Maestro
della Santa Chiara (attr.), Santa Chiara d'Assisi e storie della sua
vita (1283),
tempera su tavola; Assisi, Basilica di Santa Chiara
Santa Chiara d'Assisi, 1283, tempera on panel, 273 x 165, Altarpiece of St Clare, Basilica di Santa Chiara
Sainte Claire d'Assise
Fondatrice des clarisses (+1253)
Il n'est pas possible de séparer l'histoire de sainte Claire de celle de saint François d'Assise. Née à Assise, elle a 11 à 12 ans de moins que lui. Elle est de famille noble et lui fils de marchand. Au moment de la 'commune' d'Assise vers 1200, soulèvement violent contre le pouvoir féodal, auquel participe saint François, les parents de Claire quittent la ville par sécurité et se réfugient à Pérouse, la ville rivale. Ils ne reviendront à Assise que 5 à 6 ans plus tard. Claire ne commence à connaître saint François que vers 1210, quand celui-ci, déjà converti à la vie évangélique, se met à prêcher dans Assise. Elle est séduite par lui et par cette vie pauvre toute donnée au Christ. Elle cherche donc à rencontrer François par l'intermédiaire de son cousin Rufin qui fait partie du groupe des frères. Ensemble, ils mettent au point son changement de vie. Le soir des Rameaux 1212, elle quitte la demeure paternelle et rejoint saint François à la Portioncule. Elle a 18 ans et se consacre à Dieu pour toujours. L'opposition de sa famille n'y pourra rien. Rapidement d'autres jeunes filles se joignent à Claire, dont sa sœur Agnès, sa maman Ortolana et son autre sœur Béatrice. La vie des 'Pauvres Dames' prospère rapidement et d'autres monastères doivent être fondés. Le Pape Innocent III leur accorde 'le privilège de pauvreté'. Mais après la mort de saint François, les papes interviendront pour aménager la vie matérielle des Clarisses et leur permettre une relative sécurité. Claire refuse de toutes ses forces. Elle veut la pauvreté totale et la simplicité franciscaine. En 1252, le pape Innocent IV rend visite aux Sœurs, accepte leur Règle de vie et la bulle d'approbation arrive le 9 août 1253. Claire meurt le 11 août tenant la bulle dans ses mains dans la paix et la joie.
- méditation sur les symboles dans la vie et les écrits de sainte Claire d'Assise, vidéo de la WebTV de la CEF.
Le 15 septembre 2010, Benoît XVI a consacré sa catéchèse à Claire d'Assise (1193-1253), une des saintes les plus aimées dans l'Église. Son témoignage "montre ce que l'Église doit aux femmes courageuses et remplies de foi, capables de donner une forte impulsion à sa rénovation". Puis il a rappelé qu'elle naquit dans une famille aristocratique, qui décida de la marier à un bon parti. Mais à dix huit ans, Claire et son amie Bonne quittèrent leurs foyers et décidèrent de suivre le Christ en entrant dans la communauté de la Portioncule. C'est François qui l'y accueillit, lui tailla les cheveux et la revêtit d'un grossier vêtement de pénitence. Dès lors fut elle une vierge, épouse du Christ, humble et pauvre, totalement consacrée au Seigneur".
Dès le début de sa vie religieuse, a ensuite rappelé le Pape, "Claire trouva en François un maître avec ses enseignements, et plus encore un ami fraternel. Cette amitié fut considérable car, lorsque deux âmes pures brûlent ensemble du même amour de Dieu, elles trouvent dans l'amitié un encouragement à la perfection. L'amitié est l'un des sentiments les plus nobles et élevés que la grâce divine purifie et transfigure". L'évêque Jacques de Vitry, qui connut les débuts du mouvement franciscain, a rapporté que la pauvreté radicale, liée à la confiance absolue en la Providence, était caractéristique de sa spiritualité, et que Claire y était très sensible. C'est pourquoi elle obtint du Pape "le Privilegium Paupertatis, confirmant que Claire et ses compagnes du couvent de San Damiano ne pourraient jamais posséder de biens fonciers. "Ce fut une exception totale au droit canonique de l'époque, accordée par les autorités ecclésiastiques devant les fruits de sainteté évangélique produits par le mode de vie de la sainte et de ses sœurs".
Ce point, a-t-il ajouté, "montre combien au Moyen Âge le rôle de la femme
était important. D'ailleurs, Claire fut la première femme de l'histoire de
l'Église à rédiger une règle qui fut soumise à l'approbation papale, par
laquelle elle voulut que le charisme de saint François fut conservé dans toutes
les communautés féminines s'inspirant de leur exemple". A San Damiano,
elle "pratiqua les vertus héroïques qui devraient distinguer tous les
chrétiens, l'humilité, la piété, la pénitence et la charité. Sa réputation de
sainteté et les prodiges opérés grâce à elle conduisirent Alexandre IV à
canoniser Claire en 1255, à peine deux ans après sa mort". Ses filles
spirituelles, les clarisses, poursuivent dans la prière une œuvre inappréciable
au sein de l'Église.
(source: VIS 20100915 430)
Pie XII, Lettre Apostolique (en forme brève) proclamant Ste Claire Patronne Céleste de la Télévision (21 août 1958)
- Sainte Claire est présente sur les vitraux de plusieurs églises du diocèse d'Autun.
Mémoire de sainte Claire, vierge. Première plante des pauvres Dames de l'Ordre
des Mineurs, elle suivit saint François d'Assise et mena au couvent de
Saint-Damien une vie très austère, mais riche d’œuvres de charité et de piété.
Aimant par-dessus tout la pauvreté, elle n'accepta jamais de s'en écarter, pas
même dans l'extrême indigence ou dans la maladie. Elle mourut à Assise en 1253.
Martyrologe romain
Ce que tu tiens, tiens-le. Ce que tu fais, fais-le et
ne le lâche pas. Mais d'une course rapide, d'un pas léger, sans entraves aux
pieds, pour que tes pas ne ramassent pas la poussière, sûre, joyeuse et alerte,
marche prudemment sur le chemin de la béatitude.
Sainte Claire à sainte Agnès de Prague
SOURCE : https://nominis.cef.fr/contenus/saint/1654/Sainte-Claire-d-Assise.html
Lippo Memmi (1291–1356), Santa Chiara d'Assisi / Clare of Assisi, circa 1330, tempera on wood, gold ground, 39.4 x 19.1, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City.
SAINTE CLAIRE D'ASSISE
Vierge et Fondatrice
d'Ordre
(1194-1253)
Sainte Claire naquit à
Assise, en Italie. Dès son enfance, on put admirer en elle un vif attrait pour
la retraite, l'oraison, le mépris du monde, l'amour des pauvres et de la
souffrance; sous ses habits précieux, elle portait un cilice.
A l'âge de seize ans,
fortement émue de la vie si sainte de François d'Assise, elle va lui confier
son désir de se donner toute à Dieu. Le Saint la pénètre des flammes du divin
amour, accepte de diriger sa vie, mais il exige des actes: Claire devra, revêtue
d'un sac, parcourir la ville en mendiant son pain de porte en porte. Elle
accomplit de grand coeur cet acte humiliant, et, peu de jours après, quitte les
livrées du siècle, reçoit de François une rude tunique avec une corde pour lui
ceindre les reins, et un voile grossier sur sa tête dépouillée de ses beaux
cheveux.
Elle triomphe de la
résistance de sa famille. Quelques jours après, sa soeur Agnès la supplie de
l'agréer en sa compagnie, ce que Claire accepte avec joie, en rendant grâce au
Ciel. "Morte ou vive, qu'on me ramène Agnès!" s'écria le père,
furieux à cette nouvelle; mais Dieu fut le plus fort, et Agnès meurtrie,
épuisée, put demeurer avec sa soeur. Leur mère, après la mort de son mari, et
une de leurs soeurs, vinrent les rejoindre.
La communauté fut bientôt
nombreuse et florissante; on y vit pratiquer, sous la direction de sainte
Claire, devenue, quoique jeune, une parfaite maîtresse de vie spirituelle, une
pauvreté admirable, un détachement absolu, une obéissance sublime: l'amour de
Dieu était l'âme de toutes ses vertus.
Claire dépassait toutes
ses soeurs par sa mortification; sa tunique était la plus rude, son cilice le
plus terrible à la chair; des herbes sèches assaisonnées de cendre formaient sa
nourriture; pendant le Carême, elle ne prenait que du pain et de l'eau, trois
fois la semaine seulement. Longtemps elle coucha sur la terre nue, ayant un
morceau de bois pour oreiller.
Claire, supérieure, se
regardait comme la dernière du couvent, éveillait ses soeurs, sonnait matines,
allumait les lampes, balayait le monastère. Elle voulait qu'on vécût dans le
couvent au jour le jour, sans fonds de terre, sans pensions et dans une clôture
perpétuelle.
Claire est célèbre par
l'expulsion des Sarrasins, qui, après avoir pillé la ville, voulaient piller le
couvent. Elle pria Dieu, et une voix du Ciel cria: "Je vous ai gardées et
Je vous garderai toujours." Claire, malade, se fit transporter à la porte
du monastère, et, le ciboire en main, mit en fuite les ennemis. Sa mort arriva
le 12 août 1253.
Abbé L. Jaud, Vie
des Saints pour tous les jours de l'année, Tours, Mame, 1950.
SOURCE : https://livres-mystiques.com/partieTEXTES/Jaud_Saints/calendrier/Vies_des_Saints/08-12.htm
Giotto (1266–1337), Saint Francis and Saint Clare, circa 1279, fresco, Upper Basilica of San Francesco d'Assisi
Ad perpetuam rei memoriam
Par un bienfait de la
divine Sagesse le génie de l'homme brille d'un plus vif éclat et fait, surtout
de nos jours, des découverts qui suscitent l'admiration générale. Et l'Église,
qui ne se montra jamais contraire au progrès de la civilisation et de la technique,
encourage cette assistance nouvelle apportée à la culture et à la vie
journalière, et s'en sert même volontiers pour l'enseignement de la vérité et
l'extension de la religion. Parmi ces inventions si utiles, la Télévision a sa
place, elle qui "permet en effet de voir et d'entendre à distance des
événements à l'instant même où ils se produisent, et cela de façon si
suggestive que l'on croit y assister." (Litt. Encycl. "Miranda
prorsus", 8 sept. 1957; A.A.S. XLIX, p. 800). Ce merveilleux instrument -
comme chacun le sait et Nous l'avons dit clairement Nous-même - peut être la
source des très grands biens, mais aussi de profonds malheurs en raison de
l'attraction singulière qu'il exerce sur les esprits à l'intérieurs même de la
maison familiale. Aussi Nous a-t-il semblé bon de donner à cette invention une
sauvegarde céleste qui interdise ses méfaits et en favorise un usage honnête,
voir salutaire. On a souhaité pour ce patronage sainte Claire. On rapporte en
effet qu'à Assise, une nuit de Noël, Claire, alitée dans son couvent par la
maladie, entendit les chants fervents qui accompagnaient les cérémonies sacrée
et vit la crèche du Divin Enfant, comme si elle était présente en personne dans
l'Église franciscaine. Dans la splendeur de la gloire de son innocence et la
clarté qu'elle jette sur nos si profondes ténèbres, que Claire protège donc
cette technique et donne à l'appareil translucide de faire briller la vérité et
la vertu, soutiens nécessaires de la société. Nous avons donc décidé
d'accueillir avec bienveillance les prières que Nous ont adressés à ce sujet
Notre Vénérable Frère Joseph Placide Nicolini, évêque d'Assise, le Supérieurs
des quatre familles franciscaines, enfin d'autres personnes remarquables, et
qu'ont approuvées de nombreux Cardinaux de la Sainte Eglise Romaine, des
Archevêques et des Évêques. En consequence, ayant consulté la Sacrée
Congrégation des Rites, de science certaine et après mûre réflexion, en vertu
de la plénitude du pouvoir Apostolique, par cette Lettre et pour toujours, Nous
faisons, Nous constituons et Nous déclarons Sainte Claire, vierge d'Assise,
céleste Patronne auprès de Die de la Télévision, en lui attribuant tous les
privilèges et honneurs liturgiques qu'un tel patronage comporte, nonobstant
toutes choses contraires. Nous annonçons, Nous établissons, Nous ordonnons que
cette présente Lettre soit ferme et valide, qu'elle sorte et produise tous ses
effets dans leur intégrité et leur plénitude, maintenant et à l'avenir, pour
ceux qu'elle concerne ou pourra concerner; qu'il en faut régulièrement juger et
décider ainsi; que dès maintenant est tenu pour nul et sans effet tout ce qui
pourrait être tenté par quiconque, en vertu de n'importe quelle autorité, en
connaissance de cause ou par ignorance, contre les mesures décrétées par cette
Lettre.
Donnée à Rome, près Saint
Pierre, sous l'anneau du Pêcheur, le 14 février 1957, de Notre Pontifical la
19éme année.
PIUS PP. XII
*La lettre Apostolique,
en "forme breve" - dont nous donnons ci-dessous la traduction du
latin - a été publiée dans les Acta Apostolica Sedis du 21 août 1958, vol. L,
p. 512-513.
© Copyright - Libreria
Editrice Vaticana
Bartolomeo Vivarini (1430–1499),
Saint Clare of Assisi, 1451, Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna,
Très chères soeurs!
1. Le 11 août 1253
achevait son pèlerinage terrestre sainte Claire d'Assise, disciple de saint
François et fondatrice de votre Ordre, dit des Soeurs pauvres ou Clarisses, qui
compte aujourd'hui, dans ses diverses ramifications, environ neuf cents
monastères répartis sur les cinq continents. A 750 ans de sa mort, le souvenir
de cette grande sainte continue à être très vivant dans le coeur des fidèles,
et je suis donc particulièrement heureux, en cette circonstance, d'adresser à
votre famille religieuse une pensée cordiale et mes salutations affectueuses.
En un anniversaire
jubilaire aussi significatif, sainte Claire exhorte chacun à comprendre de
manière toujours plus profonde la valeur de la vocation, qui est un don
de Dieu à faire fructifier. Elle écrivait à ce propos dans son
Testament: "Parmi les autres bénéfices que nous avons reçus et
que nous continuons chaque jour de recevoir de notre Donateur, le Père des
miséricordes, pour lesquels nous sommes hautement tenues de Lui rendre, en sa
gloire, de vives actions de grâces, grand est le don de notre vocation. Et plus
celle-ci est grande et parfaite, plus encore Lui sommes-nous obligées. C'est à
quoi l'Apôtre nous exhorte: Connais bien ta vocation" (2-4).
2. Née à Assise
autour des années 1193-1194 dans la noble famille de Favarone di Offreduccio,
sainte Claire reçut, notamment de sa mère Ortolana, une solide éducation
chrétienne. Illuminée par la grâce divine, elle se laissa attirer par la
nouvelle forme évangélique initiée par saint François et par ses compagnons, et
elle décida d'entreprendre à son tour une "sequela Christi" plus
radicale. Après avoir quitté la maison paternelle dans la nuit entre le
Dimanche des Rameaux et le Lundi Saint de 1211 (ou 1212), sur les
conseils du saint lui-même, elle se rendit à la petite église de la
Portioncule, berceau de l'expérience franciscaine, où au pied de l'autel, elle
se dévêtit de toutes ses richesses, pour revêtir l'humble habit de pénitence en
forme de croix.
Après une courte période
de recherche, elle aboutit au petit monastère de Saint-Damien, où la rejoignit
sa jeune soeur Agnès. Là s'unirent à elles d'autres compagnes souhaitant
incarner l'Evangile dans une dimension contemplative. Face à la détermination
avec laquelle la nouvelle communauté monastique suivait les traces du Christ,
voyant en la pauvreté, l'effort, les difficultés, l'humiliation et le mépris du
monde des raisons de grande joie spirituelle, saint François ressentit à leur
égard une affection paternelle et leur écrivit: "Etant
devenues, par une inspiration divine, filles et servantes du très-haut et
souverain Roi, le Père céleste, et ayant épousé l'Esprit Saint, faisant le
choix de vivre selon la perfection du saint Evangile, je veux et promets, pour
ma part et celle de mes frères, d'avoir pour vous, comme je l'ai pour eux, un
soin attentif et une sollicitude particulière" (Règle de sainte
Claire, chap. VI, 3-4).
3. Claire inséra ces
paroles dans le chapitre central de sa Règle, en y reconnaissant non seulement
l'un des enseignements reçus du saint, mais le noyau fondamental de son
charisme, qui s'inscrit dans le cadre trinitaire et marial de l'Évangile de
l'Annonciation. Saint François, en effet, envisageait la vocation des Soeurs
Pauvres à la lumière de la Vierge Marie, l'humble servante du Seigneur qui,
sous la protection de l'Esprit Saint, devint la Mère de Dieu. L'humble servante
du Seigneur est le modèle de l'Église, Vierge, Épouse et Mère.
Claire percevait sa
vocation comme un appel à vivre selon l'exemple de Marie, qui offrit sa
virginité à l'action de l'Esprit Saint pour devenir Mère du Christ et de son
Corps mystique. Elle se sentait étroitement associée à la Mère du Seigneur et
c'est pourquoi elle exhortait en ce sens sainte Agnès de Prague, la princesse
de Bohême devenue Clarisse: "Attache-toi à la très douce Mère,
qui donna naissance à un Fils si grand que les cieux eux-mêmes ne pouvaient le
contenir, et elle le recueillit pourtant dans l'humble cloître de son corps
saint et le porta en son sein virginal" (Troisième Lettre à Agnès de
Prague, 18-19).
La figure de Marie
accompagna le chemin vocationnel de la sainte d'Assise jusqu'au dernier jour de
sa vie. Selon un témoignage significatif rapporté lors du procès de
canonisation, la Madone s'approcha du chevet de Claire mourante, en penchant
son visage sur elle, dont la vie avait été une radieuse image de la sienne.
4. Seul le choix
radical du Christ crucifié, qu'elle fit emplie d'un ardent amour, explique la
décision de sainte Claire de suivre la voie de la "très haute pauvreté",
expression qui renferme dans toute sa signification l'expérience de
dépouillement, vécue par le Fils de Dieu dans l'Incarnation. Par le
qualificatif de "très haute", Claire voulait en quelque sorte
exprimer l'abaissement du Fils de Dieu, qui la remplissait
d'émerveillement: "Un tel et si grand Seigneur -
remarquait-elle - en descendant dans le sein de la Vierge, voulut apparaître
dans le monde comme un homme dérisoire, nécessiteux et pauvre, afin que les
hommes - qui étaient extrêmement pauvres et indigents, affamés en raison de
l'excessive pénurie de nourriture céleste - devinsent en lui riches de la
possession des royaumes célestes" (Première Lettre à Agnès de Prague,
19-20). Elle percevait cette pauvreté dans toute l'expérience terrestre de Jésus,
de Bethléem au Calvaire, où le Seigneur "nu, demeura sur la croix" (Testament
de sainte Claire, 45).
Suivre le Fils de Dieu,
qui s'est fait notre chemin, impliquait pour elle de ne rien désirer d'autre
que de se perdre avec le Christ dans une expérience d'humilité et de pauvreté
radicale, qui faisait appel à chaque aspect de l'expérience humaine, jusqu'au
dépouillement de la Croix. Le choix de la pauvreté était pour sainte Claire une
exigence de fidélité à l'Évangile, au point qu'elle demanda au Pape de lui
accorder un "privilège de pauvreté", comme prérogative à la
forme de vie monastique qu'elle avait fondée. Elle inscrivit ce "privilège",
défendu avec ténacité durant toute sa vie, dans la Règle qui reçut
l'approbation pontificale l'avant-veille de sa mort par la Bulle Solet
annuere du 9 août 1253, il y a 750 ans.
5. Le regard de
Claire demeura jusqu'au bout fixé sur le Fils de Dieu, dont elle contemplait
sans trêve les mystères. Son regard était le regard empli d'amour de l'épouse,
empli du désir d'un partage toujours plus complet. Elle se
plongeait en particulier dans la méditation de la Passion, en contemplant le
mystère du Christ, qui du haut de la Croix l'appelait et l'attirait. Elle
écrivait ces mots: "O vous tous qui passez sur cette route, arrêtez-vous
pour voir s'il existe une douleur semblable à la mienne; et nous répondons, je
Lui dis, Lui qui appelle et gémit, d'une seule voix et avec un coeur
unique: Jamais ne m'abandonnera ton souvenir et mon âme en sera
rongée" (Quatrième Lettre à Agnès de Prague, 25-26). Et elle
exhortait: "Laisse-toi donc toujours plus consumer par cette
ardeur de charité!... et crie avec toute l'ardeur de ton désir et de ton
amour: Attire-moi à toi, ô céleste Époux" (ibid., 27.29-32).
Cette pleine communion
avec le mystère du Christ l'introduit dans l'expérience de la possession
trinitaire, dans laquelle l'âme prend une conscience de plus en plus vive de la
présence de Dieu en elle: "Alors que les cieux et toutes les
autres choses créées ne peuvent contenir le Créateur, l'âme fidèle en revanche,
et elle seule, est sa demeure et son séjour, et ce pour la seule raison de la
charité, dont les impies sont privés" (Troisième Lettre à Agnès de
Prague, 22-23).
6. Guidée par
Claire, la communauté réunie à Saint-Damien choisit de vivre selon la forme du
saint Évangile dans un cadre contemplatif de clôture, qui se distinguait par le
désir de "vivre de manière communautaire dans l'unité de
l'esprit" (Règle de sainte Claire, Prologue, 5), selon une
"façon de sainte unité" (ibid., 16). Il semble que la compréhension
particulière que Claire manifesta à l'égard de la valeur de l'unité dans la
fraternité puisse être rapportée à la maturité de son expérience contemplative
du Mystère trinitaire. La contemplation authentique, en effet, ne se renferme
pas dans l'individualisme mais réalise la vérité de l'être unique dans le Père,
dans le Fils et dans l'Esprit Saint. Claire imposa non seulement dans sa Règle
la vie fraternelle sur les valeurs du service réciproque, de la participation et
du partage, mais elle se préoccupa aussi que la communauté soit solidement
édifiée sur l'"unité de la charité réciproque et de la paix" (Chap.
IV, 22), et que les soeurs soient "attentives à toujours conserver les
unes pour les autres l'unité de la charité réciproque, qui est le chemin qui
porte à la perfection" (Chap. X, 7).
Elle était en effet
convaincue que l'amour mutuel édifie la communauté et conduit à une croissance
dans la vocation; aussi exhortait-elle dans son Testament: "En
vous aimant les unes les autres dans l'amour du Christ, montrez à l'extérieur
cet amour que vous avez dans le coeur à travers les oeuvres, afin que les
Soeurs, encouragées par cet exemple, croissent toujours davantage dans l'amour
de Dieu et dans la charité mutuelle" (59-60).
7. Cette valeur de
l'unité fut également perçue par Claire comme s'inscrivant dans une dimension
plus vaste. C'est pourquoi elle voulut que la communauté de clôture fut
pleinement inscrite dans l'Église et solidement ancrée à elle par le lien de
l'obéissance et de l'assujettissement filial (cf. Règles, chap. I, XII).
Elle était tout à fait consciente que la vie des soeurs de clôture devait
devenir un miroir pour d'autres soeurs appelées à suivre la même vocation,
ainsi qu'un témoignage lumineux pour ceux qui vivent dans le monde.
Les quarante années
vécues à l'intérieur du petit monastère de Saint-Damien ne réduisirent pas les
horizons de son coeur, mais firent croître sa foi dans la présence de Dieu,
oeuvrant au salut de l'histoire. Deux épisodes sont bien connus: lorsque grâce
à la force de sa foi dans l'Eucharistie et l'humilité de la prière, Claire
obtint la libération de la ville d'Assise et du monastère, menacés par une
destruction imminente.
8. Comment ne pas
souligner qu'à 750 ans de la confirmation pontificale, la Règle de sainte
Claire conserve tout son attrait spirituel et sa richesse théologique?
L'harmonie parfaite de valeurs humaines et chrétiennes, le savant équilibre
d'ardeur contemplative et de rigueur évangélique vous confirment, chères
Clarisses du troisième millénaire, qu'elle est une voie maîtresse qu'il faut
suivre, sans accommodements ni concessions à l'esprit du monde.
A chacune de vous, Claire
adresse les paroles qu'elle laissa à Agnès de Prague: "Quelle
merveilleuse chance as-tu! Il t'est permis de jouir de ce saint banquet, pour
pouvoir adhérer de toutes les fibres de ton coeur à Celui dont la beauté fait
l'inlassable admiration des bienheureuses foules du ciel" (Quatrième
Lettre à Agnès de Prague, 9).
La commémoration de ce
centenaire vous offre l'opportunité de réfléchir sur le charisme propre à votre
vocation de Clarisses. Un charisme qui se caractérise, en premier lieu, par un
appel à vivre selon la perfection du saint Évangile, avec une référence précise
au Christ, comme unique et véritable programme de vie. N'est-ce pas un défi
proposé aux hommes et aux femmes d'aujourd'hui? Il s'agit d'une proposition
alternative à l'insatisfaction et à la superficialité du monde contemporain,
qui semble souvent avoir perdu sa propre identité, parce qu'il n'a plus conscience
qu'il a été créé par l'amour de Dieu et qu'il est attendu par Lui dans la
communion sans fin.
Quant à vous, chères
Clarisses, vous réalisez la "sequela Christi" dans sa
dimension sponsale, en renouvelant le mystère de virginité féconde de la Vierge
Marie, Épouse de l'Esprit Saint, la femme accomplie. Puisse la présence de vos
monastères entièrement voués à la vie contemplative être encore aujourd'hui
une "mémoire du coeur sponsal de l'Église" (Verbi Sponsa,
1), pleine du désir brûlant de l'Esprit, qui implore incessamment la venue du
Christ-Époux (cf. Ap 22, 17).
Face au besoin d'un
engagement renouvelé de sainteté, sainte Claire offre par ailleurs un exemple
de cette pédagogie de la sainteté qui, en se nourrissant d'incessantes prières,
conduit à devenir des contemplateurs du Visage de Dieu, en ouvrant grand son
coeur à l'Esprit du Seigneur, qui transforme toute la personne, esprit, coeur
et actions, selon les exigences de l'Évangile.
9. Mon souhait le
plus vif, renforcé par la prière, est que vos monastères continuent d'offrir à
l'exigence diffuse de spiritualité et de prière du monde d'aujourd'hui la
proposition exigeante d'une pleine et authentique expérience de Dieu, Un et
Trine, qui devienne un rayonnement de sa présence d'amour et de salut.
Que Marie, la Vierge de
l'écoute, vous vienne en aide. Que sainte Claire et les saintes et
bienheureuses de votre ordre intercèdent pour vous.
Quant à moi, chères
soeurs, je vous assure d'un souvenir cordial, ainsi qu'à tous ceux qui
partagent avec vous la grâce de cet événement jubilaire significatif, et
j'accorde de tout coeur à tous une Bénédiction apostolique particulière.
Du Vatican, le 9 août
2003
IOANNES PAULUS II
Copyright © Dicastero per
la Comunicazione - Libreria Editrice Vaticana
Pietro
da Rimini e bottega, SS. Francesco e Chiara, affreschi dalla Chiesa di S.
Chiara a Ravenna, 1310-20 ca.
Frescos from Santa Chiara, Museo Nazionale di Ravenna, Ravenna
Pietro
da Rimini e bottega, SS. Francesco e Chiara, affreschi dalla Chiesa di S.
Chiara a Ravenna, 1310-20 ca.
Frescos from Santa Chiara, Museo Nazionale di Ravenna, Ravenna
BENOÎT XVI
AUDIENCE GÉNÉRALE
Salle Paul VI
Mercredi 15 septembre
2010
Claire d’Assise
Chers frères et sœurs,
L’une des saintes les
plus aimées est sans aucun doute sainte Claire d’Assise, qui vécut au XIIIe
siècle, et qui fut contemporaine de saint François. Son témoignage nous montre
combien l’Eglise tout entière possède une dette envers des femmes courageuses et
riches de foi comme elle, capables d’apporter une impulsion décisive au
renouveau de l’Eglise.
Qui était donc Claire
d’Assise? Pour répondre à cette question, nous possédons des sources sûres: non
seulement les anciennes biographies, comme celles de Thomas de Celano, mais
également les Actes du procès de canonisation promu par le Pape quelques mois
seulement après la mort de Claire et qui contiennent les témoignages de ceux
qui vécurent à ses côtés pendant longtemps.
Née en 1193, Claire
appartenait à une riche famille aristocratique. Elle renonça à la noblesse et à
la richesse pour vivre dans l’humilité et la pauvreté, adoptant la forme de vie
que François d’Assise proposait. Même si ses parents, comme cela arrivait
alors, projetaient pour elle un mariage avec un personnage important, à 18 ans,
Claire, à travers un geste audacieux inspiré par le profond désir de suivre le
Christ et par son admiration pour François, quitta la maison paternelle et, en
compagnie de son amie, Bona de Guelfuccio, rejoignit en secret les frères
mineurs dans la petite église de la Portioncule. C’était le soir du dimanche
des Rameaux de l’an 1211. Dans l’émotion générale, fut accompli un geste
hautement symbolique: tandis que ses compagnons tenaient entre les mains des
flambeaux allumés, François lui coupa les cheveux et Claire se vêtit d’un habit
de pénitence en toile rêche. A partir de ce moment, elle devint l’épouse vierge
du Christ, humble et pauvre, et se consacra entièrement à Lui. Comme Claire et
ses compagnes, d’innombrables femmes au cours de l’histoire ont été fascinées
par l’amour pour le Christ qui, dans la beauté de sa Personne divine, remplit
leur cœur. Et l’Eglise tout entière, au moyen de la mystique vocation nuptiale
des vierges consacrées, apparaît ce qu’elle sera pour toujours: l’Epouse belle
et pure du Christ.
L’une des quatre lettres
que Claire envoya à sainte Agnès de Prague, fille du roi de Bohême, qui voulut
suivre ses traces, parle du Christ, son bien-aimé Epoux, avec des expressions
nuptiales qui peuvent étonner, mais qui sont émouvantes: «Alors que vous le
touchez, vous devenez plus pure, alors que vous le recevez, vous êtes vierge.
Son pouvoir est plus fort, sa générosité plus grande, son apparence plus belle,
son amour plus suave et son charme plus exquis. Il vous serre déjà dans ses
bras, lui qui a orné votre poitrine de pierres précieuses... lui qui a mis sur
votre tête une couronne d'or arborant le signe de la sainteté» (Première
Lettre: FF, 2862).
En particulier au début
de son expérience religieuse, Claire trouva en François d’Assise non seulement
un maître dont elle pouvait suivre les enseignements, mais également un ami
fraternel. L’amitié entre ces deux saints constitue un très bel et important
aspect. En effet, lorsque deux âmes pures et enflammées par le même amour pour
le Christ se rencontrent, celles-ci tirent de leur amitié réciproque un
encouragement très profond pour parcourir la voie de la perfection. L’amitié
est l’un des sentiments humains les plus nobles et élevés que la Grâce divine purifie
et transfigure. Comme saint François et sainte Claire, d’autres saints
également ont vécu une profonde amitié sur leur chemin vers la perfection
chrétienne, comme saint François de Sales et sainte Jeanne-Françoise de
Chantal. Et précisément saint François de Sales écrit: «Il est beau de pouvoir
aimer sur terre comme on aime au ciel, et d’apprendre à s’aimer en ce monde
comme nous le ferons éternellement dans l’autre. Je ne parle pas ici du simple
amour de charité, car nous devons avoir celui-ci pour tous les hommes; je parle
de l’amitié spirituelle, dans le cadre de laquelle, deux, trois ou plusieurs
personnes s’échangent les dévotions, les affections spirituelles et deviennent
réellement un seul esprit» (Introduction à la vie de dévotion, III, 19).
Après avoir passé une
période de quelques mois auprès d’autres communautés monastiques, résistant aux
pressions de sa famille qui au début, n’approuvait pas son choix, Claire
s’établit avec ses premières compagnes dans l’église Saint-Damien où les frères
mineurs avaient préparé un petit couvent pour elles. Elle vécut dans ce
monastère pendant plus de quarante ans, jusqu’à sa mort, survenue en 1253. Une
description directe nous est parvenue de la façon dont vivaient ces femmes au
cours de ces années, au début du mouvement franciscain. Il s’agit du
compte-rendu admiratif d’un évêque flamand en visite en Italie, Jacques de
Vitry, qui affirme avoir trouvé un grand nombre d’hommes et de femmes, de toute
origine sociale, qui «ayant quitté toute chose pour le Christ, fuyaient le
monde. Ils s’appelaient frères mineurs et sœurs mineures et sont tenus en
grande estime par Monsieur le Pape et par les cardinaux... Les femmes...
demeurent ensemble dans divers hospices non loin des villes. Elles ne reçoivent
rien, mais vivent du travail de leurs mains. Et elles sont profondément
attristées et troublées, car elles sont honorées plus qu’elles ne le
voudraient, par les prêtres et les laïcs» (Lettre d’octobre 1216: FF,
2205.2207).
Jacques de Vitry avait
saisi avec une grande perspicacité un trait caractéristique de la spiritualité
franciscaine à laquelle Claire fut très sensible: la radicalité de la pauvreté
associée à la confiance totale dans la Providence divine. C'est pour cette
raison qu'elle agit avec une grande détermination, en obtenant du Pape Grégoire
IX ou, probablement déjà du Pape Innocent III, celui que l’on appela le
Privilegium Paupertatis (cf. FF, 3279). Sur la base de celui-ci, Claire et ses
compagnes de Saint-Damien ne pouvaient posséder aucune propriété matérielle. Il
s'agissait d'une exception véritablement extraordinaire par rapport au droit
canonique en vigueur et les autorités ecclésiastiques de cette époque le
concédèrent en appréciant les fruits de sainteté évangélique qu’elles
reconnaissaient dans le mode de vie de Claire et de ses consœurs. Cela montre
que même au cours des siècles du Moyen âge, le rôle des femmes n'était pas
secondaire, mais considérable. A cet égard, il est bon de rappeler que Claire a
été la première femme dans l'histoire de l'Eglise à avoir rédigé une Règle
écrite, soumise à l'approbation du Pape, pour que le charisme de François
d'Assise fût conservé dans toutes les communautés féminines qui étaient fondées
de plus en plus nombreuses déjà de son temps et qui désiraient s'inspirer de
l'exemple de François et de Claire.
Dans le couvent de
Saint-Damien, Claire pratiqua de manière héroïque les vertus qui devraient
distinguer chaque chrétien: l'humilité, l'esprit de piété et de pénitence, la
charité. Bien qu'étant la supérieure, elle voulait servir personnellement les
sœurs malades, en s'imposant aussi des tâches très humbles: la charité en
effet, surmonte toute résistance et celui qui aime accomplit tous les
sacrifices avec joie. Sa foi dans la présence réelle de l'Eucharistie était si
grande que, par deux fois, un fait prodigieux se réalisa. Par la seule
ostension du Très Saint Sacrement, elle éloigna les soldats mercenaires
sarrasins, qui étaient sur le point d'agresser le couvent de Saint-Damien et de
dévaster la ville d'Assise.
Ces épisodes aussi, comme
d'autres miracles, dont est conservée la mémoire, poussèrent le Pape Alexandre
IV à la canoniser deux années seulement après sa mort, en 1255, traçant un
éloge dans la Bulle de canonisation, où nous lisons: «Comme est vive la puissance
de cette lumière et comme est forte la clarté de cette source lumineuse.
Vraiment, cette lumière se tenait cachée dans la retraite de la vie de clôture
et dehors rayonnaient des éclats lumineux; elle se recueillait dans un étroit
monastère, et dehors elle se diffusait dans la grandeur du monde. Elle se
protégeait à l'intérieur et elle se répandait à l'extérieur. Claire en effet,
se cachait: mais sa vie était révélée à tous. Claire se taisait mais sa
renommée criait» (FF, 3284). Et il en est véritablement ainsi, chers amis: ce
sont les saints qui changent le monde en mieux, le transforment de manière
durable, en insufflant les énergies que seul l'amour inspiré par l'Evangile
peut susciter. Les saints sont les grands bienfaiteurs de l'humanité!
La spiritualité de sainte
Claire, la synthèse de sa proposition de sainteté est recueillie dans la
quatrième lettre à sainte Agnès de Prague. Sainte Claire a recours à une image
très répandue au Moyen âge, d'ascendance patristique, le miroir. Et elle invite
son amie de Prague à se refléter dans ce miroir de perfection de toute vertu
qu'est le Seigneur lui-même. Elle écrit: «Heureuse certes celle à qui il est
donné de prendre part au festin sacré pour s'attacher jusqu'au fond de son cœur
[au Christ], à celui dont toutes les troupes célestes ne cessent d'admirer la
beauté, dont l'amitié émeut, dont la contemplation nourrit, dont la
bienveillance comble, dont la douceur rassasie, dont le souvenir pointe en
douceur, dont le parfum fera revivre les morts, dont la vue en gloire fera le
bonheur des citoyens de la Jérusalem d'en haut. Tout cela puisqu'il est la
splendeur de la gloire éternelle, l'éclat de la lumière éternelle et le miroir
sans tache. Ce miroir, contemple-le chaque jour, ô Reine, épouse de Jésus
Christ, et n'arrête d'y contempler ton apparence afin que... tu puisses,
intérieurement et extérieurement, te parer comme il convient... En ce miroir
brillent la bienheureuse pauvreté, la sainte humilité et l'ineffable charité»
(Quatrième lettre: FF, 2901-2903).
Reconnaissants à Dieu qui
nous donne les saints qui parlent à notre cœur et nous offrent un exemple de
vie chrétienne à imiter, je voudrais conclure avec les mêmes paroles de
bénédiction que sainte Claire composa pour ses consœurs et qu'aujourd'hui
encore les Clarisses, qui jouent un précieux rôle dans l'Eglise par leur prière
et leur œuvre, conservent avec une grande dévotion. Ce sont des expressions où
émerge toute la tendresse de sa maternité spirituelle: «Je vous bénis dans ma
vie et après ma mort, comme je peux et plus que je le peux, avec toutes les
bénédictions par lesquelles le Père des miséricordes pourrait bénir et bénira
au ciel et sur la terre les fils et les filles, et avec lesquelles un père et
une mère spirituelle pourraient bénir et béniront leurs fils et leurs filles
spirituels. Amen» (FF, 2856).
* * *
Je salue les francophones
présents et plus particulièrement les participants au pèlerinage promu par la
Conférence épiscopale de Guinée, et conduits par l’Evêque de N’Zérékoré, Mgr
Guilavogui, et ceux du Diocèse de Nancy, en France, guidés par Mgr Papin. Je
n’oublie pas les pèlerins de la Martinique, de Dijon et d’ailleurs. Puisse Dieu
vous bénir! Bon séjour à Rome!
APPEL DU SAINT-PÈRE
Je suis avec
préoccupation les événements qui se déroulent ces jours-ci dans les diverses
régions de l'Asie du sud, notamment en Inde, au Pakistan et en Afghanistan. Je
prie pour les victimes et je demande que le respect de la liberté religieuse et
la logique de la réconciliation prévalent sur la haine et la violence.
© Copyright 2010 - Libreria Editrice Vaticana
SOURCE : https://www.vatican.va/content/benedict-xvi/fr/audiences/2010/documents/hf_ben-xvi_aud_20100915.html
Carlo Crivelli (circa 1435–circa 1495),
Santa Chiara, 1470, Montefiore,
Sainte Claire
Sainte Claire (née en
1193 ou 1194) fille du noble et chevalier Favarone di Offreduccio, l'un des
plus puissants et des plus riches d'Assise, est expulsée de la ville avec sa
famille lors de l'insurrection bourgeoise de 1198-1199 et se réfugie à Pérouse où
ses parents possèdent un château. Lorsqu'en 1211, à Assise, elle entend une
prédication de saint François à la cathédrale Saint-Rufin, elle se sent
irrésistiblement attirée par son idéal de pauvreté évangélique et décide de
le prendre, après Dieu, pour guide de sa vie. Dans la nuit qui suit le
dimanche des Rameaux 1212, elle s'enfuit de chez elle et rejoint les frères à
Sainte-Marie de la Portioncule où elle fait promesse de suivre le Christ
pauvre ; saint François la conduit chez les bénédictines de Saint-Paul
(sur la route de Sainte-Marie des Anges à Pérouse) où elle reste jusqu'à ce que
la famille soit apaisée, puis l'installe à Saint-Damien où elle fonde l'ordre
des Pauvres Dames aujourd'hui connu sous le nom de Clarisses. A la
tête d'une communauté de cinquante religieuses dont sa soeur Agnès, elle est
faite abbesse par le pape (1216). De nouvelles communautés se forment en Italie
(on en compte 24 en 1228), en France (le couvent de Reims est fondé en 1220) et
en Espagne (Pampelune) ; sainte Agnès de Bohême fonde, en 1233 la communauté de
Prague. La règle est approuvée par Innocent IV, le 9 août 1253, deux jours
avant la mort de Claire (11 août). Cinquante ans après la mort de sainte
Claire, l'ordre compte soixante-seize monastères, il y en aura 372 en 1316
(dont 47 en France) et 425 à la fin du XIV° siècle.L'ordre des clarisses
comprend aujourd'hui 18 000 religieuses réparties en 897 maisons : 617 couvents
en Europe (270 en Espagne, 160 en Italie, 54 en France, 25 en Belgique, 24 en
Allemagne, 22 en Pologne, 19 en Angleterre, 17 au Portugal, 8 en Hollande, 6 en
Irlande, 4 dans l'ancienne Yougoslavie, 3 en Suisse, 1 à Malte), 39 en Amérique
du Nord (32 aux Etats-Unis, 7 au Canada), 159 en Amérique Latine (96 au
Mexique,17 en Colombie, 7 au Pérou, 7 au Brésil, 6 en Bolivie, 5 en Argentine,
5 au Chili, 3 en Equateur, 3 en Uruguay, 3 au Venezuela, 2 au Guatemala, 2 au
Nicaragua, 2 au Paraguay, 1 en République dominicaine), 27 en Afrique (4 en
Ethiopie, 3 en Tanzanie, 2 en Afrique du Sud, 2 en Angola, 2 au Cameroun, 2 au
Zaïre, 1 en Algérie, 1 au Burundi, 1 en Côte d'Ivoire, 1 en Egypte, 1 au Gabon,
1 à Madagascar, 1 au Malawi, 1 en République Centre Africaine, 1 au Rwanda, 1
en Ouganda, 1 en Zambie), 2 en Israël, 1 au Liban, 47 en Asie (17 au
Philippines, 8 aux Indes, 7 en Thaïlande, 4 en Indonésie, 4 au Japon, 2 en
Corée du Sud, 2 au Sri-Lanka, 1 au Bangla-Desh, 1 à Taïwan, 1 au Viet-Nam), 5
en Océanie (3 en Australie, 1 en Papouasie, 1 en Polynésie française).
Les plus anciens
monastères français de Clarisses existant aujourd'hui sont : Tinqueux (Marne),
fondé en 1220, refondé en 1933, reconstruit en 1965 ; Béziers, fondé en 1240,
rétabli en 1819 ; Nîmes, fondé en 1240, détruit en 1567, restauré en 1891,
bombardé en 1944, reconstruit en 1956 ; Perpignan, fondé en 1240, reconstruit
en 1878 ; Besançon, fondé en 1250, réformé par sainte Colette en 1410, rétabli
en 1879 ; Nérac, fondé en 1358, restauré en 1935 ; Azille (Aude) fondé en 1361,
restauré en 1891 ; Marseille, fondé en 1254, rétabli en 1892 ; Poligny
(Jura), fondé en 1415 par Marguerite de Bavière, rétabli en 1817 ; Le Puy,
fondé par sainte Colette en 1432 ; Arras, fondé en 1457 ; Nantes, fondé en
1457, rétabli en 1859 ; Paris, fondé par Anne de Beaujeu en 1484, rétabli en
1876 ; Haubourdin (Nord), fondé en 1490, refondés à Esquermes en 1866, rétabli
à Haubourdin en 1931 ; Cambrai, fondé en 1496, rétabli en 1827 ; Alençon, fondé
en 1498 par Marguerite de Lorraine et refondé en 1819 ; Motbrison, fondé en
1500 ; Evian-les-Bains, fondé en 1536, restauré en 1875, refondé en 1924,
établi à Thony en 1978 ; Romans (Drome), fondé en 1621, reconstruit en 1834 ;
Lavaur, fondé en 1642, restauré en 1802 ; Mur-de-Barrez (Aveyron), fondé en
1653, rétabli en 1868.
Giovanni di Paolo (–1482), Sts Clare and Elizabeth of Hungary, circa 1445, 32 x 12, Private collection
Sainte Claire, vénère en
même temps le Christ comme le Divin Enfant « couché dans la crèche et
enveloppé de quelques méchants langes » et le Crucifié qui a voulu « souffrir
sur le bois de la croix et... mourir du genre de mort le plus infamant aui soit. »
En cela, elle est bien la fille de saint François d’Assise qui fit venir
l’Enfant Jésus dans la crèche à Greccio, et qui reçut les stigmates sur
l'Alverne. L'Homme-Dieu est l'Enfant et le Crucifié, mais aussi le Roi de
Gloire, le Seigneur.
Sainte Claire médite sans
cesse le mystère de l'lncarnation par lequel « Celui qui était riche s'est
fait pauvre pour nous » ; elle contemple le Verbe divin devenu
« le dernier des humains, méprisé, frappé, tout le corps déchiré à coups
de fouets, mourant sur la croix dans les pires douleurs. » De la Crèche au
crucifiement, elle voit le même et profond mystère, adorant déjà dans le corps
du Divin Enfant les plaies du Divin Crucifié. Si on ne peut lui attribuer la
composition de la prière aux Cinq Plaies du Seigneur, on sait qu'elle la disait
chaque jour.
A l’école de saint
François d’Assise, elle découvre la sainte humanité du Sauveur Jésus, sans pour
autant être uniquement fascinée par l'aspect sanglant du Crucifié :
l’Enfant Jésus de la Crèche n’est pas moins l'Oint, le Messie, le Seigneur, le
Fils du Trés-Haut que l’Homme Dieu de la passion et de la Croix. Elle découvre
la sainte humanité du Sauveur Jésus, sans pour autant perdre de vue que « Celui
s'est fait pauvre pour nous » est toujours le Seigneur qu’elle
n’appelle, avec la révérence que l’on doit à sa divinité, le Christ ou le
Christ-Jésus, le Seigneur ou le Roi. Le Crucifié de Saint-Damien qui a parlé à
saint François, celui que sainte Claire contemple n'est pas tant l’Homme des
douleurs que le Christ serein et victorieux au sein même de la plus extrême
abjection. Sous le Crucifié, elle voit encore « le plus beau des enfants
des hommes », « de race noble », « celui dont la beauté
fait l'admiration des anges pour l'éternité », celui « dont le soleil
et la lune admirent la beauté », celui qui est « splendeur de la
gloire éternelle, éclat de la Lumière sans fin et miroir sans tache. »
Comme saint François, parce qu’elle perçoit la « Beauté de Dieu » elle
s'attache à Lui seul comme son épouse.
