International Franciscan Conference of the Brothers and Sisters of the Third Order Regular · IFC-TOR
International Franciscan Conference of the Brothers and Sisters of the Third Order Regular · IFC-TOR
NEWS
COMMUNICATIONS to the Members
COP 30 / Belém - Amazônia
At the time we write to you, the Franciscan Family is present and getting active at the UN Climate Conference (COP30) in Belém, Brazil. We are reaching out to you because this is a great opportunity for us as Franciscans to engage in preserving our common home. Even if you’re not in Belém, there are ways you can join us:
Follow Franciscans International’s social media accounts and help get the message out by sharing the calls and updates of the Franciscan delegation there.
We’ve also set up a WhatsApp group for frequent updates. You can join at:
Share and take part in our online Franciscan Climate Talks:
A live Q&A with the Franciscan delegation from Belém — sharing stories and insights directly from COP30.
Thursday, 13 November | 10:00 New York / 16:00 Geneva
Registration: https://bit.ly/4oECWG0
On 13 November, Brazilian Franciscans will organize an event in parallel to COP30. We’ll see what we can share; stay tuned! / https://franciscansinternational.org
Participatory climate marches:
Saturday, 15 November, climate marches will be organized worldwide. Are you planning to take part in a march in your country?
If so, please tag Franciscans International in your picture, add the #FranciscansUnitedforClimateAction. We will repost your pictures!
An Invitation to Prayer and Ecological Conversion as the World Community Gathers at COP 30 in Belem, Brazil.
Brothers and Sisters, May the Lord give you peace!
In the spirit of the 800 th Anniversary of the Canticle of Creatures, we, your Ministers General and President, invite the Franciscan family to join with us in prayer as the global community prepares to meet in Belem, Brazil, November 10-21, 2025, at the Conference of Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention (COP-30).
On its concluding day, the Jubilee for Consecrated Life turned its focus to Peace. Following a day dedicated to Hope, participants gathered in the Paul VI Hall to address the critical need for peacemakers in an age of widespread conflict.
PRESS RELEASE / General Assembly 2025
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
From May 11 – 15 2025, 68 General Ministers and/or their delegates gathered at Domus Pacis for the celebration of the 11th General Assembly of the International Franciscan Conference of the Institutes and Monasteries of the Brothers and Sisters of the Third Order Regular of St. Francis with the president of IFC-TOR, Sister Frances Marie Duncan, presiding at the gathering.
The theme of the assembly, which celebrated the 800th Anniversary of the Canticle of Creation, had as its theme “Franciscans, Repair my World.”
Father David Couturier, OFM, Cap. and Jeffry Papia from the Padua Program, a Franciscan Mission-Based Leadership Training at St. Bonaventure University in New York, led the participants in reflection on this theme through a series of three lectures and discussions. The talks will soon be published on the website of the conference, www.ifc-tor.org
On the last day of the Assembly, the voting members elected the new council to lead the IFC-TOR for the next three years:
President
Sr. Daisy Kalamparamban – from India – living in Rome
General Minister of the Franciscan Handmaids of the Good Shepherd
Council Members
Sr. Lorella Chiaruzzi (Vice-President) – from Italy – living in Rimini
General Minister of the Franciscan Missionaries of Christ
Sr. Pacyfika Leman – from Poland – living in Rome
General Minister of the Sisters of St. Francis of Penance and Christian Charity
Sr. Georgette Ngom – from Senegal – living in Rome
General Councilor of Franciscan Missionaries of Mary
Sr. Mary Elizabeth Imler – from the United States
General Minister of the Franciscan Sisters of the Sacred Heart
Sr. Rute Almeida Guimarães – from Brazil
General Minister of the Franciscan Sisters of the Providence of God
The IFC-TOR congratulates our new pope, Pope Leo XIV
Being a former leader of his Augustinian order, serving as a missionary in Peru for many years and serving recently in the Dicastery for Bishops, we are confident that our new Pope born in the United States will wisely and compassionately shepherd the people of God.
We offer him our promise of prayers and support!
A letter from the General Ministers of the FRANCISCAN FAMILY / CFF
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Peace and good to all the brothers and sisters of the Franciscan Family.
With hearts filled with gratitude but also with deep sorrow, we, the General Ministers of the Franciscan Family, wish to share with you our farewell to Our Holy Father Pope Francis, who has returned to the house of the Father.
At this time, when our beloved Pope Francis has left us, we feel the urgency to reflect on the profound meaning that his presence had for us as sons and daughters of St. Francis of Assisi. It was not by chance that Jorge Mario Bergoglio chose the name of the Poverello of Assisi for his pontificate: this choice revealed from the very beginning a path of life and mission that he consistently followed until the end of his days. […]
Statement in mourning for His Holiness POPE FRANCIS / April 2025
The IFC-TOR joins with all the Church and the world in mourning the death of Pope Francis.
The ideals promoted by Pope Francis and the witness of his life were the greatest witness of how followers of Christ are meant to live.
His taking the name Francis, on becoming Pope, reflected his love for the poor and marginalized and his commitment to serve them as did St. Francis of Assisi.
We pray that we, as Franciscans, can carry on his efforts to protect all people and all of God’s Creation.
May he rest in peace!
Franciscans International Board of Directors meet twice a year: in the first half of the year in Geneva, Switzerland and the last half of the year in New York, USA, unless otherwise. The two countries are chosen because that is where Franciscans International have their offices respectively. This year from the 17th-19th April 2024, I attended a workshop organized by our staff of the Franciscans International on human rights concerns, in Santa Maria di Angeli in Assisi. This meeting in Assisi attracted religious brothers and sisters, and the laity who work with migrants as well as for the protection of the rights of people deprived of their liberty.
(Sr. Charity Katongo Nkandu)
At the last Council meeting of IFC-TOR, the Council was able to make more definitive plans for the upcoming General Assembly. We are sending this information now so that you can SAVE THE DATE.