ROME — Fr. Jose Rodriguez Carballo, OFM, participated in the Conference of Italian Provincial Ministers of Italy and Albania, called COMPI, which took place in Assisi last month. Conference president Br. Francesco Patton, OFM, updated participants on life within the community and formation, evangelization and mission, and collaboration.
The following news was also reported in the July 1 edition of Fraternitas, the e-newsletter of the General Curia.
To celebrate the 800th anniversary of the conversion of St. Clare, friars in Graz, Austria, are planning a symposium on “Living Mirror of Light: St. Clare of Assisi,” Nov. 12 to 13. German experts will discuss the medieval context of how St. Clare lived, as well as use a Gregorian chant that was found in a manuscript in the friars’ library.
The General Minister of the Secular Franciscan Organization, Encarnacion del Pozo, and Br. Ivan Matic, OFM, assistant general of the SFO-YouFra, met in June for the fraternal and pastoral visit of the SFO in Malta. In addition to regular business, the national chapter launched its theme, “To Be Witnesses.”
In May, Br. Ivan attended the Third Congress of the SFO-YouFra for Asia/Oceania held in Karukutty in Kerala. Along with other members of the Presidency SFO, about 100 representatives from different countries of Asia/Oceania participated in the congress with their spiritual assistants.
The publication lists the schedule of the General Minister including:
• July 3-5: attendance at annual retreat of the General Definitory in Camerino, Italy, with Poor Clares
• July 6-13: meeting of the General Definitorium in Rome
• July 14-20: the elective chapter and the capitular congress of the Custody of the Holy Land
— Compiled by Wendy Healy