L'ardent
désir du Crucifix pauvre
La lumineuse figure de
sainte Claire d'Assise a été évoquée par le Saint-Père dans une Lettre, en date
du 11 août 1993, adressée aux Clarisses à l'occasion du VIII° centenaire de la
naissance de la sainte fondatrice. Voici une traduction du texte du message de
Jean-Paul II :
Très chères religieuses
de clôture !
1. Il y a huit cents ans
naissait Claire d'Assise du noble Favarone d'Offreduccio.
Cette " femme
nouvelle ", comme l'ont écrit d'elle dans une Lettre récente les Ministres
généraux des familles franciscaines, vécut comme une " petite plante
" à l'ombre de saint François qui la conduisit au sommet de la perfection
chrétienne. La commémoration d'une telle créature véritablement évangélique
veut surtout être une invitation à la redécouverte de la contemplation, de cet
itinéraire spirituel dont seuls les mystiques ont une profonde expérience. Lire
son ancienne biographie et ses écrits - la Forme de vie, le Testament et
les quatre Lettres qui nous sont restées des nombreuses qu'elle a
adressées à sainte Agnès de Prague - signifie s'immerger à tel point dans le
mystère de Dieu Un et Trine et du Christ, Verbe incarné, que l'on en reste
comme ébloui. Ses écrits sont tellement marqués par l'amour suscité en elle par
le regard ardent et prolongé posé sur le Christ Seigneur, qu'il n'est pas
facile de redire ce que seul un coeur de femme a pu expérimenter.
2. L'itinéraire
contemplatif de Claire, qui se conclura par la vision du " Roi de gloire
" (Proc. IV, 19 : FF 3017 ),commence précisément lorsqu'elle se remet
totalement à l'Esprit du Seigneur, à la manière de Marie lors de l'Annonciation
: c'est-à-dire qu'il commence par cet esprit de pauvreté ( cf.. Lc I, 26-38 )
qui ne laisse plus rien en elle si ce n'est la simplicité du regard fixé sur
Dieu.
Pour Claire, la pauvreté
- tant aimée et si souvent invoquée dans ses écrits - est la richesse de l'âme
qui, dépouillée de ses propres biens, s'ouvre à l' "Esprit du Seigneur et
à sa sainte opération " (cf. Reg. S. Ch. X, 10 : FF 2811 ),
comme une coquille vide où Dieu peut déverser l'abondance de ses dons. Le
parallèle Marie - Claire apparaît dans le premier écrit de saint François, dans
la " Forma vivendi " donnée à Claire : " Par inspiration divine,
vous vous êtes faites filles et servantes du très haut Roi suprême, le Père
céleste, et vous avez épousé l'Esprit Saint, en choisissant de vivre selon la
perfection du saint Evangile " ( Forma vivendi,in Reg. S. Ch.
VI, 3 : FF 2788 ).
Claire et ses soeurs sont
appelées " épouses de l'Esprit Saint " : terme inusité dans
l'histoire de l'Eglise, où la soeur, la religieuse, est toujours qualifiée d'
"épouse du Christ". Mais on retrouve là certains thèmes du récit de
Luc de l'Annonciation ( cf. Lc 1, 26-38 ), qui deviennent des paroles-clefs
pour exprimer l'expérience de Claire : le " Très Haut ", l'
"Esprit Saint ", le " Fils de Dieu ", la " servante du
Seigneur " et, enfin, cet " ensevelissement "qu'est pour Claire
la prise du voile, alors que ses cheveux, coupés, tombent au pied de l'autel de
la Vierge Marie dans la Portioncule, " presque devant la chambre nuptiale
" (cf. Legg. S. Ch. 8 : FF 3170-3172 ).
3. L'" opération de
l'Esprit du Seigneur ", qui nous est donné dans le baptême, est de créer
chez le chrétien le visage du Fils de Dieu. Dans la solitude et dans le
silence, que Claire choisit comme forme de vie pour elle et pour ses compagnes
entre les pauvres murs de son monastère, à mi-côte entre Assise et la Portioncule,
se dissipe le voile de fumée des paroles et des choses terrestres, et la
communion avec Dieu devient réalité : amour qui naît et qui se donne.
Claire, penchée en
contemplation sur l'enfant de Bethléem, nous exhorte ainsi : " Puisque
cette vision de lui est splendeur de la gloire éternelle, clarté de la lumière
éternelle et miroir sans tache, chaque jour porte ton âme dans ce miroir...
Admire la pauvreté de celui qui fut déposé dans la crèche et enveloppé de
pauvres linges. O admirable humilité et pauvreté qui stupéfie ! Le Roi des
anges, le Seigneur du ciel et de la terre, est couché dans une mangeoire !
" ( Lett. IV, 14. 19-21 : FF 2902. 2904 ).
Elle ne se rend pas même
compte que son sein de vierge consacrée et de " vierge pauvre "
attachée au " Christ pauvre " (cf.Lett. II, 18 : FF 2878 ) devient
aussi, au moyen de la contemplation et de la transformation, un berceau du Fils
de Dieu (Proc. IX, 4 : FF 3062 ) . C'est la voix de cet enfant qui, de
l'Eucharistie, dans un moment de grand danger - quand le monastère va tomber
aux mains des troupes sarrazines au service de l'empereur Frédéric II - la
rassure : " Je vous protègerai toujours ! " (Legg. S. Ch. 22 :
FF 3202 ).
Dans la nuit de Noël de
1252, Jésus enfant transporte Claire loin de son lit d'infirme et l'amour, qui
n'a ni lieu ni époque, l'enveloppe dans une expérience mystique qui l'immerge
dans la profondeur infinie de Dieu.
4. Si Catherine de Sienne
est la sainte pleine de passion pour le sang du Christ, si Thérèse la Grande
est la femme qui s'avance de " demeure " en " demeure "
jusqu'à la porte du Grand Roi, dans le Château intérieur, et si Thérèse de
l'Enfant-Jésus est celle qui parcour avec simplicité évangélique la petite
voie, Claire est l'amante passionnée du Crucifix pauvre, avec lequel
elle veut absolument s'identifier.
Dans une de ses lettres
elle s'exprime ainsi : " Vois que Lui, pour toi, s'est fait objet de
mépris, et suis son exemple, en devenant, par amour de lui, méprisable en ce
monde. Admire ... ton Epoux, le plus beau parmi les fils des hommes, méprisé,
frappé et plusieurs fois flagellé sur tout le corps, et allant jusqu'à mourir
dans les douleurs les plus atroces sur la croix. Médite et contemple et aspire
à l'imiter. Si tu souffres avec Lui, avec Lui tu règneras ; si tu pleures avec
Lui, avec Lui tu te réjouiras ; si tu meurs avec lui sur la croix des
tribulations, tu possèderas avec Lui les demeures célestes dans la splendeur
des saints, et ton nom sera écrit dans le Livre de vie ... " (Lett.
II, 19-22 : FF 2879-2880 ).
Claire, entrée au
monastère à dix-huit ans à peine, y meurt à cinquante-neuf ans, après une vie
de souffrance, de prière jamais relâchée, de restriction et de pénitence. Pour
cet " ardent désir du Crucifix pauvre ", rien ne lui pèsera jamais, au
point qu'elle dira en mourant au frère Rainaldo qui l'assistait " dans le
long martyr d'aussi graves infirmités ... : Depuis que j'ai connu la grâce de
mon Seigneur Jésus-Christ au moyen de son serviteur François, aucune peine ne
m'a pesée, aucune pénitence n'a été lourde, aucune infirmité n'a été dure, très
cher frère ! " ( Legg. S. Ch. 44 : FF 3247 ).
5. Mais celui qui souffre
sur la croix est aussi celui qui reflète la gloire du Père et qui entraîne avec
lui dans sa Pâque qui l'a aimé jusqu'à en partager les souffrances par amour.
La fragile jeune fille de
dix-huit ans qui, fuyant de chez elle la nuit du dimanche des Rameaux de l'an
1212, s'aventure sans hésitations dans la nouvelle expérience, en croyant en
l'Evangile que lui a indiqué François et en rien d'autre, entièrement plongée
avec les yeux du visage et ceux du coeur dans le Christ pauvre et crucifié,
fait l'expérience de cette union qui la transforme : " Place tes yeux -
écrit-elle à sainte Agnès de Prague - devant le miroir de l'éternité, place ton
âme dans la splendeur de la gloire, place ton coeur en Celui qui est image de
la substance divine et transforme-toi entièrement, au moyen de la
contemplation, en l'image de sa divinité. Alors, toi aussi tu éprouveras ce qui
est réservé à ses seuls amis, et tu goûteras la douceur secrète que Dieu
lui-même a réservée dès le début à ceux qui l'aiment. Sans même accorder un
regard aux séductions, qui dans ce monde trompeur et agité tendent des pièges
aux aveugles qui y attachent leur coeur, aime de toute ta personne Celui qui,
par amour pour toi, s'est donné " ( Lett. III, 12-15 : FF 2888-2889
).
Alors, le terrible lieu
de la croix devient le doux lit nuptial et la " recluse à vie par amour
" trouve les accents les plus passionnés de l'Epouse du Cantique : "
Attire-moi à toi, ô céleste Epoux ! ... Je courrai sans jamais me fatiguer,
jusqu'à ce que tu m'introduise dans ta cellule " (Lett. IV, 30-32 :
FF 2906 ).
Enfermée dans le
monastère de saint Damien, menant une vie marquée par la pauvreté, par la
fatigue, par les tribulations, par la maladie, mais aussi par une communion
fraternelle si intense qu'elle est qualifiée dans le langage de la " Forma
di vita " par le nom de " sainte unité " ( Bulle initiale,
18 : FF 2749 ), Claire connaît la joie la plus pure qui ait jamais été donnée
d'expérimenter à une créature : celle de vivre dans le Christ la parfaite union
des Trois personnes divines, en entrant presque dans l'ineffable circuit de
l'amour trinitaire.
6. La vie de Claire, sous
la conduite de François, ne fut pas une vie érémitique, même si elle fut
contemplative et claustrale. Autour d'elle, qui voulait vivre comme les oiseaux
du ciel et les lys des champs ( Mt. VI, 26-28 ), se rassembla un premier groupe
de soeurs, satisfaites de Dieu seulement. Ce " petit troupeau " , qui
s'agrandit rapidement - en août 1228 les monastères des clarisses étaient au
moins 25 (cf. Lett. du Cardinal Rainaldo ; AFH 5, 1912, pp. 444-446 )
- ne nourrissait aucune crainte ( cf. Lc XII, 32 ) : la foi était pour
elles un motif de sécurité tranquille au milieu de tous les dangers. Claire et
les soeurs avaient un coeur grand comme le monde : étant contemplatives, elles
intercédaient pour toute l'humanité. En tant qu'âmes sensibles aux problèmes
quotidiens de chacun, elles savaient prendre en charge chaque peine : il n'y
avait pas de préoccupation d'autrui, de souffrance, d'angoisse, de désespoir
qui ne trouvât un écho dans leur coeur de femmes priantes. Claire pleura et
supplia le Seigneur pour la ville bien-aimée d'Assise, assiégée par les troupes
de Vitale d'Aversa, obtenant la libération de la ville de la guerre ; elle
priait chaque jour pour les malades et de nombreuses fois elle les guérit d'un
signe de croix. Persuadée qu'il n'y a pas de vie apostolique si on ne s'immerge
pas dans le flanc déchiré du Christ crucifié, elle écrivait à Agnès de Prague
avec les paroles de saint Paul : " Je te considère comme une
collaboratrice de Dieu lui-même ( Rm XVI, 3 ) et un soutien des membres faibles
et vacillants de son ineffable Corps " ( Lett. III, 8 : FF 2886 ).
7. Claire d'Assise, également
en raison d'un genre d'iconographie qui a eu un vaste succès à partir du XVII°
siècle, est souvent représentée l'ostensoir à la main. Le geste rappelle, bien
qu'avec une attitude plus solennelle, l'humble réalité de cette femme qui, déjà
très malade, se prosternait, soutenue par deux soeurs, devant le ciboire
d'argent contenant l'Eucharistie ( cf. Legg. S. Ch. 21 : FF 3201 ),
placé devant la porte du réfectoire, où devait s'abattre la furie des troupes
de l'Empereur. Claire vivait de ce pain, que pourtant, suivant l'usage de
l'époque, elle ne pouvait recevoir que sept fois par an. Sur son lit de malade,
elle brodait du linge d'autel et l'envoyait aux églises pauvres de la vallée de
Spolète.
En réalité, toute la vie
de Claire était une eucharistie, car - à l'instar de François - elle
élevait de sa clôture un continuel " remerciement " à Dieu par la
prière, la louange, la supplication, l'intercession, les pleurs, l'offrande et
le sacrifice. Tout était accueilli par elle et offert au Père en union avec le
" merci " infini du Fils unique, enfant, crucifié, ressuscité, vivant
à la droite du Père.
En cette fête jubilaire,
très chères soeurs, l'attention de toute l'Eglise se tourne avec un intérêt
accru vers la figure lumineuse de votre Mère profondément aimée. Avec une
ferveur encore plus grande votre regard doit converger sur elle, pour tirer de
ses exemples une stimulation à intensifier l'élan à répondre à la grâce du
Seigneur, avec un dévouement quotidien à cet engagement contemplative dont
l'Eglise tire tant de force pour son action missionnaire dans le monde
d'aujourd'hui.
Que le Christ, notre
Seigneur, soit votre lumière et la joie de vos coeurs.
Avec ces souhaits, en
signe de profonde affection, je donne à tous une spéciale Bénédiction
apostolique.
Du Vatican, le 11 août,
mémoire liturgique de sainte Claire d'Assise, de l'an 1993, quinzième de mon
pontificat.
Jean-Paul II
SOURCE : http://missel.free.fr/Sanctoral/08/11.php
Unknown
Alsatian Master, St Mary Magdalene, St Odile of Alsace and St Clare of Assi.
/
Šv. Marija Magdalietė, šv. Odilė Elzasietė ir šv. Klara / Св. Марія Магдалина,
св. Одилія та св. Клара. 15th century, 9 x 73, Borys Voznytskyi Lviv
National Art Gallery
11 août: Sainte Claire
d'Assise
Le projet de vie de
Claire d’Assise et de ses Pauvres Dames, mieux connues sous le nom de
Clarisses, tient en une humilité toute joyeuse au service de « dame
pauvreté ». Le Christ donne tout son sens à un tel engagement. Claire, qui
se voyait comme une petite plante à l’ombre de saint
François, découvrira la sainte humanité du Seigneur Jésus qui s’est fait
pauvre pour nous, de la crèche à la Croix. Elle ne séparera pas l’Enfant Jésus
du Crucifié.
Deux enfants d’Assise
Claire est née à Assise,
vers 1193, du chevalier Favarone et de dame Ortolana. D’une douzaine d’années
de moins que François et d’une famille plus noble que la sienne, son histoire
sera pourtant inséparable du Poverello. Elle fait sa connaissance vers
1210, quand celui-ci prêche dans Assise. Elle est séduite par cette vie pauvre
et joyeuse toute donnée au Christ. Son désir est de prendre François comme
guide de sa vie, après Dieu.
Dans la nuit qui suit le
dimanche des Rameaux 1212, elle s’enfuit de chez elle et rejoint François et
les frères à Sainte-Marie de la Portioncule qu’il avait restaurée. François lui
coupe les cheveux et lui remet un voile et une robe de toile grossière pour
bien signifier sa promesse de suivre le Christ pauvre. François conduit la
jeune femme de dix-huit ans chez les bénédictines de Saint-Paul, puis il
l’installe à Saint-Damien, où le Christ lui avait parlé. D’autres jeunes filles
se joindront à cette femme forte et tendre.
Fondatrice des Pauvres
Dames
Claire fonde rapidement
l’ordre des Pauvres Dames, les Clarisses, qui vivront l’idéal franciscain dans
la prière. À la tête d’une communauté de cinquante religieuses, dont sa sœur
Agnès, elle est faite abbesse par le pape en 1216. Sa mère Ortolana sera plus
tard de la communauté. Après la mort de François en 1226, les papes
interviennent pour aménager la vie matérielle des Clarisses, même si Claire
refuse. Elle rédige une Règle qui marque les liens étroits avec la pauvreté,
les frères franciscains et la simplicité joyeuse de l’Esprit. Les sœurs sont
appelées « épouses de l’Esprit Saint » et non « épouses du
Christ », ce qui est assez inusité dans l’histoire de l’Église.
De nouvelles communautés
se forment en Italie (on en compte 24 en 1228), en France, dont le couvent de
Reims est fondé en 1220, et en Espagne. En 1252, le pape Innocent IV visite les
Sœurs et approuve leur Règle. La bulle d’approbation arrivera l’année suivante.
Claire meurt le 11 août 1253 en serrant la bulle dans ses mains.
En quarante-trois années
de vie monastique à Saint-Damien, dont vingt-neuf de maladie, Claire a donné
l’exemple d’une vie dépouillée et d’une union à Dieu, vécue dans la joie. On a
dit que par ses prières elle éloigna à deux reprises les Sarrasins de la ville
d’Assise. Ses dernières paroles sont une prière de louange que j'aimerais bien
dire à ma mort. Elles révèlent la paix profonde et la joie intérieure qui
l’habitaient : « Ô Dieu, béni sois-tu de m’avoir créée. » Ses
obsèques se déroulent en présence du pape Innocent IV et de la curie romaine.
Fait inhabituel dans l’Église, elle est canonisée deux ans plus tard. L’ordre
des clarisses comprend aujourd’hui environ 17 000 religieuses réparties en 850
maisons.
La dame pauvre meurt donc
comme elle a vécu, dans l’action de grâce d’une prière. Sa vie offerte fut une
eucharistie, un immense merci fait de silences et de cris, de rires et de
larmes. Elle a tout accueilli pour Jésus Ressuscité, avec lui et en lui, en
louange au Très-Haut tout aimant.
La joie du dépouillement
Pour Claire, la vraie
pauvreté est toujours joyeuse, car l’âme dépouillée de ses propres biens
s’ouvre à l’action de l’Esprit Saint. L’âme marche ainsi vers son Seigneur,
alerte et libre, comme elle l’écrit à Agnès de Prague : « Ce que tu
fais, fais-le et ne le lâche pas, mais d’une course rapide, d’un pas léger,
sans entraves aux pieds, pour que tes pas ne ramassent pas la poussière, sûre,
joyeuse et alerte, marche prudemment sur le chemin de la béatitude. » (Sources
chrétiennes 325, p. 92).
À la suite des premiers
franciscains, les Clarisses font de l’imitation du Christ une source de joie.
Claire aime la vie, les autres, la nature qui l’entoure. Sa vie est une sorte
de Cantique des créatures où transpire cette jubilation qui lui vient
de l’Évangile et de la découverte de la joie parfaite. Le Crucifié de
Saint-Damien qu’elle contemple n’est pas tant l’Homme des douleurs que le
Christ victorieux de la mort. Elle se donne à cette beauté de Dieu qui
resplendit sur la face de son Christ, « pour qu’ils aient en eux ma joie,
et qu’ils en soient comblés » (Jn 17, 13).
Jean-Paul II, dans une
lettre datée du 11 août 1993, adressée aux Clarisses à l’occasion du VIIIe centenaire
de la naissance de leur sainte fondatrice, évoqua la figure lumineuse de Claire
: « Si Catherine de Sienne est la sainte pleine de passion pour le sang du
Christ, si Thérèse la Grande est la femme qui s’avance de demeure en demeure
jusqu’à la porte du Grand Roi, dans le Château intérieur, et si Thérèse de
l’Enfant-Jésus est celle qui parcourt avec simplicité évangélique la petite
voie, Claire est l’amante passionnée du Crucifié pauvre, avec lequel elle
veut absolument s’identifier. »
Prière
Jésus, celle qui murmure
ton nom en silence
porte sa pauvreté à la suite de François d’Assise.
Elle coupe sa chevelure pour revêtir ta grâce
et partager avec d’autres ton secret.
Tu l’as séduite, elle
s’ouvre à tes noces.
Perle sans prix au jardin du Père,
elle entre dans la chapelle de Saint-Damien.
Ton Esprit l’inonde de tendresse.
Elle tient sa lampe
allumée dans la nuit.
Elle se fiance à toi pour toujours.
Elle fonde l’ordre des Pauvres Dames,
ces Clarisses qui n’aspirent qu’à s’unir à toi.
Tu es l’Époux qui va à
leur rencontre.
Tu les guides vers toi, ces filles de Claire,
dont la bure couleur de terre
nous dit jusqu’où va la joie de tout donner.
Pour aller plus
loin, Les
saints, ces fous admirables et Prières
de toutes les saisons,
SOURCE : https://www.jacquesgauthier.com/blog/entry/11-aout-sainte-claire-d-assise.html
Piero della Francesca (1415–1492), : Polyptych
of St Anthony: St Clare, circa 1460, color on panel, 21 x 38, National Gallery of Umbria, Palazzo dei Priori, Perugia,
Piero della Francesca (1415–1492), : Polyptych
of St Anthony: St Clare, circa 1460, color on panel, 21 x 38, National Gallery of Umbria, Palazzo dei Priori, Perugia,
La prière de sainte
Claire d’Assise pour apaiser l’angoisse de la mort
Marzena
Devoud - publié le 16/10/21 - mis à jour le 07/08/24
Écrite au moment de sa
mort, la prière de louange de sainte Claire d’Assise est saisissante. Elle met
la lumière sur l’essence de la vie même. Pleine de gratitude, elle révèle que
Dieu veille sur chaque personne à chaque instant.
Parmi les tableaux qui
illustrent sainte Claire d’Assise (1193-1253) sur son lit de mort, il y a cette
représentation de maître anonyme de Heiligenkreuz (Autriche) où on aperçoit la
Vierge Marie accompagner la moniale au moment de la mort. Une apparition
confirmée par sœur Benvenuta de Diambra, présente alors au couvent. Vêtue d’une
robe de brocart rouge et or et escortée par des saintes martyres, la Vierge
Marie caresse la joue de Claire sous le regard tendre de deux anges. En haut de
l’icône, dans le ciel bleu, on aperçoit le Christ avec dans ses bras l’âme de
la future sainte…
Cette scène, peinte selon
la tradition byzantine, surprend par la douceur et la tendresse du grand
passage vers l’au-delà. Les dernières paroles de la disciple et amie de
François d’Assise sur son lit de mort complètent de façon surprenante ce
tableau. En 43 années de vie monastique, dont 29 de maladie, la fondatrice de
l’ordre des Pauvres Dames nommé « les Clarisses ,» est encore une fois fidèle à
son union à Dieu, vécue dans la joie et la gratitude profondes. Cette prière de
louange "Celui qui te créa a toujours veillé sur toi" révèle la
grande paix intérieure qui l’habitait au moment de mourir :
"Va en paix, sans
inquiétude, tu auras une bonne escorte. Car Celui qui te créa t'a sanctifiée.
Car Celui qui te créa t'a envoyé l'Esprit-Saint. Il a toujours veillé sur toi,
comme une mère veille sur son petit enfant qu'elle aime. Sois béni, ô Toi,
Seigneur, Toi qui m'as créée".
Lire aussi :Quand
saint Augustin dit “À Dieu” à sa mère
Lire aussi :La
prière de saint Thomas d’Aquin juste avant de mourir
Lire aussi :Prière
de saint Ambroise pour un proche en train de mourir
Lire aussi :Qui
prie Marie, se sauve : ce saint avait tout compris
Lire aussi :Que
dire à un proche en fin de vie ? Sept pistes pour vivre ce temps en vérité
Lire aussi :Sainte
Claire et saint François d’Assise, des amis inséparables
Lire aussi :Qu’y
a-t-il après la mort ? Le message plein d’espérance de Thérèse de Lisieux
.jpg)
Pere Serra (1403-1408). Sainte Eulalie de Barcelone et Sainte Claire
d'Assise, retable, Cathédrale de Segorbe
SAINTE CLAIRE, vierge
Morte le 11 août 1253,
canonisée en 1255 par Alexandre IV. Fête immédiate diffusée par les
Franciscains.
Fête double jusqu’en 1568
au calendrier romain. Réduite à une simple mémoire dans l’Octave de St Laurent
par St Pie V. Innocent X en fit un double ad libitum et Clément X à
nouveau un double de précepte en 1670.
die 12 augusti
SANCTÆ CLARÆ
Virginis
III classis (ante CR
1960 : duplex)
Missa Dilexísti, de
Communi Virginum III loco.
le 12 août
SAINTE CLAIRE
Vierge
IIIème classe (avant
1960 : double)
Messe Dilexísti, du
Commun des Vierges III.
Leçons des Matines avant
1960.
Au deuxième nocturne.
Quatrième leçon. La
vierge Claire naquit d’une famille illustre, à Assise, en Ombrie. A l’exemple
de saint François, qui était de la même ville, elle distribua et convertit tous
ses biens en aumônes et secours aux pauvres. Fuyant le tumulte du siècle, elle
se rendit dans l’église de la Portioncule, où le même Saint lui coupa les
cheveux. Ses parents firent tous leurs efforts pour la ramener dans le monde ;
mais elle y opposa une ferme résistance. Conduite par saint François à l’église
de Saint-Damien, elle s’associa plusieurs compagnes et institua ainsi elle-même
une communauté de religieuses consacrées à Dieu, dont elle n’accepta le
gouvernement que pour céder aux saintes importunités du Bienheureux. Elle
exerça pendant quarante-deux ans la charge de supérieure, et se montra
admirable par sa sollicitude, sa prudence et le soin qu’elle prit de maintenir
dans sa communauté la parfaite observance des règles et des statuts de l’Ordre.
Sa vie, en effet, était pour ses sœurs un enseignement et un exemple, d’où elles
apprirent à régler leur vie.
Cinquième leçon. Afin de
fortifier l’esprit en soumettant la chair, elle avait pour lit la terre nue ou
des sarments, et pour oreiller un dur morceau de bois. Une seule tunique et un
manteau d’étoffe rude et grossière lui suffisaient ; un âpre cilice ne quittait
point sa chair. Telle était son abstinence que, pendant un temps assez long,
elle ne goûta aucun aliment corporel, trois jours par semaine ; se restreignant
les autres jours à une si petite quantité de nourriture, que ses sœurs
s’étonnaient qu’elle pût subsister. Avant de tomber malade, elle s’imposait
deux carêmes chaque année, sa seule réfection consistant alors en du pain et de
l’eau. Adonnée aux veilles et assidue à l’oraison, elle passait dans ce saint
exercice la plupart des jours et des nuits. Quand, éprouvée par de longues
infirmités, elle ne pouvait se lever d’elle-même pour se livrer au labeur
matériel, Claire se soulevait avec l’aide de ses sœurs, puis, le dos appuyé,
travaillait des mains pour ne pas demeurer oisive, même dans ses maladies. Son
amour passionné de la pauvreté lui fit constamment refuser les biens que
Grégoire IX lui offrait pour le soutien de sa communauté.
Sixième leçon. Des
miracles nombreux et variés répandirent l’éclat de sa sainteté. A l’une des
sœurs de son monastère, elle rendit l’usage de la parole, guérit une seconde de
sa surdité, et en délivra d’autres de la fièvre, d’une enflure d’hydropisie,
d’une fistule douloureuse et de diverses maladies qui les accablaient. Un frère
de l’Ordre des Mineurs lui dut de recouvrer la raison. L’huile étant venue à
manquer totalement dans le monastère, Claire prit une cruche, la lava, et tout
à coup ce vase se trouva rempli d’huile par un miracle de la divine bonté. Elle
multiplia la moitié d’un pain, de manière à ce qu’il y en eût assez pour
cinquante sœurs. Les Sarrasins, assiégeant Assise, s’efforçaient d’envahir le
couvent de Claire : la Sainte, toute malade qu’elle était, se fit porter à
l’entrée de la maison, tenant elle-même le vase où était renfermé le très saint
sacrement de l’Eucharistie ; là, elle adressa à Dieu cette prière : « Seigneur,
ne livrez pas aux bêtes féroces des âmes qui vous louent ; protégez vos
servantes, que vous avez rachetées de votre sang précieux. » Pendant qu’elle priait,
on entendit cette parole : « Moi, je vous garderai toujours. » En effet, une
partie des Sarrasins prit la fuite, et ceux d’entre eux qui étaient déjà montés
sur les murailles furent aveuglés et tombèrent à la renverse. Enfin cette
Vierge, à ses derniers moments, fut visitée par un chœur de bienheureuses
Vierges vêtues de blanc parmi lesquelles s’en distinguait une surpassant en
beauté toutes les autres. Alors, munie de la sainte Eucharistie et enrichie par
Innocent IV de l’indulgence plénière, elle rendit son âme à Dieu, la veille des
ides d’août. Les nombreux miracles qui la glorifièrent après sa mort,
déterminèrent le Pape Alexandre IV à la mettre au nombre des saintes Vierges.
Au troisième nocturne. Du
Commun.
Lecture du saint Évangile
selon saint Matthieu. Cap. 25, 1-13.
En ce temps-là : Jésus
dit à-ses disciples cette parabole : Le royaume des cieux sera semblable à dix
vierges qui ; ayant pris leurs lampes, altèrent au-devant de l’époux et de
l’épouse. Et le reste.
Homélie de saint
Grégoire, Pape. Homilia 12 in Evang.
Septième leçon. Je vous
recommande souvent, mes très chers frères, de fuir le mal et de vous préserver
de la corruption du monde ; mais aujourd’hui la lecture du saint Évangile
m’oblige à vous dire de veiller avec beaucoup de soin à ne pas perdre le mérite
de vos bonnes actions. Prenez garde que vous ne recherchiez dans le bien que
vous faites, la faveur ou l’estime des hommes, qu’il ne s’y glisse un désir
d’être loué, et que ce qui paraît au dehors ne recouvre un fond vide de mérite
et peu digne de récompense. Voici que notre Rédempteur nous parle de dix
vierges, il les nomme toutes vierges et cependant toutes ne méritèrent pas
d’être admises au séjour de la béatitude, car tandis qu’elles espéraient
recueillir de leur virginité une gloire extérieure, elles négligèrent de mettre
de l’huile dans leurs vases.
Huitième leçon. Il nous
faut d’abord examiner ce qu’est le royaume des cieux, ou pourquoi il est
comparé à dix vierges, et encore quelles sont les vierges prudentes et les vierges
folles. Puisqu’il est certain qu’aucun réprouvé n’entrera dans le royaume des
cieux, pourquoi nous dit-on qu’il est semblable à des vierges parmi lesquelles
il y en a de folles ? Mais nous devons savoir que l’Église du temps présent est
souvent désignée dans le langage sacré sous le nom de royaume des cieux ; d’où
vient que le Seigneur dit en un autre endroit : « Le Fils de l’homme enverra
ses anges, et ils enlèveront de son royaume tous les scandales » [1]. Certes,
ils ne pourraient trouver aucun scandale à enlever, dans ce royaume de la
béatitude, où se trouve la plénitude de la paix.
Neuvième leçon. L’âme
humaine subsiste dans un corps doué de cinq sens. Le nombre cinq, multiplié par
deux, donne celui de dix. Et parce que la multitude des fidèles comprend l’un
et l’autre sexe, la sainte Église est comparée à dix vierges. Comme, dans cette
Église, les méchants se trouvent mêlés avec les bons et ceux qui seront
réprouvés avec les élus, ce n’est pas sans raison qu’on la dit semblable à des
vierges, dont les unes sont sages et les autres insensées. Il y a en effet,
beaucoup de personnes chastes qui veillent sur leurs passions quant aux choses
extérieures et sont portées par l’espérance vers les biens intérieurs ; elles
mortifient leur chair et aspirent de toute l’ardeur de leur désir vers la
patrie d’en haut ; elles recherchent les récompenses éternelles, et ne veulent
pas recevoir pour leurs travaux de louanges humaines : celles-ci ne mettent
assurément pas leur gloire dans les paroles des hommes, mais la cachent au fond
de leur conscience. Et il en est aussi plusieurs qui affligent leur corps par
l’abstinence, mais attendent de cette abstinence même des applaudissements
humains.
[1] Matth. 13, 41.
Giovanni di Paolo (–1482), St Clare
Rescuing the Shipwrecked, circa 1455, 21 x 30, Gemäldegalerie, Berlin
Giovanni di Paolo (–1482), St Clare Rescuing the Shipwrecked, circa 1455, tempera and gold on panel, the composition extended to the edges of the panel.
Richard von Kaufmann
(1850–1908), Berlin; his sale (†), Hugo Helbing and Paul Cassirer, Berlin, 4
December 1917 (=1st day), lot 28, catalogued by M.J. Friedländer, (42,000 marks
together with lot 27).Harry Fuld (1872-1932), and by inheritance to his widow,
Lucie Mayer-Fuld (188-1966), and his two sons, Harry Fuld (1913-1963) and Peter
Fuld (1921-1962). List of nationally valuable art works, 1938. Sale through art
dealers to the Kaiser Friedrich Museum, Berlin, 1940. Gemäldegalerie, Stiftung
Preußischer Kulturbesitz, returned in 2019. Luise Wank (September 3, 2019).
"Germany
Returns Two Nazi-Confiscated Old Masters to the Heirs of a Renowned Jewish Art
Collector". Artnet News.
Dom Guéranger, l’Année
Liturgique
L’année même où,
préalablement à tout projet de réunir des fils, saint Dominique fondait le
premier établissement des Sœurs de son Ordre, le compagnon destiné du ciel au
père des Prêcheurs recevait du Crucifix de Saint-Damien sa mission par ces mots
: « Va, François, réparer ma maison qui tombe en ruines ». Et le nouveau
patriarche inaugurait son œuvre en préparant, comme Dominique, à ses futures
filles l’asile sacré où leur immolation obtiendrait toute grâce à l’Ordre
puissant qu’il devait fonder. Sainte-Marie de la Portioncule, berceau des
Mineurs, ne devait qu’après Saint-Damien, maison des Pauvres-Dames, occuper la
pensée du séraphin d’Assise. Ainsi une deuxième fois dans ce mois [2],
l’éternelle Sagesse veut-elle nous montrer que tout fruit de salut, qu’il
semble provenir de la parole ou de l’action, procède premièrement de la
contemplation silencieuse.
Claire fut pour François
l’aide semblable à lui-même [3] dont la maternité engendra au Seigneur cette
multitude d’héroïques vierges, d’illustres pénitentes, que l’Ordre séraphique
compta bientôt sous toutes les latitudes, venant à lui des plus humbles
conditions comme des marches du trône.
Dans la nouvelle
chevalerie du Christ, la Pauvreté, que le père des Mineurs avait choisie pour
Dame, était aussi la souveraine de celle que Dieu lui avait donnée pour émule
et pour fille. Suivant jusqu’aux dernières extrémités l’Homme-Dieu humilié et
dénué pour nous, elle-même pourtant déjà se sentait reine avec ses sœurs au
royaume des cieux [4]. Dans le petit nid de son dénuement, répétait-elle avec
amour, quel joyau d’épouse égalerait jamais la conformité avec le Dieu sans nul
bien que la plus pauvre des mères enserra tout petit de vils langes en une
crèche étroite [5] ! Aussi la vit-on défendre intrépidement, contre les plus
hautes interventions, ce privilège de la pauvreté absolue dont la demande avait
fait tressaillir le grand Pape Innocent III, dont la confirmation définitive,
obtenue l’avant-veille de la mort delà sainte, apparut comme la récompense
ambitionnée de quarante années de prières et de souffrances pour l’Église de
Dieu.
La noble fille d’Assise
avait justifié la prophétie qui, soixante ans plus tôt, l’annonçait à sa pieuse
mère Hortulana comme devant éclairer le monde ; bien inspiré avait été le choix
du nom qu’on lui donnait à sa naissance [6]. « Oh ! comme puissante fut cette
clarté de la vierge, s’écrie dans la bulle de sa canonisation le Pontife
suprême ! comme pénétrants furent ses rayons ! Elle se cachait au plus profond
du cloître, et son éclat, transperçant tout, remplissait la maison de Dieu »
[7]. De sa pauvre solitude qu’elle ne quitta jamais, le nom seul de Claire
semblait porter partout la grâce avec la lumière, et fécondait au loin pour
Dieu et son père saint François les cités.
Vaste comme le monde, où
se multipliait l’admirable lignée de sa virginité, son cœur de mère débordait
d’ineffable tendresse pour ces filles qu’elle n’avait jamais vues. A ceux qui
croient que l’austérité embrassée pour Dieu dessèche l’âme, citons ces lignes
de sa correspondance avec la Bienheureuse Agnès de Bohême. Fille d’Ottocare
Ier, Agnès avait répudié pour la bure d’impériales fiançailles et renouvelait à
Prague les merveilles de Saint-Damien : « O ma Mère et ma fille, lui disait
notre sainte, si je ne vous ai pas écrit aussi souvent que l’eût désiré mon âme
et la vôtre, n’en soyez point surprise : comme vous aimaient les entrailles de
votre mère, ainsi je vous chéris ; mais rares sont les messagers, grands les
périls des routes. Aujourd’hui que l’occasion m’en est présentée, mon
allégresse est entière, et je me conjouis avec vous dans la joie du
Saint-Esprit. Comme la première Agnès s’unit à l’Agneau immaculé, ainsi donc
vous est-il donné, ô fortunée, de jouir de cette union, étonnement des cieux,
avec Celui dont le désir ravit toute âme, dont la bonté est toute douceur, dont
la vision fait les bienheureux, lui la lumière de l’éternelle lumière, le
miroir sans nulle tache ! Regardez-vous dans ce miroir, ô Reine, ô Épouse !
Sans cesse, à son reflet, relevez vos charmes ; au dehors, au dedans,
ornez-vous des vertus, parez comme il convient la fille et l’épouse du Roi
suprême : ô bien-aimée, les yeux sur ce miroir, de quelles délices il vous sera
donné de jouir en la divine grâce !... Souvenez-vous cependant de votre pauvre
Mère, et sachez que pour moi j’ai gravé à jamais votre bienheureux souvenir en
mon cœur » [8]. La famille franciscaine n’était pas seule à bénéficier d’une
charité qui s’étendait à tous les nobles intérêts de ce monde. Assise, délivrée
des lieutenants de Frédéric II et de la horde sarrasine à la solde de
l’excommunié, comprenait quel rempart est une sainte pour sa patrie de la
terre. Mais c’étaient surtout les princes de la sainte Église, c’était le
Vicaire du Christ, que le ciel aimait à voir éprouver la puissance toute
d’humilité, l’ascendant mystérieux dont il plaisait au Seigneur de douer son
élue. François, le premier, ne lui avait-il pas, dans un jour de crise comme en
connaissent les saints, demandé direction et lumière pour son âme séraphique ?
De la part des anciens d’Israël arrivaient à la vierge, qui n’avait pas trente
ans alors, des messages de cette sorte : « A sa très chère sœur en
Jésus-Christ, à sa mère, Dame Claire servante du Christ, Hugolin d’Ostie,
évêque indigne et pécheur. Depuis l’heure où il a fallu me priver de vos saints
entretiens, m’arracher à cette joie du ciel, une telle amertume de cœur fait
couler mes larmes que, si je ne trouvais aux pieds de Jésus la consolation que
ne refuse jamais son amour, mon esprit en arriverait à défaillir et mon âme à
se fondre. Où est la glorieuse allégresse de cette Pâque célébrée en votre
compagnie et en celle des autres servantes du Christ ?... Je me savais pécheur
; mais au souvenir de la suréminence de votre vertu, ma misère m’accable, et je
me crois indigne de retrouver jamais cette conversation des saints, si vos
larmes et vos prières n’obtiennent grâce pour mes péchés. Je vous remets donc
mon âme ; à vous je confie mon esprit, pour que vous m’en répondiez au jour du
jugement. Le Seigneur Pape doit venir prochainement à Assise ; puissé-je
l’accompagner et vous revoir ! Saluez ma sœur Agnès (c’était la sœur même de
Claire et sa première fille en Dieu) ; saluez toutes vos sœurs dans le Christ »
[9].
Le grand cardinal
Hugolin, âgé de plus de quatre-vingts ans, devenait peu après Grégoire IX.
Durant son pontificat de quatorze années, qui fut l’un des plus glorieux et des
plus laborieux du XIIIe siècle, il ne cessa point d’intéresser Claire aux
périls de l’Église et aux immenses soucis dont la charge menaçait d’écraser sa
faiblesse. Car, dit l’historien contemporain de notre sainte, « il savait
pertinemment ce que peut l’amour, et que l’accès du palais sacré est toujours
libre aux vierges : à qui le Roi des cieux se donne lui-même, quelle demande
pourrait être refusée [10] ? »
L’exil, qui après la mort
de François s’était prolongé vingt-sept ans pour la sainte, devait pourtant
finir enfin. Des ailes de feu, aperçues par ses filles au-dessus de sa tête et
couvrant ses épaules, indiquaient qu’en elle aussi la formation séraphique
était à son terme. A la nouvelle de l’imminence d’un tel départ intéressant
toute l’Église, le Souverain Pontife d’alors, Innocent IV, était venu de
Pérouse avec les cardinaux de sa suite. Il imposa une dernière épreuve à
l’humilité de la sainte, en lui ordonnant de bénir devant lui les pains qu’on
avait présentés à la bénédiction du Pontife suprême [11]) ; le ciel, ratifiant
l’invitation du Pontife et l’obéissance de Claire au sujet de ces pains, fit
qu’à la bénédiction de la vierge, ils parurent tous marqués d’une croix.
La prédiction que Claire
ne devait pas mourir sans avoir reçu la visite du Seigneur entouré de ses
disciples, était accomplie. Le Vicaire de Jésus-Christ présida les solennelles
funérailles qu’Assise voulut faire à celle qui était sa seconde gloire devant
les hommes et devant Dieu. Déjà on commençait les chants ordinaires pour les
morts, lorsqu’Innocent voulut prescrire qu’on substituât à l’Office des défunts
celui des saintes vierges ; sur l’observation cependant qu’une canonisation
semblable, avant que le corps n’eût même été confié à la terre, courrait risque
de sembler prématurée, le Pontife laissa reprendre les chants accoutumés.
L’insertion de la vierge au catalogue des Saints ne fut au reste différée que
de deux ans.
O Claire, le reflet de
l’Époux dont l’Église se pare en ce monde ne vous suffit plus ; c’est
directement que vous vient la lumière. La clarté du Seigneur se joue avec
délices dans le cristal de votre âme si pure, accroissant l’allégresse du ciel,
donnant joie en ce jour à la vallée d’exil. Céleste phare dont l’éclat est si
doux, éclairez nos ténèbres. Puissions nous avec vous, par la netteté du cœur,
parla droiture de la pensée, par la simplicité du regard, affermir sur nous le
rayon divin qui vacille dans l’âme hésitante et s’obscurcit de nos troubles,
qu’écarte ou brise la duplicité d’une vie partagée entre Dieu et la terre.
Votre vie, ô vierge, ne
fut pas ainsi divisée. La très haute pauvreté, que vous eûtes pour maîtresse et
pour guide, préservait votre esprit de cette fascination de la frivolité qui
ternit l’éclat des vrais biens pour nous mortels [12]. Le détachement de tout
ce qui passe maintenait votre œil fixé vers les éternelles réalités ; il
ouvrait votre âme aux ardeurs séraphiques qui devaient achever de faire de vous
l’émule de François votre père. Aussi, comme celle des Séraphins qui n’ont que
pour Dieu de regards, votre action sur terre était immense ; et Saint-Damien,
tandis que vous vécûtes, fut une des fermes bases sur lesquelles le monde
vieilli put étayer ses ruines.
Daignez nous continuer
votre secours. Multipliez vos filles, et maintenez-les fidèles à suivre les
exemples qui feront d’elles, comme de leur mère, le soutien puissant de
l’Église. Que la famille franciscaine en ses diverses branches s’échauffe
toujours à vos rayons ; que tout l’Ordre religieux s’illumine à leur suave
clarté. Brillez enfin sur tous, ô Claire, pour nous montrer ce que valent cette
vie qui passe et l’autre qui ne doit pas finir.
[2] Il est fait allusion
ici à la fête franciscaine de la Dédicace de la Portioncule le 2 août.
[3] Gen. II, 18.
[4] Regula Damianitarum,
VIII.
[5] Regula, II ;Vita S.
Clarae coeva, II.
[6] Clara claris
praeclara meritis, magnas in cœlo claritate glorias ac in terra splendore
miraculorum sublimium, clare claret, Bulla canonizationis.
[7] Ibid.
[8] S. Clarae ad B.
Agnetem, Epist. IV.
[9] Wadding, ad an. 1221.
[10] Vita S. Clarae coaeva,
III.
[11] Wadding, ad an.
1253, bien que le fait soit rapporté par d’autres au pontificat de Grégoire IX.
[12] Sap. IV, 12.
François
d'Assise recevant la profession de foi de Claire. Enluminure, circa 1435
Clare
of Assisi is received into the order of the minorites by St. Francis, circa 1435
Klara von Assisi wird vom Heiligen Franziskus in den Orden der
Minoriten aufgenommen, circa 1435
Св. Франциск принимает Клару Ассизскую в орден миноритов, circa
1435
Bhx cardinal
Schuster, Liber Sacramentorum
Voici celle
qu’aujourd’hui la sainte liturgie appelle la première plante de la pauvre
famille des Mineurs, dans sa branche féminine. Pauvre d’argent, oui, mais
splendide dans la magnificence de son dénuement, parce qu’elle reflète
fidèlement la pauvreté royale du Christ en Bethléem et sur la Croix.
Pour bien comprendre la
figure séraphique de sainte Claire Sciti, il faut se reporter au temps où elle
vécut. L’abus de la richesse et de la puissance féodale au XIIIe siècle avait
imposé au clergé et aux moines des soins temporels qui, souvent, les
distrayaient trop, au détriment de leur mission spirituelle. Les hérétiques en
prenaient sujet d’accuser l’Église de s’être écartée de la pauvreté
apostolique, tandis que les bons catholiques gémissaient de cet état de choses
et appelaient une réforme. Dieu suscita enfin saint François, qui professa,
dans le premier article de sa Règle, humble obéissance au pape Honorius (III)
et à ses successeurs. Le héraut du grand Roi, sans bulle de privilèges, sans
immunités féodales, se présenta donc aux fidèles pauvre et sans chaussures,
mais portant aux mains, aux pieds et au côté, le sceau du Crucifié et, en son
nom, fit résonner à nouveau sur les places et aux carrefours, la parole
évangélique et les béatitudes de la montagne.
