St. Francis of Assisi
800 Years of Adventure
explore the enduring legacy of St. Francis
Read about this cross-curricular project
Celebrate St. Francis at UST
Reflect on the life of St. Francis
“From this hillside, where it abates its rise, a sun was born into the world.”
(Dante, Paradiso, XI — St. Thomas Aquinas’s theological praise of St. Francis)
The 800th anniversary of the death of St. Francis of Assisi invites the University of St. Thomas community to reflect on one of the most influential figures in Christian history and to rediscover the meaning of faith as an encounter that renews life.
Throughout Fall 2026, the University will commemorate this anniversary through lectures, exhibitions, liturgies, artistic programs, and academic events that explore the enduring legacy of St. Francis from historical, theological, scientific, artistic, philosophical, and cultural perspectives.
Sign up and register for each event.
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Festival Events & Cultural Celebrations
Signature events include the visit of the Archbishop of Assisi with the veneration of the sacred relics of St. Francis, St. Clare, and St. Carlo Acutis, an international academic conference, two exhibitions, a Feast of St. Francis celebration, and a poetry awards ceremony.
Visit of Bishop of Assisi & Exposition of Relics — Sept. 18
Feast of St. Francis Celebration — Oct. 5
In collaboration with Campus Ministry, the university will host a celebration inspired by the tradition of Feasting with the Saints. The event will invite the community to gather in joy and gratitude through shared food, artistic expression, and cultural reflection on the life and legacy of St. Francis.
International Academic Conference - Oct. 15-17
A Sun is Born into the World:
St. Francis and the Smallness of God
The centerpiece of the celebration is a three-day interdisciplinary conference – Oct. 15-17 – exploring the legacy of St. Francis of Assisi across theology, philosophy, history, literature, economics, science, art, and culture.
Thursday, October 15 — Opening Night
7 p.m. Opening Keynote Speaker — Jones Hall
Timothy Verdon — Director, Museo dell’Opera del Duomo, Florence — “Francis, Image of Christ”
8 p.m. Public Reception & Exhibition Opening — Doherty Library
Francis and the Sultan: The Encounter on the Other Shore — Exhibit Opening
Following the lecture, in collaboration with Meeting di Rimini; opening remarks by Maria Pia Alberzoni, Abdullah Antepli, and Dr. Kevin Stuart. Open to the public through Nov. 13 during regular library hours.
Friday, October 16
9:30 a.m. – 10 p.m. Coffee Available
9:30 a.m. Conference Arrival Begins
10 a.m. – 12 noon Panel 1: Transitus Christi: The Mystical Itinerary of Francis’ Life and Death
- Jeffrey Bloechl, Department Chair and Arthur J. Fitzgibbons Professor of Philosophy, Boston College
- Kevin L. Hughes, Professor of Theology, Villanova University
- Randall Smith, Professor of Theology, University of St. Thomas
12 noon – 1:30 p.m. Lunch
1:30 – 3 p.m. Panel 2: Amor Paupertatis: What St. Francis can Teach us about Human Economics
- Fr. Ryan Thornton, OFM, Franciscan Institute
- Title: Francis, Poverty, and Thinking Economically
- Giovanni Patriarca, Scholar of Philosophy and the History of Economic Thought
- Title: Holy Numbers, Blessed Measures and Sacred Money? An Early Franciscan Economic History
- Rogelio Garcia-Contreras, Teaching Associate Faculty, Walton College of Business, University of Arkansas
- Title: From the Common Good to the Circular Economy: Social Business and Sustainability through the Teachings of St. Francis of Assisi
3 – 3:30 p.m. Coffee break
3:30 – 5:00 p.m. Panel 3: Serafico in Ardore: Franciscan Origins and Legacy (History)
- Maria Pia Alberzoni — Professor of Medieval History, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Milan
- Title: Clare of Assisi, Foremost Interpreter of Francis’s Will
- Michael Cusato, OFM, Franciscan Monastery of the Holy Land
- Title: Mortality Transfigured: Francis of Assisi Confronts Setback, Failure, Illness and Death
- Fr. Gianluca Zuccaro, OFM, Theologian, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Milan
- Title: A Path from Bonaventure to Scotus, and Its Relevance for Today
5:30 – 7:30 p.m. Evening Keynote Speaker – Jones Hall
- Augustine Thompson, O.P. — President, Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies, University of Toronto
- Title: After Sabatier: St. Francis of Assisi from Historical Positivism to Critical Realism.
7:45 p.m. Sacred Art Exhibition Opening – Doherty Library
Following the keynote speaker, enjoy contemporary sacred and spiritually inspired art made possible through the generosity of the Scanlan Foundation. Opening remarks by Al Sauls, Larry Massey and First Gentleman Terry Vanderpool. Open to the public through Oct. 30 during regular library hours.
Saturday, October 17
9:30 a.m. – 10 p.m. Coffee Available
9:30 a.m. Conference Arrival Begins
10:00 – 11:30 a.m. Panel 4: Cum tucte le Tue creature: Environmental Science, Ecology, and Creation
- Sr. Damien Marie Savino, F.S.E., Franciscan Sister of the Eucharist; Melchor Visiting Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Earth Sciences, University of Notre Dame
- Title: TBA
- Kerri Crawford, Associate Professor, Department of Biology & Biochemistry, University of Houston
- Title: Our connections with Nature: From biodiversity Loss to Ecological Restoration
- Janet Siefert, Lanier Fellow at the Intersection of Faith and Science, the Lanier Foundation,
- Title: From Assisi to Diddly Squat: St. Francis and Jeremy Clarkson Have a Word
11:30 – 1 p.m. Lunch break
1 – 2:30 p.m. Panel 5: Ars Vitae: St. Francis and the Transfiguration of the Poetic Imagination
- Filippo Rossi, Artist and Art Historian
- Title: The Holy Sign. An Exhibit in Saint Francis’s first friary. Saint Francis, the Cross, and Contemporary Abstraction.
- Francesca D’Alessandro Behr, Professor of Italian and Classical Studies, University of Houston
- Title: Lucrezia Marinella and St. Francis: A Female Humanist’s Reimagining of the Saint’s Life
- Moderator: Dominic Aquila, Professor of History, University of St. Thomas
2:30 – 3 p.m. Coffee break
3 – 4:30 p.m. Panel 6: Alter Christus: Human Reconfiguration through Christological Imitation
- Dominic Aquila, Professor of History, University of St. Thomas
- Title: What the Doctors Learned from Francis: Education and Its Ends in Dante’s Heaven of the Sun
- Timothy Reilly, Associate Professor of Psychology, University of St. Thomas
- Title: Bonaventure, Buber, and the Beatitudes: A Brief Psychological Reflection
- Kenneth E. Buckle, Texas Psychologist, Executive Director of Gratia Plena
- Title: Poverty and Dependence on God
4:30 – 5 p.m. Closing remarks
5 – 5:45 p.m. Holy Mass — Chapel of St. Basil
Cocktails and dinner to follow.
Pope Leo XIV marks the 800th anniversary of St. Francis' Death
Jubilee Year of St. Francis
Thank you for engaging with the University of St. Thomas for this campus-wide commemoration of St. Francis of Assisi. St. Francis is not a figure of the past, but a witness who still speaks, still unsettles, and still moves us — calling us to a freedom rooted not in possession or power, but in openness, poverty of spirit, and obedience to the truth. The celebration invites our whole community into a dialogue across the disciplines, where questions are welcomed and where beauty, learning, and faith together illuminate our search for the truth.