Celebrating St. Clare of Assisi

St. Clare of Assisi

On August 11, we celebrate the feast day of St. Clare of Assisi. Inspired by the preaching of Francis of Assisi, Clare began herself to feel that God was calling her to become a religious. In 1212 she joined Francis and his followers, eventually settling at the Church of San Damiano (in Assisi) with a group of likeminded ladies. At the church, Clare and the ladies lived a life of poverty and devotion to the Gospel. Her further life story is an inspiring one and can be read here.

Clare likely heard Francis of Assisi for the first time

in front of the Cathedral of San Rufino (Assisi)

To celebrate this year’s feast day, we wish to focus on Clare’s radical commitment to poverty. As a member of the wealthy and aristocratic Offreduccio family, Clare lived a lifestyle of complete physical comfort and material security. But one needs more in life than wealth. In fact wealth and the physical accessories that come with it often act as numbing agents. If they become an overwhelming presence in our lives, they force us to turn away from the spiritual plane of our existence.

Sts. Francis and Clare of Assisi

The young Clare Offreduccio – she was only 18 years old in 1212 – did not want her world cluttered up with physical things. She wished to devote herself completely to God without the distraction of property. Francis of Assisi provided her a way to achieve this complete devotion.