Le puissant abbé de
Saint-Benoît du Subasio exerçait sa suzeraineté sur de nombreuses terres et
forteresses dans le territoire d’Assise. Le Poverello, pour donner un berceau à
la nouvelle famille qu’il voulait instituer, lui demanda la plus pauvre de ses
possessions, la chapelle à demi détruite de la Portiuncule, qui devint ainsi le
Bethléem des Mineurs.
Claire fut la parfaite
imitatrice de saint François. Ce que celui-ci fit lui-même pour la vie
religieuse dans la branche masculine, il le fit par l’intermédiaire de Claire
dans la branche féminine. Au début, saint François lui donna à professer la
Règle du Patriarche saint Benoît, sur l’Ordre duquel il voulut greffer sa
nouvelle réforme des recluses de Saint-Damien, afin de l’établir sur une base
canonique, déjà reconnue par la sainte Église. Toutefois, ne se contentant pas
de l’exemple des riches monastères de Bénédictines répandus alors en Ombrie,
saint François établit que Claire et ses moniales se rattacheraient, en vertu
d’un recul de plusieurs siècles, aux traditions austères de la vie bénédictine,
telle que le saint Patriarche l’avait instituée parmi les rochers solitaires de
Subiaco, et dans la plus rigoureuse pauvreté.
C’est ainsi que Grégoire
IX, avant que les Clarisses n’eussent encore une règle propre, put leur écrire
: « Voici que vous êtes les dignes filles du bienheureux Benoît ».
Le monastère de
Saint-Damien, où Claire vécut et mourut, représente aujourd’hui encore le
palais royal de madonna paupertade. Mais, pour mieux assurer ce trésor, la
fille spirituelle du Poverello voulut obtenir d’Innocent IV un diplôme de
parfaite pauvreté ; aussi, tandis que d’autres sollicitaient du Pontife romain
des honneurs, des privilèges et des biens, Claire ambitionna au contraire, pour
elle et pour ses sœurs, le privilège de suivre la parfaite pauvreté du Christ.
Sainte Claire mourut en
1253 et fut canonisée deux ans après par Alexandre IV.
Aujourd’hui la messe est
du commun (Dilexísti).
Sainte Claire nous
enseigne aussi la dévotion à l’Eucharistie. Dans l’extrême dénuement de sa
pauvreté, elle conservait le Très Saint Sacrement dans une custode d’argent,
placée dans une pyxide en ivoire. Quand, sous Frédéric II, les Sarrasins
assiégèrent Assise et assaillirent même le monastère de Saint-Damien, la
Sainte, malade alors, ayant vu que tout secours humain était inutile, demanda
celui de Dieu. Elle se fit transporter à la porte de clôture, et de là elle
éleva, tel un bouclier, la pyxide eucharistique pour défendre ses religieuses
contre les infidèles. A cette vue les ennemis prirent immédiatement la fuite,
comme si, de ce vase sacré, fût sortie une vertu qui les repoussait de ce lieu.
Miniaturists
of the final flowering of the Ghent-Bruges school of Flemish illumination
(see Rothschild Prayerbook - Rothschild Prayerbook ; Miniatures of Clare of Assisi
Dom Pius Parsch, Le
Guide dans l’année liturgique
Seigneur, ne livrez pas
aux bêtes sauvages les âmes de ceux qui vous louent ! (Ps. LXXIII).
Sainte Claire. — Jour de
mort : le 12 août 1253. Tombeau : son corps reposa pendant six cents ans
profondément enfoui sous l’église d’Assise. En 1850, Pie IX en ayant permis
l’exhumation, on le trouva parfaitement conservé (en particulier, la tête et
toutes les dents). Image : une religieuse, avec un ciboire dans la main.
Vie : La vie de
collaboratrice de saint François d’Assise est comme enveloppée d’un voile de
tendre charité divine. L’Ordre des Clarisses, branche féminine de la famille
franciscaine, lui doit l’existence. A l’exemple de saint François, dit le
bréviaire, elle distribua tous ses biens aux pauvres. Fuyant le tumulte du
siècle, elle se réfugia à la campagne, dans une église. Là, saint François lui
coupa les cheveux et lui imposa un habit de pénitence (18 mars 1212). Puis,
elle se rendit à l’église Saint-Damien, où le Seigneur lui envoya plusieurs
compagnes avec lesquelles elle institua une communauté dont elle accepta le
gouvernement sur les instances de saint François. Pendant quarante-deux ans sa
direction fut admirable de sollicitude et de prudence ; et sa vie tout entière,
un enseignement et une lumière pour ses sœurs. Elle obtint du pape Innocent IV,
pour elle et pour ses compagnes, le privilège de vivre dans la pauvreté
parfaite. Elle fut la très fidèle imitatrice du saint d’Assise.
Comme les Sarrasins assiégeaient
Assise et s’efforçaient d’envahir son couvent, bien que malade, sainte Claire
se fit transporter à la porte de la maison, tenant elle-même le vase où était
renfermé le Très Saint Sacrement. « Seigneur, implora-t-elle, ne livrez pas aux
bêtes sauvages les âmes qui, vous louent (Ps LXXIII). Protégez vos servantes
que vous avez rachetées de votre sang précieux ! » On entendit alors une voix
qui disait : « Je vous garderai toujours ! » Et, en effet, les Sarrasins
prirent la fuite.
Claire d’Assise fut
proclamée sainte deux ans seulement après sa mort. On connaît l’ingénieuse
trouvaille de Thomas de Celano : Clara nomine, vita clarior, clarissima
moribus.
La Messe est du commun
(Dilexísti).
SOURCE : https://www.introibo.fr/12-08-Ste-Claire-vierge
Der Eintritt der heiligen klara ins Kloster. Berlin, Deutsches Historisches Museum
CLAIRE D'ASSISE QUI
EST-ELLE ?
1193(94)-1253
Claire naît à Assise en
1193. Même si la date reste incertaine (entre 1193-1194),nous avons célébré le
8e Centenaire de cette naissance entre ces deux années 1993-1994.
Femme du Moyen-Âge, elle
est issue d'une famille noble, de la ville d'Assise,fille de Favarone
Offreduccio et d'Ortolana, sa mère. Une annonce prophétique détermine son nom
dès avant sa naissance. Deux témoins, à l'occasion du Procès de canonisation,
rapportent les propos mêmes de Claire et ceux de sa mère à ce sujet. Soeur
Philippa, l'une des compagnes de Claire au couvent de St-Damien, «rapporta
une chose que madame Claire avait raconté aux soeurs: sa mère, à l'époque où
elle était enceinte d'elle, était allée un jour à l'église et, se tenant devant
la croix, priait Dieu avec ferveur de lui venir en aide aux moments difficiles
de la maternité. Alors elle entendit une voix qui lui disait: «Tu
enfanteras une lumière qui illuminera puissamment le monde.» (1)
D'après soeur Cécile, c'est Ortolana elle-même qui raconte le fait, après son
entrée au même monastère que sa fille. (2)
Voyons maintenant en
survol l'itinéraire humain et spirituel qui marquera la personnalité de Claire
d'Assise. Cette femme a été très connue de ses proches. Ainsi nous pouvons
suivre son enfance et sa jeunesse. Le témoignage de dame Bona, amie de sa mère,
et vivant dans la même maison que la jeune Claire, peut nous la décrire dans
ses gestes: «Claire faisait porter aux pauvres des nourritures qu'elle
était censée manger elle-même; le témoin atteste les avoir portées plusieurs
fois... ; et dans la ferveur de son âme, elle cherchait toujours à servir Dieu
et à lui plaire.» (3)
Monsieur Rainier, parent
de Claire par alliance, affirme lui aussi que la jeune fille «jeûnait,
priait, faisait l'aumône volontiers autant qu'elle pouvait.» (4)
Soeur Pacifica était
soeur de dame Bona et grande amie de Claire, avec qui elle partagera très tôt
la même vocation. Dans son témoignage, elle résume d'une façon très
significative ce qui sera le germe de la vocation de Claire et son lien avec
François: «Claire aimait beaucoup les pauvres.» (5)
Dès à présent, nous
percevons deux traits de la personnalité de Claire: son attrait vers la
pauvreté et sa grande capacité d'aimer, de compatir et d'entraîner ses amis sur
ce chemin.
L'exemple de sa mère, dame
très pieuse et secourable aux démunies, sera stimulant pour elle. Mais plus
encore, l'exemple de François, nouvellement couverti, sera la circonstance qui
provoquera sa vocation en centrant sa vie sur Dieu. Il semble que la jeune
Claire ait entendu et vu François, pour une première fois, vers l'âge de 13-14
ans. Celui-ci en a environ 26. Il prêche à l'église de St-Georges, après avoir
quitté définitivement l'avenir de riche bourgeois qui s'offrait à lui. Devenu
pauvre entre les pauvres, par choix, il est décidé à suivre particulièrement le
Christ dans son mystère de pauvreté. Son comportement suscite un profond
revirement chez la jeune auditrice: «Claire, ayant appris comment saint
François avait choisi la voie de la pauvreté, résolut en son coeur de l'imiter»,
nous rapporte Jean de Ventura, un homme d'armes qui vivait dans la maison de
son père. (6).
Dès l'âge de 18 ans,
Claire, souvent harcelée par ses parents et ses amis qui désirent la voir
contracter un mariage selon les visées humaines de son rang social, et ne
pouvant les convaincre de l'attrait intérieur qui l'anime vers le Christ,
s'enfuit secrètement, de nuit, de la riche demeure familiale. C'est le soir du
Dimanche des Rameaux 1212, début de la Semaine Sainte. Il semble qu'elle ait eu
l'accord de l'évêque Guido, d'Assise, car François, diacre à cette époque,
reçoit aussitôt sa consécration à Dieu, selon la Forme de vie que lui-même a
reçue de Dieu. Il écrivait dans son Testament: «Après que le Seigneur
m'eut donné des frères, personne ne me montrait ce que je devais faire, mais le
Très-Haut lui-même me révéla que je devais vivre selon la forme du
saint Évangile » ( 7 )
Après quelques
hésitations sur un lieu approprié où sa jeune disciple pourrait désormais
vivre, François ne tarde pas à l'installer définitivement à la petite église
San Damiano, une dépendance de l'évêché d'Assise, située aux environs de la
ville, qu'il avait réparée lui-même de ses mains, au début de sa conversion
pour Dieu. Là même, en cet endroit, lorsqu'il n'avait pas encore de frères
(1206), il avait prophétisé, animé par une grande allégresse spirituelle,
l'avenir et la mission de cette nouvelle communauté dont Claire est maintenant
la première "petite plante". Claire rappellera cet incident dans son
Testament ainsi que les paroles du saint: «Venez, criait-il à quelques
pauvres qui vivaient tout près de cette église, venez et aidez-moi au chantier
du monastère de San Damiano, parce qu'il y aura là des dames dont la vie
renommée et la sainte conduite glorifieront notre Père céleste dans toute sa
sainte Église.» ( 8 ). Cette deuxième prophétie au cours de la vie de
Claire annonce l'origine sociale et ecclésiale de l'Ordre des Clarisses, que
François aimait nommer au début: "les Pauvres Dames".
Plusieurs compagnes,
attirées par l'exemple de Claire, viennent la rejoindre, dont sa jeune soeur
Agnès, puis Pacifica, son amie plus âgée.
En expérimentant
humblement les débuts de cette vie pauvre, Claire ne tarde pas à se rendre
compte qu'il lui faut une assurance venue du Pape lui-même, Innocent III à
cette époque, si elle veut continuer à suivre concrètement le Christ Pauvre. En
effet, les moniales, en ces temps-là, devaient avoir des biens et des revenus
stables pour subvenir à leurs besoins quotidiens et se protéger. Claire demande
donc, comme tout monastère nouvellement fondé, un privilège d'existence.
Le Privilège qu'elle requiert cependant apparaît tout nouveau: le Privilège de
la Pauvreté, qui garantissait au Soeurs Pauvres de Saint-Damien «le droit de
vivre sans propriétés et sans revenus». Dès 1216, donc à peine quatre ans après
la fondation, le Pape Innocent III le lui accorde «tout en riant bien
fort», nous rapporte le biographe primitif. ( 9 ) Ce privilège sera la base de
la Forme de vie des Soeurs pauvres, et restera sans cesse la référence pour
toute réforme ultérieure, jusqu'à nos jours.
En 1224, Claire, à 30
ans, affaiblie par des austérités excessives, devient malade. Elle le restera
jusqu'à sa mort. Le 3 octobre 1226, elle perd son ami François qui l'avait
inspirée et soutenue jusqu'ici dans sa vocation.
À partir de cette date
(1226) Claire ne cessera d'approfondir d'une façon tout à fait remarquable le
charisme de vie spirituelle et contemplative qui lui est propre et qui
inspirera aussi la famille franciscaine. Ses lettres rejoindront Agnès de
Prague, une princesse de Bohème, qui deviendra elle aussi Soeur pauvre et fondera
un monastère à Prague, en 1234. La correspondance de Claire exprimera une
grande et profonde amitié entre ces deux femmes, mais aussi, en s'échelonnant
sur une période de 15 ans, nous manifestera l'évolution intérieure et
spirituelle du Privilège de la Pauvreté concrètement vécue par elle et ses
soeurs.
L'abbesse de Saint-Damien
devait pourtant être constamment vigilante, persévérante, pour demander et
redemander à chaque nouveau Pape, la possibilité de vivre ce Privilège qui
n'était pas du tout évident pour eux. Cette situation difficile a été
l'occasion principale pour Claire, - comme pour François d'ailleurs - de
laisser grandir en elle sa confiance totale en Dieu, ce «Dieu pauvre» «... qui,
pour nous, s'est fait le pauvre, la voie, la vérité, la vie.»( 10).
En septembre 1240, la
prière de Claire et de ses soeurs écarte les Sarrasins, à la solde de
l'empereur d'Allemagne, qui envahissaient la ville et même les lieux du
monastère de Saint-Damien. Et l'année suivante (1242), sa prière obtient de
nouveau la libération d'Assise que l'empereur d'Allemagne menaçait de ravager.
Claire meurt le 11 août
1253, un lundi à l'aube. Trois jours auparavant, après une longue période de
six années d'inquiétude au sujet de l'avenir de sa Forme de vie, elle recevait,
le 9 août, l'approbation définitive de sa règle contenant l'esprit du Privilège
de la pauvreté. Cette dernière "Forme de vie", elle l'avait rédigée
comme le fruit mûr de quarante années d'expérience. Le pape Innocent IV la lui
accordait volontiers, en la réservant, cependant, pour le seul monastère de
Saint-Damien.
Claire fut canonisée deux
ans après sa mort, par le Pape Alexandre IV, celui-là même qui l'avait aidée
dans sa dernière requête pour obtenir l'approbation de sa règle. Une centaine
de monastères, la plupart en Italie, mais aussi en France, en Espagne et dans
les pays slaves, suivaient l'influence de sa Forme de vie, mais cinq
communautés seulement avaient pu obtenir le Privilège de Pauvreté tel que voulu
et vécu par Claire et ses premières soeurs pauvres.
Sa vie, en perspective,
nous révèle déjà suffisamment quelle est sa personnalité féminine. Soulignons
pourtant des traits particuliers qui la caractérisent et nous enseignent encore
aujourd'hui. - Claire, sous un extérieur doux, serein, pacifique, est une femme
passionnée, entière, et très unifiée dans ce qu'elle poursuit. Ceci apparaît
dès son enfance et son adolescence.
Son premier biographe a
écrit sa vie deux ans après sa mort, appuyant son récit sur le témoignage
récent du Procès de canonisation, que nous avons le bonheur de posséder
aujourd'hui, après l'avoir perdu pendant des siècles. La narration des proches
témoins se devine lorsque l'auteur primitif nous dit de Claire, enfant, que «son
occupation préférée était la prière: elle y éprouvait de grandes
douceurs.» (1) Donc, un attrait vers les choses de Dieu, manifesté dès
l'enfance, et qui unifiera sa vie. Elle ne s'en départira jamais. Messire
Pierre de Damiano, son voisin, l'affirme encore: «il se souvenait bien que
jamais personne n'avait réussi à fixer son coeur sur les choses du
monde.» ( 2 )
Ce même trait sera
souvent rappelé par les compagnes de Claire, au cours du Procès; il sera
constant tout au long de sa vie religieuse.
Le langage même de la
sainte révèle encore mieux cet aspect entier de son tempérament. Les mots
"tout", "toujours", "sans cesse", "ne pas
s'écarter en aucune façon", et d'autres équivalents, reviennent et
insistent dans tous ses écrits, et presqu'à chaque phrase.
- Femme d'une grande
capacité de décision, de fidélité quant à sa vocation, de liberté intérieure
peu à peu acquise dans l'expérience de sa Forme de vie, et par là, d'une grande
énergie pour la promouvoir et la faire accepter: telle apparaît Claire d'Assise.
Ses contemporains et, plus proches, ses compagnes ne cessent de nous
l'attester. Ainsi Pacifica: «Claire aimait la pauvreté d'un amour si fort
que jamais on ne put l'amener à garder en propre quoi que ce soit, ni à
recevoir des possessions pour elle-même, ni pour le monastère. Le Seigneur Pape
Grégoire (IX) voulait donner beaucoup de choses et acheter des propriétés pour
le monastère, mais madame Claire ne voulut jamais y consentir.» (3 ) Une
autre, soeur Cécile ajoute: «Elle veillait et confirmait par son exemple,
dans leur ferme résolution de mener cette forme de vie, les soeurs de tous les
monastères.» ( 4 )
Nous avons un exemple
concret de cette intervention dans la 2e Lettre que Claire adresse à
Agnès, de Prague, qui désirait, elle aussi, obtenir la même faveur, du
Privilège de Pauvreté, pour son monastère. Claire lui écrit: «Si quelqu'un
te disait autre chose, te suggérerait autre chose qui empêcherait et te
paraîtrait contraire à ta vocation divine, bien que tu doives le vénérer,
refuse cependant son conseil, mais vierge pauvre, embrasse le Christ pauvre.»
(5 ) Ce "quelqu'un" n'est autre que le Pape Grégoire IX lui-même!
Claire reprend ainsi l'ardeur du charisme de François et fait siennes ses
dernières volontés que celui-ci lui avaient laissées en testament: «Moi,
frère François, tout petit, je veux suivre la vie et la pauvreté de notre très
haut Seigneur Jésus Christ et de sa très sainte mère, et persévérer en cela
jusqu'à la fin; et je vous prie, mes dames, et je vous donne le conseil -de
vivre toujours dans cette très sainte vie et pauvreté. Et gardez-vous bien
de vous en éloigner jamais en aucune façon, sur l'enseignement ou le
conseil de qui que ce soit.» ( 6). Cette volonté du petit Pauvre, Claire
l'a inscrite au coeur de sa Forme de vie pour qu'elle y soit présente à
perpétuité, soutenant sans cesse ainsi l'observance et la décision de ses
soeurs.
- Claire se caractérise
encore par une grande humanité dans ses moeurs et ses relations avec autrui. À
bon droit et justement, la Bulle de canonisation la décrit comme "Femme
nouvelle", ce qualificatif repris à nouveau aujourd'hui comme thème
inspirateur pour le 8e Centenaire de sa naissance. (7)
Nous voyons chez elle un
grand sens du discernement et de la discrétion dans la façon de vivre et de
transmettre sa vocation. L'appel à la pauvreté évangélique, telle que l'avaient
perçu Claire et François, oriente un quotidien qui n'est pas toujours facile à
assumer au premier abord. Claire l'a peu à peu appris par expérience
personnelle et avec celle de ses soeurs. En cela, elle a dû cheminer comme
chacun d'entre nous. Aidée par une maturité précoce, elle a appris à mieux
orienter les désirs ardents qui la poussaient d'abord vers une mortification
excessive, une observance, certes fervente, mais pas toujours adaptée,
respectueuse des lois pédagogiques de l'avancée spirituelle.
Le fait qu'elle ait vécu
jusqu'à un âge avancé (60 ans), lui a permis, mieux que François, sous
plusieurs aspects, d'acquérir une remarquable discrétion dans les orientations
qu'elle donne par ses conseils, sa Forme de vie et ses autres écrits. Le mot
"nécessité" qu'elle utilise souvent, indique chez elle ce
discernement à réaliser entre l'observance et la situation de la personne en
cause. Dans cette estimation judicieuse entre le bien et le mieux, Claire
pourra désormais élaborer elle-même sa Forme de vie et communiquer aux autres
cette sagesse intérieure. Ainsi écrira-t-elle à Agnès qui commence: «Très
chère, je te prie et te demande dans le Seigneur de te détourner sagement et
discrètement d'une certaine austérité dans l'abstinence, indiscrète et
impossible, que j'ai appris que tu avais entreprise, pour que, vivante, tu
loues le Seigneur, que tu rendes au Seigneur un hommage raisonnable, et ton
sacrifice toujours assaisonné de sel.» ( 8 )
Un autre aspect qui
révèle sa profonde humanité transformée par la grâce de Dieu, c'est sa grande
capacité d'exprimer sa bonté et son amitié dans les relations avec ses proches
aussi bien qu'avec ses contemporains de toutes situations sociales. Malgré les
lieux restreints où s'est confinée volontairement sa vie, la sainte d'Assise a
connu ou a été connue dans un large cercle de personnes.
Les témoins requis pour
le Procès informatif sont unanimes à nous présenter cette particulière qualité
humaine de Claire. Sa bonté attentive, sa vigilance, sa sollicitude et son sens
éducatif les ont stimulés et leur ont communiqué la joie évangélique et
l'épanouissement de leur vocation. Elle est devenue pour ses proches le
"clair miroir" de la véritable humanité, celle du Christ pauvre et
humble apparu parmi nous. Quelques témoignages sont l'écho de plusieurs autres:
. (Pacifica) «La
bienheureuse mère était envers ses soeurs humble, douce, affectueuse; elle
avait compassion des malades.» ( 9 )
. (Philippa) «Son
coeur était toujours prêt à partager les peines des soeurs et des affligés.
Elle considérait toutes les soeurs comme supérieures à elle; de toutes, elle se
faisait la moindre, les servant.» (10)
. (Lucie, Françoise,
Béatrice et d'autres) «Elle avait beaucoup de compassion pour les soeurs,
pour leur âme comme pour leur corps. Telle fut la bonté de madame Claire
qu'aucune parole n'est capable de l'exprimer tout à fait.» (11)
. (Agnès) «Lorsque
madame Claire voyait une soeur souffrir de quelque tentation ou tribulation,
elle l'appelait discrètement, pleurait avec elle, la consolait.» (12)
.(Benvenuta) «Elle
était douce et libérale envers toutes les soeurs. Elle gouverna le monastère et
les soeurs avec beaucoup de jugement et de discernement, plus qu'on ne pourra
jamais dire.» (13)
. (Christine) «Elle les
guida avec tant de prudence, de douceur et de vigilance dans la pratique de
leur vie religieuse et dans l'amour de la pauvreté...» (14)
. (Dame Bona) «Lorsque
la sainte mère Claire parlait, tout ce qu'elle disait servait à édifier et
enseigner autrui.» (15)
3)
LES LIENS ENTRE CLAIRE ET FRANÇOIS D'ASSISE
Ces deux saints ont vécu
des liens d'amitié tout à fait privilégiés. Tous les deux de la même époque, de
la même ville, Claire était cependant de onze années plus jeune d'âge. Un monde
social aussi les séparait: Claire, de noble naissance; François, issu d'un
milieu bourgeois, riche et en pleine lutte de pouvoir avec la noblesse d'alors.
Beaucoup de guerres intestines et de provocations entre ces deux classes
sociales.
Voyons brièvement d'abord
comment Claire perçoit François dans ses écrits et dans ses propos recueillis
lors du Procès, d'après les souvenirs de ses soeurs.
Les Sources:
1) Le Testament.
Claire a reçu sa vocation
par l'intermédiaire de François; et François, dès les débuts de sa vocation,
prévoyait déjà la présence de ses soeurs, avant même d'avoir des frères. (1)
Ceci est indéniable. C'est la base, le fondement de leur amitié spirituelle.
Claire rappelle elle-même dans son Testament, à la fin de sa vie: « ... Le
Très-Haut Père céleste a daigné, par sa miséricorde et par sa grâce, éclairer
mon coeur pour qu'à l'exemple et selon l'enseignement de notre très
bienheureux père François, je fasse pénitence.» ( 2 ) Remarquons comment
Claire, en cet écrit, approprie la personne de François pour elle et pour ses
soeurs: «notre très bienheureux père». François, ici, est pour elle
et ses soeurs un "père spirituel", celui qui leur a ouvert le
charisme de leur vocation ecclésiale. Tout l'écrit de son Testament l'atteste.
2) Les témoins du Procès.
Au cours du Procès,
quatre soeurs rapportent une vision que Claire atteste avoir eu en rêve. (3)
Cet événement du rêve de Claire se situerait après 1228, donc proche de la
canonisation de son ami François, et antérieur à la rédaction de son
testament: «Madame Claire racontait qu'une fois, en rêve, elle s'était vue
portant à saint François une cuvette d'eau chaude avec une serviette pour
s'essuyer les mains. Elle montait une échelle très haute, mais elle le faisait
avec autant d'aisance et de légèreté que si elle avait marché sur un terrain
plat. Lorsqu'elle fut arrivée à saint François, celui-ci sortit de sa poitrine
une mamelle et lui dit: «Viens, reçois et suce!» ' Elle le fit, puis saint
François la pria de sucer une deuxième fois. Et ce qu'elle goûtait ainsi lui
paraissait si doux et délectable qu'elle n'aurait pu l'exprimer en aucune
manière. Et après qu'elle eût sucé, ce bout de sein d'où sort le lait demeura
entre les lèvres de Claire: elle prit avec les mains ce qui lui était ainsi
resté dans la bouche, et cela lui parut de l'or si clair et si brillant qu'elle
s'y voyait toute comme en un miroir.»
Ce récit, dans sa
simplicité, révèle une très grande union, même, intimité, entre les deux
saints; union, que nous pourrions qualifier de "mystique". Et ce qui
la véhicule, c'est la force de rapport des symboles entre eux: l'échelle, la
mamelle, la lumière, la nourriture, la jouissance, le miroir. Les autres
témoins retiennent surtout, parmi ces symboles, celui de la
"mamelle". François, d'une façon maternelle, communique à sa disciple
le don de son charisme spirituel pour qu'elle l'assume elle-même, en le faisant
fructifier.
En fait, très tôt, dès
l'éveil de leur vocation respective, Claire et François ont été attirés
mystérieusement l'un vers l'autre. En revoyant brièvement ces étapes du début,
saisissons au passage la profondeur chrétienne rendant plus humaine encore la
réalité de cette merveilleuse amitié.
La Vie primitive de
Claire rapporte que «François, impressionné par la réputation de cette
jeune fille remplie de grâce, désirait la voir et lui parler...; il voulait la
gagner à Jésus Christ, son Seigneur.» (4) Béatrice, la jeune soeur de
Claire et sa compagne de vie, ajoute: «Il alla plusieurs fois à elle, lui
adressant de saintes paroles, si bien qu'à sa prédication, elle renonça à
toutes choses de ce monde.»(5)
De son côté..., «Claire
entendit parier de François...; elle eut bientôt le désir de le voir et de
l'entendre. Il lui rendit visite et elle vint souvent le voir.» (6)
François et Claire sont
accompagnés lorsqu'ils se rencontrent. Frère Philippe et dame Bona sont donc
les premiers témoins des communications entre eux. Dame Bona précise
qu'elle «accompagna souvent Claire lorsqu'elle allait parler avec
François, ce que toutes deux faisaient en secret pour n'être pas surprises par
les parents. François l'exhortait à se donner toute à Jésus Christ et frère
Philippe parlait de même. Et Claire les écoutait volontiers et acquiesçait à
toutes leurs paroles.» ( 7)
Tout au long de leur vie
pour Dieu, les deux saints amis se sont soutenus mutuellement dans la même
vocation. Leur humilité très profonde leur faisait éprouver une grande
admiration l'un pour l'autre. Cette humilité explique en grande partie les expressions
de Claire qui aiment souligner sa soumission à la paternité spirituelle de
François, cela surtout dans son testament.
Claire associe souvent
François aux grâces attachées à sa vocation: c'est lui le Père, le planteur, le
fondateur, la colonne, le soutien, le guide après Dieu, dans le service du
Christ (testament). François répond à cette confiance par une tendresse et une
sollicitude très fidèle, attentive, jusqu'à la fin de sa vie, comme Claire
l'atteste elle-même dans sa Règle et son Testament, en rapportant le petit
écrit où François s'engage vis-à-vis d'elle et de ses soeurs: «Je veux et
je promets d'avoir toujours par moi-même et.par mes frères, un soin affectueux
et une sollicitude spéciale pour vous comme pour eux.» Et la sainte ajoute: «Ce
qu'il accomplit soigneusement tant qu'il vécut, et voulut que soit toujours
accompli par ses frères. » ( 8 )
François a reçu tout
autant de Claire. Les récits de ses premiers biographes rapportent les
circonstances de la confirmation de son appel à la mission et à la prédication.
Son dilemme le faisant hésiter entre l'attrait pour la prière contemplative ou
le travail de la prédication itinérante, trouve enfin une solution dans le
soutien de la prière de cette "soeur chrétienne" qu'était Claire pour
lui. (9)
À la fin de sa vie,
souffrant d'un profond désarroi devant l'évolution trop rapide de son Ordre,
François retrouve la paix à l'ombre du petit couvent de Saint-Damien où il va
se reposer et bénéficier de l'appui fidèle de la présence de Claire et de ses soeurs
avant le grand passage de sa "soeur la Mort corporelle". (10)
Claire admire François et
s'en inspire. François vénère Claire comme une dame, mais il l'aime comme une
soeur spirituelle, celle qui incarne la figure de la «petite pauvre vierge de
Judée», la vierge Marie qu'il dénomme, comme Claire et ses soeurs, «épouses
de l'Esprit Saint». (11)
Dans les récits
primitifs, cette amitié sera sans cesse rappelée par des récits symboliques
voulant signifier leur affection mutuelle dans une mission commune, mais plus
encore par la comparaison avec le Christ, nouvel Adam, et Marie, nouvelle Ève,
donnant le miroir, l'exemple de la parfaite humanité:
«Si les hommes doivent
imiter ceux de leur sexe qui, tout récemment (en François) se sont mis à
l'école du Verbe incarné, que les femmes, de leur côté, marchent sur les traces
de Claire, elle-même imitatrice de la Mère de Dieu, et que Dieu a donnée récemment
pour modèle à toutes les femmes.» ( 12)
Ce constat chrétien de
leur union spirituelle a eu profond écho chez notre Pasteur actuel, Jean-Paul
Il, lorsqu'en 1982, à l'occasion d'un passage à Assise, il s'écriait: «À notre
époque, il est nécessaire de redécouvrir l'histoire divine de François et de
Claire. /... / Il est difficile de séparer les noms de François et de Claire...
Entre eux s'est établi un lien profond..., qui ne peut être compris qu'à partir
des critères de la spiritualité franciscaine, chrétienne, évangélique et non
avec des critères humains. Mais c'est aussi une réalité de cette terre, de
cette cité, de cette Église. Tout a pris corps ici.
«Dans la tradition
vivante de l'Église, du christianisme, de l'humanité, il ne reste pas seulement
le récit de leur vie. Il reste la manière dont François voyait sa soeur; la
manière dont lui-même épousa le Christ; comment il se voyait lui-même à l'image
de Claire, épouse mystique du Christ, et comment il façonnait à cette image sa
propre sainteté. À l'image de la sainteté de cette authentique épouse du
Christ, il découvrait l'image de la très parfaite épouse de l'Esprit Saint,
Marie, la très sainte. C'est une histoire divine qu'il nous faut contempler
dans la lumière de Dieu, dans la prière. Cette histoire divine a certainement
exercé une grande influence dans la vie de l'Église et dans le développement de
la spiritualité chrétienne.» (13)
4)
LES ÉCRITS DE CLAIRE D'ASSISE
Comme écrivain spirituel,
Claire a peu rédigé, en comparaison avec François. Elle nous laisse 5 lettres,
une Règle de vie, son Testament, sa dernière Bénédiction. Et voilà le tour
d'horizon! Tous ses écrits se datent après la mort de François. Claire exprime
par eux la pleine maturité de sa vie spirituelle et du charisme propre à
l'Ordre dont elle est considérée comme la Mère. L'expression écrite se situe
entre 1234 et 1253. Plus encore, les derniers écrits (4e lettre, testament,
règle et bénédiction) manifestent davantage l'autorité de ce charisme devenu
ecclésial. Claire est aussi l'une des rares figures féminines de cette époque
qui nous aient laissé des textes écrits.
Description brève des
écrits:
1) Les lettres
Son style propre se
révèle mieux dans les lettres. Sa correspondance demeure le lieu le mieux
apparenté pour exprimer son cheminement spirituel par les élans contemplatifs
et les conseils qu'elle communique volontiers à sa disciple.
Plusieurs auteurs sérieux
ont examiné ce style des lettres qui nous sont parvenues en langue latine. Ils
nous affirment entre autres que ces missives sont empreintes d'une élégance et
d'une dignité qu'on retrouve moins dans les écrits plus législatifs. Sachant
que cette correspondance s'est échelonnée sur une période de 19 ans,
l'uniformité du style et des expressions nous saisit immédiatement: c'est un
chef d'oeuvre, un cri du coeur, un chant nuptial, une hymne de victoire. La
sensibilité humaine et spirituelle de Claire d'Assise s'y perçoit entièrement,
telle qu'on pouvait la dévoiler à cette époque. (1)
Quatre lettres
s'adressent à Agnès, cette princesse de Bohème qui avait renoncé à un mariage
politique considéré comme le plus important à cette époque: le puissant
empereur d'Allemagne, Frédéric II, la requérait comme épouse, voulant fixer par
elle des alliances avec son pays. Agnès fonde un monastère à Prague avec les
biens de sa famille, mais, peu à peu, elle apprend l'orientation du Privilège
de la Pauvreté obtenue par la communauté de Saint-Damien. Elle désire elle
aussi, à cet exemple, entrer dans ce grand mouvement spirituel. Claire
l'accompagne et lui répond. C'est le thème principal des 4 lettres que Claire
lui fera parvenir avec sa conviction habituelle, profonde et stimulante. Les
trois premières lettres sont envoyées entre 1234-1 238. Puis, un espace de 15
ans les sépare de la dernière lettre écrite quelques mois avant le décès de
Claire. Cette dernière missive est un véritable chant d'amitié, plein de
chaleureuse confiance et transparence.
La 5e lettre est adressée
à Ermentrude, de Bruges, donc peut-être à une flamande. Celle-ci est recluse
avec quelques compagnes. Elle manifeste à Claire son intention de fonder un
monastère à Bruges, selon l'exemple de Saint-Damien. Claire lui communique ses
avis et son appui en deux lettres qui nous sont parvenues résumées dans un seul
texte.
2) Les écrits
législatifs:
La Règle: Claire
d'Assise est, d'après les historiens, la première femme qui rédige une Règle
qu'elle dénomme prudemment : "Forme de vie". Cette règle reflète la
terminologie légale de son temps. La fondatrice emprunte aussi des passages
complets de la Règle de François, celle, définitive, de 1223. Mais dans cette
législation, on reconnaît souvent et assez aisément la touche particulière
qu'elle veut y insérer en s'appuyant sur les meilleures connaissances
religieuses de ce temps qu'elle a reçues, sans doute par l'intermédiaire de
canonistes, comme le cardinal Hugolin, ou le cardinal Raynald, protecteurs de
l'Ordre. Claire applique ces données avec liberté et avec un grand sens de
l'adaptation ultérieure, par exemple, au sujet de l'autorité, de la
co-responsabilité, de la démocratisation, de la miséricorde mutuelle. Ceci
constitue une nouveauté dans l'histoire religieuse et nous inspire encore
aujourd'hui. Cette règle est relativement courte: 12 chapitres. L'essentiel
d'une forme de vie concrétise ainsi l'Évangile vécu ensemble, par des femmes,
dans une vie contemplative. Ce qu'elle signale au tout début: «La forme de vie
de l'Ordre des soeurs pauvres... est celle-ci: observer le saint Évangile de
notre Seigneur Jésus Christ.» ( 2 )
Le Testament: Cet
écrit se présente sous la forme d'une hymne d'action de grâce au Père des
miséricordes pour le grand don de la vocation à la suite du Christ pauvre et
humble. Écrit de circonstance: Claire éprouve la nécessité de préciser le pivot
central de sa forme de vie, mis en danger par l'intervention du Pape Innocent
IV, en 1247. Celui-ci, dans une nouvelle règle imposée aux monastères dans le
but d'unifier leur législation, ne tient plus compte du Privilège de Pauvreté.
Le Testament de Claire vient appuyer sa forme de vie qu'elle élaborait
elle-même à ce moment. Par des réflexions et des souvenirs autobiographiques,
Claire insiste et prévoit l'avenir en donnant à ses soeurs le roc solide de
leur charisme initial: la pauvreté-humilité et la charité fraternelle, à
l'exemple du Christ. Son testament S'apparente beaucoup aux derniers adieux du
Seigneur en Jn 15-17.
La Bénédiction a
sans doute été écrite d'abord à Agnès, puis adaptée à ses soeurs aux derniers
jours de sa vie. (Mais l'inverse peut être aussi plausible). Ce texte se
présente très riche de réminiscences bibliques, et assez développé, si on le
compare à celui de François. La bénédiction de Claire se rattache à son
testament qu'elle prolonge d'une façon liturgique.
Tous ses écrits sont
traversés par une grande unité de pensée. Les genres divers qu'elle utilise,
les nombreux textes d'Écriture qu'elle remémore et sur lesquels elle s'appuie,
sont là pour mieux manifester une vocation d'Église reçue en dépôt, par
l'illumination du Père céleste, et qui est de «toujours s'appliquer à imiter la
voie de sainte simplicité-humilité-pauvreté enseignée par le Christ et le
bienheureux père François.» ( 3 )
Claire est fondatrice d'un
Ordre qui a donné beaucoup de filles à l'Église. 18,000 encore aujourd'hui,
dans tous les continents de notre monde contemporain. C'est actuellement la
famille religieuse contemplative la plus nombreuse, après avoir traversé
presque huit siècles d'existence.
Cependant, pour
elle-même, l'humble fille d'Assise ne se considère pas comme la fondatrice.
Elle s'appuie sur le nom et la célébrité de François: c'est lui le fondateur,
ne cessera-t-elle de proclamer à travers les textes législatifs. Ainsi dans la Règle: «L'Ordre
des Soeurs Pauvres que le bienheureux François institua...» (1). Et
dans son Testament: «Le Seigneur nous donna notre très bienheureux père
François comme - fondateur, planteur, et notre aide dans le service du
Christ.» (2). Claire elle-même se considère et voit ses soeurs comme «la petite
plante» du père François. (3).
L'Église qui approuve sa
Règle, en 1253, la perçoit de la même façon, selon ce que Claire a demandé: le
Prologue de la Règle en donne l'approbation en attestant: «Nous confirmons
par garantie apostolique la forme de vie selon laquelle vous devez vivre en
commun, dans l'unité des esprits et le voeu de la très haute pauvreté, forme de
vie à vous transmise par le bienheureux François et que vous avez
reçue spontanément.»
Ceci dit, il faut
cependant comprendre qu'à cette époque le IVe Concile du Latran (1215) avait
statué que l'Église s'abstiendrait désormais d'approuver de nouvelles règles
religieuses. Celle de François, la dernière en date, avait été approuvée
d'abord oralement en 1206, puis définitivement en 1223, grâce au cardinal
Hugolin, grand admirateur de François et protecteur de l'Ordre. Si l'abbesse de
Saint-Damien désirait faire approuver la sienne, elle devait nécessairement
l'appuyer sur l'autorité d'une règle antérieure. C'est ce que Claire fait en
s'inspirant de la règle des Frères Mineurs, et elle obtient cette approbation
trois jours avant sa mort, grâce à l'autorité et au rayonnement de la sainteté
de François, et tout autant, grâce à la vénération dont les évêques et le Pape
entourent la sainte mourante, à ce moment.
Mais, en fait, Claire
est réellement la fondatrice. C'est son oeuvre bien plus que celle de
François. Le Procès de canonisation et la Bulle qui la proclame sainte
universelle, ne cessent de l'affirmer. Pas une seule allusion, en ces derniers
documents, du rôle de François comme fondateur. Il est et demeure
l'inspirateur. Revoyons quelques témoignages très probants, entre bien
d'autres:
.(Pacifica): «Madame
Claire donna commencement à l'Ordre qui est à Saint-Damien... »
( 4 ).
. (Philippa): «Madame
Claire, première Mère et abbesse du monastère de Saint-Damien et première
en cet Ordre... » (5).
. (Amata): «Tant qu'elle
vivait et maintenant après sa mort, les soeurs l'ont en vénération, la
regardant comme sainte et comme Mère de tout l'Ordre.» (6).
. (Christine): «Dieu
a voulu qu'elle fût la première Mère et maîtresse de l'Ordre. » (7).
La Bulle de canonisation
confirme la sainteté de la vie de Claire, mais aussi son enseignement propre
dont l'Église reconnaît la densité évangélique: «Que l'Église notre Mère
exulte d'avoir engendré et élevé une telle fille qui... enfanta par ses
exemples de nombreuses disciples, et les forma, par sa doctrine sûre, pour
le parfait service du Christ.» (8)
Durant plusieurs siècles,
même jusqu'à la période du Concile, les Clarisses, par tradition retenue de
Claire elle-même, considéraient François comme le "fondateur". Mais
de plus en plus, nous prenons conscience du rôle majeur de Claire en cette
fondation. Par l'illumination du Père céleste, François l'a inspirée, mais
c'est vraiment elle, Claire d'Assise qui, ensuite, inspire et forme ce qui
deviendra l'Ordre des Soeurs Pauvres ou des Clarisses. Comme l'atteste déjà
fortement la Bulle de canonisation, «sa façon de vivre était pour ses
soeurs - un enseignement et une doctrine- dans ce livre vivant,
elles ont appris leur règle; dans ce miroir de vie, elles ont découvert leur
route.» (9)
6)
L'ENSEIGNEMENT SPIRITUEL DE CLAIRE D'ASSISE
«En vraie soeur, elle
encourageait nos âmes à l'union à Dieu.» (1) Par ce simple raccourci, les
compagnes immédiates de Claire nous précisent le but de l'enseignement qu'elles
avaient reçu de la sainte. Mère et fondatrice, Claire a beaucoup communiqué,
instruit, éduqué, formé et encouragé durant sa vie. Presque tous les témoins,
lors du Procès, souligne ce fait. Et Dame Bona conclut: «Lorsque la mère
sainte Claire parlait, tout ce qu'elle disait servait à édifier et enseigner
autrui.» (2)
Il est certain que ses
écrits enseignent, mais sa doctrine spirituelle se manifeste plus encore dans
son vécu et sa personne même. La Bulle nous l'indiquait déjà clairement. (3)
Le noyau central qui
inspire sa pensée spirituelle c'est le mystère de la pauvreté-humilité du Fils
de Dieu, expression de sa «charité ineffable» pour nous. L'intuition de Claire
et de François, à ce sujet, est véritablement stimulante et inspiratrice encore
aujourd'hui. Chez Claire, le cheminement spirituel se perçoit comme un progrès
continuel dans la compréhension et la participation à ce mystère de Dieu. Elle
insiste particulièrement, d'abord, sur l'importance du «bon commencement» pour
celle qui consent à être en vérité «pauvre de coeur», et ainsi devient «soeur,
épouse et mère de notre Seigneur Jésus Christ». (4)
Elle nous entretient
aussi et nous enthousiasme dans le désir du progrès constant et fidèle qui fait
fructifier ce «bon commencement» reçu comme un don: «D'une course rapide,
d'un pas léger, sans entraves aux pieds, sans soulever la poussière..., sûre,
joyeuse, alerte, marche avec prudence sur le chemin de la béatitude.»(5)
L'appel constant à la
joie évangélique, l'optimisme de sa vie et de ses paroles ne nous laissent pas
nous appesantir sur la tristesse ou les nuages du quotidien. La victoire sur ce
monde s'affirme sans cesse chez-elle: «Bienheureux les pauvres de coeur,
car le royaume des cieux est à eux» (6), dès ici-bas.
Enfin la sainte Mère
conduit sa disciple jusqu'à la profondeur, pleine de vérité, de la
transformation à l'image de Dieu, et jusqu'à la communion la plus intime à son
mystère de charité, d'amour. Les 3e et 4e lettres nous y conduisent d'une façon
toute simple, sans même les détours de directives spirituelles nombreuses que
l'on rencontre souvent chez les grands maîtres de la vie spirituelle. Claire
dit seulement: «Pose ton esprit, pose ton âme, pose ton coeur sur le
Christ, miroir de Dieu, splendeur de sa gloire, et transforme-toi tout entière,
par la contemplation, dans l'image de sa divinité: ... tu ressentiras ainsi ce
que ressentent les amis de Dieu, en goûtant la douceur cachée qu'il a réservée,
dès le commencement, à ceux qui l'aiment. » ( 7 )
L'oraison, pour Claire
d'Assise, est un processus vivant qui transforme sans cesse la personne dans la
vérité de son humanité, c'est-à-dire cette humanité qui est appelée à partager
la divinité du Fils de Dieu.
Femme d'Évangile:
Femme de lumière par son
nom et par ce qu'elle a été, l'humble fille d'Assise en vivant avec densité le
mystère et la réalité concrète de sa vie humaine, a fait revivre le mystère de
l'Évangile toujours vivant, toujours actuel. Sa façon de répondre à la vocation
chrétienne a suscité un grand réveil parmi ses contemporains, et tout au long
des siècles, jusqu'à nous. Elle a surtout incarné, par sa forme de vie et son
expérience humaine, la profondeur du mystère de l'humilité de Dieu vécue en son
Fils Jésus, le Christ apparu pauvre et humble au milieu de nous. Pour Claire,
ce mystère d'amour est victorieux et plein de gloire. Elle n'hésitera pas même
à situer l'attitude évangélique et essentielle. de la pauvreté comme celle qui
sera notre partage durant l'éternité: «la très haute pauvreté» (8 «
la sainte pauvreté » ( 9 ), « vivre toujours dans la souveraine
pauvreté. » (10).
