Saint Clare of Assisi – (short version)
The finding of the Body of Saint Clare of Assisi, Virgin
Feast Day – September 24
Canonized – September 26, 1255 by Pope Alexander IV
Patron of embroiderers; those who suffer from eye diseases,
good weather, television
“Go forth in peace, for you have followed the good road. Go
forth without fear, for he who created you has made you holy,
has always protected you, and loves you as a mother.” (Saint
Clare of Assisi)
Saint Clare of Assisi is such an important saint within the
Franciscan Family that she, like Saint Francis of Assisi actually has two feast days
celebrated each year, the major celebration of her life being celebrated each August
11th. This week, we focus on the Finding of the Body of Saint Clare of Assisi. She
was born on July 16, 1193 in Assisi, Italy. After hearing a young Saint Francis of
Assisi preach in the streets of Assisi on peace, penance and the love of God, Clare gave
up everything to follow Francis’ way of life. On the night of Palm Sunday, 1212 Clare
took the religious veil from Saint Francis at the Church of Our Lady of the Angels (the
Portiuncula or Little Portion) in Assisi. She founded the Order of the Poor Ladies
(now known as Poor Clares) at the Church of San Damiano, where she led her little
band of women religious for nearly forty years. The Poor Ladies depended solely on
Divine Providence for their daily needs as they offered their continual prayer to God on
behalf of the world and the mission of the Friars Minor. She is the patron saint of
television as she was able to see Mass celebrated on the wall of her cell, when towards
the end of her life, she was too ill to attend the Divine Services in person. Clare died
on August 11, 1253 at the age of sixty and was canonized two years later. Her body
was first buried at the Church of Saint George and later entombed in a church in her
honor. In the year 1850, her body was disentombed and her incorrupt body is still
venerated to this very day in the lower level of the Basilica of Saint Clare in Assisi.