by Theresa Cavicchio, OFSFranciscans around the world – religious and lay – are celebrating the recent announcement of the Jubilee Year of Saint Francis of Assisi (1182 – 1226 A.D.). This special time – from January 10, 2026, to January 10, 2027, has been proclaimed by Pope Leo XIV in commemoration of the 800th anniversary of the death of the “Little Poor Man” later this year.