Oui, car la souveraine
pauvreté appartient au mystère de Dieu même dans sa relation trinitaire. Cette
intuition de Claire et de François nous laisse entrevoir que la vie divine tout
entière est dépossession de soi, donation plénière. Ainsi la pauvreté, vécue au
jour le jour dans nos relations humaines, s'inspire de la vie divine et nous
fait communier à cette vie: elle fonde la fraternité. Cette souveraine
pauvreté, qui marque notre vision chrétienne, nous conduit à la louange et à
l'émerveillement devant un tel amour, celui que Dieu mous manifeste: «Dieu
a tellement aimé le monde, qu'il lui a donné son Fils, son unique, pour que
tout homme qui croit en lui ait la vie éternelle.» (11)
La liberté, la sobriété,
la ferveur et la tendresse par lesquelles Claire d'Assise nous transmet son
enseignement favorisent encore aujourd'hui un chemin d'humanité très
particulier. En vivant la densité de son expérience humaine de pauvreté et
d'humilité, Claire nous apprend comment le Christ l'a épousée et lui a
communiqué «l'ineffable charité» de Dieu, ce couronnement parfait de la
maturité humaine, notre «vocation divine». (12)
Soeur Claire, o.s.c.
Monastère Sainte-Claire, Valleyfield, Qc
NOTES
Les références des
chapitres et des versets, ainsi que la traduction des écrits de sainte Claire,
suivent l'édition des "Sources chrétiennes":
CLAIRE D'ASSISE, Écrits
(SC 325, Paris 1985, Cerf).
Les références concernant
la "Vie", le "Procès de canonisation", la "Bulle de
canonisation", suivent le livre bleu intitulé: CLAIRE D'ASSISE,
Documents, (Éditions franciscaines, Paris, 1983).
Abréviations utilisées
pour les Notes:
Test = Testament de Claire d'Assise (SC 325)
RCI = Règle de sainte Claire (SC 325)
L = Lettres de Claire d'Assise (SC 325)
Priv = Privilège de la Pauvreté (SC 325: Annexe)
Pr = Procès de canonisation (Documents)
Vie = Vie primitive de sainte Claire, attribuée à Thomas de Celano (Documents)
Bulle = Bulle de canonisation (Documents)
1) JALONS DE BIOGRAPHIE
(1) Pr III,28
(2) Pr VI, 1 2
(3) Pr VII,1-2
(4) Pr XVIII,3
(5) Pr I,3
(6) Pr XX,6
(7) Testament de François, 14 (SC 285)
(8) Test 14
(9) Vie 8,14
(10) Test 44; Priv. 3
2) QUELLE FEMME EST ELLE?
(1) Vie 2,4
(2) Pr XIX,2
(3) Pr 1, 1 3-14
(4) Pr VI,2
(5) 2e Lettre 1 7
(6) RCI 6,7
(7) Bulle de can. 8. La traduction française des "Documents" donne l'expression "fontaine nouvelle". Mais d'anciens manuscrits portent "nova mulier", (femme nouvelle): ce qui a été retenu par la "Lettre des quatre Ministres généraux de la Famille franciscaine" annonçant le 8e Centenaire de la naissance de Claire d'Assise. (Traduction française dans le bulletin "Claire dans nos Fédérations", décembre 1991, Monastère des Clarisses de Nancy, France.
(8) 3e Lettre 40-41
(9) Procès I,12
(10) Procès III,9
(11) Procès VIII,1-3; IX,l; XII,7
(12) Procès X,5
(13) Procès XI,5
(14) Procès XIII,3
(15) Procès XVI 1,8
3) LES LIENS ENTRE CLAIRE
ET FRANÇOIS D'ASSISE
(1) Test 12-14
(2) Test 24
(3) Procès III,39; IV,16; VI,13; VII,10
(4) Vie 5
(5) Procès XII,2
(6) Vie 5
(7) Procès XVII,3
(8) Règle CI 6,4-5; Test 29.49
(9) Legenda Major 12,1-2 (Vie primitive de saint François, par saint Bonaventure).
(10) Celano: Vita 11, 212 et notes.
(11) RC 1 6,4; Prière de l'Office de la Passion (SC 285) p.291 (1 2)
Lettre-préface de la Vie de sainte Claire (Celano) (13) Propos du pape
Jean-Paul 11, cités dans la Lettre des Ministres généraux, pour le 8e
Centenaire, p.5-6
4) LES ÉCRITS DE CLAIRE
D'ASSISE
(1) D'après "Réflexions dans le miroir: les images du Christ dans la vie spirituelle de sainte Claire d'Assise", thèse présentée par frère Brian Purfield, ofm, à la Faculté du Département de l'Institut franciscain de l'Université Saint-Bonaventure, N.Y., (1989). Traduction française par A. Mondor, Montréal (1992). (Thèse dactylographiée, non publiée).
(2) RCI 1,1-2
(3) Test 57
5) LA FONDATRICE
(1) RCI 1,1
(2) Test 48
(3) Test 49
(4) Procès 1,2a
(5) Procès 111,31
(6) Procès IV,18
(7) Procès XIII,3
(8) Bulle 18
(9) Bulle 9
6) L'ENSEIGNEMENT
SPIRITUEL DE SAINTE CLAIRE
(1) Faire-part du décès de sainte Claire, par ses compagnes: Documents p.1 50.
(2) Procès XVII,8
(3) cf. Bulle, 9
(4) le Lettre 12.24; Mt 12,50
(5) 2e Lettre 12-13
(6) Mt 5,3
(7) 3e Lettre 12-14
(8) RCl 8,4
(9) le Lettre 1 6; Test 47
(10) 2e Lettre 2
(11) Jn 3,16
(12) 2e Lettre 17
SOURCES principales pour
connaître sainte Claire:
CLAIRE D'ASSISE, ÉCRITS: Collection "Sources chrétiennes", N' 325, 253 p., Le Cerf, 1985. Introduction, texte latin, traduction, notes et index.
SAINTE CLAIRE D'ASSISE, Documents: Éditions franciscaines, 1981, 1400 p. Biographie (Vie primitive), Écrits de Claire, Procès et Bulle de canonisation, textes des chroniqueurs, textes législatifs et tables.
CLAIRE D'ASSISE, un message de lumière: Éditions du Signe, Strasbourg, 1991. Album illustré, rédigé par une équipe de clarisses.
SOURCE : https://www.clarissesval.ca/claire_dassise-qui-est-elle
Giovanni Battista Cima da Conegliano (1459–1517),
Madonna and Child with Saints Francis and Clare, circa 1510, oil on panel, 20.3 x
26.7, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New
York City.
Sainte Claire d’Assise :
vie, œuvres, spiritualité, miracles.
L’amante passionnée
De noble rang, elle se
fait mendiante et de riche parenté, radicalement pauvre sans même une paillasse
où dormir. A 18 ans elle est l'amante passionnée du Crucifix, auquel elle
s'identifie. Comme son modèle François. L’âme de Claire est contemplative, mais
son cœur grand comme le monde. Première femme dans l'Église à rédiger une règle
pour l’ordre qu’elle fonde, elle veut intercéder pour l’humanité entière !
Dépouillement complet, clôture, vie autour de l’Eucharistie sont les conditions
nécessaires à cette amoureuse, pour vivre l’absolu de son Amour unique : le
Christ.
(Retrouvez d’autres
saintes et saints dans le guide des saints sur Hozana)
Biographie de sainte
Claire d’Assise
Claire Offreduccio est
née à Assise en 1194, douze ans après saint François d’Assise. La mère de
Claire, Ortolana, reçu cette révélation du Seigneur lorsqu’elle était enceinte:
« Femme, ne crains rien : tu enfanteras sans danger une lumière dont le
rayonnement fera resplendir davantage encore la clarté du jour elle-même »,
c’est ainsi que la petite reçu le prénom de Claire. La famille Offreduccio est
aisée, le père de Claire est chevalier. Claire passe une enfance heureuse et
pieuse, se préoccupant beaucoup des pauvres.
Arrivée à l’âge de se
marier, Claire refuse tous les prétendants, désireuse de se garder pour le
Seigneur. C’est alors qu’elle entend parler de François, déjà renommé à Assise,
elle a un grand désir de le rencontrer. Ils se voient pour la première fois en
1211 et partagent immédiatement leur amour commun pour le Seigneur. De nombreux
échanges vont s’ensuivre ou saint François enseigne la jeune Claire.
Malgré l’opposition de ses parents, elle décide de se donner totalement à
l’amour du Christ. En 1212, à dix-huit ans, elle quitte la maison paternelle,
renonçant ainsi à son héritage pour vivre dans la pauvreté. Elle se rend
à la chapelle Sainte-Marie de la Portioncule pour y être consacrée à
Dieu. Ses cheveux sont coupés et elle reçoit l’habit gris de la pénitence.
Après deux jours François établit Claire au couvent de Saint-Damien (San
Damiano au sud d’Assise). Là, des jeunes femmes de toutes origines rejoignent
Claire et sa sœur Agnès. L’ordre des Pauvres Dames, dit plus tard
des Clarisses, est né. La vie des sœurs s’organise, le travail a une place
importante car « l’oisiveté est ennemie de l’âme », les sœurs tissent
du linge pour les églises. Ce premier travail annonce l’activité au service du
culte et de la liturgie qui sera assuré par les Clarisses jusqu’à nos jours. En
1215, Claire devient Abbesse du couvent.
A partir de 1224
commence la longue maladie de Claire, pendant 20 ans elle restera plus ou moins
alitée. Elle passe de longues heures en prière, chaque jour de midi à trois
heures elle médite la passion de Jésus, elle a une très grande dévotion au
Saint-Sacrement. En 1226, Claire apprend avec une très grande peine la mort de
son saint père François. En 1228, le Pape concède à Claire et à ses sœurs le
privilège de la pauvreté pour lequel elle a tant lutté. En septembre 1240, a
lieu la célèbre invasion des Sarrasins qui seront miraculeusement arrêtés par
la prière de Claire. En 1247, Claire commence la rédaction de sa
propre règle, insistant tout spécialement sur la pauvreté. Après 1250 sa
maladie s’aggrave et en 1253, Claire reçoit la visite tant espérée du pape
Innocent IV qui approuve la règle. Peu de jours après, le 11 août 1253 Claire
meurt.
Le 15 août 1255 Claire
est canonisée par Alexandre IV à Anagni. Presque simultanément commencent les
travaux de construction de la Basilique sainte-Claire à Assise. Sainte
Claire est fêtée le 11 août, jour de son entrée au Ciel. Elle est la patronne de
la télévision, des télécommunications, des brodeuses, des lavandières, des
blanchisseurs et des repasseuses. Grâce à son nom, elle est aussi la patronne
des aveugles.
Neuvaine à sainte Claire d'assise : avance dans la confiance !
Ecrits et œuvre et
citations de sainte Claire d’Assise
Les écrits de sainte
Claire
Sainte Claire est l’une
des rares femmes du Moyen-Âge dont les écrits soient parvenus jusqu’à
nous. Dans les années 1234, elle écrivit des lettres à la princesse Agnès de
Prague lui témoignant son amour pour le Christ et l’encourageant à lui
consacrer sa vie. Elle lui dit : « Attache-toi à sa très douce Mère qui
enfanta un fils tel que les Cieux ne pouvaient le contenir et qu’elle-même,
cependant, recueillit dans le petit enclos de son ventre sacré et porta en son
sein de jeune fille ». Ces lettres révèlent les avancements spirituels de
Claire. En plus de ces lettres, les écrits de sainte Claire se constituent de
son testament, de ses bénédictions et de la règle de vie des clarisses, elle
est la première femme à avoir rédigé une règle monastique qu’elle appelle
« forme de vie de l'ordre des sœurs pauvres ». Elle définit ainsi l’orientation
de la vie de ces sœurs contemplatives : « observer le saint évangile de
notre Seigneur Jésus-Christ ».
L’œuvre de sainte Claire
La grande œuvre de
sainte Claire d’Assise est la fondation de l’ordre les Clarisses. A la
suite de saint François, Claire a souhaité comme vertu principale pour ses
sœurs et filles, la pauvreté. Elle n’eut de cesse d’insister sur cette qualité
principale du Christ et de la Vierge Marie. Elle disait à ses filles : « Par
amour de l’Enfant très saint et bien-aimé, enveloppé de pauvres petits langes,
couchés dans une crèche, et de sa Très Sainte Mère, j’avertis, je supplie et
j’exhorte mes Sœurs à toujours se vêtir de vêtements vils ». Les Clarisses
sont la famille religieuse contemplative la plus nombreuse, elles ont traversé
huit siècles d'existence, on compte aujourd’hui 18000 sœurs clarisses dans le
monde.
Spiritualité de sainte
Claire d’Assise
Les témoignages des sœurs
qui partagèrent la vie de sainte Claire au couvent de Saint-Damien ont été
rapportés lors du procès de canonisation. Les sœurs révèlent la spiritualité de
leur mère et fondatrice sainte Claire. Elles s’accordent à dire que Claire a
beaucoup communiqué, instruit, éduqué, formé et encouragé durant sa vie :
« Lorsque la mère sainte Claire parlait, tout ce qu'elle disait servait à
édifier et enseigner autrui ». Ce qui inspire la spiritualité de Claire,
ce sont les béatitudes énoncées par Jésus dans l’Evangile. Il s’agit de les
vivre radicalement, spécialement la première béatitude, la pauvreté, d’où
découlent toutes les autres. Pour entrer dans ce bonheur, Claire donne son
secret : « regarder Jésus, le contempler longuement, pauvre, crucifié avec
le désir de se laisser configurer à lui ».
Miracles de sainte Claire
Les guérisons
miraculeuses
Plusieurs témoignages
relatent les guérisons qui ont eu lieu par la prière de sainte Claire. Par le
signe de croix et sa foi solide, elle guérit plusieurs sœurs : sœur Bienvenue
qui avait une grande plaie sous le bras, sœur Christiane qui était sourde, sœur
aimée qui souffrait de plusieurs maux.
Les multiplications
Les témoignages racontent
des faits extraordinaires qui se sont produits grâce à la foi de sainte Claire.
Un jour où il ne restait plus qu’un petit bout de pain pour nourrir toutes les
religieuses du couvent, sœur Claire commanda que l’on coupe ce dernier morceau
en cinquante tranches et qu’on les distribue aux sœurs. Incrédule sœur Cécile
s’en alla exécuter l’ordre et au fur et à mesure qu’elle coupait, le pain ne
diminuait pas. Elle fit toutes les tranches nécessaires pour nourrir le
couvent.
L’invasion des Sarrasins
En 1240 sur ordre de
l’empereur germanique Frédérique, des hordes de soldats pillent, incendient,
violent et tuent dans les villes restées fidèles au pape. Les assaillants sont
déjà dans le cloitre saint-Damien lorsque Claire, alors à l’infirmerie prend le
coffret contenant le Saint-Sacrement et dit « Seigneur garde toi-même tes
servantes puisque j’en suis incapable ! ». Une douce voix d’enfant répond
: « Moi je te garderais toujours » après quoi Claire ajoute : « Seigneur
je t’en prie défends aussi cette cité », la même voix enfantine dit alors
: « Elle aura beaucoup à souffrir mais elle sera protégée ». L’une
des sœurs du couvent raconte le miracle qui s’ensuivit: « et les
sarrasins de s’enfuir avec tant de hâte qu’ils ne commirent ni dommage ni
dégât ».
Goûtez à la spiritualité
de sainte Claire et de saint François d'Assise avec Hozana !
Les Clarisses de Cormontreuil vous invitent à cheminer avec sainte Claire, à la suite de saint François, avec :
- une neuvaine pour découvrir le chemin du bonheur à partir d'enseignements et de conseils de saint François
- une retraite en ligne vous permettant de découvrir la paix
franciscaine à travers une publication hebdomadaire pendant 6 semaines
Vous pouvez aussi tout
simplement confier vos intentions aux deux grands saints d'Assise et choisir
de prier une neuvaine à sainte Claire ou une neuvaine à saint
François.
Sources et bibliographie
https://www.sainte-claire-assise.fr/sainte-claire-dassise
https://www.clarissesval.ca/claire_dassise-qui-est-elle
https://clarisses-cormontreuil-catholique.fr/vie-de-sainte-claire/
SOURCE : https://hozana.org/saints/sainte-claire-d-assise
:
Simone Martini (1284–1344), Fresque
de it:Chiara d'Assisi par Simone
Matini dans l'Église
inférieure de la basilique Saint-François d'Assise / Freskenzyklus Szenen
aus dem Leben des Hl. Martin von Tours in der Martinskapelle
in der Unterkirche der Basilika San Francesco in Assisi;
Szene: Heilige, Detail: it:Chiara d'Assisi - Sieneser Schule / Клара Ассизская. Изображение художника Симоне Мартини в базилике Св. Франциска в
Ассизи (XIV век - Сиенская школа живописи), 1322–1326, fresco, Lower Basilica
of San Francesco
Also known as
Clara
Claire
Chiara
formerly 12 August
23
September, feast of
the finding of her body
3 October, feast of
her first translation, celebrated within the Poor
Clares
Profile
Clare’s father was
a count,
her mother the
countess Blessed Orsolana.
Her father died when
the girl was
very young. After hearing Saint Francis
of Assisi preach in
the streets, Clare confided to him her desire to live for God, and the
two became close friends. On Palm
Sunday in 1212,
her bishop presented
Clare with a palm, which
she apparently took as a sign. With her cousin Pacifica, Clare ran away from
her mother‘s
palace during the night to enter religious
life. She eventually took the veil from Saint Francis at
the Church of Our Lady of the Angels in Assisi, Italy.
Clare founded the Order of Poor Ladies (Poor Clares)
at San Damiano, and led it for 40 years. Everywhere the Franciscans established
themselves throughout Europe,
there also went the Poor Clares, depending solely on alms, forced to have
complete faith on God to
provide through people; this lack of land-based revenues was a new idea at the
time. Clare’s mother and
sisters later joined the order, and there are still thousands of members living
lives of silence and prayer.
Clare loved music and
well-composed sermons. She was humble, merciful, charming, optimistic,
chivalrous, and every day she meditated on the Passion of Jesus. She would get
up late at night to tuck in her sisters who’d kicked off their blankets. When
she learned of the Franciscan martyrs in
Morrocco in 1221,
she tried to go there to give her own life for God, but was
restrained. Once when her convent was
about to be attacked, she displayed the Sacrament in a monstrace at the convent
gates, and prayed before
it; the attackers left, the house was saved, and the image of her holding a
monstrance became one of her emblems. Her patronage of eyes and against their
problems may have developed from her name which has overtones from clearness,
brightness, brilliance – like healthy eyes.
Toward the end of her life, when she was too ill to
attend Mass,
an image of the service would display on the wall of her cell; thus her patronage of television.
She was ever the close friend and spiritual student of Francis, who apparently
led her soul into the light at her death.
Born
11 August 1253 of
natural causes
26
September 1255 by Pope Alexander
IV
Name Meaning
bright; brilliant
television (proclaimed
on 14
February 1958 by Pope Pius
XII)
San
Jose, California, diocese of
woman with
a monstrance in
her hand(s)
Additional Information
A
Garner of Saints, by Allen Banks Hinds, M.A.
Book
of Saints, by Father Lawrence
George Lovasik, S.V.D.
Book
of Saints, by the Monks of
Ramsgate
Lives
of the Saints, by Father Alban
Butler
Lives
of the Saints, by Father Francis
Xavier Weninger
Pictorial
Lives of the Saints, by John Dawson Gilmary Shea
Pope
Benedict XVI, General Audience, 15
September 2010
Saint
Clare, by Father Paschal
Robinson, O.S.F.
Saint
Clare, Founder of the Franciscan Nuns, by Friar Thomas
of Celano
Saint
Clare of Assisi, by Father Dominic
Devas, O.F.M.
Saints
and Saintly Dominicans, by Blessed Hyacinthe-Marie
Cormier, O.P.
Short
Lives of the Saints, by Eleanor Cecilia Donnelly
Stories
of the Saints for Children, by Mary Seymour
Virgin
Saints and Martyrs, by Sabine Baring-Gould
Saint Clare of Assisi, by Nesta de Robeck
The Life and Legend of the Lady Saint Clare, by
Brother Francis du Puis
books
The Sun and Moon over Assisi : A Personal Encounter With
Francis and Clare, by Gerard Thomas Straub
Oxford Dictionary of Saints, by David Hugh Farmer
Saints
and Their Attributes, by Helen Roeder
Some Patron Saints, by Padraic Gregory
other sites in english
1001 Patron Saints and Their Feast Days, Australian
Catholic Truth Society
Catholic
Exchange: Saint Clare
Catholic Exchange: Four Reasons to Live Saint Clare
Saints Project
images
audio
video
e-books
Life
and Legend of The Lady Saint Clare, by Brother Francis du Puis
Saint
Clare and Her Order: A Story of Seven Centuries
Saint
Clare of Assisi: Her Life and Legislation, by Ernest Gilliat-Smith
The
Princess of Poverty: Saint Clare of Assisi and the Order of Poor Ladies, by
Father Marianus Fiege
The
Rule of Saint Clare, by Paschal Robinson
sitios en español
Martirologio Romano, 2001 edición
sites en français
Abbé Christian-Philippe Chanut
Lettre Apostolique Proclamant Ste Claire Patronne Céleste de la
Télévision
fonti in italiano
Readings
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. Blessed be you, my God, for
having created me. – Saint Clare
of Assisi
O wondrous blessed clarity of Clare!
In life she shone to a few;
after death she shines on the whole world!
On earth she was a clear light;
Now in heaven she is a brilliant sun.
O how great the vehemence of the
brilliance of this clarity!
On earth this light was indeed kept
within cloistered walls,
yet shed abroad its shining rays;
It was confined within a convent cell,
yet spread itself through the wide world.
He, Christ, is the splendor of eternal glory, “the
brightness of eternal light, and the mirror without cloud.” Behold, I say, the
birth of this mirror. Behold Christ’s poverty even as he was laid in the manger
and wrapped in swaddling clothes. What wondrous humility, what marvelous
poverty! The King of angels, the Lord of heaven and earth resting in a manger!
Look more deeply into the mirror and meditate on his humility, or simply on his
poverty. Behold the many labors and sufferings he endured to redeem the human
race. Then, in the depths of this very mirror, ponder his unspeakable love
which caused him to suffer on the wood of the cross and to endure the most shameful
kind of death. The mirror himself, from his position on the cross, warned
passers-by to weigh carefully this act, as he said: “All of you who pass by
this way, behold and see if there is any sorrow like mine.” Let us answer his
cries and lamentations with one voice and one spirit: “I will be mindful and
remember, and my soul will be consumed within me.” – from a letter
to Blessed Agnes
of Prague by Saint Clare
of Assisi
MLA Citation
“Saint Clare of Assisi“. CatholicSaints.Info. 16
June 2024. Web. 3 June 2025. <https://catholicsaints.info/saint-clare-of-assisi/>
SOURCE : https://catholicsaints.info/saint-clare-of-assisi/
.jpg)
Michelangelo di Pietro (fl. 1489–1521), Madonna and Child with Saints Clare, John the Evangelist, John the Baptist, and Francis, tempera and oil on panel, with an arched top, 36 x 24
Dearest Sisters,
1. The 11th of August
1253 marked the end of the earthly pilgrimage of St Clare of Assisi, disciple
of St Francis and foundress of your Order, known as the Poor Sisters or Poor
Clares, that today counts, in its various branches, around 900 monasteries
scattered over the five continents. Seven hundred and fifty years from her
death, the commemoration of this great Saint continues to be keenly felt in the
hearts of the faithful; I am pleased on this occasion to send to your religious
Family a cordial thought and an affectionate greeting.
On such an important
jubilee commeration, St Clare urges all to understand in a much deeper way the
value of the vocation, which is a gift given from God, intended to bear fruit.
Concerning this, she wrote in her Testament: "Among the other gifts that
we have received and do daily receive from our benefactor, the Father of
mercies, and for which we must express the deepest thanks to the glorious
Father of Christ, there is our vocation, for which, all the more by the way of
its being more perfect and greater, do we owe the greatest thanks to Him.
Therefore, the Apostle [writes]: "Know your vocation'" (2-4).
2. Born in Assisi between
the years 1193-1194 of the noble family Di Favarone of Offreduccio, St Clare
received, especially from her mother Ortolana, a solid Christian education.
Illuminated by divine grace, she let herself be drawn to the new form of
evangelical life initiated by St Francis and his companions, and decided, in
her turn, to embark on a more radical following of Christ. She left her
father's house during the night between Palm Sunday and the Monday of Holy Week
of 1211 (or 1212), and following the advice of the Saint himself she went to
the small church of the Portiuncula, heart of the Franciscan experience, where
in front of the altar of the Blessed Virgin Mary she divested herself of all
her riches, to be reclothed in the poor habit of penance in the form of a
cross.
After a brief period of
searching, she came to rest in the small monastery of St Damian, where her
younger sister Agnes followed her soon after. Here other companions joined her,
desiring to incarnate the Gospel in a contemplative dimension. The
determination with which the new monastic community followed in the footprints
of Christ, considering poverty, hard work, tribulation, humility and contempt
of the world as great spiritual joys, moved St Francis to write to them with
fatherly affection: "Because by divine inspiration you have made
yourselves daughters and servants of the Most High King, the heavenly Father,
and have espoused yourselves to the Holy Spirit, choosing to live according to
the perfection of the holy Gospel, I resolve and promise for myself and for my
brothers to always have that same loving care and solicitude for you as [I
have] for them" (Form of Life of Clare of Assisi, Chapter VI, 3-4).
3. Clare put these words
in the central chapter of her Rule, regarding them not only as one of the
teachings received from the Saint, but as the fundamental nucleus of his
charism, which emerges in the Trinitarian and Marian context of the Gospel of
the Annunciation. In fact, St Francis placed the vocation of the Poor Sisters
in the aura of the Virgin Mary, the humble handmaid of the Lord who,
overshadowed by the Holy Spirit, became the Mother of God. The humble servant
of the Lord is the prototype of the Church, Virgin, Spouse and Mother.
Clare perceived her
vocation as a call to follow the example of Mary, who offered her own virginity
to the action of the Holy Spirit to become the Mother of Christ and of His
Mystical Body. She felt closely united to the Mother of the Lord and because of
this, urged St Agnes of Prague, the Bohemian princess who became a Poor Clare:
"May you cling to his most sweet Mother who gave birth to a Son whom the
heavens could not contain, and yet, she carried Him in the little enclosure of
her holy womb, and held him on her virginal lap" (Third Letter to Agnes of
Prague, 18-19).
The figure of Mary
accompanied the vocational walk of the Saint of Assisi until the end of her
life. According to a noteworthy testimony given at the Process of Canonization,
Our Lady approached Clare on her deathbed, bending over her, whose life was a
radiant image of Her own.
4. Only Clare's exclusive
option for Christ crucified, undertaken with ardent love, can explain the
determination with which she advanced along the way of "highest
poverty", an expression that contains in its meaning the experience of
renouncement the Son of God lived in the Incarnation.
With the specification
"highest", Clare desired to express in some way the humble abasement
of the Son of God, which filled her with wonder. She noted: "...so great
and good a Lord, then, on coming into the Virgin's womb, chose to appear
despised, needy and poor in this world, so that people, who were in utter
poverty, want and absolute need of heavenly nourishment, might become rich in
Him by possessing the kingdom of heaven" (First Letter to Agnes of
Prague, 19-20). She grasped this poverty in the entire earthly experience
of Jesus, from Bethlehem to Calvary, where the Lord "remained naked on the
cross" (Testament of St Clare, 45).
To follow the Son of God,
who became our path, meant for her no other desire than to be submerged with
Christ in the experience of a humility and of a radical poverty, involving
every aspect of the human experience, to the very stripping of the Cross. For
St Clare the choice of poverty was a requirement for Gospel fidelity, to the
extent that she resolved to ask the Pope for a "privilege of
poverty", that was a prerogative of the form of monastic life she began.
She inserted this "privilege", tenaciously defended throughout her
life, into the Rule that received the papal confirmation two days before her
death with the Bull Solet Annuere of 9 August 1253, 750 years ago.
5. Clare's gaze remained
fixed on the Son of God to the end, in ceaseless contemplation of his
mysteries. Hers was the loving gaze of the spouse, filled with the desire of an
evermore complete sharing. She was immersed particularly in the meditation of the
Passion, contemplating the mystery of Christ, who from the heights of the Cross
called her and drew her [to him]. Thus, she wrote: ""All you who pass
by the way, look and see if there is any suffering like my suffering!'. Let
us respond with one voice, with one spirit, to Him, crying and grieving, Who
said: Remembering you over and over makes my soul perish within
me" (Fourth Letter to Agnes of Prague, 25-26). And she urged:
"Let yourself be inflamed more strongly with the fervour of charity!...
And sigh... in the great desire of your heart... may you cry out: Draw me
after you... O Heavenly Spouse!" (Testament of St Clare of Assisi, 27,
29-32).
This full communion with
Christ's mystery introduced her into the experience of the indwelling of the
Trinity, wherein the soul matures in greater awareness of God's dwelling within
her: "Since the heavens and the rest of creation cannot contain their Creator
and only the faithful soul is His dwelling place and throne, and this only
through the charity that the wicked lack" (Third Letter to Agnes of
Prague, 22-23).
6. Guided by Clare, the
community gathered in St Damian chose to live according to the form of the holy
Gospel in the cloistered, contemplative dimension of "living together in
unity of mind and heart" in a special way (Form of Life of Clare of
Assisi, 1), according to a "manner of holy unity" (ibid., 2).
Clare's particular understanding of the value of unity in the fraternity seems
to be founded in a mature contemplative experience of the Trinitarian Mystery.
Authentic contemplation, in fact, does not close in on self, but fulfils the
truth of being one in the Father, in the Son, and in the Holy Spirit.
In her Rule, Clare not
only based the fraternal life on its values of reciprocal service, of
participation and of sharing, but made it her concern that the community would
be also firmly built on the "unity of mutual love and peace" (Chapter
IV, 22), and also that the Sisters would be "eager to conserve among
themselves the unity of mutual love which is the bond of perfection"
(Chapter X, 7).
Indeed, she was convinced
that reciprocal love edifies the community and gives rise to vocational
maturation, and she urged in her Testament: "Loving one another with the
charity of Christ, may the love you have in your hearts be shown outwardly in
your deeds so that, compelled by such an example, the Sisters may always grow
in love of God and in charity for one another" (59-60).
7. Clare also perceived
this value of unity in its broader dimension; and so, she willed that the
cloistered community be fully inserted into the Church and solidly anchored to
it with the bond of obedience and of filial subjection (cf. Form of
Life, Chapter I, XII). She clearly understood that the life of the
cloistered nuns was to be a model for the other Sisters called to follow the
same vocation, as well as a shining witness for those living in the world.
The 40 years lived inside
the small monastery of St Damian did not narrow the horizons of her heart, but
expanded her faith in the presence of God, working out salvation in history.
There are two episodes in which, with the strength of her faith in the
Eucharist and with the humility of prayer, Clare succeeded in freeing the city
of Assisi and the monastery from the danger of an imminent destruction.
8. How can we not
emphasize that 750 years since Pontifical approval, the Rule of St Clare
maintains intact its spiritual fascination and its theological richness? The
perfect consonance of human and Christian values, the wise harmony of
contemplative fervour and evangelical rigour makes it for you, dear Poor Clares
of the Third Millennium, a highway to follow, without compromises or concessions
to the spirit of the world.
To each of you Clare
directs the words that she left to Agnes of Prague: "Happy, indeed, is she
to whom it is given to share in this sacred banquet so that she might cling
with all her heart to Him whose beauty all the blessed hosts of heaven
unceasingly admire" (Fourth Letter to Agnes of Prague, 9).
The centennial
anniversary offers you the opportunity to reflect on your vocation's specific
charism as Poor Clares. A charism that is characterized, in the first
place, by a call to live according to the perfection of the Holy
Gospel, with a decided reference to Christ, the only and authentic
programme of life. Is this not a challenge for the men and women of today? It
is an alternative proposal to the dissatisfaction and superficiality of the
contemporary world, which often seems to have lost its very identity, because
it is no longer aware that it has been created by God's Love and is awaited by
him in eternal communion.
You, dear Clares,
fulfil in a spousal dimension the following of the Lord, renewing the
mystery of the fertile virginity of the Virgin Mary, Spouse of the Holy Spirit,
the perfect woman. May the presence of your monasteries entirely devoted to the
contemplative life be also today a "memory of the Church's spousal
love" (Verbi
Sponsa, 1), filled with the consuming desire of the Spirit that
incessantly implores the coming of Christ the Spouse (cf. Rev. 22: 17).
Given the need for a
renewed commitment to holiness, St Clare offers at the same time an example of
that teaching of holiness that, nourished by incessant prayer, leads
to becoming contemplatives of the Face of God, opening wide the heart to the
Spirit of the Lord, which transforms the whole person, mind, heart and action,
according to the exigencies of the Gospel.
9. My most heartfelt
wish, strengthened by prayer, is that your monasteries may continue to offer to
today's world, with its widespread need for spirituality and prayer, the
demanding proposal of a complete and authentic experience of God, One and
Triune, by radiating his loving and saving presence.
May Mary, the Virgin of
Listening, assist you. May St Clare and all the Saints and Blesseds of your
Order intercede for you.
I assure a cordial
remembrance for you, dear Sisters, for all who share together with you in the
grace of this meaningful jubilee, and to all I impart from the heart a special
Apostolic Blessing.
From the Vatican, 9
August 2003
JOHN PAUL II
Copyright © Dicastero per
la Comunicazione - Libreria Editrice Vaticana
Giovanni Battista Moroni (circa
1525–1578), Santa Chiara d'Assisi, 1548, 183 x 125, Tridentine
Diocesan Museum
BENEDICT XVI
GENERAL AUDIENCE
Saint Clare of Assisi
Dear Brothers and
Sisters,
One of the best loved
Saints is without a doubt St Clare of Assisi who lived in the 13th century and
was a contemporary of St Francis. Her testimony shows us how indebted the
Church is to courageous women, full of faith like her, who can give a crucial impetus
to the Church's renewal.
So who was Clare of
Assisi? To answer this question we possess reliable sources: not only the
ancient biographies, such as that of Tommaso da Celano, but also the Proceedings of
the cause of her canonization that the Pope promoted only a few month after
Clare's death and that contain the depositions of those who had lived a long
time with her.
Born in 1193, Clare
belonged to a wealthy, aristocratic family. She renounced her noble status and
wealth to live in humility and poverty, adopting the lifestyle that Francis of
Assisi recommended. Although her parents were planning a marriage for her with
some important figure, as was then the custom, Clare, with a daring act
inspired by her deep desire to follow Christ and her admiration for Francis, at
the age of 18 left her family home and, in the company of a friend, Bona di
Guelfuccio, made her way in secret to the Friars Minor at the little Church of
the Portiuncula. It was the evening of Palm Sunday in 1211. In the general commotion,
a highly symbolic act took place: while his companions lit torches, Francis cut
off Clare's hair and she put on a rough penitential habit. From that moment she
had become the virgin bride of Christ, humble and poor, and she consecrated
herself totally to him. Like Clare and her companions, down through history
innumerable women have been fascinated by love for Christ which, with the
beauty of his Divine Person, fills their hearts. And the entire Church, through
the mystical nuptial vocation of consecrated virgins, appears what she will be
for ever: the pure and beautiful Bride of Christ.
In one of the four
letters that Clare sent to St Agnes of Prague the daughter of the King of
Bohemia, who wished to follow in Christ's footsteps, she speaks of Christ, her
beloved Spouse, with nuptial words that may be surprising but are nevertheless
moving: "When you have loved [him] you shall be chaste; when you have
touched [him] you shall become purer; when you have accepted [him] you shall be
a virgin. Whose power is stronger, whose generosity is more elevated, whose
appearance more beautiful, whose love more tender, whose courtesy more
gracious. In whose embrace you are already caught up; who has adorned your
breast with precious stones... and placed on your head a golden crown as a sign
[to all] of your holiness" (First Letter to Blessed Agnes of Prague:
FF, 2862).
Especially at the
beginning of her religious experience, Francis of Assisi was not only a teacher
to Clare whose teachings she was to follow but also a brotherly friend. The
friendship between these two Saints is a very beautiful and important aspect.
Indeed, when two pure souls on fire with the same love for God meet, they find
in their friendship with each other a powerful incentive to advance on the path
of perfection. Friendship is one of the noblest and loftiest human sentiments
which divine Grace purifies and transfigures. Like St Francis and St Clare,
other Saints too experienced profound friendship on the journey towards
Christian perfection. Examples are St Francis de Sales and St Jane Frances de
Chantal. And St Francis de Sales himself wrote: "It is a blessed thing to
love on earth as we hope to love in Heaven, and to begin that friendship here
which is to endure for ever there. I am not now speaking of simple charity, a
love due to all mankind, but of that spiritual friendship which binds souls
together, leading them to share devotions and spiritual interests, so as to
have but one mind between them" (The Introduction to a Devout Life, III,
19).
After spending a period
of several months at other monastic communities, resisting the pressure of her
relatives who did not at first approve of her decision, Clare settled with her
first companions at the Church of San Damiano where the Friars Minor had
organized a small convent for them. She lived in this Monastery for more than
40 years, until her death in 1253. A first-hand description has come down to us
of how these women lived in those years at the beginning of the Franciscan
movement. It is the admiring account of Jacques de Vitry, a Flemish Bishop who
came to Italy on a visit. He declared that he had encountered a large number of
men and women of every social class who, having "left all things for
Christ, fled the world. They called themselves Friars Minor and Sisters Minor
[Lesser] and are held in high esteem by the Lord Pope and the Cardinals.... The
women live together in various homes not far from the city. They receive
nothing but live on the work of their own hands. And they are deeply troubled
and pained at being honoured more than they would like to be by both clerics
and lay people" (Letter of October 1216: FF, 2205, 2207).
Jacques de Vitry had
perceptively noticed a characteristic trait of Franciscan spirituality about
which Clare was deeply sensitive: the radicalism of poverty associated with
total trust in Divine Providence. For this reason, she acted with great
determination, obtaining from Pope Gregory IX or, probably, already from Pope
Innocent III, the so-called Privilegium Paupertatis (cf. FF., 3279).
On the basis of this privilege Clare and her companions at San Damiano could
not possess any material property. This was a truly extraordinary exception in
comparison with the canon law then in force but the ecclesiastical authorities
of that time permitted it, appreciating the fruits of evangelical holiness that
they recognized in the way of life of Clare and her sisters. This shows that
even in the centuries of the Middle Ages the role of women was not secondary
but on the contrary considerable. In this regard, it is useful to remember that
Clare was the first woman in the Church's history who composed a written Rule,
submitted for the Pope's approval, to ensure the preservation of Francis of
Assisi's charism in all the communities of women large numbers of which were
already springing up in her time that wished to draw inspiration from the
example of Francis and Clare.
In the Convent of San
Damiano, Clare practised heroically the virtues that should distinguish every
Christian: humility, a spirit of piety and penitence and charity. Although she
was the superior, she wanted to serve the sick sisters herself and joyfully
subjected herself to the most menial tasks. In fact, charity overcomes all
resistance and whoever loves, joyfully performs every sacrifice. Her faith in
the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist was so great that twice a miracle
happened. Simply by showing to them the Most Blessed Sacrament distanced the
Saracen mercenaries, who were on the point of attacking the convent of San
Damiano and pillaging the city of Assisi.
Such episodes, like other
miracles whose memory lives on, prompted Pope Alexander IV to canonize her in
1255, only two years after her death, outlining her eulogy in the Bull on the
Canonization of St Clare. In it we read: "How powerful was the
illumination of this light and how strong the brightness of this source of
light. Truly this light was kept hidden in the cloistered life; and outside
them shone with gleaming rays; Clare in fact lay hidden, but her life was
revealed to all. Clare was silent, but her fame was shouted out" (FF, 3284).
And this is exactly how it was, dear friends: those who change the world for
the better are holy, they transform it permanently, instilling in it the
energies that only love inspired by the Gospel can elicit. The Saints are
humanity's great benefactors!
St Clare's spirituality,
the synthesis of the holiness she proposed is summed up in the fourth letter
she wrote to St Agnes of Prague. St Clare used an image very widespread in the
Middle Ages that dates back to Patristic times: the mirror. And she invited her
friend in Prague to reflect herself in that mirror of the perfection of every
virtue which is the Lord himself. She wrote: "Happy, indeed, is the one permitted
to share in this sacred banquet so as to be joined with all the feelings of her
heart (to Christ) whose beauty all the blessed hosts of the Heavens unceasingly
admire, whose affection moves, whose contemplation invigorates, whose
generosity fills, whose sweetness replenishes, whose remembrance pleasantly
brings light, whose fragrance will revive the dead, and whose glorious vision
will bless all the citizens of the heavenly Jerusalem, because the vision of
him is the splendour of everlasting glory, the radiance of everlasting
light, and a mirror without tarnish. Look into this mirror every day, O
Queen, spouse of Jesus Christ, and continually examine your face in it, so that
in this way you may adorn yourself completely, inwardly and outwardly.... In
this mirror shine blessed poverty, holy humility, and charity beyond
words..." (Fourth Letter to Blessed Agnes of Prague, FF, 2901-2903).
Grateful to God who give
us Saints who speak to our hearts and offer us an example of Christian life to
imitate, I would like to end with the same words of Blessing that St Clare
composed for her Sisters and which the Poor Clares, who play a precious role in
the Church with their prayer and with their work, still preserve today with
great devotion. These are words in which the full tenderness of her spiritual
motherhood emerges: "I give you my blessing now while living, and after my
death, in as far as I may: nay, even more than I may, I call down on you all
the blessings that the Father of mercies has bestowed and continues to bestow
on his spiritual sons and daughters both in Heaven and on earth, and with which
a spiritual father and mother have blessed and will bless their spiritual sons
and daughters. Amen" (FF, 2856).
To special groups:
Dear Brothers and
Sisters,
I welcome to the
pilgrimage group from Iran, in the company of Archbishop Thomas Meram. My
cordial greeting also goes to the participants in the international symposium
of Benedictine Nuns and Sisters. I also greet those taking part in the biennial
meting of KPMG International. Upon all the English-speaking visitors present at
today's Audience, especially the pilgrim groups from England, Scotland, Sweden,
the United Arab Emirates, Australia and the United States of America, I invoke
God's abundant Blessings.
I would now like to greet
with special affection the young people, the sick and the newlyweds.
Today we are commemorating Our Lady of Sorrow, who stood with faith beneath the
Cross of her Son. Dear young people, do not be afraid to stand, like Mary,
beneath the Cross. The Lord will imbue in you the courage to overcome every
obstacle in your daily life. And you, dear sick people, may you find
in Mary comfort and support to learn from the Crucified Lord the saving value
of suffering. Dear newlyweds, in difficult moments may you turn with
trust to Our Lady of Sorrow who will help you to face them with her motherly
intercession.
* * *
APPEAL
I am following with
concern the events of the past few days in various regions of Southern Asia,
especially in India, in Pakistan and in Afghanistan. I pray for the victims and
I ask that respect for religious freedom and the logic of reconciliation and
peace be made to prevail over hatred and violence.
© Copyright 2010 -
Libreria Editrice Vaticana
SOURCE : http://www.vatican.va/content/benedict-xvi/en/audiences/2010/documents/hf_ben-xvi_aud_20100915.html
Maestro
di Luorinhã / Master of Lourinhã (fl. circa 1510–circa 1525),
SS. Chiara e Colette, circa 1520, National Museum of Ancient Art,
Lisbon
St. Clare of Assisi
Feastday: August 11
Patron: of eye disease, goldsmiths, laundry, television
Birth: 1194
Death: 1253
Canonized: Pope Alexander IV on September 26, 1255
St. Clare of Assisi was
born in Assisi on July 16, 1194, as Chiara Offreduccio, the beautiful eldest
daughter of Favorino Sciffi, Count of Sasso-Rosso and his wife Ortolana.
Tradition says her father was a wealthy representative of an ancient Roman
family and her mother was a very devout woman belonging to the noble family of
Fiumi.
As a young girl, Clare
dedicated herself to prayer. At 18-years-old, she heard St. Francis of Assisi
preach during a Lenten service in the church of San Giorgio and asked him to
help her live according to the Gospel. On Palm Sunday in 1212, Clare left her
father's home and went to the chapel of the Porziuncula to meet with Francis.
While there, Clare's hair was cut off and she was given a plain robe and veil
in exchange for her rich gown.
Clare joined the convent
of the Benedictine nuns of San Paulo, near Bastia, under Francis' orders. When
her father found her and attempted to force her back into his home, she refused
and professed that she would have no other husband than Jesus Christ. In order
to give her the greater solitude she desired, Francis sent Clare to Sant'
Angelo in Panzo, another Benedictine nuns monastery.
Clare's sister Catarina,
who took the name Agnes, joined her at this monastery. The two remained there
until a separate dwelling was built for them next to the church of San Damiano.
Overtime, other women
joined them, wanting to also be brides of Jesus and live with no money. They
became known as the "Poor Ladies of San Damiano." They all lived a
simple life of austerity, seclusion from the world, and poverty, according to a
Rule which Francis gave them as a Second Order. St. Clare and her sisters wore
no shoes, ate no meat, lived in a poor house, and kept silent most of the time.
Their lives consisted of manual labor and prayer. Yet, they were very happy,
because Our Lord was close to them all the time.
San Damiano became the
center of Clare's new order, which was then known as the "Order of Poor
Ladies of San Damiano." For a brief period of time, the order was directed
by St. Francis himself and by 1216, Clare became the abbess of San Damiano. Ten
years after Clare's death, the order became known as the Order of Saint Clare.
While serving as the
leader of her order, Clare defended them from the attempts of prelates to
impose a rule on them that more closely followed the Rule of Saint Benedict
than Francis. Clare was so devoted and dedicated to Francis that she was often
referred to as "alter Franciscus," or another Francis. She encouraged
and aided the man she saw as a spiritual father figure, and took care of him as
he grew old.
Following Francis' death,
Clare continued to promote her order, fighting off every attempt from each pope
trying to impose a rule on her order that would water down their "radical
commitment to corporate poverty."
In 1224, an army of rough
soldiers from Frederick II came to attack Assisi. Although very sick, Clare
went out to meet them with the Blessed Sacrament on her hands. She had the
Blessed Sacrament placed at the wall where the enemies could see it. Then on
her knees, she begged God to save the Sisters.
"O Lord, protect
these Sisters whom I cannot protect now," she prayed. A voice seemed to
answer: "I will keep them always in My care." In that moment, a
sudden fright struck the attackers and they fled as fast as they could without
harming anyone in Assisi.
St. Clare became sick and
suffered great pains for many years, but she expressed that no pain could
trouble her. So great was her joy in serving the Lord that she once exclaimed:
"They say that we are too poor, but can a heart which possesses the
infinite God be truly called poor?"
On August 9, 1253, Pope
Innocent IV declared Clare's rule would serve as the governing rule for Clare's
Order of Poor Ladies. Two days later, Clare died at 59-years-old. Her remains
were placed in the chapel of San Giorgio while the church dedicated to her
remains was being built. At Pope Innocent's request, the canonization process
for Clare began immediately, and two years later in 1255, Pope Alexander IV
canonized Clare as Saint Clare of Assisi.
