Portal:Catholic Church/Patron Archive/August 11 2007

Saint Clare of Assisi, born Chiara Offreduccio (July 16, 1194 – August 11, 1253) was an Italian saint, one of the first followers of Francis of Assisi and founded the Order of Poor Ladies to organize the women who chose to embrace monastic life in the Franciscan vision.

Clare was born in Assisi, Umbria, as the eldest daughter of Favorino Scifi, Count of Sasso-Rosso and his wife Ortolana. In 1210, Clare heard Francis preaching in the streets of Assisi about his new mendicant order. On March 20, 1212, Clare's parents had decided she would marry a wealthy young man. In desperation Clare left her home and sought refuge in St. Francis, who received her into religious life. She lived at the Church of San Damiano where she founded an order of nuns. She had their hair cut short and put on rough tunics to indicate her acceptance of the vows of poverty, chastity and obedience, and stayed first with a nearby monastery of Benedictine nuns. Later, she moved to San Damiano, where they founded the Order of Poor Ladies (also then known as the Order of San Damiano).

Saint Clare's sisters lived in enclosure, since an itinerant life was hardly conceivable at the time for women. Their life consisted of manual labour and prayer.

After a time when the order was directed by Francis himself, in 1216, Clare accepted the role of abbess at San Damiano. Clare also played a significant role in encouraging and aiding Francis, whom she saw as a spiritual father figure: she took care of him during his illnesses at the end of his life, until his death in 1226.

On August 9, 1253, the Papal bull Solet annure of Pope Innocent IV confirmed that Clare's Rule would serve as the governing rule for the Order of Poor Ladies. Two days later, on August 11, Clare died at the age of 59.

Attributes: monstrance, pyx

Patronage: clairvoyance, eyes, eye disease, goldsmith, laundry, embrodiers, gilders, gold, good weather, needleworkers, Santa Clara Pueblo, telephones, telegraphs, television

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