Since February 2019 I have been preaching and giving Classes to the Franciscan Clarists, Perpetual Adoration Monasteries and there are 14 Monasteries in India. These days while speaking about Saints Clare and Francis and their charism and spirituality I have discovered many aspects, which are so very useful and valid to live our call in the Church. The first thing that we discover is the Conversion stories of both of them. Stories are dramatic but true and a lot of hagiographical work can be seen in presenting them to the readers. But in the conversion of Clare it is clear that she leaves the secular life and its values in order to dedicate and totally be available to the Lord. She consecrates herself to the living God whom she experienced as humble, poor and crucified Lord.
One of her greatest teachings is to become what we love. If we love Jesus then become like Him and Imitate Him to perfection by living the Gospel way of Life. She teaches today to become listening because there is a great and urgent need of listening to one another. The second felt need is to Become Love because Love is not loved in the society and world at large. Prayer is the strongest weapon but we need to become Prayer and not just mutter and utter words. We have a lot of freedom but spiritual freedom is disappearing so she is inviting us to Become free children of God. Life is not respected, killing Life is become the order of the day, so Become Life and witness to it. Become Blessing to all irrespective caste, creed and religion. God blesses us to bless those unfortunate ones.
The consecration understood by Clare mean that she willingly and freely offered herself for a complete change of values, heart and mind. This turning to the Lord was the fruit of her devotion and commitment to the Lord from her childhood. This inner change of heart and mind led her without fear to leave her home and give up all the luxuries of life to accept the life of penance and poverty. She leaves her home and family through the backdoor of the house to symbolically convey her death to the family. In Assisi olden days a dead body was taken to the Church for funeral rites through the backdoor.
Clare was born in 1193-94, in a noble family, in Assisi. Her father was Favarone di Offreduccio di Bernardino, and her mother's name was Ortolana. Clare of Assisi (1193-1253) can be defined as the feminine expression of the ideals of Francis of Assisi. Her name means "the enlightened one"'. Her life was often seen against the background of the radical Gospel ideals of Francis. It is only since 1953, and during the 8th centenary of her birth in 1993-94 that Clare has emerged as a unique contribution to the ideals of Francis. Clare often called herself "the little plant of the most blessed Francis" (Rule I,3; Testament 37. 49). Her ideals matched those of Francis, but they are the expression of an authentically female approach to the Gospel, and radical evangelical living.
St. Francis and his brothers were a big source of inspiration and example of living a total commitment to the Lord and she experienced and became aware of the fresh and soul stirring ideals of them. The intense desire to be follower of this new movement led her to give up her nobility and embrace a way of poverty and Gospel way of living. Before taking a bold step of leaving her home she had series of meeting and spiritual encounters with Francis. Francis led her to reflect on the seriousness of her desire to follow Crucified Lord and the guidance and consent of the Bishop of Assisi Clare decided firmly and freely to choose a life of radical evangelical poverty. During the night of Palm Sunday, Clare escaped from her family's home in Assisi and hurried down to the Porziuncola, where Francis gave her the habit of penance at the feet of the altar of the Virgin Mary of the Angels. That same night Clare was escorted to the Benedictine monastery of San Paolo in Bastia Umbra, where she was protected by papal interdict against possible intrusion by her family to take her back home by force. Francis then sent Clare and Agnese to the small church of San Damiano and gave them a Form of Life, which is the basis of the Rule of St. Clare. San Damiano was to be the place where Clare lived a cloistered contemplative life, until the day of her death in 1253. Clare and her Sisters were the product of Francis' evangelical initiative. They were so close to the Friars Minor that they were also known by the name "Lesser Sisters". Their way of life was a cloistered one, but not in the style of the old monastic Orders. The cloister at San Damiano was more spiritual than material.
The Poor Ladies were quite unlike other female religious movements, in the sense that they had no property. The Privilege of Poverty could be seen as the characteristic note of Clare and the Poor Ladies. The reason for this insistence upon voluntary radical poverty lay in the fact that the Church was continually insisting that Clare and the Sisters accept a more stable way of life according to the canons of monastic Orders. This would have included property in common. Clare resolutely refused this condition, she continued to insist, and went even as far as taking the initiative of writing a Rule modelled upon the Later Rule of the Friars Minor. Clare's ideals travelled far and wide, especially with the help of the first Franciscan missionaries to northern Europe.
Clare was frail in physical health. Since 1224 she was always ill at San Damiano. As the day of her death approached, Clare twice received the visit of Pope Innocent IV himself and begged him to approve her Rule. This he did on 9 August 1253. Two days later, on 11 August, Clare died at San Damiano. St. Clare taught to her sisters that they should become what they contemplate, that is to become like Christ Crucified. She wrote to Sr. Agnes: ‘Place your mind before the mirror of eternity! Place your soul in the brilliance of glory! Place your heart in the figure of divine substance! And transform your whole being into the image of the Godhead itself through contemplation.
The spirituality of St. Clare appears to be monastic but not exactly like the classical monastic life where one gave importance to path of ascent or overcoming the inferior or evil to achieve spiritual superiority and holiness. There was no thought in Franciscan spirituality of escaping from the World to find God but be in the world and through service experience the Lord of the Universe. In her spiritual quest she journey with Francis. Clare like Francis emphasized on Incarnation of Jesus Christ as the foundation and starting point of her spirituality. She taught and wrote that every child of God must see goodness in creation and God can be found in the world if one is immersed and part of the Creation.
St. Clare teaches us that Jesus reveals His totality of Love if we are willing to desire and aspire for that divine love. Once we experience that Love of Jesus then heaven is not experienced as a place out there, but being in a relationship of Love with the Trinity. This love leads to accept and experience everything that exists is dependent on and uniquely loved by the Father and called into relationship. She experienced that no human imperfection outweighs God’s love and embrace – we are uniquely loved just for being who we are, so the need is to surrender totally to the Lord.
Happy Feast of St. Clare of Assisi
