Thousands of pilgrims, as well as civil and religious leaders, are expected over the weekend to commemorate the feast of St. Francis, marking the 800th anniversary of his death with a call for world peace.
Year of St. Francis
Pope Leo XIV traveled to Assisi Aug. 5 to celebrate the Jubilee Year of St. Francis with 2,500 young people, urging them to become the “new saints” the world needs today.
In Assisi, one of the main pilgrim draws is a tiny church dwarfed by its expansive surroundings, the Basilica of St. Mary of the Angels near Assisi, Italy.
St. Francis of Assisi was declared a saint nearly 800 years ago, just two years after his death. Not until much more recently — about 50 years ago — was the beloved 13th-century Italian friar called the patron of ecology.
The Italian hilltown of Assisi is anticipating a visit from Pope Leo XIV during the special Jubilee Year of St. Francis as the city celebrates the 800th anniversary of the death of its most famous saint.