Rome, September 12, 2024. It is Thursday of the last week of the Chapter, and already we have a glimpse toward its conclusion with the typical tasks of the final days: preparing the summaries of the work of the commissions, formulating motions, perfecting a draft for a message from the capitulars to the brothers of the Order, arranging logistics for departures, flight inquiries, etc. Amid this growing feeling of wrapping things up, the capitulars know that there is still some work to be done.
This morning the friars listened to the report of the Economic Commission, which has the task of evaluating the presentation of the General Bursar’s report, assessing the economic management of the sexennium, and suggesting proposals to the Chapter and the General Curia for the coming period. The capitulars applauded the report and the work accomplished, which they said demonstrates the Order’s commitment to transparency in the management of common goods. At the end of the morning came a visit from the Superiors General of the various expressions of the Franciscan family. Among them were: Br. Massimo Fusarelli, General Minister OFM; Br. Carlos Alberto Trovarelli, General Minister OFMConv; Br. Sean Sheridan, Vicar General of TOR; Mr. Tibor Kauser, General Minister of the SFO; Mother Chiara Francesca Lacchini, president of the “Sacra Famiglia” federation of the Capuchin Poor Clare monasteries in Italy; Mother Fátima Godiño, Superior General of the Franciscan Missionaries of the Incarnate Word, and other sisters from other institutes.
Each greeted Br. Roberto Genuin, congratulating him on his reelection to the office of General Minister, and offered a word of commendation and gratitude to all the Capuchin Friars, represented in the Chapter by the major superiors. Several of them remarked on the motto of our Chapter, appreciating the direction the Order has thus signaled it wants to go. In his address, Br. Maximus stressed the urgency of “cultivating a concrete dimension of fraternity not an idealized one,” especially today when human frailty is so apparent. Tibor Kauser, starting from the experience of the laity who live the choice of “family” as a vocation, then contemplated “the importance of unity, and the necessity of being together as a Franciscan family”; he then thanked the Capuchins for the support they give to the Secular Franciscan Order.
Sr. Chiara Francesca, in her address to the Chapter, shared her appreciation to the Capuchins for their commitment in being close to the 20 monasteries of the federation present in Italy, but not only there. She then centered her message on “the duty of making an exercise of reality, living in a way that adheres to reality, without becoming discouraged by the changes in the present world.” She shared their monastic experience, where they are trying to “recover the human connection, with availability to those who knock on the monastery door, welcoming those who seek their compassion.” For his part, Br. Carlos wished a successful continuation of the ministry to Br. Roberto with his “very concrete, very practical and very well-grounded style, always with clarity.” Commenting on the theme of our Chapter, “Dominus dedit mihi fratres…ut irent in mundum,” Br. Carlos stressed the importance of “human and spiritual formation,” with which we can “offer the world a spiritual point of reference,” that is, to be ourselves with our choices as a point of reference for many. Br. Sean and Mother Fátima expressed their thanks to Br. Roberto and wished all the friars a prosperous future of commitment and witness.
At the end of their addresses, the capitulars had a half-hour dialogue with these ministers of the Franciscan family where they explored various issues on our common mission in today’s world and heard concrete examples of their attempts to renew themselves, each well rooted in the bedrock of their own charism. The group photo of the General Ministers and a round of applause captured well this moment shared by the Franciscan family that is repeated each time there is a General Chapter of one of the Orders. The communion articulated verbally found further expression through sharing the midday meal. Finally, before leaving the Collegio some of the Ministers released a message to the Capuchins through our social media.
In the afternoon, the brothers gathered in the hall for a discussion on the motions prepared so far in order to further refine them before they are submitted to the Chapter for approval in the coming days.
