acta ordinis fratrum minorum - OFM

A07nterno:ACTAORDINIS 16/5/07 16:37 Page 157AD CHRONICAM ORDINIS1. De itineribus Ministri Generalis1. Visit to the “John the Baptist” Custody inPakistanKarachi, 02-04.01.2007The Minister General, accompanied byBr. Ambrose Van Si, General Definitor, leftRome on the 2nd of January to make a short,but intense, visit to the Friars of the Custodyof Pakistan.He arrived in Pakistan on an EmiratesAirlines flight at 04.30 on the 3rd of January.Waiting for the Minister at the airportwere the Custos, Br. Samson Shukardin,some Friars and members of the SFO. At10.30, the Minister, accompanied by theCustos, made a courtesy visit to the Archbishopof Karachi, who knew some of ourDutch missionaries. He expressed his gratitudeto the Order of Friars Minor for havinggiven an important contribution to the foundationand development of the Church inPakistan and of the Archdiocese of Karachiin particular. From the Curia of the Bishopthe Minister went to visit a fraternity of the“Catholic Colony”. The Guardian, Br.Paschal, and other Friars, received the Ministerwith joy. The Minister made a specialvisit to Msgr. Bonaventure Paul, our brother,who had been sick for some time. (Hedied on the 18th January 2007. RIP).The Annual Assembly of the Custodywas opened in the new seat of the ProvincialCuria at 15.30. The Custody has a longstandingtradition of holding a meeting ofall the Friars each year. All the Friars of theCustody, 41 in total, came. The openingceremony began with a procession from thecourtyard to the assembly hall. It was alsothe official reception of the Minister Generaland Definitor with garlands of flowers,dances and tambourines; all in a joyful andfraternal atmosphere, typical of the Pakistaniculture. In the meeting hall, after thegreetings of the Custos, the situation of theCustody was presented to the Minister andhe was thanked for coming. The Ministerthen addressed his message to the Friars. Hetouched on the essential points of ourcharism, insisting, in particular, on ongoingformation and on the need to live dialogueas an expression of the following of Christin the concrete situation of Pakistan. TheMinister hoped the Custody would dare torenew itself continually and would make agood preparation for the Canonical Visitationand upcoming Chapter. An open dialoguefollowed the address of the Minister.The assembly continued with EveningPrayer and a fraternal supper.The 4/01/2007: The Assembly dividedinto groups to reflect on some questions,suggested by the Minister and by the SteeringCommittee, focused on the Priorities ofthe Order with the objective of applyingthem to the context of Pakistan.The reports and dialogue which followedthe reflection were very rich andstimulating. All the Friars felt questioned.The Minister responded to the questionswhich emerged from the work in thegroups. The dialogue continued in the afternoonafter the Minister and Definitor hadspoken about the projects of the Order regardingthe Celebration of the 8th Centenaryof the Foundation of the Order andabout the missionary projects, especiallythose of Asia and Africa, which the GeneralDefinitory are promoting.At 18.00 there was a Eucharistic celebrationin the chapel of the fraternitypresided by the Minister in the presence ofthe Archbishop of Karachi and of numerousreligious. After the Eucharist the Ministerblessed the new Provincial Curia, built withthe help of the General Curia and of someinternational organisations, among them theMZF and the Catholics of New Zealand. Afestive supper and cultural presentation,