The visit of the new Minister General of the Order of Friars Minor, Massimo Fusarelli, to the Custody of the Holy Land, the "pearl" of the Franciscan missions, ended on Sunday, October 24. Br MASSIMO FUSARELLI Minister General of the Order of Friars Minor "I wanted to be here as soon as possible to bring the prayer for the whole order and the beginning of this service of mine, especially to Calvary, the Resurrection and the other places, Bethlehem and Nazareth." They were five days of intense visits to the various realities of the Franciscan mission in the Holy Land: from the Sanctuaries of the Redemption, to the schools, to the various works of the Custody and to the local Christians. Elected in Rome last July 13, Br. Fusarelli is the 121st successor of St. Francis. He has the mission, together with the friars present in the Middle East, to continue the dream of St. Francis when in the year 1219, he came on a pilgrimage of peace to the Holy Land and met, in Egypt, the Sultan Al Malik Al Kamil. Br MASSIMO FUSARELLI Minister General of the Order of Friars Minor "I feel that I come here carrying the heart of Francis and bringing in these 800 years that flame, that fire, which was lit in Francis during his conversion, during his life. It has always remained lit and we pick up this torch today even when we are a little tired, fatigued. I am certain and I feel that the fire, the flame of Francis' charism is constantly being rekindled." In Jerusalem, the Minister and the Vicar General of the Order, Br. Isauro Covili, were received at the Jaffa Gate by the religious and civil authorities, by Br. Dobromir Jasztal, Vicar of the Custody and member of the Discretorium, and by the Friars of the Custody of the Holy Land. The friars then went to the Basilica of the Holy Sepulchre. Representatives of the three Churches responsible for the Basilica were waiting for Br Massimo Fusarelli: Franciscan friars, Greek-Orthodox and Armenian. In front of the Stone of Anointing, Brother Francesco Patton, Custos of the Holy Land, said: "Most Reverend and dear Brother Massimo Fusarelli, our Minister General, welcome to the Holy Land, welcome to the Holy City of Jerusalem, welcome to the holiest place of Christianity, the Basilica of the Holy Sepulchre". These were the first words of welcome addressed to the new Minister General of the Order of Friars Minor. This place - underlined Br Francesco Patton - was entrusted to the Custody of our Order by Pope Clement VI. This is the mission that the Apostolic See has entrusted to us: to dwell, pray and celebrate in this place, to be here as a multi-ethnic fraternity that is an expression of the whole Order." The new Minister participated, in the Basilica of the Holy Sepulchre, in the solemn daily procession that retraces the places of the Passion-Death-Resurrection of Christ and, in front of the Wayside Shrine, he presided at the daily Mass: "It is a great joy for me this morning to bring our whole Order of Friars Minor to this Eucharist". There was a full agenda of meetings: the students of the Terra Sancta School, the young friars in formation, the friars of the Custody and the religious of the Franciscan family. On this last occasion, the Minister General dwelt on the 3 words chosen by the Synod 2021-2023: communion, participation and mission. On Friday, October 22, he participated in the Way of the Cross through the streets of Jerusalem: from the place where, according to tradition, Jesus met Pontius Pilate to the last four stations located in the Basilica of the Holy Sepulchre. Route made by the Franciscans every Friday and thousands of pilgrims every year. And right at the beginning of the Via Dolorosa, there is the Convent of the Flagellation where the Studium Biblicum Francescanum is located. Fusarelli commented on the short reading from Romans, and acknowledged the service to the Word of God that the SBF performs. Saturday, October 23rd, saw the solemn entrance into the Basilica of the Nativity in Bethlehem. The City of Christmas gave a warm welcome to the new Minister General. Accompanying him were the bagpipes and brass instruments of the scouts. Many children and families from Bethlehem were waiting for him. Massimo Fusarelli was welcomed in the square in front of the Basilica of the Nativity by the religious and civil authorities. Br. Francesco Patton, Custos of the Holy Land, stressed the importance of Br. Fusarelli's visit in light of the difficulties and challenges facing Bethlehem. He also referred to the spiritual and pastoral message that the Franciscan friars have been bringing to the city for centuries. In the