The construction of the
Basilica of Saint Clare was finished in 1260, and on October 3, 1260 Clare's
remains were transferred there and buried beneath the high altar. Nearly 600
years later, her remains were transferred once again to a newly constructed
shrine in the crypt of the Basilica of Saint Clare. Her body is no longer
claimed to be incorrupt.
The Order of Poor Ladies
was officially changed to the Order of Saint Clare in 1263 by Pope Urban IV.
St. Clare was designated
as the patron saint of television in 1958 by Pope Pius XII, because when St.
Clare was very ill, she could not attend mass and was reportedly able to see
and hear it on the wall in her room.
She is also the patroness
of eye disease, goldsmiths, and laundry.
Clare is often pictured
carrying a monstrance or pyx, to commemorate the time she warded off the
soldiers at the gates of her convent with the Blessed Sacrament. St. Clare's
feast day is celebrated on August 11.
SOURCE : https://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=215
Abrazo
de Santa Teresa De Jesús, Santa Catalina de Siena y Santa Clara, Óleo sobre
lienzo 154 x 125 Convento de San José. Madres Carmelitas Descalzas. Medina de
Rioseco (https://bastonycamino.blogspot.com/2009/01/el-abrazo-ante-la-puerta-dorada.html)
St. Clare of Assisi
Clare was a beautiful
Italian noblewoman who became the Foundress of an order of nuns now called
“Poor Clares.” When she heard St. Francis of Assisi preach, her heart burned
with a great desire to imitate Francis and to live a poor humble life for
Jesus. So one evening, she ran away from home, and in a little chapel outside
Assisi, gave herself to God. St. Francis cut off her hair and gave her a rough
brown habit to wear, tied with a plain cord around her waist. Her parents tried
in every way to make her return home, but Clare would not.
Soon her sister, St.
Agnes joined her, as well as other young women who wanted to be brides of
Jesus, and live without any money. St. Clare and her sisters wore no shoes, ate
no meat, lived in a poor house, and kept silent most of the time. Yet they were
very happy, because Our Lord was close to them all the time. Once, He saved
them from a great danger in answer to St. Clare’s prayer. An army of rough
soldiers came to attack Assisi and they planned to raid the convent first.
Although very sick, St. Clare had herself carried to the wall and right there,
where the enemies could see it, she had the Blessed Sacrament placed. Then on
her knees, she begged God to save the Sisters.
“O Lord, protect these
Sisters whom I cannot protect now,” she prayed. A voice seemed to answer: “I
will keep them always in My care.” At the same time a sudden fright struck the
attackers and they fled as fast as they could. St. Clare was sick and suffered
great pains for many years, but she said that no pain could trouble her. So great
was her joy in serving the Lord that she once exclaimed: “They say that we are
too poor, but can a heart which possesses the infinite God be truly called
poor?” We should remember this miracle of the Blessed Sacrament when in Church.
Then we will pray with great Faith to Jesus in the Holy Eucharist: “Save me, O
Lord, from every evil – of soul and body.”
SOURCE : http://www.ucatholic.com/saints/saint-clare-of-assisi/
Isidoro Arredondo (1657–1702), Santa
Clara ahuyentando a los infieles con la Eucaristía, 1693, 250 x 180, Museo del Prado. Depositado en el Consejo de
Estado (Spanish Council of State)
St. Clare of Assisi
Cofoundress of the Order
of Poor Ladies, or Clares, and first Abbess of
San Damiano; born at Assisi,
16 July, 1194; died there 11 August, 1253.
She was the eldest
daughter of Favorino Scifi, Count of Sasso-Rosso, the wealthy representative
of an ancient Roman family,
who owned a large palace in Assisi and
a castle on the slope of Mount Subasio. Such at least is the traditional
account. Her mother, Bl. Ortolana, belonged to the noble family of
Fiumi and was conspicuous for her zeal and piety.
From her earliest years
Clare seems to have been endowed with the rarest virtues.
As a child she was most devoted to prayer and
to practices of mortification,
and as she passed into girlhood her distaste for the world and her yearning for
a more spiritual life increased. She was eighteen years of age when St.
Francis came to preach the Lenten course
in the church of
San Giorgio at Assisi.
The inspired words of the Poverello kindled
a flame in the heart of Clare; she sought him out secretly and begged him to
help her that she too might live "after the manner of the holy
Gospel". St.
Francis, who at once recognized in Clare one of those chosen souls destined
by God for
great things, and who also, doubtless, foresaw that many would follow her
example, promised to assist her. On Palm
Sunday Clare, arrayed in all her finery, attended high Mass at
the cathedral,
but when the others pressed forward to the altar-rail to
receive a branch
of palm, she remained in her place as if rapt
in a dream. All eyes were upon the young girl as the bishop descended
from the sanctuary and
placed the palm in
her hand. That was the last time the
world beheld Clare. On the night of the same day she secretly left her father's
house, by St.
Francis's advice and, accompanied by her aunt Bianca and another
companion, proceeded to the humble chapel of
the Porziuncula,
where St.
Francis and his disciples met
her with lights in
their hands. Clare then laid aside her rich dress, and St.
Francis, having cut off her hair,
clothed her in a rough tunic and a thick veil, and in this way the young
heroine vowed herself
to the service of Jesus
Christ. This was 20 March, 1212.
Clare was placed by St.
Francis provisionally with the Benedictine nuns of
San Paolo, near Bastia, but her father, who had expected her to make a
splendid marriage,
and who was furious at
her secret flight, on discovering her retreat, did his utmost to dissuade Clare
from her heroic proposals, and even tried to drag her home by force.
But Clare held her own with a firmness above her years, and Count Favorino was
finally obliged to leave her in peace. A few days later St.
Francis, in order to secure Clare the greater solitude she desired,
transferred her to Sant' Angelo in Panzo, another monastery of
the Benedictine nuns on
one of the flanks of Subasio. Here some sixteen days after her own flight,
Clare was joined by her younger sister Agnes,
whom she was instrumental in delivering from the persecution of
their infuriated relatives.
Clare and her sister remained with the nuns at
Sant' Angelo until they and the other fugitives from the world who had followed
them were established by St.
Francis in a rude dwelling adjoining the poor chapel of
San Damiano, situated outside the town which he had to a great extent rebuilt
with his own hands, and which he now obtained from the Benedictines as
a permanent abode for his spiritual daughters. Thus was founded the first
community of the Order of Poor Ladies, or of Poor
Clares, as this second order of St. Francis came to be called.
The history of the Poor
Clares will be dealt with in a separate article. Here it suffices to
note that we may distinguish, during the lifetime of St. Clare, three stages in
the complicated early history of the new order.
In the beginning St.
Clare and her companions had no written rule to follow beyond a very
short formula vitae given them by St.
Francis, and which may be found among his works. Some years later,
apparently in 1219, during St.
Francis's absence in the East, Cardinal
Ugolino, then protector of
the order, afterwards Gregory
IX, drew up a written rule for the Clares at
Monticelli, taking as a basis the Rule
of St. Benedict, retaining the fundamental points of the latter and adding
some special constitutions. This new rule, which, in effect if not in
intention, took away from the Clares the Franciscan character
of absolute poverty so
dear to the heart of St.
Francis and made them for all practical purposes a congregation
of Benedictines,
was approved by Honorius
III (Bull,
"Sacrosancta", 9 Dec., 1219). When Clare found that the new rule,
though strict enough in other respects, allowed the holding of property in
common, she courageously and
successfully resisted the innovations of Ugolino as
being entirely opposed to the intentions of St.
Francis. The latter had forbidden the Poor
Ladies, just as he had forbidden his friars to
possess any worldly
goods even in common. Owning nothing, they were to depend entirety
upon what the Friars
Minor could beg for them. This complete renunciation of all property was
however regarded by Ugolino as
unpractical for cloistered women.
When, therefore, in 1228, he came to Assisi for
the canonization of St.
Francis (having meanwhile ascended the pontifical
throne as Gregory
IX), he visited St. Clare at San Damiano and pressed her to so far deviate
from the practice of poverty which
had up to this time obtained
at San Damiano, as to accept some provision for the unforeseen wants of the
community. But Clare firmly refused. Gregory,
thinking that her refusal might be due to fear of violating the vow of
strict poverty she
had taken, offered to absolve her from it. "Holy Father, I crave for absolution from
my sins",
replied Clare, "but I desire not to be absolved from the obligation of
following Jesus
Christ".
The heroic unworldliness
of Clare filled the pope with
admiration, as his letters to
her, still extant, bear eloquent witness, and he so far gave way to her views
as to grant her on 17 September, 1228, the celebrated Privilegium
Paupertatis which some regard in the light of a corrective of the Rule of
1219. The original autograph copy of this unique "privilege"--the
first one of its kind ever sought for, or ever issued by the Holy
See--is preserved in the archive at
Santa Chiara in Assisi.
The text is as follows:
Gregory Bishop Servant
of the Servants of God. To our beloved daughters in Christ Clare
and the other handmaids of Christ dwelling
together at the Church of
San Damiano in the Diocese
of Assisi. Health and Apostolic
benediction. It is evident that the desire of consecrating yourselves
to God alone
has led you to abandon every wish for temporal things. Wherefore, after having
sold all your goods and
having distributed them among the poor,
you propose to have absolutely no possessions, in order to follow in all things
the example of Him Who became poor and
Who is the way, the truth,
and the life. Neither does the want of necessary things deter you from such a
proposal, for the left arm of your Celestial
Spouse is beneath your head to sustain the infirmity of your body,
which, according to the order of charity,
you have subjected to the law of
the spirit.
Finally, He who feeds the birds of the air and who gives the lilies of the
field their raiment and their nourishment, will not leave you in want of
clothing or of food until He shall come Himself to minister to you in eternity when,
namely, the right hand of His consolations shall embrace you in the plenitude
of the Beatific
Vision. Since, therefore, you have asked for it, we confirm by Apostolic
favour your resolution of the loftiest poverty and
by the authority of these present letters grant
that you may not be constrained by anyone to receive possessions. To no one,
therefore, be it allowed to infringe upon this page of our concession or to
oppose it with rash temerity. But if anyone shall presume to attempt this, be
it known to
him that he shall incur the wrath of Almighty
God and his Blessed
Apostles, Peter and Paul.
Given at Perugia on
the fifteenth of the Kalends of October in the second year of our
Pontificate."
That St. Clare may have
solicited a "privilege" similar
to the foregoing at an earlier date and obtained it vivâ voce, is not
improbable. Certain it
is that after the death of Gregory
IX Clare had once more to contend for the principle of absolute poverty prescribed
by St.
Francis, for Innocent
IV would fain have given the Clares a new and mitigated rule, and the
firmness with which she held to her way won over the pope.
Finally, two days before her death, Innocent,
no doubt at
the reiterated request of the dying abbess,
solemnly confirmed the definitive Rule of the Clares (Bull,
"Solet Annuere", 9 August, 1253), and thus secured to them the
precious treasure of poverty which
Clare, in imitation of St.
Francis, had taken for her portion from the beginning of her conversion.
The author of this latter rule, which is largely an adaptation mutatis
mutandis, of the rule which St.
Francis composed for the Friars
Minor in 1223, seems to have been Cardinal Rainaldo, Bishop of Ostia,
and protector of
the order, afterwards Alexander
IV, though it is most likely that St. Clare herself had a hand in its
compilation. Be this as it may, it can no longer be maintained that St.
Francis was in any sense the author of this formal Rule of the Clares;
he only gave to St. Clare and her companions at the outset of their religious
life the brief formula vivendi already mentioned.
St. Clare, who in 1215
had, much against her will been made superior at San Damiano by St.
Francis, continued to rule there as abbess until
her death, in 1253, nearly forty years later. There is no good reason to believe that
she ever once went beyond the boundaries of San Damiano during all that time.
It need not, therefore, be wondered at if so comparatively few details of St.
Clare's life in the cloister "hidden
with Christ in God",
have come down to us. We know that
she became a living copy of the poverty,
the humility,
and the mortification of St.
Francis; that she had a special devotion to the Holy
Eucharist, and that in order to increase her love for Christ crucified
she learned by heart the Office of the Passion composed by St.
Francis, and that during the time that
remained to her after her devotional
exercises she engaged in manual labour. Needless to add, that under
St. Clare's guidance the community of San Damiano became the sanctuary of
every virtue,
a very nursery of saints.
Clare had the consolation not only of seeing her younger sister Beatrix, her
mother Ortolana, and her faithful aunt Bianca follow Agnes into
the order, but also of witnessing the foundation of monasteries of Clares far
and wide throughout Europe.
It would be difficult, moreover, to estimate how much the silent influence of
the gentle abbess did
towards guiding the women of medieval Italy to
higher aims. In particular, Clare threw around poverty that
irresistible charm which only women can
communicate to religious or
civic heroism, and she became a most efficacious coadjutrix of St.
Francis in promoting that spirit of unworldliness which in the
counsels of God,
"was to bring about a restoration of discipline in
the Church and
of morals and
civilization in the peoples of Western Europe".
Not the least important part of Clare's work was the aid and encouragement she
gave St.
Francis. It was to her he turned when in doubt,
and it was she who urged him to continue his mission to the people at a time
when he thought his vocation lay
rather in a life of contemplation.
When in an attack of blindness and illness, St.
Francis came for the last time to visit San Damiano, Clare erected a
little wattle hut for him in an olive grove close to the monastery,
and it was here that he composed his glorious "Canticle
of the Sun". After St.
Francis's death the procession which
accompanied his remains from
the Porziuncula to
the town stopped on the way at San Damiano in order that Clare and her
daughters might venerate the pierced
hands and feet of him who had formed them to the love of Christ crucified--a
pathetic scene which Giotto has
commemorated in one of his loveliest frescoes. So far, however, as Clare was
concerned, St.
Francis was always living, and nothing is, perhaps, more striking in
her after-life than her unswerving loyalty to the ideals of the Poverello,
and the jealous care with which she clung to his rule and teaching.
When, in 1234, the army
of Frederick
II was devastating the valley of Spoleto,
the soldiers, preparatory to an assault upon Assisi,
scaled the walls of San Damiano by night, spreading terror among the community.
Clare, calmly rising from her sick bed, and taking the ciborium from
the little chapel adjoining
her cell, proceeded to face the invaders at an open window against
which they had already placed a ladder. It is related that, as she raised
the Blessed
Sacrament on high, the soldiers who were about to enter the monastery fell
backward as if dazzled, and the others who were ready to follow them took
flight. It is with reference to this incident that St. Clare is generally
represented in art bearing
a ciborium.
When, some time later, a
larger force returned to storm Assisi,
headed by the General Vitale di Aversa who had not been present at the first
attack, Clare, gathering her daughters about her, knelt with them in
earnest prayer that
the town might be spared. Presently a furious storm arose, scattering the tents
of the soldiers in every direction, and causing such a panic that they again
took refuge in flight. The gratitude of the Assisians,
who with one accord attributed their deliverance to Clare's intercession,
increased their love for
the "Seraphic Mother". Clare had long been enshrined in the hearts of
the people, and their veneration became
more apparent as, wasted by illness and austerities, she drew towards her
end. Brave and
cheerful to the last, in spite of her long and painful infirmities, Clare
caused herself to be raised in bed and, thus reclining, says her contemporary
biographer "she spun the finest thread for the purpose of having it woven
into the most delicate material from which she afterwards made more than one
hundred corporals,
and, enclosing them in a silken burse,
ordered them to be given to the churches in
the plain and on the mountains of Assisi".
When at length she felt the day of her death approaching, Clare, calling her
sorrowing religious around
her, reminded them of the many benefits they had received from God and
exhorted them to persevere faithfully in the observance of evangelical
poverty. Pope
Innocent IV came from Perugia to
visit the dying saint,
who had already received the last sacraments from
the hands of Cardinal Rainaldo. Her own sister, St.
Agnes, had returned from Florence to
console Clare in her last illness; Leo,
Angelo, and Juniper, three of the early companions of St.
Francis, were also present at the saint's death-bed,
and at St. Clare's request read aloud the Passion
of Our Lord according to St.
John, even as they had done twenty-seven years before, when Francis lay
dying at the Porziuncula.
At length before dawn on 11 August, 1253, the holy foundress
of the Poor
Ladies passed peacefully away amid scenes which her contemporary
biographer has recorded with touching simplicity. The pope,
with his court, came to San Damiano for the saint's funeral,
which partook rather of the nature of a triumphal procession.
The Clares desired to
retain the body of
their foundress among them at San Damiano, but the magistrates of Assisi interfered
and took measures to secure for the town the venerated remains of
her whose prayers,
as they all believed,
had on two occasions saved it from destruction. Clare's miracles too
were talked of far and wide. It was not safe, the Assisians urged,
to leave Clare's body in
a lonely spot without the walls; it was only right, too, that Clare, "the
chief rival of the Blessed
Francis in the observance of Gospel
perfection", should also have a church in Assisi built
in her honour.
Meanwhile, Clare's remains were
placed in the chapel of
San Giorgio, where St.
Francis's preaching had first touched her young heart, and where his
own body had
likewise been interred pending
the erection of the Basilica of
San Francesco. Two years later, 26 September, 1255, Clare was solemnly canonized by Alexander
IV, and not long afterwards the building of the church of
Santa Chiara, in honour of Assisi's second
great saint,
was begun under the direction of Filippo Campello, one of the foremost architects of
the time. On 3 October, 1260, Clare's remains were
transferred from the chapel of
San Giorgio and buried deep
down in the earth, under the high
altar in the new church,
far out of sight and reach. After having remained hidden for six
centuries--like the remains of St.
Francis--and after much search had been made, Clare's tomb was
found in 1850, to the great joy of
the Assisians.
On 23 September in that year the coffin was unearthed and opened, the flesh and
clothing of the saint had
been reduced to dust, but the skeleton was in a perfect state of preservation.
Finally, on the 29th of September, 1872, the saint's bones were
transferred, with much pomp, by Archbishop Pecci, afterwards Leo
XIII, to the shrine, in the crypt at
Santa Chiara, erected to receive them, and where they may now be seen.
The feast of
St. Clare is celebrated throughout the Church on
12 August later changed to 11 August — Ed.; the feast of
her first translation is kept in the order on 3 October, and that of the
finding of her body on
23 September.
Sources
The sources of the
history of St. Clare at our disposal are few in number. They include (1)
a Testament attributed to the saint and some charming Letters written
by her to Blessed Agnes, Princess of Bohemia; (2) the Rule of the Clares,
and a certain number of early Pontifical Bulls relating to the Order; (3)
a contemporary Biography, written in 1256 by order of Alexander IV. This
life, which is now generally ascribed to Thomas of Celano, is the source from
which St. Clare's subsequent biographers have derived most of their
information.
Robinson, Paschal.
"St. Clare of Assisi." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 4. New York:
Robert Appleton Company, 1908. 11 Aug. 2015
<http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/04004a.htm>.
Transcription. This
article was transcribed for New Advent by Rick McCarty.
Ecclesiastical
approbation. Nihil Obstat. Remy Lafort, Censor. Imprimatur. +John
M. Farley, Archbishop of New York.
Copyright © 2020 by Kevin
Knight. Dedicated to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.
SOURCE : http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/04004a.htm
Gerard Seghers (1591–1651), St. Clare and
St. Francis of Assisi in adoration before the Child Jesus, 89.5 x 117
From her authentic life,
written soon after her death, by order of Pope Alexander IV. who had pronounced
her funeral panegyric whilst Cardinal of Ostia, and who canonized her two years
after. See also the Annals of the Franciscan Order, compiled by the learned F.
Luke Wadding; her life published in English; F. Sbarala, &c.
A.D. 1253.
ST. CLARE was daughter to
Phavorino Sciffo, a noble knight who had distinguished himself in the wars, and
his virtuous spouse called Hortulana. These illustrious personages, who held
the first rank at Assisium for their birth and riches, were still more eminent
for their extraordinary piety. They had three daughters, Clare, Agnes, and
Beatrice. 1 St.
Clare was born in 1193 at Assisium, a city in Italy, built on a stony mountain
called Assi. From her infancy she was extremely charitable and devout. It was
her custom to count her task of Paters and Aves by a certain number of little
stones in her lap, in imitation of some ancient anchorets in the East. 2 Her
parents began to talk to her very early of marriage, which gave her great
affliction; for it was her most ardent desire to have no other spouse but Jesus
Christ. Hearing the great reputation of St. Francis, who set an example of
perfection to the whole city, she found means to be conducted to him by a pious
matron, and begged his instruction and advice. He spoke to her on the contempt
of the world, the shortness of life, and the love of God and heavenly things in
such a manner as warmed her tender breast; and, upon the spot, she formed a
resolution of renouncing the world. St. Francis appointed Palm-Sunday for the
day on which she should come to him. On that day Clare, dressed in her most
sumptuous apparel, went with her mother and family to the divine office; but
when all the rest went up to the altar to receive a palm-branch, bashfulness
and modesty kept her in her place; which the bishop seeing, he went from the
altar down to her and gave her the palm. She attended the procession; but, the
evening following it, being the 18th of March, 1212, she made her escape from
home, accompanied with another devout young woman, and went a mile out of the
town to the Portiuncula, where St. Francis lived with his little community. He
and his religious brethren met her at the door of their church of Our Lady with
lighted tapers in their hands, singing the hymn Veni Creator Spiritus. Before
the altar of the Blessed Virgin she put off her fine clothes, and St. Francis
cut off her hair, and gave her his penitential habit, which was no other than a
piece of sackcloth, tied about her with a cord. The holy father not having yet
any nunnery of his own, placed her for the present in the Benedictin nunnery of
St. Paul, where she was affectionately received, being then eighteen years of
age. The Poor Clares date from this epoch the foundation of their Order.
No sooner was this action
of the holy virgin made public, but the world conspired unanimously to condemn
it, and her friends and relations came in a body to draw her out of her
retreat. Clare resisted their violence, and held the altar so fast as to pull
the holy cloths half off it when they endeavoured to drag her away; and,
uncovering her head to show her hair cut, she said that Christ had called her
to his service, and that she would have no other spouse of her soul; and that
the more they should continue to persecute her, the more God would strengthen
her to resist and overcome them. They reproached her that by embracing so poor
and mean a life she disgraced her family; but she bore their insults, and God
triumphed in her. St. Francis soon after removed her to another nunnery, that
of St. Angelo of Panso, near Assisium, which was also of St. Bennet’s Order.
There her sister Agnes joined in her undertaking; which drew on them both a
fresh persecution, and twelve men abused Agnes both with words and blows, and
dragged her on the ground to the door, whilst she cried out, “Help me, sister;
permit me not to be separated from our Lord Jesus Christ, and your loving
company.” Her constancy proved at last victorious, and St. Francis gave her
also the habit, though she was only eighteen years of age. He placed them in a
new mean house contiguous to the church of St. Damian, situated on the skirts
of the city Assisium, and appointed Clare the superior. She was soon after
joined by her mother, Hortulana, and several ladies of her kindred and others
to the number of sixteen, among whom three were of the illustrious family of
the Ubaldini in Florence. Many noble princesses held for truer greatness the
sackcloth and poverty of St. Clare than the estates, delights, and riches which
they possessed, seeing they left them all to become humble disciples of so holy
and admirable a mistress. St. Clare founded, within a few years, monasteries at
Perugia, Arezzo, Padua, that of SS. Cosmas and Damian in Rome; at Venice, Mantua,
Bologna, Spoletto, Milan, Sienna, Pisa, &c.; also in many principal towns
in Germany. Agnes, daughter to the King of Bohemia, founded a nunnery of her
Order in Prague, in which herself took the habit.
St. Clare and her
community practised austerities, which, till then, had scarcely ever been known
among the tender sex. They wore neither stockings, shoes, sandals, nor any
other covering on their feet; they lay on the ground, observed a perpetual
abstinence, and never spoke but when they were obliged to it by the
indispensable duties of necessity and charity. The foundress in her rule
extremely recommends this holy silence as the means to retrench innumerable
sins of the tongue, and to preserve the mind always recollected in God, and
free from the dissipation of the world, which, without this guard, penetrates
the walls of cloisters. Not content with the four
Lents, and the other
general mortifications of her rule, she always wore next her skin a rough shift
of horse hair or of hog’s bristles cut short; she fasted church vigils and all
Lent on bread and water; and from the 11th of November to Christmas-day, and
during these times on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays ate nothing at all. She
sometimes strewed the ground on which she lay with twigs, having a block for
her bolster. Her disciplines, watchings, and other austerities were incredible,
especially in a person of so tender a constitution. Being reduced to great
weakness and to a very sickly state of health, St. Francis and the Bishop of
Assisium obliged her to lie upon a little chaff, and never pass one day without
taking at least some bread for nourishment. Under her greatest corporal
austerities her countenance was always mild and cheerful, demonstrating that
true love makes penance sweet and easy. Her esteem of holy poverty was most
admirable. She looked upon it as the retrenchment of the most dangerous objects
of the passions and self-love, and as the great school of patience and
mortification, by the perpetual inconveniences and sufferings which it lays
persons under, and which the spirit of Christ crucified teaches us to bear with
patience and joy. It carries along with it the perfect disengagement of the
heart from the world, in which the essence of true devotion consists. The saint
considered in what degree Christ, having for our sakes relinquished the riches
of his glory, practised holy poverty, in his birth, without house or other
temporal conveniency; and during his holy ministry, without a place to lay his
head in, and living on voluntary contributions; but, above all, his poverty,
nakedness, and humiliation on the cross and at his sacred death were deeply
imprinted on her mind, and she ardently sought to bear for his sake some
resemblance of that state which he had assumed for us to apply a proper remedy
to our spiritual wounds, and heal the corruption of our nature.
St. Francis instituted
that his Order should never possess any rents even in common, subsisting on
daily contributions. St. Clare possessed this spirit in such perfection, that
when her large fortune fell to her, by the death of her father, after her
profession, she gave the whole to the poor without reserving one single
farthing for the monastery. Pope Gregory IX. desired to mitigate this part of
her rule, and offered to settle a yearly revenue on her monastery of St.
Damian’s; but she in the most pressing manner persuaded him by many reasons, in
which her love of evangelical poverty made her eloquent, to leave her Order in
its first rigorous establishment. Whilst others asked riches, Clare presented
again her most humble request to Pope Innocent IV. that he would confirm to her
Order the singular privilege of holy poverty, which he did, in 1251, by a bull
written with his own hand, which he watered at the same time with tears of
devotion. 3 So
dear was poverty to St. Clare, chiefly for her great love of humility. Though
superior, she would never allow herself any privilege or distinction. It was
her highest ambition to be the servant of servants, always beneath all, washing
the feet of the lay-sisters and kissing them when they returned from begging, serving
at table, attending the sick, and removing the most loathsome filth. When she
prayed for the sick she sent them to her other sisters, that their miraculous
recovery might not be imputed to her prayers or merits. She was so true a
daughter of obedience, that she had always, as it were, wings to fly wherever
St. Francis directed her, and was always ready to execute anything, or to put
her shoulders under any burden that was enjoined her; she was so crucified to
her own will, as to seem entirely divested of it. This she expressed to her
holy father as follows: “Dispose of me as you please; I am yours by having
consecrated my will to God. It is no longer my own.”
Prayer was her spiritual
comfort and strength, and she seemed scarcely ever to interrupt that holy
exercise. She often prostrated herself on the ground, kissed it, and watered it
with many tears. Whilst her sisters took their rest she watched long in prayer,
and was always the first that rose, rung the bell in the choir, and lighted the
candles. She came from prayer with her face so bright and inflamed (like that
of Moses descending from conversing with God) that it often dazzled the eyes of
those who beheld her; and every one perceived by her words that she came from
her devotions; for she spoke with such a spirit and fervour as enkindled a
flame in all who but heard her voice, and diffused into their souls a great
esteem of heavenly things. She communicated very often, and had a wonderful
devotion towards the blessed sacrament. Even when she was sick in bed, she spun
with her own hands fine linen for corporals, and for the service of the altar,
which she distributed through all the churches of Assisium. In prayer she was
often so absorpt in divine love as to forget herself and her corporal necessities.
She on many occasions experienced the all-powerful force and efficacy of her
holy prayer. A remarkable instance is mentioned in her life: The impious
Emperor Frederic II. cruelly ravaged the valley of Spoletto, because it was the
patrimony of the holy see. He had in his army many Saracens and other barbarous
infidels, and left in that country a colony of twenty thousand of these enemies
of the church in a place still called Noura des Moros. These banditti came once
in a great body to plunder Assisium, and as St. Damian’s convent stood without
the walls, they first assaulted it. Whilst they were busy in scaling the walls,
St. Clare, though very sick, caused herself to be carried and seated at the
gate of the monastery, and the blessed sacrament to be placed there in a pix in
the very sight of the enemies, and, prostrating herself before it, prayed with
many tears, saying to her beloved spouse: “Is it possible, my God, that thou
shouldst have here assembled these thy servants, and nurtured them up in thy holy
love, that they should now fall into the power of these infidel Moors? Preserve
them, O my God, and me in their holy company.” At the end of her prayer she
seemed to hear a sweet voice, which said: “I will always protect you.” A sudden
terror, at the same time, seized the assailants, and they all fled with such
precipitation, that several were hurt without being wounded by any enemy.
Another time, Vitalis Aversa, a great general of the same emperor, a cruel and
proud man, laid siege to Assisium for many days. St. Clare said to her nuns,
that they who had received corporal necessaries from that city, owed to it all
assistance in their power in its extreme necessity. She therefore bid them
cover their heads with ashes, and in this most suppliant posture beg of Christ
the deliverance of the town. They continued pressing their request with many
tears a whole day and night till powerful succours arriving, the besiegers
silently raised the siege, and retired without noise, and their general was
soon after slain.
St. Francis was affected
with the most singular and tender devotion towards the mysteries of Christ’s
nativity and sacred passion. He used to assemble incredible numbers of the
people to pass the whole Christmas night in the church in fervent prayer; and,
at midnight, once preached with such fervour and tenderness, that he was not
able to pronounce the name Jesus, but called him the little child of Bethlehem;
and, in repeating these words, always melted away with tender love. St. Clare
inherited this same devotion and tenderness to this holy mystery, and received
many special favours from God in her prayers on that festival. As to the
passion of Christ, St. Francis called it his perpetual book, and said he never
desired to open any other but the history of it in the gospels, though he were
to live to the world’s end. The like were the sentiments of St. Clare towards
it; nor could she call to mind this adorable mystery without streams of tears,
and the warmest emotions of tender love. In sickness particularly it was her
constant entertainment. She was afflicted with continual diseases and pains for
eight-and-twenty years, yet was always joyful, allowing herself no other
indulgence than a little straw to lie on. Reginald, cardinal of Ostia,
afterwards Pope Alexander IV., both visited her and wrote to her in the most
humble manner. Pope Innocent IV. paid her a visit a little before her death,
going from Perugia to Assisium on purpose, and conferring with her a long time
on spiritual matters with wonderful comfort.
St. Clare bore her
sickness and great pains without so much as speaking of them, and when brother
Reginald exhorted her to patience, she said: “How much am I obliged to my sweet
Redeemer; for since, by means of his servant Francis, I have tasted the bitterness
of his holy passion, I have never in my whole life found any pain or sickness
that could afflict me. There is nothing insupportable to a heart that loveth
God, and to him that loveth not every thing is insupportable.” Agnes, seeing
her dear sister and spiritual mother draw near her end, besought her with great
affection and many tears that she would take her along with her, and not leave
her here on earth, seeing they had been such faithful companions, and so united
in the same spirit and desire of serving our Lord. The holy virgin comforted
her, telling her it was the will of God she should not at present go along with
her; but bade her be assured she should shortly come to her, and so it
happened. St. Clare seeing all her spiritual children weep, comforted them, and
tenderly exhorted them to be constant lovers and faithful observers of holy
poverty, and gave them her blessing, calling herself the little plant of her
holy father St. Francis. The passion of Christ, at her request, was read to her
in her agony, and she sweetly expired, amidst the prayers and tears of her
community, on the 11th of August, 1253, in the forty-second year after her
religious profession, and the sixtieth of her age. She was buried on the day
following, on which the church keeps her festival. Pope Innocent IV. came again
from Perugia, and assisted in person with the sacred college at her funeral.
Alexander IV. canonized her at Anagnia in 1255. Her body was first buried at
St. Damian’s; but the pope ordered a new monastery to be built for her nuns at
the church of St. George within the walls, which was finished in 1260, when her
relics were translated thither with great pomp. A new church was built here
afterwards, which bears her name, in which, in 1265, Pope Clement V. consecrated
the high altar under her name, and her body lies under it. The body of St.
Francis had lain in this church of St. George four years, when, in 1230, it was
removed to that erected in his honour, in which it still remains. Camden
remarks that the family name Sinclair among us is derived from St. Clare.
The example of this
tender virgin, who renounced all the softness, superfluity, and vanity of her
education, and engaged and persevered in a life of so much severity, is a
reproach of our sloth and sensuality. Such extraordinary rigours are not
required of us; but a constant practice of self-denial is indispensably
enjoined us by the sacred rule of the gospel, which we all have most solemnly
professed. Our backwardness in complying with this duty is owing to our
lukewarmness, which creates in every thing imaginary difficulties, and
magnifies shadows. St. Clare, notwithstanding her continual extraordinary
austerities, the grievous persecutions she had suffered, and the pains of a
sharp and tedious distemper with which she was afflicted, was surprised when
she lay on her death-bed, to hear any one speak of her patience, saying, that
from the time she had first given her heart to God, she had never met with any
thing to suffer, or to exercise her patience. This was the effect of her ardent
charity. Let none embrace her holy institute without a fervour which inspires a
cheerful eagerness to comply in the most perfect manner with all its rules and
exercises; and without seriously studying to obtain, and daily improve, in
their souls, her eminent spirit of poverty, humility, obedience, love of
silence, mortification, recollection, prayer, and divine love. In this consists
their sanctification—in this they will find all present and future blessings
and happiness.
Note 1. Hortulana
met with a sensible affliction in the loss of her husband; but, upon that
occasion, raising her heart to God, she said courageously: “Sovereign Lord, my
affections for my husband carried me to an excess, and was a hinderance to the
perfect reign of thy love in my heart. Therefore hast thou been pleased to
deprive me of so great a comfort and support: may thy name be for ever praised.
I am thine, and to thy service I consecrate my soul and affections, with all I
possess.” This heroic sacrifice of herself, which drew its merit from the
perfect dispositions with which it was made, was accepted by God, and deserved
to be recompensed by greater graces. In like manner St. Jerom relates of St.
Melania, that, having lost her husband and two children the same day, casting
herself at the foot of the cross, she said: “I see, my God, that thou requirest
of me my whole heart and love, which was too much fixed on my husband and
children. I most willingly resign it all to thee.” Hortulana placed her
youngest daughter Beatrice with Monaldo, her husband’s brother, and put her
fortune into his hands, her two eldest having already forsaken the world; and
having distributed the remainder of her estate among the poor, took the veil at
St. Damian’s from the hands of St. Francis; and, though advanced in years, went
through the meanest offices of the novitiate, made her profession, and
courageously bore the most austere fasts, watching, disciplines, and other
mortifications in her tender body. In these fervent exercises she persevered to
her death, and was buried at St. Damian’s; but her body was afterwards
translated to the church of St. George, where it lies in the same tomb with her
two daughters, St. Clare and St. Agnes. [back]
Note 2. Paul of
Sceté counted the tribute of his prayers which he repeated three hundred and
sixty-six times a day, by pebble stones. Hist. Lausiac. c. 23. [back]
Note 3. Urban IV.
allowed a dispensation to many houses of this Order to possess rents; these are
called Urbanists; the others Poor Clares. Besides these the Capucinesses, the
Annunciades, the Conceptionists, the Cordeliers or Grey-sisters, the
Recollects, and the most austere Reformation of the Ave-Maria in Paris, are
branches of the rule of St. Clare; but most add certain particular
constitutions. Of all these together there are said to be above four thousand
convents. The third Order of St. Francis differs from the others, and is a
milder institute, established by that saint in favour of certain devout ladies,
who were not disposed to embrace so great austerities, or were not able
entirely to forsake the world. This admits married persons, both men and women,
who enroll themselves under the standard of penance, according to a certain
form of living which this saint prescribed for persons settled in the world.
See on its institution Wadding’s Annals of the Franciscans on the year 1221.
Several persons of this third Order make the essential vows of religious, and
live in communities. [back]
Rev. Alban Butler (1711–73). Volume
VIII: August. The Lives of the Saints. 1866.
SOURCE : http://www.bartleby.com/210/8/121.html
Battistello Caracciolo (–1635), Madonna
delle Anime Purganti tra i SS. Francesco e Chiara, / Madonna of the Purification of the Soul with
Saints Francis and Clare, 1625 ca., da S. Chiara a Nola, Galleria Napoletana Museo di Capodimonte / Palace of Capodimonte, Naples
Weninger’s
Lives of the Saints – Saint Clare, Virgin and Abbess
Article
Saint Clare, foundress of
the Order which bears her name, was born of rich and pious parents, at Assisi,
in the district of Umbria, in Italy. She received the name of Clare, which
means clear or bright, for the following reason. While her mother Hortulana,
was kneeling before a crucifix, praying that God might aid her in her hour of
delivery, she heard the words: “Do not fear. You will give birth to a light
which shall illumine the whole world.” From her earliest childhood, prayer was
Clare s only delight. She gave to the poor all the presents which she received
from her parents. She despised all costly garments, all worldly pleasures.
Beneath the fine clothes she was obliged to wear, she wore a rough hair-girdle.
She par- took of so little food, that it seemed as if she wished to observe a
continual fast. During this same period lived Saint Francis, surnamed “the
Seraphic,” on account of his great virtues. Clare frequently went to him and
confided to him her desire to renounce the world and to consecrate her
virginity to God, and to lead a perfect life in the most abject poverty. Saint
Francis who saw, that besides other gifts and graces, she was filled with the
most ardent love of God, possessing great innocence of heart and despising the
world, strengthened her in her holy desire, while at the same time he tested
her constancy. Being sufficiently convinced that her desires were inspired by
Heaven, he advised Clare to leave her home, which she did on Palm Sunday, going
to the church of the Portiuncula, where she had her hair cut off, as a sign
that she would enter a religious life. She divested herself of all feminine
ornaments, and attired in a penitential garb, tied around her with a cord, she
was placed by Saint Francis in a vacant Benedictine convent. She was at that
time just eighteen years of age. When her parents heard of what she had done,
they hastened to the Convent, to take Clare heme, declaring that this choice of
a state of life was only a childish whim, or that she had been persuaded to it
by others. Clare, however, after opposing their arguments, fled into the
church, and clinging to the altar with one hand, with the other she bared her
head shorn of its hair, exclaiming; “Know all, that I desire no other
bridegroom than Jesus Christ. Understanding well what I was doing, I chose Him
and I will never leave Him.” Astonished at this answer, all returned home,
admiring her virtue and piety. Clare thanked God for this victory and was, on
account of it, all the more strengthened in her resolution. She had a sister
younger than herself, named Agnes. A few’ days later she, too, fled from her
parents’ roof and going to Clare, wished to be invested in the same habit and
to serve Gcd in the same manner. Saint Clare received her joyfully, but as all
her relatives were provoked beyond measure that she, tco, had entered a
Convent, twelve of them went and forcibly tore her from her sister’s arms.
Clare took refuge in prayer, and as if inspired by the Almighty, ran after her
sister, loudly calling her by name. God assisted her by a miracle. Agnes
suddenly became immovable, as if rooted to the ground, and no one possessed
strength enough to drag her from where she stood. Recognizing in this the
powerful hand of God, they opposed her no longer, but allowed her to return to
the Convent. Meanwhile, Saint Francis had rebuilt the old church of Saint
Damian and had bought the neighboring house. Into this house he placed his
first two religious daughters, Clare and Agnes, who were speedily joined by
others, desirous of conforming themselves to the rule of life which Saint Francis
had given to Clare. This was the beginning of the Order of Poor Clares, which
has since given to the world so many shining examples of virtue and holiness,
to the salvation of many thousands of souls. Saint Clare was appointed abbess
by Saint Francis, and filled the office for forty-two years with wonderful
wisdom and holiness. Her mother also, together with her youngest daughter, took
the habit and submitted to the government of Saint Clare. The holy abbess
enjoined on her order the most severe poverty, and when the Pope himself
offered her some property as an endowment, she humbly but earnestly refused to
accept it. She was, to all in her charge, a bright example of poverty. In
austerity towards herself she was more to be admired than imitated. The floor
or a bundle of straw was her bed; a piece of wood, her pillow. Twice during the
year she kept a forty days’ fast on bread and water. Besides this, three days
of the week, she tasted no food, and so little on the others, that it is
marvellous that she could sustain life with it. The greater part of the night
she spent in prayer, and her desire for mortification was so great, that Saint
Francis compelled her to moderate her austerities. She nursed the sick with the
greatest pleasure, as in this work of charity, she found almost constant
opportunity to mortify and overcome herself. Besides all her other virtues, she
was especially remarkable for her devotion to the Blessed Sacrament. She
sometimes remained whole hours immovable before the Tabernacle, and was often
seen in ecstacy, so great was her love for the Saviour it concealed. She sought
her comfort in Him alone in all her trials, amidst all her persecutions; and
how great were the graces she thereby received, the following event will
sufficiently illustrate.
The Saracens besieged
Assisi and made preparations to scale the walls of the Convent. Saint Clare,
who was sick at the time, had herself carried to the gates of the convent,
where, with the Ciborium, containing the Blessed Sacrament, in her hands, prostrating
herself in company with all her religious, she cried aloud: “O Lord, do not
give into the hands of the infidels the souls of those who acknowledge and
praise Thee. Protect and preserve Thy handmaidens whom Thou hast redeemed with
Thy precious blood.” A voice was distinctly heard, saying: “I will protect you
always.” The result proved that this was the voice of heaven. The Saracens,
seized with a sudden fear, betook themselves to flight, those who had already
scaled the walls, became blind, and flung themselves down. Thus were Saint
Clare and her religious protected and the whole city preserved from utter
devastation, by the piety and devotion of the Saint to the Blessed Sacrament.
We must omit many
miracles which God wrought through His faithful servant, in order to relate her
happy end. She had reached the age of sixty years, during twenty-eight of which
she had suffered from various painful maladies, though she had not been
confined to her bed, or rather, her bundle of straw. Her patience while
suffering was remarkable, and she was never heard to complain of the severity
or the duration of her sickness. The contemplation of the Passion of Christ
made her own pains easy and even pleasing to her. “How short,” said she one
day, “seems the night to me, which I pass in the contemplation of the Lord’s
suffering!” At another time, she exclaimed: “How can man complain when he
beholds Christ hanging upon the cross and covered with blood!” Having suffered
so long and with such noble resignation, she saw at last, that her end was
near. She received the Blessed Sacrament, and then exhorted all her daughters
not to relax in their zeal to live in poverty and holiness. When her confessor
conversed with her on the merits of patience, she said: “As long as I have had
the grace to serve God in the religious state, no care, no penance, no sickness
has seemed hard to me. Oh, how comforting it is to suffer for the love of
Christ!” The hour of her death drew near, and she saw a great many white-robed
virgins come to meet her, among whom was one who surpassed all the rest in
beauty. She followed them and they led her to see the Almighty face to face.
Several who had read in the depths of her heart, said that she died more from
the fervor of her love for God than from the effects of her sickness. Her holy
death took place in 1253. The great number of miracles wrought after her death
through her intercession, and the heroic virtues which made her so remarkable,
induced Pope Alexander IV, only two years later, to place her in the number of
Saints.
Practical Considerations
“How can man complain
when he beholds Christ hanging on the cross and covered with blood,” asked
Saint Clare; and she also said that those nights in which she contemplated the
passion of Our Lord, seemed short. During her long and painful maladies, she
meditated on all the sufferings which Our Lord endured to save us, and by this
means, learned such resignation that she not only had no thought of murmuring
against Divine Providence, but also bore her pains with great interior
consolation. See your crucified Saviour and think: “What is my suffering
compared to that which my Redeemer endured for love of me? My Jesus has
suffered with patience, with joy, and even with the desire to suffer still
more. Why then should I be impatient and faint-hearted.” With such thoughts you
should animate yourself, especially during the night, as it is generally then
that pains increase. Remember the night, the bitter night, which your Saviour
passed in the house of Caiaphas, maltreated in every possible manner, and pray
for grace, to bear the cross laid upon you, with patience and fortitude. Only
try it once and you will find great relief. Saint Gregory said rightly:
“Remembering the sufferings of Christ, we can bear everything patiently, how
heavy soever it may be.”
Saint Clare, besides her
love for her crucified Lord, had an especial devotion to the Blessed Sacrament.
To it she went with all her cares, and found strength and comfort. Why do you
not do the same? If I you had lived at the time when Christ was visible on
earth and had known that He was truly the Saviour, would you not have gone to
Him, full of faith and confidence, with all your troubles, and asked Him for
the graces you needed? Why are you not doing so now? Is He who is present in
our churches under the form of bread, not the same who in times gone by, cured
the sick and allowed no one to leave Him without consolation? Your faith
teaches you that He is the same. Why then do you not go to Him with greater
confidence? Why do you not look up to Him for comfort and help? You so often
speak of your needs to men, who either will not or cannot help you. What does
it benefit you? Ah! go to the church; lay your heart bare before your Saviour,
represent to Him all your perplexities, and He will comfort you. Especially
when you are unhappy, in misfortune, in temptation, go to Him. Pray to Him in
the words of Saint Clare: “Lord, do not deliver to the demons the soul of one
who believes in Thee. Protect and keep Thy servant whom Thou hast bought with
Thy precious blood.” Do not forget the instructions here given you. Follow the
admonition of Saint Paul, who says: “Let us therefore go with confidence to the
throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace in seasonable aid.”
(Hebrews 4) This throne of grace you find in the blessed Sacrament. Fly to it
in all your sorrows, and you will find comfort and assistance.
MLA
Citation
Father Francis Xavier
Weninger, DD, SJ. “Saint Clare, Virgin and Abbess”. Lives
of the Saints, 1876. CatholicSaints.Info.
1 April 2018. Web. 11 August 2020.
<https://catholicsaints.info/weningers-lives-of-the-saints-saint-clare-virgin-and-abbess/>
SOURCE : https://catholicsaints.info/weningers-lives-of-the-saints-saint-clare-virgin-and-abbess/
Anonimo
marchigiano?, Santa Chiara d'Assisi scaccia i Saraceni, circa 1630. Dal Monastero di
Santa Chiara. Museo di Stato di San Marino. Foto
di Stefano Bolognini, 2008.
Anonymous painter, Saint Clare of Assisi repels Muslim pirates, circa 1630. On display at the National Museum of San Marino. Picture by Stefano Bolognini, 2008.
