THE GRACE OF PLACES SPEAKING TO US

It is true that places reflect the meaning you give them, take on the value you wish them to have…

ut there are some that undoubtedly “speak” for themselves, “tell”, “reveal” a hidden mystery that transcends the meaning of the things, stones, trees, people and sounds you hear.
So are the places of our Franciscan origins: Assisi, La Verna, Cortona, Greccio, Fontecolombo…
If you have the courage to stop your hurried running and pause in silence before the Mystery that inhabits them, you can inwardly feel their “story,” which still speaks of the presence of that God who 800 years ago made Francis of Assisi’s heart vibrate and fall in love.

And so we, the Capitulars of our General Chapter XVII, with the newly elected General Council, at the end of our Chapter had the joy of returning to the places of the origins of our Franciscan spirituality, to pause and feel the grace that so many years ago kindled the heart of Francis, the hidden secret of his holiness, in a life wholly permeated with the Gospel and service to the least in history.
We drank from the very springs of the Franciscan charism to revive the gift received, that of our vocation and self-gift to the Lord in a spirit of fraternity, simplicity and Franciscan joy.
After pausing in the presence of God, with Francis we renewed again our YES to life, in a gratuitous and selfless Love, and now with a new impetus we resume our journey among the many different paths of the world, where the Lord has called us to live, love and serve as Clarist Franciscan Missionaries of the Most Blessed Sacrament.