On Friday, March 13, 2026, as part of the celebrations marking the 800th anniversary of the death of St. Francis of Assisi, the community of the Seraphicum International College in Rome made a fraternal pilgrimage to Assisi, to venerate the saint’s relics in the Basilica of St. Francis.
The veneration of the saint’s remains was an important event, a simple yet deeply meaningful gesture for every Conventual Franciscan friar. Standing before the remains of St. Francis, the friars inwardly renewed their desire to live the Gospel according to the charism they received from the Little Poor Man of Assisi: a life of fraternity, minority, and radical trust in God.
The pilgrimage concluded with Mass celebrated in the Upper Church of the Basilica, a sign of ecclesial communion and of the fraternity that arises from listening to the Word and sharing the broken Bread.
This pilgrimage took on special significance in this Jubilee Year, which commemorates St. Francis’ passage into heaven (1226–2026). As the Church reminds us in this time of grace, the Saint’s death was not the end of a human project, but the Paschal fulfillment of a life totally dedicated to the Gospel. Francis welcomed death as a “sister,” because he had learned to experience everything as a gift that is received from God and returned to Him.
Visiting his tomb is more than a devotional act; it is an invitation to rediscover the essence of one’s Franciscan vocation. Fraternity, in fact, does not arise from structures or organizations, but from encountering Christ together, in the simplicity of the Gospel.
The pilgrimage in Assisi confirmed what the Custos of the Sacred Convent, Friar Marco MORONI, said about the exposition of the remains not being a spectacle, but rather, a profound spiritual moment. “The sight of thousands of pilgrims passing through the Basilica, their faces serene and sometimes tear-streaked with emotion is the most beautiful testimony that people desire an authentic encounter with God.”
For the friars of the Seraphicum, this pilgrimage was also a concrete sign of the international fraternity that characterizes the College. Coming from different cultures and nations, the friars walked together toward their common spiritual source and recognized that the charism of St. Francis continues to generate communion beyond all borders.
In the School of St. Francis of Assisi, fraternity becomes a daily journey: learning to live as brothers, sharing joys and struggles, and walking together toward God. In this sense, the pilgrimage to Assisi was not merely a visit, but a return to the origins—a way of rediscovering that the true legacy that Francis left his friars was one simple thing: to live the Holy Gospel in fraternity.
Friar Adam MĄCZKA
Guardian and Rector of the Seraphicum
