Rome, November 30, 2021 | Press Announcement
The General Chapter of the Secular Franciscan Order concluded its work on Sunday, Nov. 21, with delegates approving priority actions for the next six years as well as giving a mandate to their international leaders to complete the work of establishing permanent offices for formation, finance, communications and JPIC (Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation). The priorities are:
Formation, with special attention to fostering servant leadership as well as continued training of Spiritual Assistants with an additional emphasis for non-Franciscan religious who have accepted the request to serve when First Order and TOR friars are not available.- Franciscan Youth, with the OFS embracing them on their Franciscan journey.
- Finances, with the yearly reporting of the financial status of the Order.
- Communications, with more sharing of information internally as well as outreach to the public via a gamut of media outlets. This also recognizes that the promotion of vocations should take center stage in the communications department.
The conclusive document approved by the Chapter body was prepared by a special committee that included María Consuelo de Nuñez (Chelito), OFS, former vice minister general from Venezuela; Michel Versteegh, OFS, of the Netherlands, and Jane Derose Bamman, OFS, of the United States of America. TOP PHOTO: Chelito presents summary of conclusive document with Jane and Michel looking on.