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By Angelo Kurbanali
Catholic theologian
St Francis of Assisi (1181–1226) is one of our Catholic Church’s most well-known saints. History is filled with stories of his life’s work, which still impacts us 800 years later, and his legacy is filled with practical wisdom for us today.
Hopefully, this article raises an idea for you to rest with and reflect on in this special jubilee year.
Earlier this year, Pope Leo XIV proclaimed the Jubilee Year of St Francis for the universal Church. Dioceses all over the world are invited to celebrate St Francis of Assisi on the 800th year since his passing.
Locally, however, stories in and out the pews of our Archdiocese of Port of Spain say the people of our Church are burnt out–and understandably so. We moved from dealing with Covid beginning in 2020, to Synod 2021–2024, to Jubilee 2025, to now being missionary disciples, in this special Jubilee Year 2026. It’s a lot. We might wonder when our year of rest—which is what a jubilee is really about—will be.
In preparation for the 2025 Jubilee, Fr Don Chambers reminded the Caribbean, via Trinity TV, that a Jubilee Year is a time of “rest, reflection, and restoration”. When it comes to Jubilee 2025, many people’s stories speak for themselves: 2025 was filled with grace, but 2025 was anything but restful, reflective, or restorative.
Biblically, a jubilee meant the liberation of those who served tirelessly and a restoration of justice, with the poor being the top priority.
The People of God are tired and our Church’s resources appear thin, especially in Trinidad and Tobago. How much longer can we go on like this? Yet the story of Giovanni di Pietro di Bernadone—St Francis—offers our Trinbagonian Church wisdom we can pray about and reflect upon during this Franciscan Jubilee 2026.
One of the enduring aspects of St Francis’ conversion story is his encounter with Jesus in a worn church. As he prayed by himself, St Francis heard God’s voice say, “Francis, go and rebuild my Church”.
Francis’ restful prayer time reflecting with God began his journey of physically restoring the church building he prayed in, which led him to spiritually restoring the universal Church in unimaginable ways. The seeds this Christian mystic planted for our Church continue to bear fruit for us 800 years later.
As we understand it, however, St Francis’ love for God and God’s Church did not give him extraordinary time, supernatural energy, or unlimited resources to be able to accomplish all the great things he did.
St Francis’ restoration of the Church began with simple quiet rest and prayerful reflection—things many people within our Archdiocese have been hoping for, for years. Maybe this year of the Franciscan Jubilee can be the beginning of our Archdiocese’s restoration, rooted in a year of resting, reflecting, and listening to God’s Holy Spirit.
It may feel counterproductive if we slow down. It may feel counterintuitive if we do less. And if there is one thing St Francis and the Franciscans have taught the Church, it is that there is more than one way to be a faithful, authentic Catholic—the Franciscans have regularly taken alternative theological positions in the history of our Church.
A reduction of events for one year will not affect our Church. Yet, a year of quiet, intentional rest and reflection could energise us to restore the Trinbagonian Church, the Caribbean Church, and the universal Church in unimaginable ways, just as St Francis did.
In other words, if you find yourself serving the Church, but are overwhelmed from all that has been happening with our Church this decade, and you discern the need to rest, please do. Even better would be if we rested collectively as a Church, so we could get up and journey again as a Church. An exhausted Church is no better than an empty church.
St Francis teaches us that following God’s call is the highest calling in our lives. If that calling leads us to go outside the norm, and slow down the freneticism of our Archdiocese, then so be it. Through rest and reflection, God will move us to restore our Church in the way God wants.
