Visit of the Minister General to the Province of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary

In the city of Bacabal, Maranhão, Brazil, from the 24th to the 26th of April 2026, the Province of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary gathered all the friars to welcome the Minister General, Br. Massimo Fusarelli, and the Visitor General, Br. César Külkamp. 

The purpose of the visit was to know and encourage the journey of each brother and to become aware of the different realities in which the friars live. The meeting was divided into various parts to optimise time: there were individual interviews with the groups of seminarians, with the formation team, with the Provincial Definitory and with all the friars of the Province, who, with open hearts and attentive, listened to the words addressed to them. 

Br. Massimo Fusarelli began his speech by starting from the report presented during the last canonical visitation, reminding the friars that it is time to put into practice, with courage and audacity, what has been proposed. He reiterated that the Order is not an organisation that administers parishes, shrines, or schools, but a fraternity that bears witness to the Gospel. 

The exchange between the brothers has fostered dialogues on other topics, such as the economic and administrative situation, vocational accompaniment, the crisis of identity and secularisation, the management of the patrimony, and questioning how all this consumes time that could be dedicated exclusively to fraternal life. 

The Minister General asked for the fronts of the mission to be restructured to contribute, among other things, to the quality of life of the brothers, giving priority to the fundamental aspects of Franciscan charity. It is not a question of doing more, but of doing it with quality, since fraternal life is a privileged encounter with God. 

The culminating moment of the meeting was the Eucharistic celebration in the parish church of São Francisco das Chagas, presided over by Br. Massimo Fusarelli, which brought together all the friars, the Franciscan Family and many faithful.

We thank the Minister General and the Visitor General for their fraternal interaction, aware of the reflections and actions that will be undertaken on the basis of their valuable orientation.