Pope Leo XIV has given us another opportunity for the graces of a jubilee year. This time, however, we are not just cultivating one virtue but a host of virtues – those found in the person of St. Francis of Assisi. Pope Francis drew our attention to St. Francis in his encyclical Laudato Si’ a nd highlighted him as patron of care for all of creation — both our earthly home and our human brothers and sisters. It is toward this care for humanity that Pope Leo wishes to draw our attention. This Jubilee Year of St. Francis calls us to silently pause and look to St. Francis as our model of the authentic living of Christ’s life. His humility, simplicity and dedication to conversion and reconciliation are all virtues we are called to emulate during this year. This is an opportunity to move into a maturity that simplifies prayer by deepening it. Photos provided by the Sisters of St. Francis of the Perpetual Adoration In honor of the 800th year since the death of St. Francis, the Basilica of St. Francis in Assisi, Italy, recently displayed for public veneration the relics of St. Francis’ body. This display was not simply a devotional exercise; it expressed a desire to be near someone who lived in a time not too different from our own. St. Francis powerfully influenced the hearts of all levels of society by drawing others not to himself but to Christ, the source of true peace. Everywhere he went, his proclamation of “May the Lord give you peace” echoed Christ’s gift of peace as victory over death. The conversion of the heart from the death of sin to the freedom of God is what brings about true and lasting peace. This peace is found not in having material goods but from practicing detachment along with integrating our whole life and being with faith and prayer. This singular peace is a fruit of reconciliation with God, humanity and creation. A plenary indulgence is one of the great spiritual gifts offered during an extraordinary jubilee year. It is a grace through which God removes all temporal punishment remaining for sins that have already been forgiven in the Sacrament of Reconciliation, allowing the soul to be renewed in freedom and peace. In order to receive an indulgence, the person must have detachment from all sin, pray for the intentions of the Holy Father, go to confession and receive holy Communion within eight days before or after the prayers for indulgence are prayed. The foundation of all indulgences is an encounter with God and His limitless mercy. Through conversion and forming an attitude of detachment from all sin, an indulgence frees the heart from slavery to sin and opens it to God’s transforming power. The indulgence bears fruit in the healing of relationships, greater forgiveness and even deeper conversion. St. Francis was exemplary in all of these fruits, showing the immense grace he received from the Lord through his desire to be close to Him. During this jubilee year, a plenary indulgence can be obtained by praying at any Franciscan chapel or any chapel dedicated to St. Francis by visiting the site in the form of a pilgrimage. Why should one go on a pilgrimage and not just a make a generic visit or take a vacation? A pilgrimage is a physical trip to a holy site that reflects an interior journey that is ventured upon to deepen one’s faith, seek spiritual or physical healing or an encounter with God. It requires spiritual preparation in addition to the basic physical preparations for a journey. To make a pilgrimage is to come before God in a place where He has manifested His grace and humbly ask for His loving mercy. As St. Francis of Assisi showed us, life itself is a pilgrimage to heaven, and taking time to travel intentionally on pilgrimage can help us to internalize this spirituality. The Sisters of St. Francis of Perpetual Adoration are marking this jubilee year of grace by displaying a first-class relic from the body of St. Francis of Assisi. In this spirit of celebration and renewal, we are inviting organized pilgrimage groups to make scheduled visits to St. Francis Convent in Mishawaka to pray before the relic and share in the blessings of the year. If you are interested in organizing a group to visit our chapel, please contact Sister Lucia Richardson, OSF, at [email protected]. The relic of St. Francis will be available for veneration the same times as the adoration chapel is open, from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily. The St. Francis Convent is located at 1515 W. Dragoon Trail in Mishawaka. In 1863, Mother Maria Theresia Bonzel founded the Sisters of St. Francis of Perpetual Adoration in Olpe, Germany, to follow St. Francis in perpetual adoration of the Most Blessed Sacrament and to serve others in the works of mercy. They journeyed to Lafayette, Indiana, in 1875 and have been serving in health care and education in America for the past 150 years. After the example of St. Francis, the sisters strive to witness in all they do so that Love may be loved. During this Jubilee year of St. Francis, may our hope, rediscovered during the Holy Year, be transformed into charitable fervor and zeal. May it be an opportunity for an evangelical witness of following Christ for our contemporary world. This article was written by the Sisters of St. Francis of Perpetual Adoration. The post Celebrate the Holy Year of St. Francis with the Sisters of St. Francis of Perpetual Adoration appeared first on Today's Catholic. ...read more read less