Saint Clare of Assisi 

Clare of Assisi is Sister Moon to Francis’ Brother Sun

“Always be lovers of God and your souls and the souls of your Sisters, and always be eager to observe what you have promised to the Lord”

It would be very easy for anyone, even someone as well known and loved as our Pope John Paul II to be dwarfed by the aura and the presence of the little poverello, St. Francis, to be totally overshadowed by the essence of Francis which continues to cover Assisi. Unless, however, that anyone happened to be Clare of Assisi, the fairest in the land, the noble lady who gave her whole life over to Jesus through the inspiration of His little messenger on earth, Francis. As Mother Mary is the moon, reflecting the Light of Jesus, so Clare is sister moon, reflecting the light of Francis.

When a pilgrim approaches the great hill of Assisi from the valley of Santa Maria degli Angeli, he cannot help but notice the two largest, most imposing buildings in Assisi. At one end of town, on the Hill of Hell, later renamed the Hill of Paradise, looms the grand tribute to Francis, the Basilica of St. Francis.

On the other end of town, somewhat smaller, so as not to outshine the Seraphic Father, rises the Basilica of St. Clare of Assisi. It was originally called the Chapel of St. George. After Francis’ death, it became his resting place until the grand Basilica was built. Appropriately, it is now the resting place of St. Clare of Assisi. It’s almost as if they’re looking at each other. As in life, the love of Francis for Clare and Clare for Francis is permanently etched in the skyline of the city, through the buildings dedicated to each of them.

While it’s true that most people do not get to meet Clare until they’ve met and gotten to know Francis, somewhat as if he were introducing you to the most important member of his family, once you have met Clare, you are immediately taken back by her own unique power and spirituality.

Clare of Assisi's  body has never decomposed, after over 700 years. She is the instrument the Lord used to give us a Miracle of the Eucharist1 in Assisi, and is called the patron Saint of television and the airwaves. Clare, do we need you now! The order she co-founded under the tutelage of St. Francis, his second order, the Poor Clares are powerful movers in the Church. One Poor Clare we write about in this book, Mother Angelica of EWTN, strengthened and encouraged by the fact that her mother in faith, St. Clare, was patroness of the airwaves, spreads the Gospel through television around the United States. Sister Briege McKenna of the Congregation of the Sisters of St. Clare, uses the airwaves by means of telephone to do the Lord’s healing work. And so, through her daughters, the spirit of St. Clare continues to live on and touch the Church.

But who is Clare of Assisi? Is she a female clone of St. Francis, or is she her own woman? Why was she able to attract so many followers during her lifetime, and why has her Community of Sisters become so widespread down through the ages? We don’t want to go out of sequence, but later on in the story, we will tell you of an instance where Clare led her ladies on a hunger strike, how she singlehandedly dispersed an army of Saracens, how she was also able to write her own Rule, against all opposition, and how she got her way with Popes and Cardinals. This is just the tip of the iceberg, but it gives some insight as to who she was.
Clare, the fairest in the land.

Clare of Assisi - Early Years

Clare of Assisi was born of the nobility of Assisi in 1193. At that time, Francis was about twelve years old. He had not yet started any trouble in Assisi. There was a great distinction in those days placed on those who were nobility, and those who were rich. They were not always the same people. Clare’s family was noble; Francis’ family was rich. The nobility always looked down on the rich as being beneath them, while the rich knew they could very often buy and sell the nobility, but really wanted to be part of the club.

Clare of Assisi had two sisters, Agnes and Beatrice. Her mother was Ortolana, and her father Faverone Offreduccio. There is not too much known about Clare’s childhood and teenage years, but we see a similarity between Clare and Francis even as youths. We learn that Clare was a good and spiritual young girl, even before she gave her life over to Jesus through Francis. She was obedient to her parents, caring for the poor, loving to others, very unlike many young women of her station. Francis was a good boy. But he was a normal young man, involved in the world and its attractions. He loved to party. He learned to play five instruments. He wore the best clothes. He had to have the best suit of armor and horse to go off and fight in the wars. His conversion was not so much from evil to good, but from the treasures of the world to the treasures of the Gospel, from materialism to poverty for the love of Jesus. And so it was with Clare.

Clare of Assisi - Family Ties

The first accounts we have of Clare of Assisi are when she was eighteen years old. Her father had died; her mother was in charge of all the Faverone girls, under the guidance of their uncles, led by Monaldo. At that time, young women carried a high price in the marriage market. Not that they were actually bought and sold, but marriage partners were arranged based on the attributes of the girl, and the wealth of the boy’s family. Very often, marriages were negotiated during the childhood of the bride and groom. This was not the situation, however, in Clare’s case. She had a mind of her own. She was breathtakingly beautiful. She had long blonde hair, which just added to her value as a highly desirable wife in the marketplace.

Clare of Assisi was determined not to marry, though she did not know why. The Lord had touched her heart from childhood. He was to be her spouse. But it would take someone she respected to make this known to her. While her mother and uncles tried to interest her in various young men, she kept asking about the di Bernardone boy, Francis, who was thirty by this time.