ST. CLARE OF ASSISI
Virgin and Foundress of the Poor Clares – August 11
Choosing Simplicity and Finding Strength in Christ
Introduction
A household sorting through its possessions may discover how much time and attention it takes to keep things it seldom uses. Giving something away can be a small act of freedom, especially when another person can put it to good use. The experience can lead us to a deeper question about what we depend on and what we are free to let go.
St. Clare of Assisi asked that question with unusual seriousness. Born into a family of means, she chose a life of prayer, poverty, and community. At San Damiano, she spent more than forty years learning to live that choice with the women who joined her.
Her memorial invites us to consider what we can set aside so that we have more room for Christ and for the people he entrusts to us.
Who Was St. Clare of Assisi?
Clare was born into a noble family in Assisi in the late twelfth century. As a young woman, she heard St. Francis preach and sought his guidance. She left her family home to dedicate herself to Christ and eventually settled at San Damiano, a small church outside Assisi that Francis had helped restore.
Other women joined her, including her sister Agnes. The community lived a contemplative life of prayer, simplicity, and mutual service. From it grew the religious family known today as the Poor Clares.
Clare wrote a Rule for her community that Pope Innocent IV approved shortly before her death on August 11, 1253. Pope Alexander IV canonized her two years later.
Following Christ in Poverty
Clare wanted her community to live without the security of property and regular income. In the circumstances of her time, this was an unusual commitment for a women’s monastery. She sought to preserve it because she wanted the sisters’ life to reflect the poverty of Christ, who shared our human condition and gave himself for us.
The Gospel gives us a way to understand her choice. Jesus tells his disciples that their hearts will be where their treasure is. What we treasure claims our attention. It influences what we fear losing and what we are willing to share.
Families have a responsibility to provide for those in their care. Clare’s example can help them examine what goes beyond that responsibility. A family might look at how much time it spends acquiring and maintaining things and ask whether some of that time could be given to prayer, rest, or a person who needs company.
The Daily Work of Living Together
Clare was the superior at San Damiano. She cared for sisters who were sick and took part in ordinary household tasks. The commitments she defended for the community found expression in the way she treated the people with whom she lived.
This is where a desire for simplicity is often tested. Giving something away may be easier than changing a habit that makes life harder for others. We may need to do a share of the work without waiting to be asked or listen when someone tells us that a responsibility has fallen too heavily on them.
Clare’s example gives those who lead a household, parish ministry, or religious community a question to consider. Which task would help us understand what others are carrying if we took a turn doing it ourselves?
Looking at Christ as in a Mirror
In her letters to St. Agnes of Prague, Clare invites her to look at Christ as in a mirror. She draws Agnes’s attention to his poverty at Bethlehem, his humility during his earthly life, and his love on the cross. Contemplating him helps us see what our own lives can become through grace.
We can pray in this way with a crucifix or a Gospel passage. We might spend a few minutes considering how Jesus treated someone who came to him in need. Then we can ask what his example brings to light in a relationship or responsibility of our own. The point of looking steadily at Christ is to let what we see guide how we live.
Trust in Christ in the Eucharist
An early account of Clare’s life tells how armed men threatened San Damiano. Although she was ill, Clare asked to be brought to the place where the Blessed Sacrament was kept and prayed for the protection of her sisters. The account remembers that the attackers withdrew. This tradition helps explain why Christian art often depicts Clare holding a vessel containing the Eucharist.
At the heart of the account is Clare’s trust in the Real Presence of Christ. She brought her fear and her responsibility for the sisters before him. We can follow her example when a situation is beyond our control. In prayer before the Blessed Sacrament, we can name what frightens us, entrust the people involved to Christ, and ask for the courage to do what lies within our reach.
A Life Connection
A family notices that an older relative has begun eating alone most evenings. Everyone agrees that someone should visit, but the weeks pass without a plan. At their next gathering, they decide to simplify one evening meal each week and take turns bringing supper to their relative. They stay to eat together.
The change costs them some convenience and gives their relative something a delivered meal alone could never provide. Clare’s simplicity helps us recognize what the family has done. They have arranged an ordinary part of their week so that they can give someone their time and attention.
Eucharistic Connection
In the Holy Qurbana, Christ speaks to us through the Scriptures and gives us his Body and Blood in Holy Communion. The Lord whom Clare adored is the same Lord who gives himself to us at the altar. His gift teaches us how to give ourselves in the circumstances of our own lives.
After Communion, we can bring to Christ one attachment that keeps us from giving freely. It may be a strong preference for how things should be done or a reluctance to surrender some of our time. In thanksgiving, we can ask for the freedom to make one generous choice during the coming week.
Messages and Call to Conversion
St. Clare invites us to examine one habit that takes more of our time, money, or attention than we wish to give it. We can make a small change and decide whom the time or resources we free up could serve.
Her memorial also gives us an occasion to pray for the Poor Clares and other contemplative communities. We can join their prayer in a simple way by setting aside a few quiet minutes before the Blessed Sacrament and remembering by name someone who needs God’s help.
Conclusion
St. Clare chose to follow Christ in poverty and lived that choice through years of prayer and service at San Damiano. Through her intercession, may we trust Christ more deeply, use what we have with greater freedom, and make room in our lives for those who need our care.