Grotto of the Nativity there were also some emotional moments. A private visit was made to the Terra Sancta School in Bethlehem, considered to be the oldest in the Holy Land: here the students and teachers gave Br. Fusarelli a warm welcome. The visit to the city of Bethlehem ended with a stop at the Piccirillo Center. A place that carries a special message: a project of the Custody of the Holy Land, created in 2014, to respond to the social and economic needs of the city's weakest and neediest people. Br MASSIMO FUSARELLI Minister General of the Order of Friars Minor "I am very excited and very happy. I did not expect this reception of people. So my special feeling today is just to have in my eyes so many faces of children of families, happy despite all the difficult situation that we are going through in the world and also here in Bethlehem. For me today was really Christmas, especially thanks to the smiles of the children." The last stop of the trip was Galilee. Here the Minister General made his solemn entrance into the Basilica of the Annunciation, where he stopped briefly in prayer. The solemn entrance was followed by Holy Mass in the Upper Basilica with a large participation of the local community. At the end of the celebration, many people lined up to congratulate and greet the New Minister, the Custos of the Holy Land and the Rector of the Sanctuary, Brother Bruno Varriano. It was also an opportunity for us to evaluate the visit together with the Custos and the Minister. Br FRANCESCO PATTON, ofm Holy Land Custos "For the Minister General, it was first of all the first visit outside Italy, with special significance: it means that there is a special attention from our Order towards both the Franciscan and Christian presence in the Holy Land." Br. Francesco Patton recalled how in 1342 Pope Clement VI, writing directly to the Minister General of the time, entrusted the mission of the Holy Land to the Order of Friars Minor. Br FRANCESCO PATTON, ofm Holy Land Custos "The Custody lives with friars who come from all the countries of the world and it is a very beautiful thing because right here in the Holy Land the universality of the Church is expressed in some way. And so the Custody of the Holy Land is a kind of permanent Pentecost and at the same time it's also a sign for the local church itself of how important it is to remain open to the universal Church." Br MASSIMO FUSARELLI Minister General of the Order of Friars Minor "I had confirmation of all the work that our friars do here, of the importance of this mission, I had an update on the situation of the friars first of all but also of this land, with the riches and tensions that run through it. Also the meeting with the leaders of other churches, of other realities helped me to widen my view." Br DOBROMIR JASZTAL, ofm Vicar Custody Holy Land "To talk about the beautiful relationship between communities, especially in the places where these communities live together, pray together, like at the Holy Sepulchre, we must take into account the past of the present and the future. In the past there were elements that caused divisions, elements of a political, historical but also ecclesial nature. Today we have discovered instead what unites us. And so in recent years the relationship between the communities we can say has simply improved a lot, indeed I would say matured a lot." Fr. Dobromir then stressed that only peaceful coexistence, mutual respect allows for common action. ... such as the initiatives that led to the definition of the project for the restoration of the Holy Sepulchre: first the wayside shrine, the tomb of Jesus and then the restoration of the floor, with greater stability of the building. As he bid farewell to Nazareth, the Minister General entrusted the Order of Friars Minor to Our Lady during the Angelus prayer in the Grotto. The last stop on his visit to Galilee was the Sanctuary of Capernaum, on the shores of Lake Tiberias. Br MASSIMO FUSARELLI Minister General of the Order of Friars Minor "It' s a few days because this is the time, but I will return regularly. It's just the beginning of a stronger knowledge and accompaniment to this beautiful, fragile reality that needs all our help as order of Friars Minor." A few days, but rich in sharing, prayer, and friendship meetings, such as the one with His Beatitude Pierbattista Pizzaballa, Patriarch of Jerusalem of the Latins. And then the meetings with the friars and with all the people: from the authorities to the children... because when you are guided by love, you always find a few minutes to try new experiences. Read More