Miniature
Lives of the Saints – Saint Clare, Abbess
Article
On Palm Sunday, 17
March 1212,
the Bishop of Assisi left the altar to present with a palm a noble maiden,
eighteen years of age, whom bashfulness had detained in her place. This maiden
was Saint Clare. Already she had learnt from Saint Francis to hate the world,
and was secretly resolved to live for God alone. The same night she escaped,
with one companion, to the Church of the Portiuncula, where she was met by Saint
Francis and his brethren. At the altar of Our Lady, Saint Francis cut off her
hair, clothed her in his habit of penance, a piece of sack-cloth with his cord
as a girdle. Thus was she espoused to Christ. When her relatives would have
carried her home, she resisted them by force, and drove them away in horror by
the sight of her shaven head. In a miserable house outside Assisi she founded
her Order, and was joined by her sister, fourteen years of age, and afterwards
by her mother and other noble ladies. They went barefoot, observed perpetual
abstinence, constant silence, and perfect poverty. Saint Clare absolutely
refused all revenues, and would have but one possession, the Blessed Sacrament
and what served for its use. During her illness of twenty-eight years the Holy
Eucharist was her only support, and spinning linen for the altar the one work
of her hands. She died A.D. 1253 as the Passion was being read, and our Lady
and the angels conducted her to glory.
In a luxurious and
effeminate age the daughters of Saint Clare still bear the noble title of poor,
and preach by their daily lives the poverty of Jesus Christ.
They say that we are too
poor; alas, can a heart which possesses God be truly called poor? – Saint
Clare
While the Saracen army of
Frederick II was ravaging the valley of Spoleto, a body of infidels advanced to
assault Saint Clare’s convent, which stood outside Assisi. The Saint in her
poverty had no servants to defend her, and no treasure wherewith to buy off the
foe. Her one resource was the Blessed Sacrament. She caused It to be placed in
a monstrance above the gate of the monastery facing the enemy, and kneeling
before It, prayed, “Deliver not to beasts, O Lord, the souls of those who
confess to Thee.” A voice from the Host replied, “My protection will never fail
you.” A sudden panic seized the infidel host, which took to flight, and the
Saint’s convent was spared. Thus was Saint Clare’s poverty more powerful than
the strength of man.
Behold I have refined
thee, but not as silver; I have chosen thee in the furnace of poverty. –
Isaiah 48:10
MLA
Citation
Henry Sebastian Bowden.
“Saint Clare, Abbess”. Miniature Lives of the
Saints for Every Day of the Year, 1877. CatholicSaints.Info.
9 March 2015. Web. 11 August 2020.
<https://catholicsaints.info/miniature-lives-of-the-saints-saint-clare-abbess/>
SOURCE : https://catholicsaints.info/miniature-lives-of-the-saints-saint-clare-abbess/
Bleiglasfenster
in der Kirche Saint-Honoré d'Eylau (Avenue Raymond-Poincaré im 16.
Arrondissement von Paris), Darstellung: Klara von Assisi. Hersteller des
Fensters: Félix Gaudin nach einem Karton von Raphaël
Freida.
A Garner
of Saints – Saint Clare of Assisi
Article
(Italian: Chiara) Born
at Assisi in 1193 of
a rich and noble family. Being singularly beautiful she received many offers of
marriage, but these and the insistance of her parents distressed her, and she
went to seek Saint Francis of Assisi to ask for his advice. The saint spoke to
her of the vanity of this world, and told her to come to him again on Palm
Sunday. That day she went to the church with her mother and sisters, dressed in
her best clothes, but as the others went to receive the palms at the altar, she
remained modestly in her place. The bishop of Assisi,
perceiving this, himself took a palm to her, and she followed in the procession
with the rest. But the following day, 18th
March 1212,
she ran away from her home, and with some friends went to the convent of the
Portiuncule, where Saint Francis was
living with his disciples. He received her at the door, the monks singing
the Veni Creator the while. Before the altar of the Virgin she
stripped off her rich clothes, and Saint Francis gave her a habit of penitence
and cut off her hair. He placed her provisionally with the Benedictines. Her
family came to their convent to take her away, using so much violence that her
clothes were torn. Showing her shorn head she declared her intention of
devoting her virginity to Christ, and ultimately her relations yielded. After
some while Saint Francis gave her the habit of his order, and established her
in a small house which proved the nucleus of a future monastery of the order of
the “Poor Clarisses,” of which she was the founder. This order practised the
utmost severities, and upheld in all its strictures the rule of absolute
poverty. The Emperor Frederick II, who was engaged in a war against the pope,
employed a number of Turks who came to besiege Assisi, and attacked the nunnery
which was outside the walls. Clare, who was sick, caused herself to be carried
to the entry of the nunnery with a ciborium containing the Sacrament, and
placed in full view of the enemy, where she earnestly prayed that God would
deliver them from the infidels. Seized with a sudden panic, the besiegers took
to flight. Soon after Assisi was besieged by Vitalis Aversa, one of Frederick’s
generals. Clare ordered her nuns to cover their heads with ashes, and to pray
for the deliverance of their fellow-citizens. After they had prayed for a day
and a night, the enemy suddenly raised the siege without having done any harm.
Clare’s last years were passed in almost continual sickness, and she died
in 1253. Her
canonisation took place in 1255. 11th
August.
Attributes
Wears the Franciscan habit and
holds a lily and
a book.
MLA
Citation
Allen Banks Hinds, M.A.
“Saint Clare of Assisi”. A Garner of Saints, 1900. CatholicSaints.Info.
17 April 2017. Web. 11 August 2020. <https://catholicsaints.info/a-garner-of-saints-saint-clare-of-assisi/>
SOURCE : https://catholicsaints.info/a-garner-of-saints-saint-clare-of-assisi/
Giovanni di Paolo (–1482), Saint Clare
Rescuing a Child Mauled by a Wolf, Museum of Fine Arts, Houston
Article
Here beginneth the life of
the Holy Virgin Saint Clare.
There was a marvellous
holy woman in the city of Assisi, which was named Clare. First ye shall
understand that her nativity was much worthy and noble. It is read that as
touching the world she was of right noble lineage, and as touching the spirit
to the regard of the estate of virtues and noble manners towards God, she was
of right noble reputation. Then for to show that after her nativity she was a
devout espouse of God, she is worthy to be of great recommendation. It is read
that when her mother was enceinted or great with child of her, on a time as she
was before the crucifix, weeping and praying that of his grace he would grant
to her the deliverance of her fruit with joy and gladness, she heard a voice
suddenly saying to her: Woman, have thou no doubt, for without peril thou shalt
be delivered of a daughter which shall by her doctrine enlumine all the world.
And therefore, as soon as she was born, she did do name her at the font, Clare.
Secondly, is found in her life and known, great plenty of virtues. It is read
that this holy virgin, after the time of her infancy, was so composed in all
good manners, in port, in maintenance, and in continuance, that all others
might take of her fair and good ensample for to nsaintain and govern them. And
in especial she had so great pity of the poor people, that ofttimes she spared
her own mouth and sent by secret messengers such as she should herself have
been sustained by. Also in making devout prayer she had so great pleasure that
ofttimes it seemed to her, being in orisons, that her spirit was refreshed with
the sweetness of heaven. She was in her array like others, but by penance she
chastised her body, for how well that for the honour of her friends she was
nobly apparelled, yet nevertheless she ware always the hair on her bare body,
and from her infancy her heart had determined that for to die she would never
have other espouse than Jesu Christ. And many other and plenty of virtues shone
in her, the which were overlong to recount. Thirdly, how Saint Francis showed
to her the way of truth; it is read that as soon as Saint Clare heard the
renomee of Saint Francis, it was spread over all the world as it were a new man
sent into the world, showing how we ought to follow the new way of Jesu Christ,
she never might have rest in her heart till she was come to him, and that to
him she had opened her heart. Then after she had sweetly understood him, and
had received of him many a holy, sweet, and angelic word, Saint Francis
exhorted her above all other things to flee the world both with heart and her
body. And to this he enjoined her that on Palm Sunday she should hallow the
feast with the other people, but the night following, in remembrance of the
passion of Jesu Christ, she should turn her joy into weeping and afflictions,
for in such wise to weep the passion of Jesu Christ, finally she might come to
heaven as virgin and espouse of God, well eurous and happy. Fourthly, how she
had no quietness in her heart till she had accomplished her thought and
purpose; it is read that Saint Clare, thus informed of Saint Francis, could
have no rest in her heart till that, the night assigned and the hour, she
issued out of the city of Assisi, in which she dwelled, and came to the church
of our Lady of Portiuncula. And then the friars received her, which awoke in
the said church, and abode for her tofore the altar of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
And there her hair was cut off, and after, they led her into an abbey of nuns
and there left her. Fifthly, how her friends despised this work ordained by our
Lord; it is read when this lady was thus ordained, she laboured and did so much
that she drew her sister named Agnes into her company, wherefore as well for
that one as for that other, the carnal friends of Saint Clare had her in
indignation out of measure, wherefore Saint Francis translated them into the
church of Saint Damian, which church by the commandment of the crucifix he had
repaired. And there this lady began the religion that was called of poor
sisters, and there she was inclosed in a little cell which Saint Francis had
edified. Sixthly, how she had humility in her heart; it is read that Saint
Clare glorified herself sovereignly in humility, like as the wise man saith: Of
so much that a creature is promoted, of so much ought he to be the more humble.
Therefore, after that she had assembled a great convent of holy virgins, unnethe and with great pain, if it
had not been for the obedience of Saint Francis, she had never received the
sovereignty of them. And after that she had received the domination over them
and governance, she was tofore all other ready to serve them that were sick, as
she had been a handmaid or servant, and was so humble that she would wash the feet
of her hand-maidens and servants when they came from without from their work,
and dried them and kissed them. Seventhly, how Saint Clare kept poverty; it is
read that for to keep and to follow poverty after the gospel of Jesu Christ,
Saint Clare put thereto all her entent, wherefore sith the beginning of her holy life, all
that ever that came to her of father and mother, she sold and gave it for God’s
sake, insomuch that for her ne for her sisters she had but simple feeding and
clothing, ne would have none other. And notwithstanding that she was assoiled
of the pope of the vow of poverty, and thereupon had received letters of the
pope, much suddenly weeping, she wrote again saying. I will well be assoiled of
my sins, but the vow of poverty I shall keep unto the death. The eighth, how in
necessity Jesu Christ visited her; it is read that, on a time that at the hour
of dinner in the college of Saint Clare was but one loaf of bread, ne there
might no more be had. Then Saint Clare took this loaf of the hand of the
dispenser, and made then her prayer, and after, of that loaf made as many
loaves and parts as there were sisters. And as soon as every each had received
her part, how well it was but little, the divine grace multiplied it so much
that every each left some and had enough. Item semblably it is read that that
God did for her when in her college the pots were failed. Ninthly, how in straitness
Saint Clare was ruled; this holy lady was content with one poor coat lined with
a mantlet; she used never pendants ne furs of skins, but dispensed all her time
in keeping her body in servage of the spirit. And herewith thrice in the week
she fasted in this manner that she never tasted thing that was sodden. Item,
every year she fasted two lentens to bread and water only, save the Sunday she
took a little wine. And shortly, she lived so straitly that she became so
feeble that Saint Francis commanded her by virtue of obedience that she should
fail no day but that she should take for her refection an ounce and a half of
bread. She was never without hair next her flesh, and for a pillow, she took a
block or a great stone; she lay always on the bare ground, or for to take the
better her rest she lay otherwhile upon the cuttings of vines, unto the time
that Saint Francis had commanded her, because that it was over foul, that she
should use to lie on a sack full of straw. Tenthly, how she hath despised the iniquity
of the fiend our enemy; it is read that in especial she had a custom that from
midday she was in prayers and remembering the passion and sufferance of Jesu
Christ, two hours during, and after the eventide she was always a long while in
orisons. And it is read that ofttimes the fiend appeared to her by night
saying: If so be that ye abstain you not from waking and weeping, ye shall for
certain be blind. And she answered: He shall not be blind that shall see our
Lord in his glory. And when the fiend heard this answer, anon he departed all
confused, ne durst never after tempt her ne let her of her prayers. Eleventhly,
God of his grace had pierced her heart, it is read that Saint Clare for to
dispend amorously the time that God had lent her, in especial she was
determined that from the hour of mid-day unto evensong time, she would dispend
all that time in thinking and beweeping the passion of Jesu Christ, and say
prayers and orisons according thereto, after unto the five wounds of the
precious body of Jesu Christ, as smitten and pierced to the heart with the dart
of the love divine. It is read that from the time on a shere thursday, the hour
of the maundy, unto Easter even the Saturday, she was remembering and thinking
on the sufferance of our Lord Jesu Christ so burningly, that she was ravished
as all drunken in the love of God, that she knew not what was said ne done
about her, but as unmovable or as all insensible, in standing she held her eyes
fixed in one place. Twelfthly, how in her disease and pain she was of God
comforted; it is said that she was by the space of eight and twenty days in
continual languor and sickness, nevertheless was never seen in her sign of
impatience, but always sweet words and amiable in praising and thanking God of
all. And in especial it is read that, in the sickness in which she passed
toward the end of her life she was seventeen days without meat or drink. And
nevertheless she was so sweetly visited of God that it seemed unto all them
that saw her that she had no pain ne disease, but yet more every creature that
came to her was comforted in God. And in especial it is read that, when the
hour of death approached, she, which long time had lost her speech, began to
speak and say: Go out surely, thou hast a good safeconduct. And when one of her
sisters, being there present, heard that, she demanded her to whom she spake.
And she answered: To my soul, whom I see abashed to depart from my body, for he
ought not for to doubt, for I see the holy Virgin Mary which abideth for me.
And this said, our Blessed Lady entered into the chamber where Saint Clare lay.
And she was crowned with a crown right clear shining, that the obscurity of the
night was changed into clearness of mid-day. And she brought with her a right
great multitude of other virgins all nobly crowned, among whom there was one
that bare a rich mantle, to whom she said: Give hither the mantle. And when she
had sweetly embraced her she clad her with the mantle. And at that same time
was weeping about her the college of sisters, and in especial Agnes the sister
of Saint Clare, making great moan and sorrow. Then Saint Clare said sweetly: My
sisters, discomfort you not, for ye shall have unto God of me a good and a true
advocate. And thou Agnes shalt soon after follow me into glory. Now it is well
reason and right that we say and show of the great marvels that God showed for
Saint Clare by her holy prayers, for she was veritable, true, and worthy of all
honour. That great tempest that was in the time of Frederick the emperor,
whereof holy church had so much to suffer, that in divers parts of the world
was much war, so that by the commandment of the emperor were battles
established of knights, and with that so many archers of Saracens as they had
been hills of ‘dies for to destroy the people, castles and cities. The Saracens
ran as wood men till they came to the gates of Assisi. And the felon Saracens,
that be full of all cruelty and falsehood, and seek nothing but for to slay and
destroy christian men’s blood, and they came unto the cloister of the poor
ladies of Saint Damian, and the holy ladies had so great fear that their hearts
melted in their bodies, and ran weeping to their mother Saint Clare. And she
that was sick, without fear of heart, made her to be led tofore her enemies unto
the door, and did do bear tofore the body of our Lord, the which was in a pix
much richly garnished and devoutly. And this holy lady was on her knees, saying
with weeping tears unto our Lord: Ah! fair Lord God, please it you then that
they that serve you, and be disarmed, whom I nourish for your love, be brought
into the hands and power of the paynims? Fair sweet Lord, I beseech thee that
thou keep thy handmaidens and servants, for I may not keep them in this point.
And our Lord anon sent of his special grace a voice as it had been a child,
which said to her: I shall keep you always. O sweet fair Lord, keep this city
if it please you, which hath given to us such things as hath been needful to
us, for the love of you. And he answered: The city shall have some grievance,
but nevertheless I shall keep and defend it. Then this holy virgin Saint Clare
arose from her prayer, which had yet her visage all bewept, and comforted much
sweetly her sisters that wept, and said to them: I command you fair daughters
that ye comfort you in good faith, and trust ye only in our Lord, for the
Saracens shall never do you harm. Anon then the Saracens had so great dread and
fear, that over the walls, and by those places that they had entered, they fled
hastily, and were in this wise by the orison and prayer of Saint Clare
destroubled and put from their emprise. Then commanded she to all them that
heard the voice that in no manner they should discover ne tell it to any that
lived.
On another time it happed
that an old squire, full of vain glory, the which was much hardy in battle and
was captain of a great host, which Frederick had delivered to him, and came
with all his host for to take the city of Assisi, he did do hew down the trees,
and destroy the country all about, and besieged the city, and sware that he
would not depart thence till he had taken the city, and thus was the city
besieged for to have been taken. And when Saint Clare, the handmaid of Jesu
Christ, heard the tidings, she had great pity and did do call her sisters and said
to them: Right sweet daughters, we receive daily many benefits of this city,
and it should be a great unkindness in us if we succoured it not in this great
need as much as we may. Then commanded she to bring ashes, and said to her
sisters that they should discover their heads, and she herself first cast great
plenty of ashes upon her head, and after, upon the heads of all the others, and
said to them: Now go, fair daughters, and with all your hearts require and pray
ye to our Lord that he will deliver this city. And then every each by
themselves, in great weepings and tears, made their orisons and prayers
devoutly to our Lord, in such wise that he kept and defended the city, that on
the morn the host departed out of the country, and it was not long after that
they all were dead and slain.
It should not be
according that we should hele and keep secret the marvellous virtue of her
prayer, by the which at the beginning of her conversion she converted a soul to
God. For she had a sister younger than herself was, whose conversation she much
desired, and in all her prayers that she made, she prayed at the beginning with
all her heart to our Lord that like as she and her sister had been in the world
of one heart and of one will, that it might please the Father of mercy that
Agnes, her sister, whom she had left in the world, might despise the world, and
savour the sweetness of God, so that she might have no will to marry her, save
only to God her true friend, in such wise that between them both they might
espouse their virginity to our Lord. These two sisters loved marvellously
together, and were much sorrowful of their departing, and that one more than
that other. But our Lord granted unto Saint Clare the first gift that she
demanded, for it was a thing that much pleased him. After the seventh day that
Saint Clare was converted, Agnes, her sister, came to her and discovered her
secretness to her and will, and said utterly that she would serve God. And when
Saint Clare heard that, anon she embraced her, and said for joy that she had:
My sister, ye be right welcome, I thank God that hath heard me for thee, for
whom I was in great sorrow. Howbeit that this conversion was marvellous, and
yet more to be wondered how Clare defended her sister by her prayers. At that
time were the good blessed sisters at Saint Michael of Pambo, which were joined
to God, and they followed the life and works of Jesu Christ. And there was
Saint Clare, which felt more of God than the other, and she informed her
sister, her nurse, how she should rule her. And the parents and kinsmen of
Saint Clare began a new battle and strife against the virgins. For when they
heard say that Agnes was gone to dwell with her sister Saint Clare, there came
on the morn to the place where Saint Clare dwelled, twelve of her kinsmen and
friends all from themselves, all araged, and showed not withoutforth the malice
that they had in their hearts, but gave them to understand that they came for
good. And when they came within they made no force of Saint Clare for to draw
her out, for they knew well that they should nothing exploit of their intent,
but they turned to Agnes and said to her: What makest thou here? Come out with
us home to thy house. And she answered, that she would never depart from the
company of Saint Clare. And a tyrant, a knight, took and drew her by the hair,
and the other took her by the arms, and carried her forth afar. And she, which
seemed that she was among the hands of a lion, and taken from the hands of God,
began to cry and said: Fair dear sister! help me, and suffer not that I be
taken from the holy company of Jesu Christ. But the felons drew this virgin
against her will over the mountain, and rent her clothes and drew and rased out
her hair. And the holy sweet virgin Saint Clare kneeled down, and put herself
to prayer, and prayed our Lord to give her sister a strong heart and a stable,
and that she might by the puissance of God overcome and surmount the puissance
of the people. And anon the Holy Ghost made her so pesant and heavy, that it
seemed that her body were fixed to the ground, in such wise that for all the
force and power that they could do they might not bear her over a little brook.
And the men that were in the fields and river came for to help them, but they
might never remove her from the earth. And then one of them said in mocking: It
is no wonder though she be heavy, for she hath eaten much lead. Then the lord
Mouvalt, her uncle, lift up his arm for to beat her cruelly, but an ache and
pain took him suddenly, and tormented him a long time right cruelly. After that
this said Saint Agnes had suffered this long wrestling of her kinsmen and
friends, came Saint Clare and prayed them for God’s sake they should leave this
battle with her sister, and go their way and take heed of themselves. And she
received the cure and charge of Agnes, her sister, which lay there on the
ground in great disease, and finally her kinsmen departed in great anguish and
sorrow of heart. And then anon after, she arose up much gladly, and had much
great joy of that first battle that she had suffered for the love of Jesu
Christ, and from this time forward she ordained herself to serve God
perdurably. And Saint Francis cut off her hair with his own hands, and induced
and taught her to serve God, and so did Saint Clare her sister. And because we
may not shortly account with few words the great perfection of the life of
Agnes, therefore we shall entend unto the life of Saint Clare the virgin.
Was it not great marvel
of the orisons and prayers of Saint Clare, which were so strong, and so much
availed against the malice of the people, when they fled and were puissant to
burn the devils? It happed on a time that a much devout woman of the bishopric
of Pisa, came to one of the ladies for to yield thankings to God and Saint Clare
which had delivered her from the hands of five devils. For they fled, and
wailed that the orisons of Saint Clare burnt them all, and therefore they might
no longer dwell in that place. The pope Gregory had much great faith and great
devotion in the prayers of that holy virgin, and not without cause, for he had
proved and felt certain virtue thereof, which had holpen many and divers that
had necessity and need. And when he was bishop of Hostence and after when he
was pope, he sent his letters to her by which he required her to pray for him,
and anon he felt eased and alleged by her prayers. Then certainly if he which
was vicar of Jesu Christ, by his humility, as we may see, had so great devotion
to Saint Clare, of whom he required her aid, and recommended him to the virtue
of her orisons, as well ought we then to ensue with all our power the devotion
of such a man. For he knew well how much love is mighty and how the pure
virgins have delivered entry into the door of the heart of our Lord. And if our
sweet Lord give himself to them that love him firmly, who may he deny to them
for whom they require him devoutly? Always seen that they require of him that
is needful and behoveful. The holy work showeth well the great faith and the
great devotion that she had in the holy sacrament of the altar. For in that
great malady which had so vexed her that she lay in her bed, she arose and did
her to be borne from one place to another, and did spin a fine small cloth of
which she made more than fifty corporas, and sent them in fair towels of silk
into divers churches in divers places of Assisi.
When she should receive
the body of our Lord, it was marvel to see the tears that she wept, of which
she was all wet. And she had so great fear when she approached nigh unto her Saviour,
that she ne doubted him no less which is in semblance very God in the form of
bread, the sacrament, than him that governeth heaven and earth, which is all
one. Thus as she had always souvenance and mind of Jesu Christ in her malady,
so God comforted her and visited her in her infirmity and languor. In the hour
of the nativity of Jesu Christ at Christmas, when the angels and the world made
feast and sung and enjoyed of little Jesus that was born, all the poor ladies
went to matins into their monastery, and left alone their poor mother sore
grieved in her malady. Then she began to think on little Jesus, and was
sorrowful that she might not be at the service, and praise our Lord, and said
in sighing: Fair Lord God, I wake here alone. And anon she began to hear the
friars that sang, and Saint Francis, and heard well the jubilation, the
psalmody, and the great melody of the song, howbeit her bed was not so nigh
that the voice of a man ne of a woman might not be heard, ne understood if God
did it not by his courtesy, or if God had not given to her, above all nature of
man, force and power to hear it, but this passed all, for she was worthy to see
in her oratory the joy of our Lord. On the morning, when the ladies, her
daughters, came to her, she said to them: Blessed be our Lord Jesu Christ, for
when ye left me, he left me not truly, and I say to you that I have heard this
night all the service and solemnity that hath been done in the church by Saint
Francis, through the grace of Jesu Christ.
At the pains of her death
our Lord comforted her always. For she drew out of the holy wounds of Jesu
Christ a bitterness, of which her heart, her will, and her thought were full of
anguish, marvellously bitter, and often as she had been drunken of the sorrow
and tears that she wept for the love of Jesu Christ. For ofttimes the love of
God which she had imprinted in her heart withinforth she made to appear by
signs outward. She informed and taught the novices, and admonished them that
they have in their mind the sorrow and pain of the death of Jesu Christ. And
that she said with her mouth, she did it in her heart, and gave ensample. When
she was secretly alone, tofore she might say anything she was all bedewed with
tears. She was most devout and had more fervour of devotion between undern and
noon than any other time, because she would that in the hour that Jesu Christ
was crucified in the altar of the cross, that her heart should be sacrificed to
God our Lord.
On a time it happed at
the hour of noon that she prayed to God in her cell, and the devil gave to her
such a stroke under the ear, that her eyes and her visage were all covered with
blood. She had learned an orison of the five wounds of Jesu Christ, which she
oft recorded and remembered because her heart and thought were nourished
therein, and might feel the delights that be in Jesu Christ. She learned the
office of the Cross of Saint Francis, which loved her truly, and she said it as
gladly, to her power, as he did. She girded to her flesh a cord whereon were
thirteen knots which were full of brochets of small needles, and thereon small
rings, and this did she in remembrance of the wounds of our Lord.
It happed on a time on
the holy Sherethursday, which is the day when our Lord made his maundy or
supper, whereas is remembered how God loved unto the end his disciples, about
the hour of even, when God began the wrestling of his passion, then Saint Clare
being heavy and sorrowful, enclosed her in the chamber of her cell. And it
happed that she prayed God long, and was sorrowful unto the death, and in that
sorrow and heaviness she drew a fervent love full of desire, for she remembered
how Jesus in that hour was taken, estrained, haled forth and mocked, insomuch
that of this remembrance she was all drunken, and sat in her bed. All that
night she was so ravished and on the morn, that she wist not where her body
was. The eyes of her head looked steadfastly in one place, without moving or
looking aside, and the eye of her heart was so fixed in Jesu Christ that she
felt nothing. One of her daughters, more familiar and secret with her than
other, went oft to her for to see her, and always she found her in one point.
The night of the Saturday, this good devout daughter brought a candle burning,
and without speaking made a sign to her blessed mother Clare that she should
remember the commandments of Saint Francis, for he had commanded that every day
she should eat somewhat. Then as she stood tofore her with a candle burning,
Saint Clare came again to her estate, and her seemed she was come from another
world. And she said: Fair daughter, what need is of a candle, is it not yet
day? And she answered: Right, dear fair mother, the night is passed and the day
is gone, and that other night is come. Fair daughter, said Saint Clare, this
sleep that I have made be blessed, for I have much desired it, and God hath
given it to me, but beware that thou say it never to creature as long as I
live. When our Lord knew and apperceived how well and how much this holy Clare
loved him, and the right great love that she had to the very cross for the love
of him, he so illumined and privileged her in such manner that she had power to
make tokens and miracles by the cross. For when she made the sign of the very
cross upon them that were sick, anon the malady fled away. And so many miracles
God showed for her of which I shall tell you some. First, of a friar that was
out of his wit. On a time it happed that Saint Francis sent to Saint Clare a
friar named Steven, and was all mad from himself, that she should make upon him
the sign of the cross. For he knew well that she was a woman of great
perfection, and he honoured her much for the virtue that was in her. And she,
that was obeissant and good daughter of obedience, blessed the friar by the
commandment of Saint Francis, and made him to sleep a little, and after, she
took him by the hand and he arose all whole, and went to Saint Francis clean
delivered of all his malady. This blessed Saint Clare was a good mistress and
true for to inform young people that knew but little of religion, and she was
president and upperest of the maidens of our Lord, and informed them in good
customs and taught them right well to do penance. She nourished them by so
great love that unnethe any tongue may express, she
taught them privily to flee all noise of the world, because they should join to
our Lord, and also she exhorted them that they should put from them all carnal
affection and fleshly love of their friends, and that they should not be over
tender over them ne love them over much, ne houses, ne land, but make them
strong to please and serve God. She counselled them and warned them that they
should hate to do the will of the body, and that the delights and fleshly
desires of the flesh they should with all their heart and good reason go
thereagainst. She said to them the fiend of hell lieth in await and layeth his
hooks and grinnes subtilly for to take and bind the holy souls, and yet they
tempt more the good people than them of the world. She would that they should
work and labour with their proper hands in such works as she had established to
them. She would that when they had done their bodily travail they should go to
prayer, for prayer is a thing that pleaseth much God. And she would that in
praying they should rechaufe their bodies, and that they should leave and
depress negligence and all coldness of heart, and be kindled and lighted in the
holy love of God, so that instead of coldness they should be hot in devotion.
In no place ne in no cloister was silence better kept ne holden, there was no
lavas in their speech ne evil, but they were sober and so good that they showed
well that in their hearts was none evil but all goodness. The good mistress
Saint Clare herself spake so little that she restrained them and thought
marvellously on their words, howbeit that in her heart ne in her thought was
but all holiness. This good lady purveyed to her daughters the Word of God by
devout preachings, and had so much joy and gladness profoundly in her heart in
hearing the words of the holy predication, that all her delight was in our Lord
Jesu Christ her spouse.
For on a time as friar
Philip Adrian preached, a right fair child was tofore Saint Clare and abode
there a great part of the sermon, and beheld marvellously and graciously Saint
Clare, whereof it happed that he was worthy to know and see so high things, of
Saint Clare received in that sight, and beholding so great a sweetness in his
heart and so great comfort, that it might not be said ne expressed. And howbeit
that she was not lettered, yet heard she more gladly the sermons in Latin than
in her vulgar tongue. She knew well that within the shell was the kernel, she
heard the sermons ententively and assavoured them more sweetly. She could much
well draw to her that was most profitable for her soul. And well knew she that
it was no less cunning to gather fair flowers among the sharp thorns, than to
eat the fruit of a fair tree, that is to say that she loved better a rude
sermon well edifying than a fair polished, little profiting.
On a time it happed that
the pope Gregory defended that no friar should go to the house of the ladies
without his leave. And when the holy mother Saint Clare knew that, she had much
sorrow in her heart, because she saw well she might not have that which was
needful, which was the nurture of Holy Scripture, and said to her sisters with
a sorrowful heart; Now forthon well may the pope Gregory take from us all the
friars, when he hath taken from us them that nourished our souls with the Word
of God. And anon she sent again all the friars of her house to the master or
minister, for she said she had nothing to do to have friars to get them bodily
bread, when they failed them that nourished her and her sisters with the Word
of God. Anon as the pope Gregory heard this tiding he repealed that which he
had defended, and set all at the will of God. This holy and good abbess loved
not only the souls of her good daughters, but thought well in her heart
oft-times how she might serve their bodies most charitably. For when it was
right cold she covered by night them that were feeble, and visited them much
sweetly. And if she saw any trouble by any temptation or any anger, which
happeth sometimes, she would call them secretly and comforted them, all
weeping. And other while she would fall down to the feet of her daughters that
were mat and heavy, and kneeled tofore them, so that by the sweetness and
debonairly that the ladies saw in their good mother, that she alleged and took
away their sorrow, whereof the ladies, her daughters, couthe her much thanks.
And thus learned they to do well by devotion and to love their good mother more
sweetly, and followed by the right way the works of their good abbess. And they
marvelled much of the great abundance of holiness that God had given to his
spouse. When she had been forty years in the state of right holy poverty it
pleased to our Lord to call her to be rewarded in heaven, and sent to her a
great malady, and multiplied her languor and sickness. She had sometime done so
sharp penance that her body ne her flesh had no strength. And at the last she
was over sick and much more than she was wont to be, for as our Lord had given
to her in her health, riches of merits, of good virtues and of good are works,
right so would God enrich her in her sickness, to the end that she should
suffer for him right great pain and torments, for in suffering of sickness is
virtue perfect. How and in what wise she was virtuous in her malady and
perfect, ye may hear. For howbeit that she had been eight and twenty years in
languor and malady, yet never she grudged, ne murmured, ne plained, but always
said holy words and rendered thankings to our Lord, howbeit that she was
marvellously aggrieved and sick, so that it seemed that she hasted much to draw
to her end.
It pleased nevertheless
to our Lord that he respited her from the death unto the time that her end
might be honoured, and enhanced her by the presence of the pope and of
the cardinals,
to whom she was especial daughter. For when the pope and the cardinals had
abode a great while at Lyons, Saint Clare was then marvellously destrained by
sickness, so that her daughters had great sorrow at their hearts that them
seemed that a glaive had pierced them, or that they had been riven with a
sword. But our Lord showed anon a vision to one, his handmaid, which dwelled at
Saint Paul’s, for it seemed to her that she and her sisters were at Saint
Damian’s tofore Saint Clare, which was right sick. And her seemed that this
Clare lay in a much fair bed and much precious, and her seemed that her
daughters wept when the soul should pass out of the body. And anon she saw a
right fair lady at the head of the bed, and said to them that wept: Fair
daughters, weep no more, for this lady shall overcome all. And know ye that she
shall not die till that our Lord and his disciples shall come. And she shall
not abide long after that the pope and the court of Rome shall come to Perugia.
And anon as the Bishop of Hostence heard say that this holy woman was sick,
anon in great haste he went to see and visit the spouse of Jesu Christ, for he
was her ghostly father, and had the cure of her soul, and nourished her with
pure heart and will, for he had always devoutly loved the holy virgin. And then
he gave to her in her malady the body of our Lord, for that is the very feeding
of the soul, and he comforted the other daughters by his sermons and holy
words. Then the holy good mother, weeping, prayed him much sweetly that he
would take heed of her daughters there being, and of all the others, and that
for the love of our Lord he would remember her. And above all other things she
prayed him that he would do so much that her privilege of poverty might be
confirmed of the pope and of the cardinals.
And he that loved verily
her and the religion, and that had always truly aided her, promised that he
should do, and did it. In the year after came the pope and the cardinals to
Assisi for to see the departing of the holy virgin, and to put to effect the
vision that had been seen and signified of her. For the pope is the highest man
in earth under God, and that best representeth the person of Jesu Christ, for
like as our Lord had his disciples which were joined to him in earth, in like
wise the pope hath his cardinals,
the which be joined to him in the holy church. Our Lord God hasted him as he
that knew the firm purpose of his spouse Saint Clare, and hasted for to honour
her, and to set in the palace of the king of paradise his poor pilgrim, and the
good lady also coveted and wished with all her heart that she might be
delivered of her mortal body, and that she might see in heaven Jesu Christ as
she that had ensued him in the earth with all her heart in very poverty. Her
members were bruised and troubled by great sickness that the body might not
endure, for it was over much enfeebled, so that our Lord called her from this
world, and ordained for her health perdurable. Then pope Innocent the fourth
and the cardinals came
with him for to visit the handmaid of God, of whom he had better proved the
holy life than of any woman that was in his time. And therefore he knew
certainly that it was reason that he should come and honour her with his
presence. And when he came into the house of the ladies, he went thither
whereas this holy saint lay, and took to her his hand for to kiss. And the
pope, which was courteous, stood upon a tree and took to her his foot to kiss
by great humility. And she took it and kissed it much sweetly, and after
inclined herself to the pope much humbly, and required him with a sweet cheer
that he would assoil her of all her sins. To whom he said: Would God that we
had no more need of absolution of sins that we have done than ye have. And then
he assoiled her of all her sins and gave to her largely his benediction. And
when they were all departed, forasmuch as she had received that day, by the
hands of the minister provincial, the very body of our Lord, she lift up her
eyes to our Lord to heaven, and joined her hands together and said then: Ah! my
right sweet and fair daughters, our Lord Jesu Christ by his debonairly hath
done to me so great good, and given to me so great a gift that heaven ne earth
may not know, for I have received this day a much high Lord and also have seen
his vicar. The good daughters were about the bed, which wept and abode for the
orphans whereof they had great sorrow in their hearts, for the death of their
mother pierced their hearts like as it were a sword. Which daughters departed
not from her ne for hunger, ne for thirst, ne for no sleep, ne they thought
neither of bed ne of table. All the delights that they had was for to cry, to
weep and to make sorrow. And among all the others her sister, which was a much
devout virgin, wept many tears and said to Saint Clare her sister: Fair and
right sweet sister, depart not away from me and leave me not here alone. And
Saint Clare answered to her much sweetly: Fair sweet sister, it pleaseth to God
that I depart from this world, but weep no more, fair sister, for ye shall come
hastily to our Lord after me. And also I say unto you that our Lord shall do to
you great comfort and consolation tofore or ye die. After, this holy and good
Clare drew fast to her end. And the folk and people had to her great devotion
and the prelates and cardinals came
oft to see her, and honoured her as a very saint. But there was a marvellous
thing to hear, for she was by the space of twelve days that never entered into
her body no corporal meat, and she was so strong by the suffrance and grace of
God that she comforted in the service of God all them that came tofore her, and
desired and charged them to do well. And when Friar Reynald, which was
debonair, came for to see her and beheld the great sickness that she had long
time suffered, he preached to her, and prayed her much to have patience. And anon
she answered to him freely and debonairly: Sith that the holy man Saint Francis,
the servant of Jesu Christ hath showed to me the way of truth, and that I have
felt and known the will and grace of Jesu Christ by the advertisement of Saint
Francis, know ye, right dear brother, that no pains displease me, ne no penance
grieveth me, ne no sicknesses be to me hard ne displeasing. And then answered
she to the friar, when she felt our Lord knock at her gate for to take her soul
out of this world, and required that good folk and spiritual should be with
her, that she might hear of them the holy words of God, and specially the words
of the death and passion of Jesu Christ. And among all others came a friar
named Vinberes, which was one of the noblest preachers that was in earth, and
that ofttimes spake and said noble and holy words, ardent and good. Of whose
coming she was much glad, and prayed him that if he had made ready any new
thing that he should say it. And then the friar opened his mouth and began to
say so sweet words that they were like sparkles of fire and of ardent fervour,
or heat, whereof the holy virgin had much great consolation. Then she turned
her and said to her daughters: Sweet daughters, I recommend to you the holy
poverty of our Lord, and give ye to him thankings for that he hath done to you.
Then she blessed all them that had devotion to her and to her order, and gave
largely and wisely her blessing to all the poor ladies of her order that were
tofore her there. The two fellows of Saint Francis that were there, of whom
that one was named Angel, comforted them that were full of sorrow, and that
other friar kissed devoutly and holily the bed of her that should pass to our
Lord. The holy ladies sorrowed much the loss of their mother, and as much more
as they cried and wept withoutforth, so much more were they ardently grieved
within forth. Then Saint Clare began to speak to her soul all softly: Go, said
she, go surely, for thou hast a good guide and conductor in the way whereas
thou shalt go, which shall lead thee well the right way. Go, said she hardily,
for he that made thee and sanctified thee shall keep thee, for he loveth thee
also tenderly as the mother doth her child. Lord God, said she, blessed be thou
that madest me. And then one of her sisters demanded her to whom she spake. I
have, said she, spoken to my blessed soul, and without fail her glorious
conductor is not far from her. Then she called one of her daughters and said to
her: Fair daughter, seest thou the king of glory whom I see? But the daughter
saw him not, for the will of God was that one should see that another saw not,
for there was a happy widow and comfortable, which saw him with the eyes of her
head among the tears that she wept, and yet nevertheless she was wounded to the
heart with a dart full of sweetness and of sorrow. Then she turned her sight
toward the door of the house and saw a great company of virgins enter into the
house all clad with white clothes, and each of them bare a crown of gold on her
head. And among all other, there was one much more clear and fairer than the
others which bare a crown of gold windowed, out whereof issued a right great clearness,
that all the house was so clearly light, that it seemed the night to be clear
day. And this lady that was so clear, approached to the bed whereas the spouse
of her son lay, and she inclined upon her and embraced her much sweetly. Then
the virgins brought a mantle of right great beauty, and the virgins enforced
them to serve and to cover the body of Saint Clare and well to make ready the
house. And on the morn was the feast of Saint Laurence, and then died and
departed out of this mortal life the holy lady and friend of our Lord, and anon
the soul of her was crowned in everlasting joy. The spirit of her was much
benignly and joyously loosed and delivered from the flesh, and when the body
abode in the earth the soul went with God which was her life. And blessed be
the holy company of God that from the valley of this world conducted the holy
soul of this lady into the mountain of heaven where the blessed life is. Now is
the blessed virgin in the company of them that be in the court of heaven, now
hath she changed her poor little life, which hath brought her for to sit at the
table where the great delights be. Now hath she, for the little life of
humility and of sharpness, the blessed reign of heaven, whereas she is clad and
arrayed with the robe of perdurable glory. Anon the tidings were spread abroad
that the blessed virgin was departed, and when the people of Assisi heard
thereof, they came to the place, both men and women, by so great companies,
that it seemed that in the city abode neither man ne woman. And all crying: O,
dear lady, and friend of God, and therewith they praised her, and wept much
tenderly. The potestate and the provost of the city ran much hastily thither,
and with them many companies of knights and of people armed, which all that day
and all night kept the body of the holy virgin much honourably. For they would
in no wise that the town should not have, by any adventure, damage or hurt in
taking away the treasure that lay there. On the morn came the vicar of Jesu
Christ and all the cardinals with
him, with all the city of Assisi, unto the church of Saint Damian. And when it
came there to that they should begin the mass for the blessed Saint Clare, it
happed that he that began would have begun the office of them that were dead.
And anon the pope said that they ought better do the office of virgins than the
office of dead folk, so that it seemed that he would canonise her tofore ere
she was buried. Then answered the wise man, the bishop of Hostence, and said it
was more accustomed to say of them that be dead in this case, and then they
said the mass of requiem, and all the prelates and the bishop of Hostence began
to preach, and took their matter how all the world is vanity, and began to
praise much greatly this sweet saint, Saint Clare, and how she had despised the
world and all that was therein. Then the cardinals that
were there went first and did holily the service about the holy body, and the
office, like as it is accustomed. And because that them seemed neither right ne
reason that the precious body should not be far from the city, they bare it to
Saint George’s with so right great feast, singing and praising God in hymns and
lauds, and in so great melody, that there was honour enough. And in the same
place was first buried the body of Saint Francis. And from this time forthon
came much people every day to the tomb of Saint Clare, and giving praisings and
laud to our Lord God. And veritably this is a right very saint and glorious
virgin, reigning with the company of angels to whom God hath given so much
honour in earth. Ah! sweet virgin, pray thou to Jesu Christ for us, for thou
wert the first flower of the holy poor ladies which hast drawn to penance
without number, and that thou mayst conduct us to the life permanable. Amen.
It was not long after
greatly, that Agnes, sister of Saint Clare, was summoned and called to wedding
of the very lamb Jesu Christ, and also Saint Clare led her sister unto the joy
perdurable, full of delices. There be now the two daughters of Sion which were
sisters germane of grace and of nature and be now heritors of the joy of heaven,
there where they feel the sweetness of God and enjoy with him. Now is Agnes in
the joy and in the consolation that Clare, her sister, had promised to her
tofore that she died, for like as Clare brought her out of the world, so
brought she herself in the cross of penance by which she is shining in heaven.
Thus went Agnes after her sister right soon out of this mortal life full of
weeping and of sorrow unto our Lord, which is lite of the soul in heaven, which
reigneth with the Father and the Holy Ghost. Amen.
Here follow miracles
which were showed after her death.
The tokens and miracles
of saints ought to be showed, praised, and honoured and also witnessed, when
the works in the life were holy and full of perfection. We find not many signs
ne miracles that Saint John the Baptist did, nevertheless he is a much holy
saint, and greater than such ones as have been showed for many miracles. And
therefore I say that the right holy life and the great perfection of Saint
Clare, which she used and demened here in earth, ought well to suffice and
witness that she is a very saint, if it were not for the people, which have the
more great devotion and more greater faith unto the saints when they see the
signs and miracles that God showeth for them. I know well that Saint Clare was
in the way full of merits, and that she was ravished in the profoundness of the
great clearness and light of heaven, nevertheless though she were
resplendissant, well savorous, and right full of great miracles as is well
declared by the cardinals of
Rome, mine oath of truth that I have made and my conscience, constraineth me
that I write to my power the life truly and the miracles of her, how well I
pass over many fair things.
Of one that was delivered
of the fiend.
There was a child named
Jaquemin of Perugia, which had in his body the devil, in such wise that this
Jaquemin fell in the fire as he that could not keep him. Sometime he hurtled
strongly against the ground, sometime he bit the stones so that he brake his
teeth, and otherwhile brake his head, that all his body was bloody, and fouled
his mouth and put out his tongue. And sometimes he lay and wallowed, and was
round, so that oft he laid his thigh in his neck. And every day twice this
malady came to him, and two persons might not keep him ne hold him but that he
would despoil and unclothe him maugre them both. There could no physician ne
wise man that was in all the country find any remedy ne give counsel to ease
him. But the father, which was named Quindelor, when he saw that he could find
no counsel nor remedy for this malady, began to cry and call on Saint Clare the
holy virgin, and said: To thee that art worthy of all honours, I avow my child
which is meschant and caitiff, and pray thee, right sweet saint, that thou wilt
send to my child health. And forthwith went to her tomb full of belief to have
his request, and laid the child upon the tomb of the virgin and made his
prayers. And anon he was delivered of the malady, ne never was sick after of
that sickness, ne never hurt him after by reason of that malady.
Another miracle.
Alexandrine of Perugia
had in her body a right felonous devil, which had so utterly power over her
that he made her descend from a rock that stood upon a river of water, and made
her to flee over the water as she had been a bird, and made her to light upon a
little bough of a tree which hung over the river, and ceased not to play there.
AIso for her sin it happed that she lost her left side, and was lame of that
one hand. And she assayed much if she might be healed by any medicine, but alI
the medicines that she took availed her not. And then she came to the tomb of
Saint Clare with great repentance of heart, and began to require Saint Clare
that she would help her, and anon she was healed and redressed in all health.
And her side was whole, and hand also, and delivered of the possession of the
devil which was in her, and of many other sicknesses and maladies tofore the
sepulchre of Saint Clare.
Of one being mad that she
healed.
A man born in France came
on a time from the court and fell in a malady, that he was out of his wit and
might not speak, and so demeaned his body that he might have no rest, and was
much over strange and hideous to look on. No man might so hold him but that he
brake from them maugre them that held him, and broke asunder cords or any thing
that they bound him with, and they of his country brought him to Saint Clare
and anon he was healed and well delivered of his malady.
Another Miracle.
There was a man named
Valentine Despole, which had a horrible malady, that he fell of the foul evil
well six times in a day. And therewith he was lame of one thigh so that he
might not go, but was set upon an ass, which brought him whereas Saint Clare
lieth, and he was set tofore her tomb three nights and two days, and on the
third day, without touching of anybody, his thigh began rumble, and made so
great a noise that it seemed that the bone brake, and forthwith he was whole of
both diseases
Of a blind man that had
his sight again.
