On the morning of the 3rd October, Br. Ignacio Ceja, Vicar General, began the celebrations of the Feast of St. Francis with the Eucharist in the Basilica of St. Clare. In his homily when he referred to the fact that Francis, after the encounter with the Christ of St. Damian, did not remain alone with the miraculous event, but led him to the encounter with lepers, "I believe, therefore, Sisters, that today Clare and Francis invite us more than just to stop at the consideration of a miraculous event, but in fact, to reach the essential, to consider the repercussions that the sign of the stigmata has on our life and mission," he told the sisters. After the Mass, the Vicar General made a fraternal visit to the Poor Clare Sisters and visited the first place where St. Francis had been buried.
In the afternoon in the Basilica of Our Lady of the Angels, the place of St. Francis' Transitus, the Franciscan family celebrated the first Vespers, which were presided over by Msgr. Corrado Lorefice, Metropolitan Archbishop of Palermo and Vice-President of the Episcopal Conference of Sicily. The Archbishop recalled that Francis asked to be carried to the Portiuncola to surrender himself stripped of everything and given into the hands of God. He asked that this stripping away of everything should happen in order to achieve peace: "We too, like Francis, especially those who today have forgotten how to be mortal creatures, sowing wars, division, hatred, using violent words and actions against our Common Home, wielding destruction and violent death... his death may be a bold prophetic sign of conversion of mentality and change of course for the good of humanity."
During the commemoration of the Transitus, the gifts offered by Sicily and other regions of Italy were presented. Br. Ignacio Ceja greeted all those present, Civil and Ecclesiastical Authorities, pilgrims and all the faithful who gathered in the Basilica. The celebration of the Transitus concluded with a vigil with the young people and other pilgrims of the Dioceses of Sicily, presided over by Msgr. Pietro Maria Fragnelli, Bishop of Trapani.
On the 4th October at 7:00 a.m. in the Basilica of St. Francis, Fr. Ignacio celebrated the Eucharist in commemoration of the feast of St. Francis, where he recalled the VIII centenary of the gift of the Stigmata, highlighting two points: "It is necessary that, like Francis, we climb the mountain of contemplation. We are called to be men and women of prayer" and later he went on to say "On the other hand, we must keep in mind that if we are truly in communion with Jesus, our lives will be dedicated to the service of our brothers and sisters. A love as great as that of Christ on the Cross can only be responded to with love."
At 10:00 a.m. the clergy together with the superiors of the Franciscan family celebrated the Solemn Mass in the Basilica of St. Francis, presided over by Msgr. Antonino Raspanti, Bishop of Acireale and President of the Sicilian Episcopal Conference, during the celebration the "Votive Lamp of the Municipalities of Italy" was lit with oil offered by the Region of Sicily. The celebration was also attended by Civil and Military Authorities, representatives of the Municipalities of Sicily and pilgrims from the Dioceses of Sicily.
Read the homily of October 3, Protomonastery of the Poor Clare Sisters
Read the homily October 4, Solemnity of St. Francis of Assisi
