Message of
Br. Juan Ignacio Muro, OFM

President of the Conference of "The Virgin of Guadalupe"
of Mexico, Central America, Panamá and the Caribbean.
to the participants of PCO 2001

"What peace and joy it is for the brothers to live together"

Dearest Brother Giacomo Bini, Minister General, Dear Brothers, Peace and Good!

We are here, having come from different parts of the world. Today, like the first Friars of six hundred years ago, we also meet with Francis, animated by the Holy Spirit, in the name of Jesus Christ Our Lord. As in the early years of our Order, we too have to dialogue and pray about "the best way to observe the Gospel". We carry with us our illusions and experiences. At this time we cannot forget our brothers who live and suffer the consequences of war. North America, Pakistan, Afghanistan, the Holy Land. Together we must pray and share our struggles and achievements in order to animate each other.

In the name of the Friars of the Provinces of Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean, I have the honour and privilege of welcoming you all. Your presence among us animated us on discovering that we are many who are committed to living the gospel vocation in the world. As brothers and men of our times, our efforts to install the Kingdom of God in the world are the same. From different trenches, the same ideal, the same passion and the same dream unite us.

We wish you a pleasant and fruitful stay among us. In these days we will have an opportunity to share something of the culture of the peoples of this part of the great Latin America. In these lands of Jalisco, our Order enjoys great appreciation. Our people do not forget that they were our friars who first announced the Gospel to them and shared their dreams, their illusions and efforts with them in establishing prosperous societies where they could live according to the ideals of the Gospel. From the hands of the Friars Minor these peoples learned to know and love Jesus and His Most Holy Mother.

So, hoping that the Holy Spirit is manifested among us and that all we do and decide will be for the good of the whole of our Order, I say, as it is customary to say in Mexico to friends and loved family members: "my house is your house". Brothers, this is your house! You are all welcome.