Jacob, the son of
Spoletine, had been two years blind, so that he must be led, for when he had no
leader he went here and there. And on a time the child that led him let him go
alone, and he fell so that he brake his arm, and a great wound in his head. And
it happed on a night as he slept by the bridge of Margue, there appeared to him
in his sleep a lady, and said to him: Jacobel, wherefore comest thou not to me
for to be whole? And on the morn he recounted his dream unto two other blind
men, all trembling. And the blind men told to him that there was newly dead a
lady, in the city of Assisi, for whom God showed many miracles to them that
came to her tomb sick and diseased, and when they should depart were all whole.
And anon as he heard that he was not slow, but hasted him and came first
to Spoleto, and that night he saw the same
vision that he had first seen that other night tofore. On a time he went and
ran by the way, and for the desire to have his sight he went that night to
Assisi. And when he came thither he found so much people in the monastery, and
Iying tofore the tomb of the holy virgin, that he might not enter ne come into
the monastery ne to the tomb where the virgin lay. And then he laid a stone
under his head, and abode there with great devotion, sorrowing and angry that
he might not enter. And the same night, as he slept, he heard a voice that said
to him: Jacobel, if thou mayst come and enter herein, God shall do well to
thee. And on the morn, when he was awaked, he began to pray with great tears
that the people would give and make to him way for the love of God, and
besought the people, crying them mercy, that they would bring him in. And the
people began to make him way. And anon he did off his hosen and shoon and
despoiled him by great devotion, and he put his girdle about his neck, and so
went to the tomb, and there being in great devotion, fell asleep a little. And
Saint Clare appeared to him and said to him: Arise up, for thou art all whole,
and anon he arose and saw clearly. And when he saw that he was enlumined, and
saw the clearness of the day by the merit of Saint Clare, he praised and
glorified our Lord that had done to him so much bounty, and prayed the good
people to give praisings and thankings to God.
Of a man that was healed
of his hand
There was a man of
Perugia which was named Good John. the son of Martin. and went for to fight
against them of Foligno,
and that one part and that other began the strife, and began to cast stones so
great and fast that this John had his one hand all to-frushed and broken of a
stone. And because he had great desire to be healed, he dispensed much money on
masters and surgeons, but he could find none that could heal him, but that he
abode always lame on his hand, ne might do nothing ne work therewith, whereof
he had so great sorrow that he hasted him for to have it smitten off many
times. But when he heard the great marvels that our Lord had done for Saint
Clare, he avowed that he should visit her. And then came to the sepulchre of
Saint Clare, the holy virgin, and bare thither an image of wax in his hand, and
laid him down upon the tomb, and anon he was perfectly healed of his hand.
Another miracle.
There was a man named
Petrius of the castle of Byconne which had been three years sick, and was so
enfeebled that by the strength of his malady that he was all dried up, and had
so much pain in his reins that he was become so crooked that he went like a
beast. For which cause his father led him to the best masters and medicines
that he might find and know, and also to such as entremeted of broken bones,
and the father would well have spent all his goods on the condition to have his
son whole. And when he heard say of the masters that no physic nor no man might
heal him of his malady, then he thought to go to Saint Clare, and led his son
thither. And so he did, and laid him tofore the sepulchre of the holy virgin.
And he had not been long there, but by the grace of God, and by the merits of
the holy virgin he was all whole, and arose up guerished of all his malady, and
gave laud, thankings, and praisings to our Lord God, and to Saint Clare, and
prayed the people to do in like wise because of his health.
Another miracle.
There was also a child of
the age of two years in the town of Saint Quirito in the bishopric of Assisi,
which was born crooked in the back and lame, which his thighs and feet turned
athwart, and went in such wise that it was all out of order, and when he was
fallen he could not arise. His mother had ofttimes vowed him to Saint Francis,
and was not thereby holpen, and when she heard that God showed new miracles for
Saint Clare, she bare her child to her sepulchre and abode there certain days.
But within a few days his legs began to grow, and his thighs within the skin
were redressed naturally, and he went upright and was all guerished and made
whole. And thus he that had been divers times at Saint Francis was healed by
the merits of his good disciple Saint Clare, by the virtue of our Lord Jesu.
Of a lame child that
never had gone.
A burgess of Augulum
named Jacques de Franque had a child of five years of age which had no feet for
to bear him, ne had never gone ne might go. Wherefore his father oft wept and
sorrowed much at his heart for his deformity, and thought it a reproach to him
to have such one disfigured born of his blood. For he lay on the earth and in
the ashes, wallowing and addressing him against the wall, desiring by nature to
help him, but might and power failed him. Then his father and mother vowed him
to S Clare that he should be her servant if by her prayers and merits he might
be healed. And as soon as the father and mother had made their vow, the holy
virgin healed her servant, so that he had his right limbs and went upright. And
anon the father and mother led him to Saint Clare, which went leaping and
running, praising our Lord and thanking him, and then the father and mother
offered him to our Lord.
Another miracle.
There was a woman of the
castle of Bruane named Pleniere which had been long sick in her reins, in such
wise that she might not go without help, ne address her but with great pain,
and was all crooked. It happed that on a Friday she did her to be borne to the
tomb of Saint Clare and prayed her right devoutly that she would help her. And
it happed as she prayed she was suddenly made all whole. And on the morn that
was Saturday, she went upright all whole on her feet home to her house, whereas
the day tofore she was borne for feebleness.
Of her that was healed of
the escroceles.
There was a maid of the
land of Perugia which had her throat greatly swollen of a malady called
escroceles, which she had long, and had about her neck and throat a twenty
botches called glanders, so that her neck seemed greater than her head. And oft
she had been led to Saint Clare, and the father and mother of the maid had
prayed her devoutly to heal their daughter. And it happed on a night as the
maid lay tofore the tomb she began to sweat, and the escroceles and the malady
began to mollify, and to remove, and anon after, the malady vanished away all
clean, and so net that, by the merits of Saint Clare there nas seen sign ne
token thereof.
Of a sister of the order.
One of the sisters of the
order of Saint Clare, in the time that she lived, had such a malady in her
throat, which sister was named Andrea, but it was of one thing marvel, how that
among the sisters which were as precious stones, all full of the fervent love
of the Holy Ghost, that such one that was so cold might dwell among them as was
this Andrea, so foolish, that dishonoureth the other virgins. Then it happed on
a night that she distrained herself by the throat that she was almost
estrangled, which thing Saint Clare saw and knew by the Holy Ghost, and said to
one of her sisters: Now go hastily and take a soft egg and bear it to sister
Andrea of Ferrara for to rume her throat, and come again and bring her with
thee hither to me. And then she hasted her and found the same Andrea, that she
might not speak, for she had almost strangled her with her own hands. And she
relieved her as well as she might, and brought her to her good mother. Then
Saint Clare said to her: Thou caitiff, go and confess thee of thine evil
thoughts, and I wot well that our Lord will heal thee, but amend thy life that
thou mayest die of some other malady than this which thou hast suffered so
long. And anon as Saint Clare had said these words she began to repent her with
good heart, and amended her life marvellously, and was all healed of the
escroceles, by the grace of God, but she died anon after of another malady.
Of a wolf that bare away
a child.
In the land of Assisi
there was a wolf over sore cruel, which tormented the country and the people
and ran upon them and slew and ate them. So there was a woman named Gallane of
the Mount of Gallum which had children, and the wolf had ravished and borne
away one of them, and had eaten him, wherefore she wept oft. And on a time the
wolf came for his prey as he had done tofore for to devour some child. And it
happed that this woman was busy in her work which she had in hand, and one of
her sons went out, and anon, the wolf caught him by the head and ran with him
towards the wood. And a man that was among the vines labouring, heard the child
bray otherwise than he had heard any, and came running to the mother of the
child, and bade her see if she had all her children, for he said that he had
heard the cry of a child otherwise than they be woned to cry. And anon the
mother looked and saw that the wolf had ravished her child, and went towards
the wood with him like as he did with that other, and cried also high as she
might cry: Ah! glorious virgin Saint Clare, save my child and keep him, and if
thou do not I shall go drown myself. And therewith the neighbours came out and
ran after the wolf, and found the child, whom the wolf had left, and a hound
beside him licking his wounds. For the wolf had first taken him by the head,
and after took him by the reins, for the more easilier to bear him. and the
biting of his teeth appeared both in the head and reins. And then the mother
went with him to Saint Clare that had so well holpen her, and brought with her
her neighbours, and showed the wounds of the child to all them that would see
them, and thanked God and Saint Clare that she had her child again rendered to
her.
There was a maid of the
castle Convary which sat on a time in a field, and another woman had laid her
head in her lap. And in the mean while there came a wolf which was accustomed
to run on the people, and came to this maid and swallowed the visage and all
the mouth and so ran with her toward the wood. And the good woman that rested
in her lap when she saw it, was much abashed and began to call on Saint Clare
and said: Help! help! Saint Clare, and succour us, I recommend to thee at this
time this maid. And she whom the wolf bare, said unto the wolf: Art not thou
afeard to bear me any farther that am recommended to so great and worthy lady?
And with that word that the maid said, the wolf, all confused and shamed, set
softly the maid down, and fled away like a thief, and so she was delivered.
Then let us pray unto this glorious virgin Saint Clare to be our advocate in
all our needs; and by the merits of her we may so amend our life in this world
that we may come unto everlasting life and bliss in heaven. Amen.
SOURCE : https://catholicsaints.info/the-golden-legend-the-life-of-saint-clare/
Santa
Clara de Asís. Iglesia de San Francisco y Santa Clara de Asís, Santa Rosa de
Osos.
Stories
of the Saints for Children – Saint Claire
Favorino Sciffi and his
wife, Ortolana, lived in a castle near the town of Assisi. They were nobly born
and wealthy. He was a brave warrior, and she a pious woman, given to works of
mercy and charity. Yet, with all these blessings, there was one they desired
which God had withheld, for no children’s faces gladdened their home.
At length Ortolana went
on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land, and at Bethlehem prayed earnestly, that if it
was God’s holy Will, she might no longer be childless, and, as an answer to her
request, a daughter was born to her, whom she was directed by Heaven to name Clare.
The little infant seemed
to bring joy and blessing with her; and as she grew up, it was plain that God’s
favours had been early bestowed upon her, for even as a tiny child, she showed
a remarkable spirit of penance, refusing herself everything she did not strictly
need, for the sake of others, and trying to live retired from human notice, for
Christ alone. On reaching the age of reason her love of God became more ardent,
and the more she thought of Him so much more did she grow to hate herself.
To accord with her rank,
the wealth of her parents, and what they desired for her, Clare was obliged to
wear rich and costly clothing, but underneath it were rough hair shirts and
other instruments of penance, which she put on for the love of our Lord Jesus
Christ, so that she might never forget His cruel sufferings for her.
When Clare was fifteen
years of age, her parents determined to have her married; but although many
husbands, both rich and noble, were proposed to her, she would not listen to
their entreaties, but begged to be allowed to remain at home while she was
still so young. The cause of this was, that Clare had fixed her mind upon
belonging wholly to God, although as yet she did not know in what way to
sacrifice herself to Him; and when, through a relative, she heard of the holy
Saint Francis, who had left parents, and friends, and home for the love of
Christ, she longed to follow in his footsteps.
At length she went to
speak to him, and poured out all her desires into his ear. But Francis asked a
hard thing, as a test of her sincerity. “Lay aside your rich garments, put on
sackcloth, and go through the town begging alms if you wish me to believe you,”
he said.
Clare never hesitated,
never wavered. She returned at once to her home, wrapped herself in a coarse piece
of sackcloth which covered her, and went through the streets of her native city
asking bread for the love of God.
After seeing her once or
twice more, and feeling convinced that it was really a divine voice which
called her to a life of penance, Francis told her to dress in her richest
clothing upon the coming Palm Sunday, go to church for the blessing of the
palms, and then come to him at Saint Mary of the Angels, where he would give
her the habit of a religious.
Clare obeyed all these
directions, dressed herself with so much care that her mother and her younger
sister were surprised, and then accompanied her friends to the cathedral, after
which she returned home to prepare to leave it for ever. She was in her
eighteenth year when she left her father’s house in secret, and gliding softly
down the castle stairs, escaped by a small side door which was usually open,
but then to her dismay was closed by large stones rolled against it. These,
however, she moved sufficiently to pass through, praying to God, without Whose
help she could not have made her way, and then, with the Mend who had first
told her of Saint Francis, she hurried to the church where he was waiting for
her.
Putting off her rich
dress, she was clothed in a coarse ash-coloured tunic, girded with a thick
cord, her long hair cut off, and a veil put upon her head, and she made her
vows to God, whilst her garments and her jewels were distributed amongst the
poor. Saint Francis placed her in a Benedictine monastery in Assisi, to which
her father pursued her, intending to force her back into the world; but no
entreaties shook her resolve to follow Jesus in poverty and suffering. Then
Favorino threatened to drag her away by violence, but Clare ran to the altar,
and, clinging to it, lifted her veil, showing her head without its covering of
hair, as a proof that she belonged for ever to God, and then her friends left her
and troubled her no more.
Soon afterwards, when
Clare had been removed to another convent, her next sister, Agnes, came to see
her, declaring that she would also give herself entirely to God. Then
Favorino’s anger burst out afresh, and, calling his family together, lie told
them that his second daughter had left her home, and besought them to help him
bring her back.
Twelve strong men went
with the father to the convent, where they asked to see Agnes, and urged her to
return, but when she refused they rushed upon her, seized her by her hair and
dragged her out. “Help, help,” cried the frightened girl, as they forced her
roughly down the mountain path, but there they stayed, for the slight form had
become as heavy as lead at the prayer of her sister Clare, and all their
strength united failed to lift her. One of them, fiercer than the rest, raised
his sword to kill her, but his arm fell withered to his side, and was only
cured later by the intercession of Agnes. Then Clare came forward, and besought
them to spare her the torn and bruised form of her sister, and they departed,
leaving Agnes to rise, all bleeding and wounded, from the ground, to return to
the convent, where Francis gave her to God, clothing her also in the habit of
penance.
These two sisters were to
be the first of that company of poor and holy women who form the Second Order
of Saint Francis, and he placed these at Saint Damian’s, where others joined
them, forming a little community of which Clare was abbess.
Afterwards Agnes was sent
to Florence to commence a house of the same kind there, and thus the sisters
were separated, never meeting again till thirty years later, when the elder was
dying. It was a severe life of penance, prayer, and almost unbroken silence,
but in it both the sisters found great happiness, because God had placed them
there. Clare had so wonderful a spirit of prayer that she would often remain
hours wrapt in the thought of the sacred Passion of Jesus; and when the time
for rest came, she remained with God, and then went to awaken the sisters,
light the lamps, ring the bell, and return to her place for the Divine Office.
The devil tried to hinder the union of her soul with God by appearing to her in
a hideous form, but Clare said:
“They who serve the Lord
need never be afraid,” and he immediately disappeared.
In honour of the Blessed
Sacrament, the Saint spent much time in working for the altar, even when upon
her sick-bed; spinning with her own hands linen for the use of the churches
which needed it.
Though Clare had been
compelled to take the place of abbess, she loved better to serve her sisters
than to command them, and in sickness she waited upon them most patiently and
charitably. Weak as her body was, she treated herself with great severity,
eating only herbs or vegetables, sleeping on the ground with a log of wood for
her pillow, and never even in the coldest weather wearing any covering upon her
feet; yet these mortifications never made her gloomy or unhappy, and her smile
was bright and her voice always cheerful
During the time of Saint
Clare, the Church was persecuted by the Saracens, and the infidel troops
entered Assisi and saw the convent upon the hill before them. They at once
determined to attack it, and choosing a dark night, scaled the high walls and
made their way into the outer court. At their first shout, the hearts of the
defenceless nuns were filled with fear, and they came crowding round the
bedside of the holy abbess, who was sick.
“Fear not, my children,
Jesus will defend you,” she said; and bade them carry her to the convent gate.
They reminded her of the
danger, of her weak health, but it was in vain. Saint Clare made her way to the
battlements, assisted by two of her nuns, but first she knelt before the
Blessed Sacrament and begged Jesus to protect those who were given to Him, and
not allow their fierce and wicked enemies to harm them. As she prayed, a sweet
voice like that of a child seemed to come from the tabernacle. “I will protect
you for ever,” it said. Then the Saint’s confidence grew stronger, and she
cried:
“Lord, defend also this
city which maintains us for the love of Thee.”
To which the silvery
voice answered:
“This city shall suffer,
but it shall be defended by My protection and your prayers.”
Then Clare, full of power
from God, took the remonstrance in her hand, and mounting the wall, held it up
before the eyes of the infidels, who were just going to leap into the inner
court, and, blinded by the light, which streamed in brilliant rays from the
Blessed Sacrament, the terrified men fell back, and the convent was left in
peace.
Once more a troop
encamped beneath the walls of Assisi, under a clever general, but Saint Clare
and her nuns scattered ashes upon their heads, and wept, and sighed before God,
praying for the deliverance of their city, and their supplication prevailed,
and the enemies were driven away utterly defeated.
During a famine the nuns
suffered want as well as the other inhabitants of that part, and at length came
to their last morsel of bread; but Clare gave orders for it to be divided and
one half sent to the friars, whilst the remainder should be distributed amongst
the community in portions.
“But, mother, it will
need the help of a miracle to divide this bread into sufficient pieces,” said
the sister who had received the command; upon which the holy abbess smilingly
bade her do what was told her, and the bread multiplied in her hands, so that there
was enough for the meal of all the sisters that day. Another time oil was
miraculously supplied to them in answer to the prayer of this true servant of
God, who turned to Him in her necessity with such trust and love. When Saint
Clare had passed forty years in poverty and penance she became very feeble, and
grew gradually weaker until her death. During her illness she was always in
prayer or asking to have the sacred Passion of Christ read to her, and as her
hope of leaving the world became surer, the expression of her face grew radiant
with joy.
On the evening of the
10th of August the nuns who were attending her, saw a number of white-robed
virgins appear, following Mary, who entered the poor cell, bent over the dying
Saint, and kissed her lovingly, as the virgins threw a royal mantle over her
worn habit.
Next day Clare died, and
her body was carried to the church where her holy Father Francis had been
carried years before, whilst the entire populace followed in her honour; and
there, some time later, a splendid church was built where her sacred relics
were enshrined, and to which her daughters removed that they might dwell by the
tomb of their mother and foundress, whose virtues had shone so brightly, whose
holiness had brought down God’s blessing upon her Order, and whose name should
live ever to the glory of her Lord throughout the Catholic Church.
– from Stories of the Saints for Children, by Mary F
Seymour
SOURCE : https://catholicsaints.info/stories-of-the-saints-for-children-saint-claire/
Giuseppe Cesari (Il Giuseppino ; Cavaliere
d'Arpino, 1568–1640), St Clare with the Scene of the Siege of Assisi, 37 x 45, Hermitage Museum, Saint
Petersburg
Saint
Clare of Assisi, by Father Dominic Devas, O.F.M.
To visit Jerusalem, Rome
and Assisi for the first time, and all within a month, is to lodge in the mind
a memory not likely soon to be lost. Jerusalem is fortunate in its walls, for
the cramped city, within their narrow compass, retains much of its ancient ways
and antique buildings steeped still and richly with the emotion of bygone
multitudes. Rome is Rome – immortal despite all the ravages of “progress.” Old
and new jostle one another so closely that the atmosphere of antiquity can only
be caught here and there in this quarter or in that building. The prevailing
note is strident and modern. How different is Assisi! As the train moves down
out of the hills and then pushes on discreetly up the wide Umbrian valley, it
seems to know its place and deliberately to refrain from drawing in too closely
to the beautiful white city set midway on the eastern slopes. One feels that a
thirteenth-century friar, whom the Jerusalem of today would mystify and modem
Rome utterly bewilder, would know Assisi at once and be quite at home there.
Comparatively speaking, it has changed little during these intervening
centuries; and even that mingled masterpiece of audacity and calm, the church
and convent of San Francesco, though Francis did not know it, was certainly
known to Saint Clare, even though invisible from her home at Saint Damian’s.
Indeed, Clare had a beauty all her own to gaze at if she would. Most cities,
hurriedly visited, leave in the memory some vivid core or center, that the name
evokes at once and around which the other memories gather tardily and with
effort. For some, at least, the so-called Garden of Saint Clare in the convent
of Saint Damian fulfills that office for Assisi. It is quite tiny, enclosed by
lofty masonry on three sides, but the fourth, bordered by a low wall, looks
straight down on to the beautiful plain or wide valley of Umbria, with the
outline of the far hills rising mistily out of the blue distances and closing
the horizon in – a perfect view quite beyond adequate description in words. It
is a place of utter peace, so calm, so alien to the world’s rough noise and
ceaseless questionings, so responsive to man’s own inward witness to the
invisible that one almost waits for the old door to open softly and to admit
Clare herself to her garden with a greeting for the visitor. That may not be,
but at least one may strive to recall for a while the memory of a very noble
figure in the Franciscan past, and of one whose inspiration, after seven centuries,
still glows in the heroic lives of many generous souls.
Clare was born at Assisi
in July 1194. Her father was called Favarone; her mother’s name was Ortulana.
She had, it would appear, an elder brother called Martin, and in time two
younger sisters, Agnes and Beatrice. There was also an uncle, Monaldo.
Sixteenth and seventeenth century writers, with their insatiable itch for
nobility at all costs, have diligently gotten Clare into the best society. They
present her to us as one of the great Sciffi family. Contemporaries knew
nothing of this; they were, in fact, more like ourselves, and were content when
they found that true nobility of which sanctity is so sure a school, without
bothering to look around for escutcheons. All we really know for certain of
Clare’s family – and it is illuminating enough in view of her subsequent
character – is that she came from great fighting stock. “Pater ejus miles et
tota utroque parente progenies militaris” (Her father was a soldier and her
ancestry on both sides, military). We know also, from the same source, that the
family, from the material point of view, was very well off. One might, then,
hazard the suggestion that Clare’s family at Assisi was of much the same local
standing as that of Antony at Lisbon – of the urban nobility or, as we should
say, of the upper class. How trifling all such inquiries seem when our business
is with a soul of such outstanding “greatness” as that of Clare.
Sanctity ennobles souls
and makes them truly “generosi” (of high birth) no matter what their earthly
origins.
Clare owed much to her
mother, Ortulana, a woman of real piety. In her younger days, Ortulana had been
on pilgrimage to the holy places in Palestine, and to Saint Michael’s shrine in
the south of Italy; and in her day – in marked contrast to our own – to go on
pilgrimage both required and was itself an evidence of a spiritual sincerity of
no common order. Just before Clare’s birth, Ortulana was in church praying
before a crucifix for a safe delivery when an interior voice reassured her. She
was to set all fear aside, for her child would be safely bom and become a great
light in the world. At the child’s baptism in the Cathedral of San Rufino – and
at the same font, still to be seen, wherein Francis was baptized – the little
one received the name of Clare. With a sigh for what is so swiftly passing from
amongst us, we read how Clare learned the “fidei rudimenta” (rudiments of
faith) from her own mother’s lips. No wonder those lessens held so firmly. No
wonder similar lessens are apt to sit so lightly on so many of the modern
generation when they learn these same rudiments of faith along with Latin
grammar, ancient history, and much else. Combining the mdiments of faith with
all that other information often causes all of it, in time, to go the way of
“school stuff,” carrying those rudiments of faith along with it.
As a child, Clare was
unselfishness in giving alms, an early indication of her mastery in the
penances she would impose upon herself. As a child, Clare also showed a
determination to be thorough with God when she counted her little prayers with
loose pebbles to make sure she did not overlook one.
When Clare was about
fifteen years of age, Francis came back from Rome with verbal approval for his
way of life from Pope Innocent III and began gathering followers around him at
his new home – Saint Mary of the Angels, the Portiuncula. Assisi was now
ashamed no longer of her wayward son. Amongst the earliest to be drawn towards
one who was already beginning to lead souls with a touch as sure and direct as
that which the world has seen more lately in the Cure d’Ars, was the young girl
Clare. We have a fine example here of that remarkable insight into the
character Francis possessed, and for which only the tardiest recognition has
been forthcoming. To handle a soul like Clare’s with such unerring skill, such
perfect assurance, and such complete success was a great achievement; and is an
instance alike of the value of sound direction, when it may be had, and of the
chief source of its efficacy. For some three years, Clare, accompanied by her
maid, frequently visited Francis when he was staying at the Portiuncula. There
is little difficulty in following their talk. It was all, as Celano puts it,
“vivo sermone,” (with speech alive and vivacious). Francis spoke to Clare of
the world’s emptiness, of life with God, and of Jesus Christ, “Quern amor humanavit”
(whom love made man).
The issue could hardly be
doubted. On Palm Sunday, 18 March in 1212, Clare, dressed in splendor beyond
the ordinary, went with the crowds to the cathedral for the distribution of
palms. When the time came to receive her palm, she felt she could not rise with
the rest and move up towards the sanctuary. Issues so vast and novel for this
girl of eighteen were to be put to the test that night. Therefore, it hardly
surprises us to find her here, for once in her life, overwrought. The
chronicler quietly covers all with a discreet “prae verecundia” (just shyness)
and there she remained in her place, more conspicuous now than ever. The Bishop
of Assisi was officiating. This was Guido, true friend of both Francis and
Clare, and close sharer of their counsels. Seeing Clare still kneeling in her
place, he came down the sanctuary and placed the blessed palm into her hand. It
came to her from God’s minister as a pledge of conflict and of victory. That
night, with one to bear her company, Clare left her home by a disused door and
came straight to Francis at the little chapel of Saint Mary of the Angels. He
and the brothers were waiting with torches to receive her. She came to the tiny
altar, and, at the hands of Francis, vowed herself to God absolutely,
irrevocably, keeping nothing back. The actions were swift, but the work itself
unhurried. Three years had gone to the fashioning of it, years of prayer,
reflection and wise counsel; and now at length the gauge Christ had cast into
that generous soul was taken up and His gentle challenge, Come, follow Me, met.
And it was at Mary’s own shrine that the dedication was made, so that, as the
Chronicler puts it, Mary might become the Mother of this family also, the
religious daughters of Clare; as already she was the Mother of the family which
Francis had gathered around this little chapel of hers in the woods.
When the ceremony was
over and Clare had set aside her worldly adornments, she was conducted at once
to a neighboring convent of Benedictine nuns, dedicated to Saint Paul. Soon
enough her warlike relatives discovered her retreat and appeared at Saint
Paul’s, determined to regain her, by force if need be. Clare was adamant,
clinging to the very coverings of the altar, and baring her head that all might
see it, shorn in token of her consecration. The conflict continued for several
days, when at length, realizing the futility of trying to shake her resolution,
her relatives left her in peace to God, and returned to Assisi. In reality,
this strange scene – soon to be repeated in the case of Clare’s sister and with
even greater violence – is very typical of an age wherein thought was the handmaid
of action and not – as so often today – its substitute. One remembers Saint
Bernard and the opposition he met with and triumphed over so completely, or the
revolting endeavors employed to hamper the young Thomas Aquinas in achieving
his purpose, to see how this sort of physical constraint was common enough.
Today it finds its softened counterpart in the worldwise endeavors to distract
from foolish visions of the cloister those whose future careers we have
hopefully mapped out on other lines. There is nothing anti-clerical in either
case, but just two different fashions of showing displeasure at personal
disappointment. Shortly after this conflict – likely enough because of it, for
it greatly disturbed the peace of the house, and, who knows, might perhaps have
been renewed – Clare moved to the convent of Saint Angelo di Panso, which was
also Benedictine. Here she made her earliest conquest.
Between Clare and her
younger sister, Agnes, there had long existed a complete harmony of thought and
will. The latter shared in all her sister’s hopes and plans, and must have
known full well of her devotion to Francis and of her purpose to consecrate her
life to God under his guidance. Once the venture had been made, Clare did not
cease to pray for Agnes that she might soon join her. Her prayers were heard;
and we are thus confronted with the first notable instance of the wonderful
efficacy of Clare’s prayer. Little more than a fortnight after Clare herself
had left her home, and whilst she was still with the Benedictine nuns of Saint
Angelo di Panso, Agnes fled alone and in secret from the house of Assisi and
joined her sister. It was 2 April 1212, and she was fifteen years of age.
Most people are familiar
with the scene that followed and the violent efforts – miraculously frustrated
– that were made to drag the unwilling Agnes away from the life of her choice.
During all the shouting and tumult, Clare prayed, and praying won. The only
consoling feature in this brutal assault on one so young is the absence of the immediate
family of Clare. The villain of the piece was the uncle, Monaldo, who
disappears henceforward from history. Let us hope the double miracle, the
sudden weight of Agnes so that strong men could not lift her, and his own arm
raised to strike and itself struck temporarily useless and for long afterwards
often in pain, might have helped turn his mind to better things. Such events,
however, were disquieting for the generous hosts of the two sisters, and
doubtless served to hasten on the needful work of preparation going on all the
while at Saint Damian’s, Assisi. A few days after the rough scene with Agnes,
all was sufficiently ready and the two sisters entered the walls of that
historic house, still redolent of Francis’s own work and rich with his prophetic
utterance that soon it would shelter holy women dedicated to God.
At the convent of Saint
Damian, then, just outside the walls of her native town, in the same eventful
year of 1212, Clare dropped anchor at last. In the beautiful words of her first
biographer, “broke the alabaster vase of her body so the whole church was
filled with the odor of the ointment.” That this was not merely rhetoric is
shown by the number of those who came so soon to Saint Damian’s to associate
themselves with Clare and Agnes in their new life. It is also equally shown in
the strange, indefinable way in which Clare’s influence and example reached,
entered, and permeated other convents of women, who were already pursuing an
ordered way of life and who had already been long established in the Church,
and led to their inclusion in the new Order.
Once enclosed within the
walls of her new home, Clare never left it; and it now remains to treat – and
how superficial, even at the best, must such treatment be – of the forty years
and more she spent there. As one looks back over these seven hundred years of
Franciscan history, Clare still towers over it all serene and radiant, with
something of that brilliance which so plainly impressed those of her own day.
She was of the very few in whom Francis found an utterly congenial spirit, and
among these very few she entered as fully as any into the Franciscan ideal; she
was a perfect flower on the Franciscan tree. Saint Bonaventure tells us that
Francis aimed at combining in his Order three hitherto disparate movements.
1) He would have the
following of Christ in an ordered conventual life, such as he established at
Saint Mary of the Angels.
2) He would add a measure
of the eremitical life by initiating such solitary homes as those of the Carceri
or La Verna.
3) On this twin basis, he
would build up a vast missionary enterprise that would stretch out brave arms
to the most remote corners of the known world.
That Clare, enclosed at
Saint Damian’s, could share in the ideals of conventual life and retirement is
plain enough, but, for her, life was also to be apostolic. Clare’s old friend,
Cardinal Ugolino, now Pope Gregory IX, would often appeal to Clare for help in
the many cares and difficulties of his pontificate. As the chronicler puts it, “sciebat
enim quid potest amor,” (he knew the power of love), and looked to Clare and
her daughters to help the Church everywhere by their apostolate of prayer and
sacrifice. One is reminded at once of an earlier Gregory, the seventh, the
great and saintly Hildebrand, and of his beautiful letters to the monastic
house he loved so well, to Cluny and its abbot, Hugh . Hugh is implored to
secure the prayers of those ‘whose holy lives assure fulfillment’ for himself
as representing that ‘universal mother’, the Church. And again one is reminded
of our late Holy Father Pope Pius XI, and of the confidence he assured us he
felt in these other martyrs, as admirable and so numerous, who are hidden
within the cloister of a religious house . . . innocent victims indeed, with no
other desire save to turn aside from the world – as many times they have done –
the rigors of divine justice Clare was well aware of this and of the work for
souls that lay at her hands to do. Her cloistered life was no life of idle
dreaming, aloof from the world’s cares and the countless needs of souls. We
have a tiny but vivid illustration of this in a later incident in Clare’s life.
Assisi was being beset by
a marauding band, nominally Imperial troops, under the immediate command of one
Vitalis de Ad versa. Saint Damian’s itself – we shall see why later – they
would not touch, but the walled city was thought to be an easier objective than
any convent of women with someone like Clare within. Yet, in attacking the
city, they were still reckoning with Clare. The needs of Assisi were ever her
own, and so she set herself with her daughters to pray earnestly for its
safety. The bandits found, to their surprise, that they could make no headway
against the city, and soon abandoned the assault and went elsewhere for easier
conquests.
It was certainly a
delight for the inmates of Saint Damian’s to listen as they did, from behind
the grille, to the accounts the friars brought to them of the labors and even
the martyrdom of the sons of Francis in distant lands. Their interest did not
end there. By prayer, love, and sacrifice they entered into those very labors
themselves. Though she emphasized the life of contemplative solitude, Clare was
not, and her family never was, aloof from Franciscan activities. In his anxious
musings as to whether he should surrender his active life for the delights he
so relished of complete retirement, it was to Clare that Francis turned
instinctively for guidance. From Clare he received the only answer a real
Franciscan could give, “non sibi soli vivere sed aliis proficere,” as the
liturgy puts it; i.e., to live for others rather than himself. And Clare’s
advice to Francis has become timeless and for all.
Clare was always cheerful
in look as well as manner, and Francis in his sorrows felt, like many others,
the consoling and uplifting force that emanated from her. It was in a hut, by
night, in the garden of Saint Damian’s, that Francis, suffering sorely in the
eyes, and sleepless and worried with the rats which infested the place, revealed
his yet untroubled soul in the sweet, brief Canticle of Praise. And if the
charming legend that tells of Clare leaving Saint Damian’s to sup with Francis
and the brethren at the Portiuncula lacks historic foundation, it does
emphasize the truth of the perfect harmony that knit together these two great
souls and of the immense help each drew from the other in their persevering
loyalty to great ideals. The wood around Saint Mary of the Angels, all
brilliantly lit that night with a supernatural glow, which brought the
neighboring peasants, as the legend tells us, in hot haste with water to
extinguish the fancied conflagration, is but a telling symbol of that warmth of
love that true Franciscanism was in fact to carry throughout the world. These
holy souls loved the world too much to remain in it and be served by it; and so
they left it that, aloof from it, they might serve it the better.
As numbers grew, Clare –
all unwillingly – accepted the inevitable office of Superior which Francis
wished her to hold, and became the first Abbess in the new Order. She was an
ideal Superior, for she recognized at the outset that “office” implies not more
liberty for self but more devoted service to others. She led, and therefore
never needed to drive. She had the discerning eye that detects at once the
genuinely sick and was prompt to succor them with liberal dispensations.
Equally, she knew when any were discouraged, and comforted them out of the
strength of her own brave heart. She was ready on occasion to rise and rouse
from sleep the younger ones, and then to hasten herself to the little choir to
light the lamps for the Night Office, that grand prayer of the Church she loved
so well and of the efficacy of which she was so completely assured.
On cold nights, she would
steal quietly amongst her sisters, as they slept, and adjust the coverings to
keep them warm. Despite much sickness, she was untiring in manual work
especially in weaving corporals and making silk burses to be distributed
amongst poor churches.
Her teaching mirrored her
life. She spoke of self-mastery and of the need of penance, but wisely, with
detail adjusted to the individual. Because she knew some practice to be wise in
her own case, she did not conclude at once that it must be wise for all. One
can see her smile when an over-zealous sister who had been allowed to have her
own way and borrow Clare’s hair-shirt, returned it to her within three days
with no more to say upon the subject. Much more anxious was she to ensure in
her community peace of heart and that spirit of detachment from home and
country that does not diminish our love for these but rises to a higher level
than ever the charity we have for all. There were miracles, too, to enhance, if
need be, the position Clare came to hold both within and outside her cloister.
The bread was multiplied on one occasion, the oil on another. This latter was
particularly remembered because, before Clare had appeared on the scene, the
anxious sister in charge had sent an urgent message to the lay brother, whose business
it was to go on quest for the nuns, to come at once. This he did, but on his
arrival discovered, to his annoyance, that his hot haste had been needless.
Clare had forestalled him, and he was not wanted after all. Little wonder he
found the sister’s joke – as he thought it – rather out of place.
It would be a difficult
thing to speak of Clare’s prayers, as also of her temptations. Even had she
possessed and used that gift of descriptive writing and intimate self-
revelation that distinguished Saint Teresa of Avila, it would remain true of
Clare, as it still remains true of Teresa, that of these things, by far the
greater part must ever be ” the secrets of the King” known only to Christ and
to the soul.
Like Saint Francis,
veritable Apostle of the Holy Eucharist in the thirteenth century, Clare also
had a great devotion to the Blessed Sacrament. This has become immortalized in
a famous scene, often reproduced on stone and canvas. The earliest life of the
saint makes it quite evident that Clare did not actually carry the pyx or
ciborium containing the Blessed Sacrament – though we may easily pardon this
later adornment of the story – but she accompanied the chaplain, whom she had
summoned that he might confront the rough intruders with Him in whom all her
confidence lay. It was a bold, unprecedented step; but it throws into high
relief Clare’s simple, childlike grasp of spiritual realities. As she stood
erect and imperturbable for one tense moment facing the mob, she heard a tiny
voice, as of a little child, saying, “I shall shield you always.” The triumph
was complete and instantaneous. The wild Saracen auxiliaries, in the pay of
Frederick II, who had thus rudely attempted, as they roved lustful and
undisciplined over the countryside, to assault the calm of Saint Damian’s, fled
pell-mell from the scene, utterly overwhelmed by the two silent figures and the
sacred burden they bore. Emperor Frederick was at the time in one of his bouts
of fruitless hostility toward the Holy See and Assisi and its district were
under Papal suzerainty.
Although this well-known
incident has rightly grouped Saint Clare among the many saints who showed
conspicuous devotion to the Blessed Sacrament, her love was far from depending
on such unexpected crises. It was with Clare as with Francis; devotion to the
Blessed Sacrament glowed warm and life-long in her soul, and marked emphasis is
laid by the chronicler on her Holy Communions. Another devotion remarked in
Clare was to the Sacred Passion, and embedded therein a special love of the
Five Wounds – that grand old devotion once so popular in Catholic England.
There is extant a Prayer in Honor of the Five Wounds of Christ, attributed to
our saint, but its authenticity is doubtful.
With all her tenderness
and deep piety Clare was, however, a very determined woman, with a very strong
will, definitely knowing her own mind, and overriding opposition with a strong
hand even though it lay in high quarters. When, on one occasion, whatever the
reason; the chaplain, Father Philip d’Andria, was withdrawn from Saint
Damian’s, Clare was stirred to immediate action, and forced the issue at once
by dismissing the lay brothers who, in those times, were allotted to the
convent to ‘quest’ alms for the sisters. Clare relished the conferences of Father
Philip “If our spiritual nourishment is to be neglected,” was her argument,
“let them trouble no more about our corporal sustenance.” The Clares could not
be left to die of starvation; a chaplain was reappointed and the brothers
resumed their very essential duties.
More striking still was
Clare’s attitude in the matter of poverty. Nothing would move her in her
determination to win and to hold the unusual privilege of having no conventual
property at all. Innocent III, tentatively, and probably only by word of mouth,
acceded to her wish; but Gregory IX definitely proposed that, in view of their
circumstances, some material source of regular revenue was most desirable. No,
Clare would have none of it.
“If it is your vow that
makes you anxious,” said the Pope, “I can dispense you from that.”
“Holy Father,” replied
the saint, “I have no sort of desire to be dispensed from the lifelong
following of Christ.”
Wise Pope Gregory – who
knew courage when he met with it and prized it at its right worth – left it at that.
Then, as Clare lay dying, Pope Innocent IV visited her and left to her in
writing the Holy See’s assent to her cherished Privilege of Poverty. She had
strained for this all her life. Now at last it was hers, and she was utterly at
peace.
The years moved swiftly
on. After her husband’s death, Ortulana joined her daughter at Saint Damian’s.
Clare had great supernatural powers from God and to be marked by her with the
Sign of the Cross was a swift way to relief from mental or physical suffering.
Sometimes Clare would send the sufferer to her mother so Ortulana might mark
the Cross on the brow of the patient, and thus vicariously was the work of
healing done. Francis himself had unbounded confidence in Clare’s power of
intercession, and on one occasion sent to her a Brother Stephen who was much
afflicted in mind.
He returned to Francis
completely cured. The sign of the Cross worked wonders at Saint Damian’s, and
both Agnes and Ortulana were often the vehicles of God’s mercy to the stricken.
What was the Rule of Life
followed at Saint Damian’s? This question, if pursued, would lead us into a
great morass of discussion and argument. It is enough to recall two established
facts. Clare certainly received a Rule of Life of some kind from Saint Francis
not long after settling at Saint Damian’s, and it can hardly be doubted that,
apart from recognizing the wholly enclosed life of the Sisters, it resembled
the Rule of Life he had given the friars themselves. As with them, so with the
Clares, oral approval from Pope Innocent III must suffice. Mention is made of
this rule later on by Pope Gregory IX in a letter he wrote to Blessed Agnes of
Bohemia. He speaks there of the “formula vita” (way of life) that Francis had
given to Clare and her daughters at Saint Damian’s. Then, before the saint’s
death, a definite rule was drawn up under her direction and fully in accord
with her life-long hopes and ideals; and this was confirmed in writing by Pope
Innocent IV in 1253.
The entire exterior
fabric of Poor Clare life is “contemplative.” Its whole purpose is to
facilitate and foster the contemplative life of each individual nun. It is bent
uniquely to that goal. Yet, this is far from implying that it is the one
exclusive path thereto. The interior life with God is open to every sincere
soul whether in the world or in the cloister. We have universities everywhere
that profess to be seats of learning, to encourage and to provide special
facilities for the acquisition of learning. Yet, learning may be pursued
elsewhere by all with the necessary aptitude and desire for it. So it is in the
things of the spirit. A “contemplative order” claims no monopoly on
contemplation. Yet, its purpose is to eliminate as many obstacles as possible
and to provide as many helps as possible to enable its members to develop a
deep interior life. In a word, as our Lord once said to Saint Margaret of
Cortona, it is to be a “collegium divini amoris” (a university of the love of
God), helping those who live in it, and inspiring emulation from those who are outside.
It now remains to speak
of Clare’s wonderful and most happy death in August 1253.
She had long been ailing
and often in pain, but now at last it was evident that the end was near. It is
astonishing to read of the many and distinguished visitors who felt it a
privilege to be able to visit the dying saint. Nothing shows more clearly, how
deeply her example and her long cloistered life, and her fine personality,
which no mere walls could close in, had impressed all classes round about her
little convent. The odor of the ointment had indeed filled all God’s house. She
lives in the pages of Celano, more vividly than ever as death draws near. Her
words remained indelibly imprinted upon the minds of all who heard her.
The Franciscan priest,
Father Raynaldo, came to condole with her in her sufferings and – most
foolishly – to exhort Clare of all people to the anemic virtue of mere
resignation.
To this, she replied,
“Father, since, through His servant Francis, I came to know the sweetness of my
Lord Jesus Christ, no trial has ever been a burden to me, no austerity has ever
been irksome to me, no sickness, my dearest Brother, has ever been bitter to
me.”
Her words are almost
fierce in their vigor and martial in their ring. They unveil for us very
clearly a splendid example of the “mulier fords” (strong woman) of Holy
Scripture. They reveal the fact, so often overlooked, that for soft,
languishing, sentimental souls, the convent offers no refuge at all.
A visitor of another kind
was Brother Juniper. What a joy it is to find him portrayed here – as he really
was – “egregius Domini Jaculator” (Christ’s Lancer), full of quick wit and very
human sympathies, but far from being the mere knockabout comedian he is
described elsewhere.
When he entered the
sickroom, Clare jokingly greeted him by asking what spiritual toy he had up his
sleeve. As all the saints have a way of talking deeply without being solemn and
ponderous, the conversation that followed between these two grand souls was of
just that sort, and it left Clare wonderfully comforted.
Another visitor was
Cardinal Raynaldo, Bishop of Ostia, who later became Pope Alexander IV. He gave
Clare Holy Communion and later preached words of comfort to all her nuns. He
was the Order’s Protector, and Clare profited by his visit to implore him to do
his utmost to win for her definite and official assent to her cherished
Privilege of Poverty. He promised and succeeded.
Finally, Pope Innocent IV
himself visited. Here, indeed, we have the climax of this great stream of visitors,
drawn, as by a magnet, to Saint Damian’s. A personal visit from the Pope
himself was an absolute unprecedented honor done to the dying Clare. On the
morning of the day he came, Clare received Holy Communion at the hands of the
Minister Provincial. When the Pope entered her cell, he drew near the couch on
which the saint lay, and, with immense reverence, she kissed his feet. Once was
not enough; and, to satisfy her ardor, he raised his foot onto a little foot
stool, so she might more easily reach and kiss it again. Clare’s love of the
Holy See was very real and most ardent, as was that of Francis, and her loyalty
was absolute. The Pope knew this, and by such courtesy, acknowledged it. She
then begged the Holy Father to grant her, in God’s name, full forgiveness for
all her sins.
“Would my need was as
yours,” he answered, and willingly gave her plenary absolution. Before he left,
Clare received from him that cherished approbation from the Holy See of her
Order and of her beloved Poverty. No wonder, when all was over and Clare could
reflect in peace on the events of that great day, that she expressed her sense
of immense privilege in having been allowed with so short a space to receive
her Lord and Master in Holy Communion, and then to have seen His Vicar on
earth. As ever, Clare’s thoughts could not rest for long upon herself. She had
others and the future in mind. From her sick bed, Clare, like Francis before
her, blessed from her heart all houses of Clares “actual or to be.”
Still the stream of
visitors flowed in and out. Now that the end was so plainly at hand, a few
privileged ones remained, notably those famous sons of Francis, Leo and Angelo.
It was a wonderful group, for we must remember that Agnes was with them at
Saint Damian’s again. As is natural, Agnes felt most the coming separation.
“Do not weep,” Clare says
to her. “Soon will you follow me.” Then the dying saint murmurs on, half to
herself, hardly aware of others. “Go forth with confidence,” they hear her
repeat. “Go forth with confidence; thou hast a good guide for the road. Go
forth, for He who created thee has sanctified thee; He watches over thee; and,
as a mother her child, so He too with tender love has cherished thee. Blessed art
Thou, my Lord, my Creator.”
As the last moments draw
near we are not surprised to find how thin grow the veils hiding from human
eyes God’s invisible creation around us. The dying have sight more keen than
the living. To the dying Clare comes the vision splendid of the King.
Enraptured, she gazes forward then turns to the sister at her side, “Daughter,”
she whispers, “do you see, as I, the King of Glory?” Then, suddenly she is
struck, as with a blow, by a shaft of intense sorrow. How can littleness, such
as hers, ever have access to such splendor? Averted eyes move towards the open
doorway of her cell. Lo! It is filled with Angels grouped together, white and
brilliant, and in their midst, Mary. The Blessed Virgin draws near the bed,
bends over it, and kisses the dying saint. In that flood of Heavenly radiance, Clare
passes. It is 11 August, the morrow of Saint Laurence’s day.
The burial was a triumph.
