The declaration of this year as the "Year of the Priests" by His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI comes in an appropriate period in the Church where the faithful are invited to pray for the priests of the world. Being consistent with one of the themes of the Pope's pontificate, namely, the important role of the liturgy in the life of the Church and the society,the present pope explicitly associates the vocation of the priesthood with his sacramental ministry, specifically the devout and worthy celebration of the Sacrifice of the Mass. The origin of the priesthood began simultaneously with the institution of the Holy Eucharist. The essential point of reference for the priest's identity must always be the Holy Eucharist. It is from this sacrament that he draws his strength, finds meaning to his vocation and explains the very purpose of his existence as a priest.

St. Francis of Assisi brought about an awareness of the need of reform in the Church by obeying the injunction of Our Lord from San Damian Crucifix who spoke to him: "Francis, Francis, rebuild my Church, and as you see, is falling into ruin." After comprehending the spiritual meaning of this vocation, Francis founded his religious Order as a bastion of this Church's reform. This task, he accomplished by securing the approbation of Holy Mother Church for his rule and he received it from Pope Innocent III on April 16, 1209. This historical approbation was the occasion of the celebration that took place in St. John Lateran when Fr. Stefano Manelli, Minister General and founder of the Franciscans of the Immaculate, celebrated according to the extraordinary form of the Mass the Octocentennial anniversary of this approbation.

Why St. John Lateran? According to the Franciscan sources, Pope Innocent III approved the Order of St. Francis because of a dream he had of St. John Lateran Cathedral falling into ruin and yet supported by our Holy Father St. Francis. That particular dream was monumentalized by a huge bronze statue of St. Francis which stands today in front of St. John Lateran's piazza in a gesture of giving a blessing.

The Franciscans of the Immaculate by this liturgical celebration in St. John Lateran Cathedral want to renew its original vocation to be rebuilders of the Church in this time that is in need of spiritual reform and revitalization. There is no fitting way to do this than by offering to God a fitting worship of the Holy Eucharist. The same spiritual insight was in the mind of the late Pope John Paul II when he gave the world his encyclical on the Eucharist, "Eclessia de Eucharistia." That very title explains tons of mystery regarding the Church as one which sprung from the Eucharist. It is because of the mystery of the Holy Eucharist that there is a Church; it is because of this mystery that the Church will continue to be revived and finds its life and force in the world.