St Francis Feast Celebrated as a National Holiday for the First Time as Assisi Marks 800 Years Since the Saint's Death
Assisi hosted the celebrations for the Feast of St Francis on 4 October 2026. It was the first time the feast was celebrated as a restored national holiday, after the 4 October holiday — abolished in 1977 — was reinstated by Law No. 151 of 2025; the year also marks the 800th anniversary of the saint's death, St Francis having died in Assisi on the evening of 3 October 1226. President Sergio Mattarella attended the ceremonies, and the solemn Mass was celebrated by Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, Archbishop of Bologna and president of the Italian bishops' conference.
The celebrations began with the vigil on the evening of 3 October: the walking pilgrimage 'Cammino con Francesco' reached Assisi with more than 2,000 participants; at 23:59 the bells of the Basilica of St Francis rang in the feast; and at midnight Cardinal Ángel Fernández Artime, papal legate for the papal basilicas of Assisi, celebrated Mass in the Lower Church, with giant screens outside.
After the solemn Mass on 4 October came the lighting of the Votive Lamp of the Municipalities of Italy, which burns at the tomb of St Francis. For the first time, the lamp was lit by the Mayor of Assisi, Valter Stoppini, on behalf of all Italian municipalities, using oil offered by the Umbria Region. The region's president, Stefania Proietti, had presented the oil on 3 October at a meeting with regional presidents and provincial-capital mayors. After the celebration, Mattarella addressed the country from the Loggia of the Sacro Convento. At noon the Angelus of Pope Leo XIV was shown on the square's screens; the afternoon programme included Second Vespers, a procession and the blessing of Italy and the world, closing with the Canticle of the Creatures and a Mass at 18:30.
Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni issued a statement on 4 October describing the day as a celebration for Italy and Italians in honour of the country's patron saint. Francis, together with Catherine of Siena, was proclaimed patron of Italy by Pope Pius XII on 18 June 1939; 4 October had been a civil solemnity under Law No. 132 of 1958 before losing its status as a national holiday in 1977. Law No. 151, promulgated on 8 October 2025 and in force since 1 January 2026, restored the holiday and names peace, fraternity, care for the environment and solidarity among its founding values.
The year 2026 also closes the four-year Franciscan centenary cycle (2023–2026), which previously marked the approval of the Rule and the Greccio crib (2023), the Stigmata (2024) and the Canticle of the Creatures (2025).
Sources: Italian Government (governo.it), Prime Minister's statement, 4 October 2026; PerugiaTomorrow, 4 October 2026; La Voce (Umbria), 4 October 2026; Vaticano.com, background on the feast and the law.
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 阿西西圣方济各大殿后殿与圣所修道院回廊。摄影：Effems，CC0，来源：Wikimedia Commons（San Francesco (Assisi) 06 05 2026 04.jpg）
