An Invitation to Prayer and Ecological Conversion as the World Community Gathers at COP 30 in Belem, Brazil

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To: 

All the Brothers and Sisters

of the Franciscan Family

In the spirit of the 800th 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). 

Throughout the jubilee year of the Canticle of Creatures, our Franciscan family has focused on the central evangelical values it contains and has created new ways for transmitting these to the people of our times. At the heart of his message is an invitation to undertake a lifelong journey of conversion of mind, heart, and action, recognizing the dignity and sanctity of all of life, and our responsibility to care for one another and for our Sister, Mother Earth. 

Our beloved late Holy Father, Pope Francis, who chose the name of our founder to give fresh voice to St. Francis’ call to conversion, and inspired by the same Canticle, invited the Church and all of humanity to embrace the way of ecological conversion. For Pope Francis, ecological conversion is a spiritual and philosophical transformation of the heart and mind that recognizes the interconnectedness of all creation, leading to a new way of being and acting in the world. It involves seeing oneself not as a dominator, but as a relational being within God's cosmic web. Our vocation is to foster a deep, personal, and communal commitment to care for one another and for the Earth, and to live more peaceably with God, each other, and all creation.

It is precisely this call to ecological conversion we hope might permeate the Conference of Parties in Belem. May world leaders recognize the urgency of what is at stake and commit to concrete, measurable actions that will ensure conditions necessary fora sustainable future for all of life. We join in solidarity with all our Franciscans brothers and sisters who will gather in Belem at a special ‘Canticle’ event on November 14. In the Spirit of St. Francis, who sent his brothers to share the good news of the Canticle, we urge you to share his message with all whom you will meet, inviting them to embrace the path of conversion, justice, and peace. As Pope Francis reminded us: “Living our vocation to be protectors of God’s handiwork is essential to a life of virtue; it is not an optional or secondary aspect of our Christian [Franciscan] experience” (Laudato Si’, 217). “By working with love and perseverance, we can sow many seeds of justice and thus contribute to the growth of peace and the renewal of hope.” (Leo XIV, Message for the 10th World  Day of Prayer for the care of creation 2025).

It is in this spirit that we unite our prayers at this moment, for the sake of humanity and for all of God’s creation.