By Fr. Joy Prakash, OFM –
St. Clare, as we know, was born into one of Assisi’s most notable families, the Offreduccio clan. They lived next to the Cathedral of San Rufino in one of Assisi’s most fashionable quarters. High above the Piazza del Commune where the ordinary people gathered, her daily life intersected with the rich and powerful of Assisi’s nobility.
Witnesses in the process for her canonisation say that Clare had a beautiful countenance, especially her dazzling eyes and inviting smile. Clare grew up in a loving family; and she in her own time became a loving and sensitive young woman. But it was not her beauty, but her compassion that drew people of every station in life to her.
Her sister, Beatrice, testified that St. Francis sought her out and requested a meeting with her. He knew of her reputation, perhaps through her cousin, Rufino, who had joined the early Franciscan community; but surely he would have heard of her reputation through ordinary conversation among the townspeople.
Clare would have been aware of Francis since he and his community were the talk of the town. Rufino would also have shared something of their new form of evangelical life with her. Since her family worshipped at the cathedral, Clare would have heard Francis preach there as well as in the piazza.
During their meetings together Clare grasped, like no one else, the meaning of Francis’s vision of Gospel life. Francis recognised that the Lord had set in Clare’s heart the same desire to follow the poor, suffering Christ and he knew that she was his soulmate.
The Lord fused together their creative gifts and open spirits to form within them and through them a way of life that brought to birth in the church a vision of evangelical life that renewed the church in their times. It is a vision intimately tied to their desire to embrace and follow the poor Christ and walk in his footprints.
Clare, who lived 27 years after Francis’s death demonstrated a measure of fidelity and perseverance that distinguished her as the most faithful companion of Francis. She clung to the original vision in ways that none of the friars could imagine.
The depth and wisdom which Clare bequeathed to the Franciscan family is evident not only in the example of her life, but also in her writings. Her letters are masterpieces of spiritual guidance and deserve to be studied by all the members of the Franciscan family. Clare’s Testament is an invaluable record of how God worked in her life and that of her early companions. Reflection upon her words can yield within us a deeper appreciation for our own vocation to the Franciscan family.
The Order (Congregation) that she started with St. Francis is called: The Poor Clares. They live in enclosed Monasteries, devoted to prayer and Eucharistic adoration. They live very frugally: often depending on generous benefactors and friends but trusting in the Providence of God. They are not actively involved in society like the apostolic Congregations in Educational, Social and Medical institutions. By limiting their contacts with the world, they very concretely and powerfully demonstrate to the world that “God is our all”. Our fretting over the material improvements, climbing the social ladder of power and prestige only increase our anxieties and worries at the expense of the “One Thing that is Necessary….and Jesus said to Martha, “Mary has chosen it and it shall not be taken away from her.”
Personal Story
I have been closely associated with the Poor Clares internationally. I had the opportunity of visiting them in countries other than India*. The one characteristic that is seen and felt among all of them is: JOY. Their joy is the infallible presence of God. This joy is not arising from material wellbeing or their self-sufficiency that usually goes with contentment, but this joy is found in God and in the whole-hearted giving of themselves to God. No wonder that Clare is known as the Prophetess of the Absolute. She understood Francis so well that she evolved a feminine version of Franciscan life: the living out of Mary’s Fiat in her own personal way.
In India the Poor Clare houses are in Jharkand, Telangana (Hyderabad), Kerala (Aluva), Tamilnadu (Erode) etc
Clare’s wisdom is rooted in her love of Christ. She allowed herself to be captivated by Christ and she gave herself totally to him. She opened herself to the action of Christ’s love within her and she was transformed into a vessel of grace.
Clare modelled herself on Christ who was poor and lowly and sought to follow him in his poverty. Hers was not a poverty for the sake of poverty, but rather her poverty was an expression of her experience of her very identity before God. She knew herself as poor before the all rich, all good God who had ravished her heart with his love. Her response was sure and total: she loved Christ with all her heart.
Perhaps Clare’s greatest gift to us is the example of her utter and complete dedication to Christ…no half measures for her. For us who live at the dawn of the third millennium her witness is as clear and focused as it was for her contemporaries. She is a sure guide and a faithful companion. All that is left is for us to do is to follow her lead.