Simple Samples from our Franciscan Heritage

Sr Patricia Treacy mfic

Francis and Clare

Francis and Clare show us two facets of the one beautiful gift of Christ to the Church – a new awakening and a new understanding of the Gospel message.

Mutual Love and Respect

Clare tells her own story in her Rule:

‘After the Most High Celestial Father saw fit to enlighten my heart by his grace to do penance according to the example and teaching of our most blessed Father Saint Francis, shortly after his own conversion, I, together with my sisters, voluntarily promised him obedience.’1

Here we have an interesting insight into the relationship between Francis and Clare. Not the romantic picture we see in novels or on the screen! Nor is there a hero-worship of Francis by Clare. Clare states very clearly that it is God who called her and her sisters – but their call is to follow Francis’ example. There is no doubt in Clare’s mind that by following Francis’ example and teaching they will live ‘the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ’ in an authentic way.

What was Francis’ attitude towards the 18-year-old Clare? The Legend of St Clare2 tells us that Francis recognized Clare as a specially chosen and privileged person, someone who really understood the call from God that he himself had received.

Francis encouraged Clare to respond generously to God’s call. In the “Form of Life’ he gave her and her sisters he wrote

‘… by divine inspiration you have made yourselves daughters and servants of the most high King … choosing to live according to the perfection of the holy Gospel…’

Francis did not impose a rule on Clare and her sisters; rather he recognized that by God’s inspiration they had already embraced the Gospel way of life. He saw and honoured God’s work in these women’s lives.

Clare’s Way of Life

The way of life of Clare and her sisters was similar to that of the friars, though there were some differences:

• The sisters did not travel about preaching penance, but spent their whole lives within the enclosure of a monastery.

• Clare’s Rule placed special emphasis on owning nothing.

• Whereas the friars were called to go out and be brothers to all, Clare stressed the importance of the ‘unity of mutual love’ within the community.

Prayer and Contemplation

In Clare’s letters she writes beautifully and profoundly of prayer and contemplation and deep union with Christ. We know Francis himself depended on her prayers for guidance in the direction his life should take.3

Clare as a Person

Stories about Clare reveal her as a warm, loving person. We read of her care for her sisters – making sure they had enough warm clothing and blankets, washing the feet of the extern sisters when they returned to the monastery. Her concern was not just for the material welfare of her sisters: the letters she wrote to Agnes of Prague show her earnest desire for Agnes to grow in the knowledge of Christ. We see also her willingness to share the wisdom she had gained through her own life of prayer.
                         
In Clare, the ‘brightly shining one’4 we see not only a reflection of the glory of God but also the beauty of a loving human person.

Our Way of Life

We are called to the same Gospel way of life as Francis and Clare. In their lives we see the values that we are called to live by. May their prayers support us in our efforts to embody the Gospel in the reality of our lives, in the world of today.

References:

1. Rule of St Clare, chapter VI
2. Legend of St Clare (early anonymous biography) n. 5
3. Little Flowers of St Francis, 16
4. The meaning of Clare’s name

Next: Francis and the Word of God

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