Conferences Celebrating 800 years of Franciscan Presence in the Holy Land

There has been an official Franciscan presence in the Holy Land since 1217. Following decisions taken at the Pentecost General Chapter held at the Portiuncula on May 14th, 1217, several friars were sent there as missionaries. Tradition tells us that the first friars arrived at the Crusader gate in Acre. They were under the direction of Br. Elias, who because of this is considered to be the first Minister Provincial of Syria, or the Holy Land, or Ultra Mare — the names give to this entity in the first century of its history. In addition to Eucharistic Celebrations, St. Saviour’s Monastery in Jerusalem will also host well-known Conference speakers at a Conference being held to celebrate this event from October 16th to 18th, 2017. A PDF gives details of the program in English and Italian.