Giovanni di Pietro di Bernardone, known as Francis of Assisi, was an Italian mystic, poet, and Catholic friar who founded the religious order of the Franciscans. Inspired to lead a Christian life of poverty, he became a beggar and itinerant preacher.
The Franciscans are a group of related mendicant religious orders of the Catholic Church. Founded in 1209 by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi, these orders include three independent orders for men, orders for nuns such as the Order of Saint Clare, and the Third Order of Saint Francis open to male and female members. They adhere to the teachings and spiritual disciplines of the founder and of his main associates and followers, such as Clare of Assisi, Anthony of Padua, and Elizabeth of Hungary. Several smaller Protestant Franciscan orders or other groups have been established since late 1800s as well, particularly in the Anglican and Lutheran traditions.
Assisi is a town and commune of Italy in the Province of Perugia in the Umbria region, on the western flank of Monte Subasio.
The Basilica of Saint Francis of Assisi is the mother church of the Roman Catholic Order of Friars Minor Conventual in Assisi, a town in the Umbria region in central Italy, where Saint Francis was born and died. It is a papal minor basilica and one of the most important places of Christian pilgrimage in Italy. With its accompanying friary, Sacro Convento, the basilica is a distinctive landmark to those approaching Assisi. It has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2000.
The Order of Friars Minor Conventual is a male religious fraternity in the Catholic Church and a branch of the Franciscan Order. Conventual Franciscan Friars are identified by the affix O.F.M. Conv. after their names. They are also known as Conventual Franciscans or Minorites.
The Portiuncula is a historic chapel in the town of Santa Maria degli Angeli, near Assisi, Italy. It is closely associated with Francis of Assisi and the Order of Friars Minor, who used the chapel as their headquarters. Following Francis's death in 1226, it became an important pilgrimage site. In the 16th century, a vast basilica, the Basilica of St Mary of the Angels, was built around the Portiuncula.
Agostino Vallini is an Italian prelate of the Catholic Church. He has been a cardinal since 2006. From 2008 to 2017 he served as Vicar General of Rome. He is also the Archpriest emeritus of the Archbasilica of St. John Lateran.
Elias of Cortona was a close associate of Saint Francis of Assisi and one of the earliest followers to join the newly founded Order of Friars Minor. A lay brother, he rose to positions of significant leadership within the order, serving as both vicar general and minister general. Saint Francis himself appointed Elias vicar general in 1221.
Marco Tasca, O.F.M. Conv. is an Italian prelate of the Catholic Church, a member of the Order of Friars Minor Conventual who served as the 119th Minister General of the Order from 2007 to 2019. He was appointed the Metropolitan Archbishop of Genoa on 8 May 2020.
The Fabric of Saint Peter is a Catholic institution responsible for the conservation and maintenance of St. Peter's Basilica and exercising vigilance over its sacred character and the organization of visitors. While it is not part of the Roman Curia, the 2022 apostolic constitution Praedicate evangelium recognized it as "associated with the Holy See." The Fabric has existed under various names and varying responsibilities since 1523, when Pope Clement VII established a commission to build and administer the Basilica.
The Franciscan Friars of the Immaculate is a religious institute founded in 1970 by Conventual Franciscans Stefano Maria Manelli and Gabriel Maria Pellettieri and canonically erected by Pope John Paul II in 1998. Their rule of life is the Regula Bullata of Saint Francis of Assisi according to the Traccia Mariana.
The Custody of the Holy Land is a custodian priory of the Order of Friars Minor in Jerusalem, founded as the Province of the Holy Land in 1217 by Saint Francis of Assisi, who had also founded the Franciscan Order in 1209. In 1342, the Franciscans were declared by two papal bulls as the official custodians of the Holy Places in the name of the Catholic Church.
Chiara Offreduccio, known as Clare of Assisi, is an Italian saint who was one of the first followers of Francis of Assisi.
Pope Francis has created cardinals at nine consistories held at roughly annual intervals beginning in 2014, most recently on 30 September 2023. He plans to create another 20 cardinals at a consistory scheduled for 7 December 2024. The cardinals created by Francis include 142 cardinals from 71 countries, 24 of which had never been represented in the College of Cardinals. His appointments include the first Scandinavian since the Reformation, the first from Goa since an episcopal see was established there in 1533, the first from Latin America's indigenous peoples, the first from India's Dalit class, and the first active head of a religious congregation.
The Church of Saint Francis of Assisi is a Gothic-style, Roman Catholic church of Palermo. It is located near a major and ancient street of the city, via Cassaro, in the quarter of the Kalsa, within the historic centre of Palermo. The building represents the main Conventual Franciscan church of Sicily, and has the title of minor basilica.
Pierbattista Pizzaballa is an Italian Catholic prelate who has served as Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem since 6 November 2020. A Franciscan friar, he served as Custos of the Holy Land from 2004 to 2016 and as Apostolic Administrator of the Latin Patriarchate from 2016 to 2020. He was made a cardinal by Pope Francis in 2023.
Dominique Joseph Mathieu, O.F.M. Conv. is a Belgian Catholic prelate who has served as Archbishop of Tehran-Isfahan since 2021. He is a member of the Order of Friars Minor Conventual.
François-Xavier Bustillo OFMConv is a French Catholic prelate of Spanish origin who has been the Bishop of Ajaccio in Corsica since 2021. He is a member of the Conventual Franciscans.
Vittorio Francesco Viola, O.F.M. is an Italian Catholic prelate who joined the Roman Curia in May 2021 as secretary of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments with the rank of archbishop. A member of the Order of Friars Minor, he was Bishop of Tortona from 2014 to 2021.
Fortunato Frezza is an Italian prelate of the Catholic Church who devoted his career to Biblical scholarship and teaching. He has been a canon of St. Peter's Basilica since 2013.
