls, but the rebuilding of hearts and lives. This year, the same invitation is extended to us. Go and rebuild what God desires to restore within you. Go and rebuild the places where trust and relationships have weakened. Go and rebuild holiness in the ordinary details of daily life. Eight hundred years after Francis met Sister Death, his life still points us to Christ and calls us to live the Gospel without compromise. The journey with Francis begins today. The Franciscan Year runs from 10 January 2026 to 10 January 2027. For pilgrimages, retreats or visits to Assisi, contact Gwen Wiseman: gwen@viaassisi.com | www.viaassisi.com