On February 20, 2021, Brother Rogério PEREIRA XAVIER, Assistant General for the Federación América Latina Conventuales (FALC), celebrated the 25th anniversary of his first profession with the renewal of his vows. The ceremony took place in the familiar setting of the chapel in the Friary of the Twelve Holy Apostles, surrounded by his community.

The celebration coincided with Evening Prayer I of the First Sunday of Lent. It was presided over, with the utmost simplicity, by the Minister General, Friar Carlos TROVARELLI. In his brief homily, Friar Carlos mentioned two characteristics of Brother Rogério: joy and creativity. He was referring to the joy that our confrere lives in his vocation, both in Rome and in the communities he visits as Assistant General. Moreover, Brother Rogério’s creativity is always seen in his different and illuminating way of thinking, which goes beyond common notions, even during the sensitive discussions of the General Definitory.
The entire Definitory, including Archbishop Friar Dominique J. Mathieu, and most of the community of the Twelve Holy Apostles, continued to celebrate our confrere at a fraternal agape meal. They thanked God for the gift of this man, whose serenity and depth reminds everyone that it is not essential to be a priest in order to be a Franciscan, and that our charism is incarnated in all those who work every day, simply and faithfully, in the fraternity of the Church, to build the Kingdom of God.

Friar Maurizio DI PAOLO