About us
The General Chapter is the highest assembly of governance and communion of the Order of Friars Minor. Through the friars who participate as representatives, it exercises collegially its fundamental responsibilities: safeguarding fidelity to the Gospel according to the form of life received from Saint Francis, discerning the signs of the times, and guiding the mission of the Order in today’s world.
Within the General Chapter, choices are made that concern the whole Fraternity: we listen to what the Spirit says to the Order through the experience of the Provinces, Custodies, and the various realities of the Order; we evaluate paths, difficulties, and prospects; we elect the new General Government; we take normative and pastoral decisions that help us live more coherently minority, fraternal life, prayer, and the proclamation of the Gospel. It is also the place in which the Order strengthens its unity, because the diversity of languages, cultures, and services is brought back to a single horizon of fraternity and mission.
The theme of the next Chapter will be:
Friars Minor on mission: Following Christ and Proclaiming the Gospel Today, Toward God's Future
“Behold, I am with you always, to the close of the age”
Mt 28:20
Following the Gospel of Christ, amidst technology, pluralism, and human frailty, for a prophetic Franciscan presence in our time.
In this light, the next General Chapter will take place in Vietnam in May 2027, and it presents itself as a time of grace for the whole Order: an opportunity to give thanks for the journey made, to acknowledge truthfully the challenges that question Franciscan life today, and to renew, with courage and evangelical simplicity, the commitment to serve the Gospel among the peoples. Celebrating it in Asia, in a dynamic ecclesial and cultural context, will also be a concrete sign of the universal dimension of the Order and of its missionary vocation, called to draw near to the peripheries, to dialogue with peoples, and to witness peace and all good with a humble and fraternal presence.
The Chapter intends to discern, among other things:
- how to live the following of Christ in a context of strong cultural and religious pluralism, in the logic of dialogue, listening, and minority.
- how to engage evangelically with new technologies and artificial intelligence (AI), which shape mentalities, relationships, and cultures.
- how to proclaim the Gospel to young people and accompany them on their journeys of faith and vocational discernment.
- how to rethink the Order's structures so that they are truly at the service of the mission, fraternity, and proximity to the poor.
- how to strengthen a clear and shared culture of protection for minors and vulnerable adults, an essential condition for a credible evangelical witness.
From this perspective, the reference to St Francis—a man who embraced the Gospel as a way of life—helps us to interpret new challenges not as paralysing threats, but as places where the Spirit calls us to a more humble, creative, and courageous mission.
Chapter theme
Friars Minor on Mission: Following Christ and Proclaiming the Gospel Today, Toward God's Future
“Behold, I am with you always, to the close of the age”
Mt 28,20
Subtitle:
Following the Gospel of Christ, amidst technology, pluralism, and human frailty, for a prophetic Franciscan presence in our time.
Description:
The theme of the Chapter—"Friars Minor on Mission in a World of New Challenges"— stems from the awareness that today the Order is called to live its Franciscan identity and mission in a profoundly transformed historical context.
Enlightened by the Word of God ("Go, ye therefore, and make disciples of all nations" (Mt 28:19); "I must go forward on my journey today, tomorrow, and the next day" (cf. Lk 13:33) and by the testimony of St Francis, who in his Testament states: "The Lord revealed to me that I must live according to the form of the Holy Gospel" (Testament 14), We want to ask ourselves how to be Friars Minor on mission today within the new challenges of the contemporary world.
Towards the chapter
Path of preparation for the General Chapter 2027
The path of preparation for the General Chapter 2027 is envisioned as a journey of discernment, lived in communion and in a synodal style. For this reason, the work, both in the preparatory phase and during the Chapter assembly, is structured around the three steps of discernment: to recognize, to interpret, and to choose.
In the preparatory phase, recognizing means placing ourselves in attentive listening to the various subjects that make up the Franciscan Family, through a specific and renewed listening. What emerges will then need to be interpreted in the light of the themes of discernment already shared, of the questions raised in the recent journeys of the Order, and of the verification of the capitular mandates. Finally, choosing will take concrete form in the drafting of the Instrumentum laboris, which will gather and organize what has matured in the listening process.
In this context, the worksheets find their place. They are practical tools for reflection and activation, addressed to the different areas involved (commissions, secretariats, offices and services, fraternities and other realities of the various Entities), to foster an ordered spiritual conversation and to help each person offer a clear and shareable contribution. The sheets can be adapted to different contexts; the aim is that each Entity may prepare a synthesis of what has emerged and transmit it to the Preparatory Commission within the deadlines indicated in the sheets themselves. This contribution is valuable for the preparation of the Instrumentum laboris and, consequently, for the good unfolding of the Chapter.
Documents for Download:
Letter from the Secretary of the General Chapter
Italiano - English – Español
Mission Discernment Worksheets:
- Ongoing Formation – Fragility
Italiano - English – Español
- Youth and Vocations Animators
Italiano - English - Español
- Communications and Social Media Offices of the Entities
Italiano - English - Español
- Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation (JPIC) Office
Italiano - English - Español
Worksheet for Local Chapters:
Methodology Description:
Instructions on How to Work with the Worksheets:
Information
The next General Chapter will take place in Vietnam in May 2027 at the Pilgrimage Center of Our Lady of Núi Cúi
The Pilgrimage Center of Our Lady of Núi Cúi is a Catholic shrine located in the Diocese of Xuân Lộc, in the commune of Thống Nhất, Đồng Nai province, Vietnam. It is considered the largest Catholic pilgrimage center in the country, with a square capable of welcoming over 100,000 people, not counting the auxiliary areas of the complex.
Contact
Chapter venue:
Pilgrimage Center of Our Lady of Núi Cúi
Dốc Mơ, Thống Nhất, Đồng Nai, Vietnam
E-mail:
To get in touch, write to: capgensec@ofm.org