Jubilee Year of Transitus of St Francis

On January 10, 2026, the Universal Church joyfully entered a Special Jubilee Year of St. Francis of Assisi, proclaimed by Pope Leo XIV to mark the 800th anniversary of the Transitus of St. Francis, his holy passing to the Father on October 3, 1226. This Jubilee Year, which continues until January 2027, is offered as a profound spiritual gift to the Church and the world -- a call to conversion, reconciliation, and renewed fidelity to the Gospel.

The Jubilee was officially inaugurated through a decree issued by the Apostolic Penitentiary of the Holy See, granting the faithful the opportunity to obtain a plenary indulgence, under the usual conditions of sacramental confession, Holy Communion, prayer for the intentions of the Holy Father, and a pilgrimage to a Franciscan church or place dedicated to St. Francis anywhere in the world. The Church, in her maternal care, also extends this grace to the elderly, the sick, and those unable to travel, inviting them to unite themselves spiritually with the jubilee celebrations by offering their prayers, sufferings, and hardships to God.

This Jubilee Year is not merely a remembrance of the past. Rather, it is a prophetic invitation to rediscover the heart of the Gospel through the life and witness of one of the Church’s most beloved saints.

Francis and His Enduring Legacy

St. Francis of Assisi lived at a time of profound social and ecclesial change. Born in 1181/82 into a wealthy merchant family, he experienced a radical conversion that led him to renounce wealth, status, and ambition in order to follow Christ in poverty, humility, and joy. His life embodied the Gospel sine glossa -- without compromise.

Francis did not seek to reform the Church through structures or power. Instead, he allowed himself to be transformed by Christ crucified, becoming a living sign of reconciliation in a divided world. His fraternity, approved by the Church in 1209, grew rapidly, touching every layer of society. Even during his lifetime, Francis became a universal symbol of peace, fraternity, and harmony with the creation.

When Francis died on the evening of October 3, 1226, he did so not as a defeated man, but as one who had lived fully and freely. His death, traditionally referred to as the Transitus, is understood in Franciscan spirituality not as an end, but as a passage -- a movement into the fullness of life in God.

Transitus: A Celebration of Life

The 8th centenary of the Transitus invites the Church to contemplate the final witness of Francis. Blind, frail, marked by the sacred Stigmata, Francis asked to be laid naked on the bare earth, holding nothing back—not even at the hour of death. This final gesture expressed the essence of his life: sine proprio, without possession, without control, without fear, trusting solely in the mercy and fatherhood of God.

Francis welcomed death as “Sister Bodily Death”, singing praise even at the threshold of eternity. This attitude finds its most eloquent expression in the Canticle of the Creatures, composed amid suffering and darkness, yet overflowing with gratitude and praise. Its final stanza proclaims:

“Praised be You, my Lord, through our Sister Bodily Death, from whom no one living can escape.”

Francis teaches us that only a humble and poor heart can welcome death not as an enemy, but as a sister. His Transitus stands as a powerful prophecy of reconciliation—between humanity and God, among peoples, and with all of creation.

Pope Leo XIV: Peace as the Heart of the Jubilee

In his letter addressed to the Ministers General of the Conference of the Franciscan Family, issued in Assisi on January 10, 2026, Pope Leo XIV highlighted peace as the central theme of the Jubilee Year. Eight centuries after the death of St. Francis, the Pope noted, his message of peace continues to speak with remarkable urgency.

In a world marked by prolonged wars, social fragmentation, violence, and fear, peace often appears fragile and elusive. Pope Leo XIV emphasized that peace is not the result of human effort alone, but a gift from God, to be received humbly and lived daily.

Francis does not offer technical solutions to the world’s problems. Rather, his life points to the true source of peace: reconciliation with God. From this reconciliation flow peace among peoples and harmony with creation. The Pope stressed that these three dimensions—peace with God, peace among human beings, and peace with creation—are inseparable and form a single call to universal reconciliation.

Jubilee Indulgence: A Path of Conversion

The granting of a plenary indulgence during this Jubilee Year underscores the Church’s desire for authentic spiritual renewal. An indulgence is not a mere ritual act, but a call to conversion of heart, reconciliation, and renewed commitment to the Gospel.

By encouraging pilgrimage, prayer, sacramental life, and works of mercy, the Jubilee Year invites the faithful to step away from superficiality and rediscover the essentials of Christian life. In a culture where, as the decree observes, “the virtual takes over the real,” Francis calls us back to incarnate faith, lived concretely in daily life.

Franciscan Family and Call to Witness

For the Franciscan Family—Friars Minor, Capuchins, Conventuals, Poor Clares, Secular Franciscans, and all those inspired by Francis—the Jubilee Year is a special time of grace. Pope Leo XIV described it as an opportunity for the faithful to become “models of holiness of life and constant witnesses of peace.”

This call resonates deeply with the Capuchin tradition, born in the 16th century as a reform movement seeking to return to the radical simplicity of Francis. The Jubilee journey from 2023 to 2026—from the Rule and Greccio, to the Stigmata, the Canticle, and now the Transitus—brings us back to the very heart of the Capuchin reform: to live the Gospel simply, concretely, and radically.

The official opening of the centenary at the Basilica of St. Mary of the Angels in Assisi, near the Porziuncola and the Chapel of the Transitus, symbolically anchors this Jubilee in the origins of the Franciscan movement.

A Call to Renewal for Our Time

As we live this Jubilee Year, we are invited to renew our reflection on essential dimensions of our Franciscan vocation:

• Acceptance of Sister Death, learning to live each day in freedom and trust, without clinging to security or comfort.
• Gratitude and self-giving, rediscovering our vocation as a gift to be lived joyfully, even in hidden and demanding missions.
• Hope and reconciliation, offering evangelical witness in a world marked by fear, migration, war, and division.
• Simplicity of life and care for creation, embracing minority, closeness to the poor, and responsibility for our common home.

These are not abstract ideals, but concrete paths of discipleship inspired by the life of Francis.

Walking Lightly Toward God

The Jubilee Year of St. Francis reminds us that from a life poured out in love, new life continues to be born for the Church and the world. Francis, the alter Christus, teaches us how to live lightly, love generously, forgive freely, and entrust ourselves entirely to God’s providence.

As Pope Leo XIV prayed, may the example and spiritual legacy of St. Francis inspire us to become unarmed and disarming witnesses of Christ’s peace in a divided world. And as we journey through this Jubilee Year, may we learn once again -- from Francis -- how to live, how to love, and ultimately, how to die in peace and hope.

Let us entrust this Jubilee Year, our fraternities, and our entire Franciscan family to the intercession of our Seraphic Father, confident that the Lord who began this good work in us will bring it to completion.

Blurb

This Jubilee Year is not merely a remembrance of the past. Rather, it is a prophetic invitation to rediscover the heart of the Gospel through the life and witness of one of the Church’s most beloved saints.

Francis did not seek to reform the Church through structures or power. Instead, he allowed himself to be transformed by Christ crucified, becoming a living sign of reconciliation in a divided world.

Francis, the alter Christus, teaches us how to live lightly, love generously, forgive freely, and entrust ourselves entirely to God’s providence.