From February 17 to 19, 2026, the second meeting of the Secretariats for Evangelization and Mission of the Capuchin circumscriptions of India was held at the Anugraha Animation Center (Tamil Nadu). About 30 friars participated, including: the General Councilor for India, Br. Lawrence Soosai Nathan; the President of CCMSI, Br. Georgy Anthony; the host Provincial Minister, Br. Arockiadass Savarimuthu; the animator for the missions of CCMSI, Br. Renny Velayappillil; the General Secretary for Missions Br. Mariosvaldo Florentino, the Secretaries for Missions of all the circumscriptions of India and Sri Lanka, as well as some friars from the host province who collaborated in various services.
On February 17, after the solemn opening and warm welcome by the meeting coordinators, participants took part in some fraternal integration activities.
Brother Mariosvaldo Florentino then presented the current vision of the General Secretariat for Evangelization and Missionary Animation, with the prospects and challenges of the moment, giving space for an initial moment of sharing.
In the afternoon, each Secretary presented the missionary activities of his own Circumscription. Brother Lawrence Soosai Nathan led the secretaries in a sharing of the challenges they experience, highlighting that in some circumscriptions the secretariat needs better structuring and strengthening.
The presentations clearly showed that India is now one of the greatest missionary forces in our Order. Indian friars are engaged in numerous missions within the country, particularly in the northeastern states, and in various missions abroad: Africa (Ghana, Burkina Faso, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Mauritius); Asia (Sri Lanka, Bangladesh); Oceania (New Zealand). They also collaborate in various missionary contexts such as the Custody of Arabia, Papua New Guinea, Japan, Turkey, and Guam, and soon also in Ecuador. They are present as fraternal collaborators in numerous countries of Christian tradition such as Italy, Germany, the USA, Canada, Switzerland, France, Spain, Belgium, England, and Argentina. It has been noted that some Indian provinces have up to half of their active friars engaged in pastoral work outside their circumscription.
It is important to emphasize that in the Indian circumscriptions, the mission is lived in three dimensions: there are friars sent to other countries (abroad), friars sent to other states within India for the implantatio Ecclesiae and for the implantatio Ordinis, and there are others who, while not leaving the territory of their own circumscription, find themselves in a context where Christians are a small minority and, through their educational work or social works, “are always on mission.”
The day ended with a particularly moving Eucharistic celebration, during which thanks were given to the Lord for the friars who gave their lives to the missions of the province, especially in Zimbabwe. Special thanks were given to Brother Jayaraj, a friar who dedicated 29 years to the mission and who is now returning home due to poor health.
On February 18, after morning Mass, the friars participated in a fraternal picnic and then visited the large social work Reaching the Unreached (RTU), which offers comprehensive education to more than 500 orphaned or vulnerable children, in addition to numerous other projects and services. The visit deeply impressed all participants.
On February 19, the day began with Holy Mass and the rite of the imposition of ashes, marking the beginning of the Lenten journey.
Fra Mariosvaldo Florentino presented the Capuchin missionary charism, beginning with St. Francis, our Rule, the Capuchin Reform, and the current Constitutions, which provides orientation for our missionary animation. He then illustrated the identity, role, and activities of the Secretariat in the circumscriptions. His two presentations generated a wide-ranging discussion on the secretariats in the circumscriptions and at the level of the CCMSI Conference.
The friars then reviewed the proposals formulated at the first meeting in 2022, where suggestions were made to revise or improve some of them, as well as new proposals. An editorial committee worked during the lunch break on the changes and new proposals so that the new text could be presented to the assembly in the afternoon.
During the last session, proposals to be presented at the Conference were discussed and approved, with the aim of making the secretariats’ service more effective in terms of animation, formation, and missionary support in all the circumscriptions of India.
The meeting was very positively evaluated by the participants, who expressed their gratitude to the organizers and local friars for their warm sense of hospitality.