On Saturday, November 18, 2023, a webinar on Pope Francis’ the Apostolic Exhortation Laudate Deum was organized by the JPIC OFM General Office and drew participants from all over the world. This webinar was translated into three languages: English, Italian and Spanish. The moderator was Br. Daniel Rodríguez Blanco OFM, director of the General Office of the JPIC OFM.
The meeting was held in Semarang, Central Java-Indonesia, from 16-20 October 2023, where the participants came from 60 nationalities around the globe, including a representative from JPIC Office in Rome, Br. Taucen OFM, a representative from Brazil, Br. Rodriquez Perets OFM, and a representative from Indonesia, Br. Mikael Gabra Satrio, OFM.
During the month of September, the JPIC of the Province of the Holy Martyrs of Korea carried out various activities related to climate justice. Here are some of them.
On the 11th and 12th October 2023, at the House of Pilgrims at the Sanctuary of Mount St. Anne in Poland, the General Secretariat for Missions and Evangelization, the General Secretariat for Formation and Studies and the General Office for Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation, in collaboration with the President of the Conference, br. Alard Maliszewski, and in the presence of the Definitor General responsible for the North Slavic Conference, br. Konrad Cholewa, organized the meeting of all the respective Offices of the Provinces of this Conference.
From the 6th to the 11th September, fr. Daniel Rodríguez Blanco, Director of the JPIC Office of the General Curia, visited the Provinces of Santa Fe and San Pablo in Colombia.
One image that can help us interpret Pope Francis’ Apostolic Exhortation Laudate Deum is that of “a wakeup call.”
The Season of Creation 2023 has as a special prelude the announcement of Pope Francis who is preparing the second part of Laudato Si’. In addition, it is very likely that the Season of Creation will conclude with the presentation of the aforementioned pontifical document, on the 4th October, 2023.
The XXXVII World Youth Day in Lisbon, Portugal ended with the celebration of Holy Mass in Lisbon’s Tejo Park in front of one and a half million young people, priests, religious, authorities and volunteers.
On Sunday the 30th July fr. Massimo Fusarelli, Minister General, arrived in Lisbon for a meeting with the Franciscan friars and the young people of the Laudato Si’ Movement (LSM). Both groups were preparing to develop an integral ecology programme at WYD Lisbon 2023.
On Tuesday 1st August, the Patriarch of Lisbon, H.E. Card. Manuel Clemente, celebrated the Holy Opening Mass of the XXXVII World Youth Day, which takes place in Lisbon, Portugal, until 6th August. Thousands of young people from all over the world took part, gathered at Parco Edoardo VII; as part of the Integral Ecology program, 40 Friars Minor from many parts of the world have taken care of the Park and the gardens it contains.