Franciscan Spiritual Traditions & Asian Societies: Memory, Institutionalization, & Pragmatic Agency. Online Conference, 30 September - 2 October 2026.
Eight centuries since the establishment of the Franciscan movement anchored in the charism and values of fraternity, radical humility and poverty, care for creation and reconciliation, the Franciscans have instituted not only a global presence of religious culture and networks but also produced values and ideas as resource of counterculture and imagining and rebuilding ‘alternative’ societies that have contributed to global history and social change. The proclamation of the Franciscan Jubilee Year in 2026 serves as a critical juncture for scholars to examine how religious traditions translate into functional societal frameworks. Moving beyond traditional theological discourses, this conference investigates Franciscan charisms as a “form-of-life” that are (in)advertently woven into various dimensions of social life in Asia and actively engages with ecological challenges, modern governance, public memory, and social infrastructure within the distinct context of Asian Catholicism.
This online conference, to be held on 30 Sept. - 2 Oct. 2026 and convened by the Initiative for the Study of Asian Catholics (ISAC), explores the utility and institutionalization of Franciscan values through projects grounded in empirical research, archival study, or theoretical analysis.
See the program here.
More information and registration here.