One might have fancied some great prince was being carried to his grave, so
vast and distinguished was the gathering. Innocent IV was there and many
Cardinals. In fact, the Pope was so carried away by his enthusiastic faith in
Clare’s sanctity that, but for Cardinal Raynaldo, who deemed it premature, he
would have substituted in the burial service the Office of Virgins for the
usual Office for the Dead.
All went forward,
however, as prescribed in the Ritual. The body of the saint was taken to the
Church of Saint George, or probably, to the little chapel adjoining, in which
the body of Saint Francis had rested for four years. When, for greater
security, the Clares later moved to Saint George from their convent of Saint
Damian, this little chapel was incorporated into their new home; and the body
of Clare rests there to this day.
Two years later, and
after the usual careful investigation into the many miracles wrought by the
saint, Clare was solemnly canonized at Anagni by her old friend Cardinal
Raynaldo, reigning now as Pope Alexander IV.
NOTE – Recent research
has established the fact that, during the communal rising at Assisi, in the
beginning of the thirteenth century, Clare’s family was among those forced to
take refuge in Perugia, and their house in Assisi was sacked. Clare, then,
certainly spent some of her childhood years in Perugia and it is likely that
her warlike father and uncle were engaged in the victorious battle of 1202
against the communal forces of Assisi in whose ranks the young Francis himself
was fighting, and in which he was made prisoner. When hostilities were over,
one of the conditions imposed on Assisi was to allow the peaceable return of those
who had been driven out. Thus the same occasion brought back, though in very
different groups, both Francis and Clare to their native town and Assisi, even
in those distant days, could watch the return of prisoners-of-war and displaced
persons.
SOURCE : https://catholicsaints.info/saint-clare-of-assisi-by-father-dominic-devas-o-f-m/
Alfred Ernest Child (1875–1939), St. Brendan's Cathedral, Loughrea, County Galway, Ireland. Two-light stained glass window in the south wall of the east transept by Alfred Ernest Child, depicting Saints Clare and Francesca. This work was created in the An Túr Gloine workshop in Dublin in 1927–29. (See Nicola Gordon Bowe et al, Gazetteer of Irish Stained Glass, ISBN 0-7165-2413-9, p. 57.)
Alfred Ernest Child (1875–1939), St. Brendan's Cathedral, Loughrea, County Galway, Ireland. Detail of the left light of the two-light stained glass window in the south wall of the east transept by Alfred Ernest Child, depicting St. Clare carrying a ciborium. This work was created in the An Túr Gloine workshop in Dublin in 1927–29. (See Nicola Gordon Bowe et al, Gazetteer of Irish Stained Glass, ISBN 0-7165-2413-9, p. 57.)
Virgin Saints
and Martyrs – Saint Clara
It has been often
remarked how that a saint who initiates a reform, or does some great work, has
a faithful woman to assist, or carry on his work, and complete it. What he
designed for all alike, he was competent only to apply to men, and she carried
out his ideas among women. Thus Saint Bridget supplemented the achievements of
Saint Patrick, and Saint Hilda those of Saint Aidan. Benedict’s twin sister
Scholastica worked side by side with her brother; and, as we shall now see,
Saint Clara was the spiritual sister and help-mate of Saint Francis. The moon,
according to David, is an ever faithful witness in heaven; and yet the moon
wanes and for a time disappears. The moon much resembles the Church.
“The moon above, the
Church below,
A wondrous race they run;
And all their radiance,
all their glow,
Each borrows from its
sun.”
As the moon wanes, so
there are periods when the Church proves dull, dark, and without much token of
spiritual life; but this is for a time only, and precedes a restoration of
illumination. The period when Saint Francis appeared was one of those of
darkness in the Church. The enthusiastic faith of the barbarian kings and
nobles, bred of the self-devotion and earnestness of the first missionaries
among them, had led to their endowing the Church largely. This was done to
enable her to carry on the great work of evangelisation without care for the
material concerns of life. But it led to an unfortunate result. As the
bishoprics were wealthy, and seats of power, ambitious and greedy men of the
noble class rushed into Holy Orders for the sake of these material advantages,
and in entire disregard of the religious responsibilities attached to such
offices. And as with the prelates, so with the clergy. They seemed to think
that the things of Jesus Christ were best served by making themselves
comfortable; they were ignorant, careless, and worldly. The great ecclesiastics
made a display of their wealth, and exercised their power tyrannically. “The
Church might still seem to preach to all,” says Dean Milman; “but it preached
in a tone of lofty condescension, it dictated rather than persuaded; but, in
general, actual preaching had fallen into disuse; it was in theory the special
privilege of the bishops, and the bishops were but few who had either the gift,
the inclination, or the leisure from their secular, judicial, or warlike
occupations to preach even in their cathedral cities; in the rest of their
dioceses their presence was but occasional – a progress or visitation of pomp
and form, rather than of popular instruction. The only general teaching of the
people was the ritual.
“But the splendid ritual,
admirably as it was constituted to impress by its words or symbolic forms the
leading truths of Christianity upon the more intelligent, or in a vague way
upon the more rude and uneducated, could be administered, and was administered,
by a priesthood almost entirely ignorant, but which had learned mechanically,
not without decency, perhaps not without devotion, to go through the stated
observances. Everywhere the bell summoned to the frequent service, the service
was performed, and the obedient flock gathered to the chapel or the church, knelt,
and either performed their orisons or heard the customary chant and prayer.
This, the only instruction which the mass of the priesthood could convey, might
for a time be sufficient to maintain in the minds of the people a quiescent and
submissive faith, nevertheless, in itself, could not but awaken in some a
desire of knowledge, which it could not satisfy…. And just at this time the
popular mind throughout Christendom seemed to demand instruction. There was a
wide and vague awakening and yearning of the human intellect. Here that which
was heresy stepped in and seized upon the vacant mind. Preaching in public and
in private was the strength of all the heresiarchs, of all the sects.
Eloquence, popular eloquence, became a new power which the Church had comparatively
neglected or disdained, since the time of the Crusades. The Patropassians, the
Henricians, the followers of Peter Waldo, and the wilder teachers at least,
tinged with the old Manichaean tenets of the East, met on this common ground.
They were poor and popular; they felt with the people, whether the lower
burghers of the cities, the lower vassals, or even the peasants and serfs; they
spoke the language of the people, they were of the people. All these sects were
bound together by their common aversion to the clergy – not only the wealthy,
worldly, immoral, tyrannical, but the decent yet inert priesthood, who left the
uninstructed souls of men to perish.”
It was when, apparently,
the bulk of the population was hesitating whether to break away from the
Church, and when certain ardent spirits began to question whether the Church
could be the Kingdom of God, wherein appeared so much of evil, that almost
simultaneously two men stood forth to arrest the evil. The story was told
afterwards that the pope in a dream had seen the Church under the form of a
building tottering to its fall, but that two men rushed forward and sustained
it. These men were Dominic and Francis. The former founded an order of
preachers, by which Christendom in the West was overspread with a host of
zealous, active, and devoted men, whose function was popular instruction.
Francis, seeing the
universal greed after lands and money, took the vow of poverty, made that a
capital point in his institution. The grasping after possessions should never
curse his society, and he donned, and made his disciples don, the poor, coarse
dress of the common labourer, to show that they were to be ever of the people,
and for the people, even for the lowest. And he aimed first of all to encourage
piety – the striving of the soul after God – and to show that within the Church
that flame could burn brightest and give out most heat. But he taught as well.
It was due to his great desire to bring home to the people the truth of the
Incarnation, that he devised the crèche of Christmas, and composed the first
Christmas carols. And he was a preacher – fervent, inspired, convincing. His
heart so overflowed with love, that even birds and beasts were attracted to
him, and his love extended to them – “his sisters and brothers,” as he termed
them.
The story of the
conversion of Saint Francis, the wealthy merchant’s son, is well known. He was
a young man, just at the age when the deepest feelings of man’s nature begin to
make themselves articulate. One evening he was revelling with his companions of
the same age with himself. When supper was over, the merry party dashed out of
the hot, lighted room into the open air. The dark indigo-blue vault of heaven
overhead was besprent with myriads of stars, and Francis suddenly halted,
looked up, and remained silent in contemplation of this wondrous canopy.
“What ails you, Francis?”
asked one of the revellers.
“He is star-gazing for a
wife,” joked another.
“Ah!” said Francis
gravely, “for a wife past all that your imagination can conceive.”
His soul with
inarticulate cravings strained after something higher than a merchant’s life
behind a counter, a nobler life than revelling and drunkenness. Then probably
he first conceived the idea of embracing poverty, and of devoting his whole
life to his poor brothers.
The first great gathering
of the Order he founded was in 1212, and that same year saw the establishment
of a sisterhood in connection with the Society. It came about thus: –
Favorino Scefi was a man
of noble family in Assisi, given to the profession of arms, and a good
swordsman; his wife, Hortulana, had presented him with three daughters, Clara, Agnes,
and Beatrix, but no son.
One day – it was Palm
Sunday – in the before-mentioned year, when Clara was aged eighteen, she and
her mother were present when Francis preached. The effect of his sermon on her
young heart was overwhelming and ineradicable. From this moment she resolved to
leave the world and its splendours, and the prospect of marriage, and to devote
her whole life to God and to the advancement of His kingdom.
What she was to do, what
God’s designs were, all was dark before her; only in her was the intense
longing to place herself in His hands, that He might use her as He saw fit. And
it appeared to her that her desire had been known and her self-offering
accepted. As already said, it was Palm Sunday, and the custom was for the
bishop to bless the palms that were presented him by the deacon, and to
distribute them among those who came up in single file to the altar steps.
Clara, shy and retiring, hung back. The bishop’s eye rested on her. All at once
he stepped down into the nave, the acolytes bearing their tapers before him,
and carrying a palm branch, he placed it in the hands of the shrinking maiden.
To her it was as a
consecration.
In the evening she ran to
the chapel of the Portiuncula, where Francis and his disciples were installed;
she fell on her knees and implored to be received, and given work to do. In a
paroxysm of devotion she plucked off her little ornaments, and tore away her
rich dress.
Francis, unable as he was
unwilling to refuse her offer of herself, cast over her a coarse habit, and she
was enrolled in the ranks of the Champions of Poverty.
But where was the young
girl to be put? He had no other female adherents. He accordingly took her to
the Benedictine nunnery of Saint Paolo, where she was to remain till he had considered
what to do with her.
The parents of Clara were
indignant and annoyed when they learned what she had done, and they endeavoured
by every means to induce her to return to them. They even employed violence.
She escaped from them to the altar, and laid hold of the cloth that covered it.
They tried to drag her away, but she clung with such tenacity as to tear the
very cloth to which she clung.
Clara now removed to
another convent of Benedictins, Saint Angelo di Panso, where she spent a
fortnight in prayer and silence, considering the step she had taken.
At the end of that time
her sister Agnes, two years younger than herself, came and entreated to be
allowed to remain with her. The father was very angry, and called the members
of the family together to consult on the matter. Nothing, however, could be done;
the two girls were resolute.
In the meantime Saint
Francis was busy preparing a dwelling for them near a little church of Saint
Damian that he had restored. When this was complete he removed them to it. Many
girls and even women now joined the sisters, and constituted a little
community. Francis was appealed to for a rule by which they might form their
lives, but this he was unwilling to give. Let them, said he, take Clara herself
as their example.
Presently, little Beatrix
arrived. She could not bear to be alone in the now desolate home, she yearned
to be with her sisters. She also was accepted. After the death of her husband
Hortulana also joined them, so that mother and daughters were united again.
As the fundamental rule
of Francis was absolute poverty, his brothers were obliged to beg their bread.
They went round the town and country with sacks, asking for scraps of food; and
as it would not be seemly for the sisters of the house at Saint Damian to do
the same, the friars were constrained to divide their crusts with them.
Gregory IX very sensibly
objected to the friars going in and out of the convent, and he forbade it.
“Very well,” said Clara; “if holy brothers may not minister to us the Bread of
Life, they shall not provide us with the bread that perishes,” and she refused
the crusts and broken meat they had collected on their rounds. What was to be
done? The whole convent would starve. In a few days the Poor Clares would be
dead. An express was sent to the Pope. Gregory could defy an emperor, and that
such an one as Frederick Barbarossa; but he was no match for an obstinate
woman. He gave way.
The rule imposed on the
sisterhood by Saint Clara was one of dreary penance. Their services in church
were to be without music, even on the high festivals. She would not allow those
who were ignorant to learn to read, so that to such these services were
unintelligible.
In fact, extravagance
marked all she did. She did not suffer the sisters ever to interchange a word
with each other without permission, and they were all shut up in their convent,
which they might not leave. It is true that Saint Francis did slightly modify
some of this severity. But his own rule of absolute poverty was a mistake. He
intended it as a protest against the money and land grabbing which prevailed,
not among laymen only, but among ecclesiastics, and also among the monks; but
he went too far. He turned his friars into mere beggars. If he had insisted
that they should be poor and work for their livelihood, that would have been
well; but to employ them as tramps, begging from door to door, and sponging on
the honest, hard-working people, was a fatal mistake, and led to very bad
results.
So also Clara, in the
hope of keeping her sisters devoted only to the service of God, dissuaded, nay,
forbade, reading. In place of cultivating the intellect – a splendid gift of
God – she made those under her direction bury their talents.
Insensibly, the
Manichaean heresy had penetrated all minds, and made men and women think that
the body was evil and must be tortured and bullied, and all that was human
trampled underfoot, that the soul alone should be cared for. The result was the
production of hysterical, ecstatic beings, who were helpless to do anything for
themselves, and were, so far as their minds went, idiots.
Saint Clara’s work would
have been worse than useless, positively mischievous, had it not been for one
thing. Saint Francis, in order to extend religion among the people, had
instituted a third branch of his institution, of which the second was that of
the Poor Clares. This third order comprised men and women living in the world –
in fact, a great guild of pious people, observing very simple rules, which
bound all together in the service of God, His Church, and the poor and sick.
This spread like wildfire: everywhere men and women, husbands and wives, young
men and girls, rich and poor, nobles and merchants, day-labourers and
needlewomen, joined this community, encouraged each other in good works, and
learned, by knowing each other, to lose class exclusiveness.
311Inevitably the charge
of the female members of the third order devolved on the Poor Clares. Then
other duties sprang up. There were plenty of little orphan girls adrift; these
had to be cared for, and the Clares took charge of them. The devout desired to
have their daughters taught by them, and they were constrained to open schools,
– and thus to cultivate their own minds, and abandon the rule of silence, or at
least to modify it. Consequently the order of Poor Clares did a great deal of
good, but not in the way in which Saint Clara desired.
The time was one of
furious intestinal war in Italy between the factions of Guelph and Ghibelline,
and there were far more women than men, as the latter had fallen. Children were
left without fathers, wives lost their husbands, girls were deprived of their
natural protectors, and the convent served as an asylum for these unfortunates,
who otherwise would have succumbed.
In 1220 occurred a scene
bearing some resemblance to that of the last meeting of Saint Benedict and his
sister. Saint Clara felt a great desire to be with Saint Francis and to eat
with him; but he constantly refused. At length his companions, seeing how this
troubled her, said to him, “Father, it seems to us that this sternness is not
in accordance with Christian charity. Pay attention to Clara, and consent to
her request. It is but a small thing that she desires of you – just to eat with
her. Remember how that, at your preaching, she forsook all that the world
offers.”
Saint Francis answered,
“As it is so in your eyes, so let it be. Let the feast be held at the Church of
the Portiuncula, for it was in that that she took the vows.”
When the appointed day
arrived, Saint Clara went forth from her convent with one companion, and came
to the place appointed, and waited till Francis should arrive. After awhile he
appeared, and he caused their common meal to be prepared on the grass. He
seated himself beside Clara, and one of his friars beside the nun who had
attended Saint Clara. Then all the rest of the company gathered about them.
During the first course
Saint Francis spoke of God so sweetly, so tenderly, that all were rapt in
ecstasy, and forgetting their food, remained wondering and thinking only of
God.
When the repast was
ended, Clara returned to San Damiani greatly comforted. This was her only
meeting, for other purposes than those of ghostly counsel, with her friend and
father.
Saint Francis died in
1226, six years after the meeting; but Clara lived on for more than a quarter of
a century after his decease.
Concerning the
austerities practised by Saint Clara it is unnecessary to write: a knowledge of
them would provoke disgust; but they have probably been vastly exaggerated, for
had they been what is represented, she could not have lived forty-two years of
self-torture. As she died she was heard murmuring that she saw our Lord
surrounded with virgins crowned with flowers, and that one, whose wreath was
“like a windowed censer,” bowed over her and kissed her.
She died in 1257.
We cannot say of Saint
Clara that she originated a great work of utility. She supplemented the
undertaking of Saint Francis, and carried his extravagances to a further
extreme. But she was sincere, she held to her purpose; and although her
foundation was one void of common-sense and right principles, yet, because well
intended, it worked itself into one of utility, and continues to the present
day in the Latin Communion doing good service.
– text and illustration
taken from Virgin Saints and Martyrs,
by Sabine Baring-Gould, F Anger, illustrator, published in New York, 1901
SOURCE : https://catholicsaints.info/virgin-saints-and-martyrs-saint-clara/
.jpg)
Guercino (1591–1666), Visione di Santa Chiara / Vision of St Clare, circa 1615, 50 x 37.5, Hermitage Museum, Saint Petersburg
Santa Chiara Vergine
Assisi, 1193/1194 -
Assisi, 11 agosto 1253
Ha appena dodici anni
Chiara, nata nel 1194 dalla nobile e ricca famiglia degli Offreducci, quando
Francesco d'Assisi compie il gesto di spogliarsi di tutti i vestiti per restituirli
al padre Bernardone. Conquistata dall'esempio di Francesco, la giovane Chiara
sette anni dopo fugge da casa per raggiungerlo alla Porziuncola. Il santo le
taglia i capelli e le fa indossare il saio francescano, per poi condurla al
monastero benedettino di S.Paolo, a Bastia Umbra, dove il padre tenta invano di
persuaderla a ritornare a casa. Si rifugia allora nella Chiesa di San Damiano,
in cui fonda l'Ordine femminile delle «povere recluse» (chiamate in seguito
Clarisse) di cui è nominata badessa e dove Francesco detta una prima Regola.
Chiara scrive successivamente la Regola definitiva chiedendo ed ottenendo da
Gregorio IX il «privilegio della povertà». Per aver contemplato, in una Notte
di Natale, sulle pareti della sua cella il presepe e i riti delle funzioni
solenni che si svolgevano a Santa Maria degli Angeli, è scelta da Pio XII quale
protettrice della televisione. Erede dello spirito francescano, si preoccupa di
diffonderlo, distinguendosi per il culto verso il SS. Sacramento che salva il
convento dai Saraceni nel 1243. (Avvenire)
Patronato: Televisione
Etimologia: Chiara =
trasparente, illustre, dal latino
Emblema: Giglio, Ostia
Martirologio Romano:
Memoria di santa Chiara, vergine, che, primo virgulto delle Povere Signore
dell’Ordine dei Minori, seguì san Francesco, conducendo ad Assisi in Umbria una
vita aspra, ma ricca di opere di carità e di pietà; insigne amante della
povertà, da essa mai, neppure nell’estrema indigenza e infermità, permise di
essere separata.
Di nobile e ricca famiglia, Chiara nasce ad Assisi nel 1194. Prossima al parto sua madre Ortolana sente una voce che rassicurante le dice: «Stai tranquilla, avrai un felice parto, nascerà una figlia “chiara fonte di luce” che splenderà nel mondo». La bambina viene chiamata, infatti, Chiara. La santa è allevata dai genitori cristiani. Fanciulla dodicenne incontra San Francesco e capisce che vuole seguire i suoi insegnamenti, la sua semplicità, il suo essere povero tra la gente. Chiara cresce, da lei si espande la grazia angelica della purezza dell’anima. La sua bellezza attira i pretendenti che lei respinge.
Un mercante più insistente – favorito dal padre di Chiara, Favarone – ottiene di averla in sposa. Tuttavia, decisa a seguire la sua vocazione, a diciotto anni Chiara fugge di casa, recandosi alla “Porziuncola” (una piccola chiesetta) dove trova Francesco e i suoi frati. Tagliati i lunghi capelli, Chiara indossa un ruvido saio e, pronunciati i voti di obbedienza, castità e povertà, si rifugia in un monastero. Viene poi raggiunta dalle sorelle Agnese e Beatrice (in seguito anche dalla madre rimasta vedova) e con il loro aiuto fonda l’Ordine delle Clarisse. La loro regola è durissima. Si affidano alla “Divina Provvidenza”, vivono di elemosina e dedicano la loro vita alla preghiera.
Chiara continua, per molti anni, con semplicità e umile sapienza, a guidare le consorelle a lei affidate. Si prodiga anche per la sua città natale. Nel 1240 l’esercito di Federico II di Svevia (odierna Germania), deciso a conquistare Assisi, giunge sotto le sue mura. Chiara, anche se in pessima salute, chiede di esservi accompagnata tenendo tra le mani l’ostensorio del Santissimo Sacramento, mostrandolo ai nemici che, accecati dalla sua sfolgorante luce, fuggono.
Devota di San Francesco, con lui condivide l’amore per la natura e per la
bellezza del Creato. Muore l’11 agosto 1253 nella sua città, ventisette anni
dopo San Francesco. Invocata per guarire dalle malattie agli occhi, è
protettrice di oculisti, ottici, lavandaie, stiratrici, vetrai, ricamatrici.
Santa Chiara per i francescani rappresenta la “seconda luce” (la prima luce è
San Francesco e la terza è Santa Margherita da Cortona). Nel 1958 viene
proclamata patrona della televisione e delle telecomunicazioni per aver seguito
“in diretta”, grazie a una visione, sulla parete della sua cella, una veglia di
Natale che si svolgeva nella Chiesa di Santa Maria degli Angeli ad Assisi.
Autore: Mariella
Lentini
Pietro Novelli (1603–1647), Vierge entourée de saints couronnant sainte Claire. Plume, encre brune et lavis – 19.4 x 17.1. Donation Ballabio Novelli
La sera della domenica
delle Palme (1211 o 1212) una bella ragazza diciottenne fugge dalla sua casa in
Assisi e corre alla Porziuncola, dove l’attendono Francesco e il gruppo dei
suoi frati minori. Le fanno indossare un saio da penitente, le tagliano i
capelli e poi la ricoverano in due successivi monasteri benedettini, a Bastia e
a Sant’Angelo.
Infine Chiara prende
dimora nel piccolo fabbricato annesso alla chiesa di San Damiano, che era stata
restaurata da Francesco. Qui Chiara è stata raggiunta dalla sorella Agnese; poi
dall’altra, Beatrice, e da gruppi di ragazze e donne: saranno presto una
cinquantina.
Così incomincia, sotto la
spinta di Francesco d’Assisi, l’avventura di Chiara, figlia di nobili che si
oppongono anche con la forza alla sua scelta di vita, ma invano. Anzi, dopo
alcuni anni andrà con lei anche sua madre, Ortolana. Chiara però non è fuggita
“per andare dalle monache”, ossia per entrare in una comunità nota e stabilita.
Affascinata dalla predicazione e dall’esempio di Francesco, la ragazza vuole
dare vita a una famiglia di claustrali radicalmente povere, come singole e come
monastero, viventi del loro lavoro e di qualche aiuto dei frati minori, immerse
nella preghiera per sé e per gli altri, al servizio di tutti, preoccupate per
tutti. Chiamate popolarmente “Damianite” e da Francesco “Povere Dame”, saranno
poi per sempre note come “Clarisse”.
Da Francesco, lei ottiene
una prima regola fondata sulla povertà. Francesco consiglia, Francesco ispira
sempre, fino alla morte (1226), ma lei è per parte sua una protagonista, anche
se sarà faticoso farle accettare l’incarico di abbadessa. In un certo modo essa
preannuncia la forte iniziativa femminile che il suo secolo e il successivo
vedranno svilupparsi nella Chiesa.
Il cardinale Ugolino,
vescovo di Ostia e protettore dei Minori, le dà una nuova regola che attenua la
povertà, ma lei non accetta sconti: così Ugolino, diventato papa Gregorio IX
(1227-41) le concede il “privilegio della povertà”, poi confermato da Innocenzo
IV con una solenne bolla del 1253, presentata a Chiara pochi giorni prima della
morte.
Austerità sempre. Però
"non abbiamo un corpo di bronzo, né la nostra è la robustezza del
granito". Così dice una delle lettere (qui in traduzione moderna) ad
Agnese di Praga, figlia del re di Boemia, severa badessa di un monastero
ispirato all’ideale francescano.
Chiara le manda consigli
affettuosi ed espliciti: "Ti supplico di moderarti con saggia discrezione
nell’austerità quasi esagerata e impossibile, nella quale ho saputo che ti sei
avviata". Agnese dovrebbe vedere come Chiara sa rendere alle consorelle
malate i servizi anche più umili e sgradevoli, senza perdere il sorriso e senza
farlo perdere. A soli due anni dalla morte, papa Alessandro IV la proclama
santa.
Chiara si distinse per il
culto verso l'Eucarestia. Per due volte Assisi venne minacciata dall'esercito
dell'imperatore Federico II che contava, tra i suoi soldati, anche saraceni.
Chiara, in quel tempo malata, fu portata alle mura della città con in mano la
pisside contenente il Santissimo Sacramento: i suoi biografi raccontano che
l'esercito, a quella vista, si dette alla fuga.
Autore: Domenico
Agasso
SOURCE : http://www.santiebeati.it/dettaglio/24000
St.
Francis received St. Clare of Assisi and established the Order of Poor Ladies
-- Life of St. Francis
of Assisi depicted in the series of chapels of the Sacro Monte di Orta in the comune of
Orta San Giulio, Piedmont, Northern Italy. Sacro
Monte (Orta) – Chapel 9 Saint Francis consecrating Clare of Assisi ; Statues of Clare of Assisi
Carissime Sorelle!
1. L'11 agosto 1253
chiudeva il suo pellegrinaggio terreno santa Chiara d'Assisi, discepola di san
Francesco e fondatrice del vostro Ordine, detto delle Sorelle Povere o
Clarisse, che oggi conta, nelle sue varie ramificazioni, circa novecento
monasteri sparsi nei cinque continenti. A 750 anni dalla sua morte, il ricordo
di questa grande Santa continua ad essere molto vivo nel cuore dei fedeli, e mi
è pertanto particolarmente gradito, in questa circostanza, far pervenire alla
vostra Famiglia religiosa un cordiale pensiero e un affettuoso saluto.
In così significativa
ricorrenza giubilare, santa Chiara esorta tutti a comprendere sempre più
profondamente il valore della vocazione, che è dono di Dio da far fruttificare.
Scriveva, in proposito, nel suo Testamento: "Tra gli altri benefici, che
abbiamo ricevuto e ogni giorno riceviamo dal nostro Donatore, il Padre delle
misericordie, per i quali siamo molto tenute a rendere a Lui glorioso vive
azioni di grazie, grande è quello della nostra vocazione. E quanto più essa è
grande e perfetta, tanto maggiormente siamo a Lui obbligate. Perciò l'Apostolo
ammonisce: Conosci bene la tua vocazione" (2-4).
2. Nata ad Assisi attorno
agli anni 1193-1194 dalla nobile famiglia di Favarone di Offreduccio, santa
Chiara ricevette, soprattutto dalla madre Ortolana, una solida educazione
cristiana. Illuminata dalla grazia divina, si lasciò attrarre dalla nuova forma
di vita evangelica iniziata da san Francesco e dai suoi compagni, e decise, a
sua volta, di intraprendere una più radicale sequela di Cristo. Lasciata la
casa paterna nella notte tra la domenica delle Palme e il lunedì santo del 1211
(o 1212), per consiglio dello stesso Santo si recò presso la piccola chiesa
della Porziuncola, culla dell'esperienza francescana, dove davanti all'altare
di S. Maria si spogliò di tutte le sue ricchezze, per rivestire il povero abito
di penitenza a forma di croce.
Dopo un breve periodo di
ricerca, approdò nel piccolo monastero di san Damiano, dove la raggiunse anche
la sorella minore Agnese. Qui si unirono a lei altre compagne, desiderose di
incarnare il Vangelo in una dimensione contemplativa. Di fronte alla
determinazione con cui la nuova comunità monastica seguiva le orme di Cristo,
ritenendo povertà, fatica, tribolazione, umiliazione e disprezzo del mondo
motivi di grande gioia spirituale, san Francesco fu mosso da paterno affetto e
scrisse loro: "Poiché per divina ispirazione vi siete fatte figlie e
ancelle dell'altissimo sommo Re, il Padre celeste, e vi siete sposate allo
Spirito Santo, scegliendo di vivere secondo la perfezione del santo Vangelo,
voglio e prometto, da parte mia e dei miei frati, di avere di voi, come di
loro, attenta cura e sollecitudine speciale" (Regola di santa Chiara, cap.
VI, 3-4).
3. Chiara incastonò
queste parole nel capitolo centrale della sua Regola, riconoscendo in esse non
solo uno degli ammaestramenti ricevuti dal Santo, ma il nucleo fondamentale del
suo carisma, che si delinea nel contesto trinitario e mariano del Vangelo
dell’Annunciazione. San Francesco, infatti, vedeva la vocazione delle Sorelle
Povere nella luce della Vergine Maria, l'umile ancella del Signore, che,
adombrata dallo Spirito Santo, divenne la Madre di Dio. L'umile serva del
Signore è prototipo della Chiesa, Vergine, Sposa e Madre.
Chiara percepiva la sua
vocazione come una chiamata a vivere seguendo l’esempio di Maria, che offrì la
propria verginità all'azione dello Spirito Santo per divenire Madre di Cristo e
del suo Corpo mistico. Si sentiva strettamente associata alla Madre del Signore
e perciò così esortava sant'Agnese di Praga, la principessa boema divenuta
Clarissa: "Stringiti alla sua dolcissima Madre, la quale generò un Figlio
tale che i cieli non lo potevano contenere, eppure ella lo raccolse nel piccolo
chiostro del suo santo seno e lo portò nel suo grembo verginale" (3
Lettera ad Agnese di Praga, 18-19).
La figura di Maria
accompagnò il cammino vocazionale della Santa assisiate sino al termine della
sua vita. Secondo una significativa testimonianza resa al Processo di
canonizzazione, al letto di Chiara morente si avvicinò la Madonna chinando il
suo volto su di lei, la cui vita era stata una radiosa immagine della sua.
4. Soltanto la scelta
esclusiva di Cristo crocifisso, che intraprese con ardente amore, spiega la
decisione con cui santa Chiara s'inoltrò nella via dell'“altissima povertà”,
espressione che racchiude nel suo significato l'esperienza di spogliamento,
vissuta dal Figlio di Dio nell'Incarnazione. Con la qualificazione di
“altissima” Chiara voleva in qualche modo esprimere l'abbassamento del Figlio
di Dio, che la colmava di stupore: “Tale e così grande Signore - annotava -
scendendo nel seno della Vergine, volle apparire nel mondo come uomo
spregevole, bisognoso e povero, affinché gli uomini - che erano poverissimi e
indigenti, affamati per l'eccessiva penuria del nutrimento celeste -,
divenissero in Lui ricchi col possesso dei reami celesti" (1 Lett. ad
Ag., 19-20). Essa coglieva questa povertà in tutta l'esperienza terrena di
Gesù, da Betlemme al Calvario, dove il Signore "nudo rimase sulla
croce" (Testamento di santa Chiara, 45).
Seguire il Figlio di Dio,
che si è fatto nostra via, comportava per lei di non desiderare altro che di
inabissarsi con Cristo nell'esperienza di un'umiltà e di una povertà radicali,
che coinvolgevano ogni aspetto dell'esperienza umana, fino allo spogliamento
della Croce. La scelta della povertà era per santa Chiara un'esigenza di
fedeltà al Vangelo, tanto da determinare la richiesta al Papa di un “privilegio
della povertà”, quale prerogativa della forma di vita monastica da lei
iniziata. Inserì tale “privilegio”, tenacemente difeso per tutta la vita, nella
Regola che ricevette la conferma papale all'antivigilia della sua morte con la
Bolla Solet annuere del 9 agosto 1253, 750 anni or sono.
5. Lo sguardo di Chiara
rimase sino alla fine fisso sul Figlio di Dio, del quale contemplava senza
sosta i misteri. Il suo era lo sguardo amante della sposa, colmo del desiderio
di una condivisione sempre più piena. In particolare, si immergeva nella
meditazione della Passione, contemplando il mistero di Cristo, che dall’alto
della Croce la chiamava e l’attirava. Così scriveva: “O voi tutti, che sulla
strada passate, fermatevi a vedere se esiste un dolore simile al mio; e
rispondiamo, dico a Lui che chiama e geme, ad una voce e con un solo
cuore: Non mi abbandonerà mai il ricordo di te e si struggerà in me
l'anima mia” (4 Lett. ad Ag., 25-26). Ed esortava: “Lasciati, dunque,
bruciare sempre più fortemente da questo ardore di carità!... E grida con tutto
l'ardore del tuo desiderio e del tuo amore: Attirami a te, o celeste Sposo!”
(ivi, 27.29-32).
Questa piena comunione
con il mistero di Cristo la introdusse nell'esperienza dell'inabitazione
trinitaria, in cui l'anima prende sempre più viva coscienza della dimora di Dio
in lei: “Mentre i cieli con tutte le altre cose create non possono contenere il
Creatore, l’anima fedele invece, ed essa sola, è sua dimora e soggiorno, e ciò
soltanto a motivo della carità, di cui gli empi sono privi” (3 Lett. ad Ag.,
22-23).
6. Guidata da Chiara, la
comunità raccolta in San Damiano scelse di vivere secondo la forma del santo
Vangelo in una dimensione contemplativa claustrale, che si contraddistingueva
come un “vivere comunitariamente in unità di spiriti” (Regola di santa Chiara,
Prologo, 5), secondo un “modo di santa unità” (ivi, 16). La particolare
comprensione che Chiara dimostrò del valore dell'unità nella fraternità sembra
riferibile a una matura esperienza contemplativa del Mistero trinitario.
L'autentica contemplazione, infatti, non chiude nell'individualismo ma realizza
la verità dell'essere uno nel Padre, nel Figlio e nello Spirito Santo. Chiara
non solo impostò nella sua Regola la vita fraterna sui valori del reciproco
servizio, della partecipazione, della condivisione, ma si preoccupò che la
comunità fosse anche saldamente edificata sull'“unità della scambievole carità
e della pace” (cap. IV, 22), e ancora che le sorelle fossero “sollecite di
conservare sempre reciprocamente l'unità della scambievole carità, che è il
vincolo della perfezione” (cap. X, 7).
Era infatti convinta che
l’amore scambievole edifica la comunità e provoca ad una crescita nella
vocazione; perciò esortava nel Testamento: “Amandovi a vicenda nell’amore di
Cristo, quell’amore che avete nel cuore dimostratelo al di fuori con le opere,
affinché le Sorelle, provocate da quest’esempio, crescano sempre nell’amore di
Dio e nella mutua carità” (59-60).
7. Questo valore
dell’unità Chiara lo percepì anche nella sua dimensione più vasta. Per questo
volle che la comunità claustrale fosse pienamente inserita nella Chiesa e ad
essa solidamente ancorata con il vincolo dell'obbedienza e della filiale
soggezione (cfr Regola, cap. I, XII). Ella era ben consapevole che la vita
delle claustrali doveva diventare specchio per altre Sorelle chiamate a seguire
la medesima vocazione, nonché testimonianza luminosa per quanti vivevano nel
mondo.
I quarant'anni vissuti
all'interno del piccolo monastero di san Damiano non restrinsero gli orizzonti
del suo cuore, ma dilatarono la sua fede nella presenza di Dio, operante la
salvezza nella storia. Sono noti i due episodi in cui, con la forza della sua
fede nell'Eucaristia e con l'umiltà della preghiera, Chiara ottenne la
liberazione della città di Assisi e del monastero dal pericolo di un'imminente
distruzione.
8. Come non sottolineare
che a 750 anni dalla conferma pontificia, la Regola di santa Chiara conserva
intatto il suo fascino spirituale e la sua ricchezza teologica? La perfetta
consonanza di valori umani e cristiani, la sapiente armonia di ardore contemplativo
e di rigore evangelico la confermano per voi, care Clarisse del terzo
millennio, come una via maestra da seguire, senza accomodamenti o concessioni
allo spirito del mondo.
Ad ognuna di voi Chiara
rivolge le parole che lasciò ad Agnese di Praga: “Te veramente felice! Ti è
concesso di godere di questo sacro convito, per poter aderire con tutte le
fibre del tuo cuore a Colui la cui bellezza è l’ammirazione instancabile delle
beate schiere del cielo” (4 Lett. ad Ag., 9).
La ricorrenza centenaria
vi offre l’opportunità di riflettere sul carisma tipico della vostra vocazione
di Clarisse. Un carisma che si caratterizza, in primo luogo, come chiamata
a vivere secondo la perfezione del santo Vangelo, con un deciso riferimento a
Cristo, come unico e vero programma di vita. Non è questa una sfida per gli
uomini e le donne di oggi? E’ una proposta alternativa all'insoddisfazione e
alla superficialità del mondo contemporaneo, che spesso sembra aver smarrito la
propria identità, perché non avverte più di essere stato generato dall'Amore di
Dio e di essere da Lui atteso nella comunione senza fine.
Voi, care Clarisse,
realizzate la sequela del Signore in una dimensione sponsale, rinnovando
il mistero di verginità feconda della Vergine Maria, Sposa dello Spirito Santo,
la donna compiuta. Possa la presenza dei vostri monasteri interamente votati
alla vita contemplativa essere anche oggi “memoria del cuore sponsale della
Chiesa” (Verbi
Sponsa, 1), colma dello struggente desiderio dello Spirito, che implora
incessantemente la venuta di Cristo Sposo (cfr Ap 22,17).
Di fronte al bisogno di
un rinnovato impegno di santità, santa Chiara offre altresì un esempio di
quella pedagogia della santità che, alimentandosi di incessante
preghiera, conduce a divenire contemplatori del Volto di Dio, spalancando il
cuore allo Spirito del Signore, che trasforma tutta la persona, mente, cuore e
azioni, secondo le esigenze del Vangelo.
9. Il mio augurio più
vivo, avvalorato dalla preghiera, è che i vostri monasteri continuino ad
offrire alla diffusa esigenza di spiritualità e di preghiera del mondo odierno
la proposta esigente di una piena e autentica esperienza di Dio, Uno e Trino,
che divenga irradiazione della sua presenza d'amore e di salvezza.
Vi aiuti Maria, la
Vergine dell’ascolto. Intercedano per voi santa Chiara e le Sante e Beate del
vostro Ordine.
Io assicuro un cordiale
ricordo per voi, care Sorelle, per quanti condividono con voi la grazia di
questo significativo evento giubilare, e a tutti imparto di cuore una speciale
Benedizione Apostolica.
Dal Vaticano, 9 Agosto
2003
GIOVANNI PAOLO II
Copyright © Dicastero per
la Comunicazione - Libreria Editrice Vaticana
Santa Chiara in gesso esposto nel Museo Tripisciano di Palazzo Moncada a Caltanissetta nella sua vetrina vista di fronte.
Santa
Chiara in gesso esposto nel Museo Tripisciano di Palazzo Moncada a
Caltanissetta nella sua vetrina vista di fronte.
BENEDETTO XVI
UDIENZA GENERALE
Santa Chiara d'Assisi
Cari fratelli e sorelle,
una delle Sante più amate
è senz’altro santa Chiara d’Assisi, vissuta nel XIII secolo, contemporanea di
san Francesco. La sua testimonianza ci mostra quanto la Chiesa tutta sia
debitrice a donne coraggiose e ricche di fede come lei, capaci di dare un
decisivo impulso per il rinnovamento della Chiesa.
Chi era dunque Chiara
d’Assisi? Per rispondere a questa domanda possediamo fonti sicure: non solo le
antiche biografie, come quella di Tommaso da Celano, ma anche gli Atti del
processo di canonizzazione promosso dal Papa solo pochi mesi dopo la morte di
Chiara e che contiene le testimonianze di coloro che vissero accanto a lei per
molto tempo.
Nata nel 1193, Chiara
apparteneva ad una famiglia aristocratica e ricca. Rinunciò a nobiltà e a
ricchezza per vivere umile e povera, adottando la forma di vita che Francesco
d’Assisi proponeva. Anche se i suoi parenti, come accadeva allora, stavano progettando
un matrimonio con qualche personaggio di rilievo, Chiara, a 18 anni, con un
gesto audace ispirato dal profondo desiderio di seguire Cristo e
dall’ammirazione per Francesco, lasciò la casa paterna e, in compagnia di una
sua amica, Bona di Guelfuccio, raggiunse segretamente i frati minori presso la
piccola chiesa della Porziuncola. Era la sera della Domenica delle Palme
del 1211. Nella commozione generale, fu compiuto un gesto altamente simbolico:
mentre i suoi compagni tenevano in mano torce accese, Francesco le tagliò i
capelli e Chiara indossò un rozzo abito penitenziale. Da quel momento era
diventata la vergine sposa di Cristo, umile e povero, e a Lui totalmente si
consacrava. Come Chiara e le sue compagne, innumerevoli donne nel corso della
storia sono state affascinate dall’amore per Cristo che, nella bellezza della
sua Divina Persona, riempie il loro cuore. E la Chiesa tutta, per mezzo della
mistica vocazione nuziale delle vergini consacrate, appare ciò che sarà per
sempre: la Sposa bella e pura di Cristo.
In una delle quattro
lettere che Chiara inviò a sant’Agnese di Praga, la figlia del re di Boemia,
che volle seguirne le orme, parla di Cristo, suo diletto Sposo, con espressioni
nunziali, che possono stupire, ma che commuovono: “Amandolo, siete casta,
toccandolo, sarete più pura, lasciandovi possedere da lui siete vergine. La sua
potenza è più forte, la sua generosità più elevata, il suo aspetto più bello,
l’amore più soave e ogni grazia più fine. Ormai siete stretta nell’abbraccio di
lui, che ha ornato il vostro petto di pietre preziose… e vi ha incoronata con
una corona d’oro incisa con il segno della santità” (Lettera prima: FF,
2862).
Soprattutto al principio
della sua esperienza religiosa, Chiara ebbe in Francesco d’Assisi non solo un
maestro di cui seguire gli insegnamenti, ma anche un amico fraterno. L’amicizia
tra questi due santi costituisce un aspetto molto bello e importante. Infatti,
quando due anime pure ed infiammate dallo stesso amore per Dio si incontrano,
esse traggono dalla reciproca amicizia uno stimolo fortissimo per percorrere la
via della perfezione. L’amicizia è uno dei sentimenti umani più nobili ed
elevati che la Grazia divina purifica e trasfigura. Come san Francesco e santa
Chiara, anche altri santi hanno vissuto una profonda amicizia nel cammino verso
la perfezione cristiana, come san Francesco di Sales e santa Giovanna Francesca
di Chantal. Ed è proprio san Francesco di Sales che scrive: “È bello poter
amare sulla terra come si ama in cielo, e imparare a volersi bene in questo
mondo come faremo eternamente nell'altro. Non parlo qui del semplice amore
di carità, perché quello dobbiamo averlo per tutti gli uomini; parlo
dell'amicizia spirituale, nell'ambito della quale, due, tre o più persone si
scambiano la devozione, gli affetti spirituali e diventano realmente un solo
spirito” (Introduzione alla vita devota III, 19).
Dopo aver trascorso un
periodo di qualche mese presso altre comunità monastiche, resistendo alle
pressioni dei suoi familiari che inizialmente non approvarono la sua scelta,
Chiara si stabilì con le prime compagne nella chiesa di san Damiano dove i
frati minori avevano sistemato un piccolo convento per loro. In quel monastero
visse per oltre quarant’anni fino alla morte, avvenuta nel 1253. Ci è pervenuta
una descrizione di prima mano di come vivevano queste donne in quegli anni,
agli inizi del movimento francescano. Si tratta della relazione ammirata di un
vescovo fiammingo in visita in Italia, Giacomo di Vitry, il quale afferma di
aver trovato un grande numero di uomini e donne, di qualunque ceto sociale che
“lasciata ogni cosa per Cristo, fuggivano il mondo. Si chiamavano frati
minori e sorelle minori e sono tenuti in grande considerazione
dal signor papa e dai cardinali… Le donne … dimorano insieme in diversi ospizi
non lontani dalle città. Nulla ricevono, ma vivono del lavoro delle proprie
mani. E sono grandemente addolorate e turbate, perché vengono onorate più che
non vorrebbero, da chierici e laici” (Lettera dell’ottobre 1216: FF,
2205.2207).
Giacomo di Vitry aveva
colto con perspicacia un tratto caratteristico della spiritualità francescana
cui Chiara fu molto sensibile: la radicalità della povertà associata alla
fiducia totale nella Provvidenza divina. Per questo motivo, ella agì con grande
determinazione, ottenendo dal Papa Gregorio IX o, probabilmente, già dal papa
Innocenzo III, il cosiddetto Privilegium Paupertatis (cfr FF,
3279). In base ad esso, Chiara e le sue compagne di san Damiano non potevano
possedere nessuna proprietà materiale. Si trattava di un’eccezione veramente
straordinaria rispetto al diritto canonico vigente e le autorità ecclesiastiche
di quel tempo lo concessero apprezzando i frutti di santità evangelica che
riconoscevano nel modo di vivere di Chiara e delle sue sorelle. Ciò mostra come
anche nei secoli del Medioevo, il ruolo delle donne non era secondario, ma
considerevole. A questo proposito, giova ricordare che Chiara è stata la prima
donna nella storia della Chiesa che abbia composto una Regola scritta,
sottoposta all’approvazione del Papa, perché il carisma di Francesco d’Assisi
fosse conservato in tutte le comunità femminili che si andavano stabilendo
numerose già ai suoi tempi e che desideravano ispirarsi all’esempio di
Francesco e di Chiara.
Nel convento di san
Damiano Chiara praticò in modo eroico le virtù che dovrebbero
contraddistinguere ogni cristiano: l’umiltà, lo spirito di pietà e di
penitenza, la carità. Pur essendo la superiora, ella voleva servire in prima
persona le suore malate, assoggettandosi anche a compiti umilissimi: la carità,
infatti, supera ogni resistenza e chi ama compie ogni sacrificio con letizia.
La sua fede nella presenza reale dell’Eucaristia era talmente grande che, per
due volte, si verificò un fatto prodigioso. Solo con l’ostensione del Santissimo
Sacramento, allontanò i soldati mercenari saraceni, che erano sul punto di
aggredire il convento di san Damiano e di devastare la città di Assisi.
Anche questi episodi,
come altri miracoli, di cui si conservava la memoria, spinsero il Papa
Alessandro IV a canonizzarla solo due anni dopo la morte, nel 1255,
tracciandone un elogio nella Bolla di canonizzazione in cui leggiamo: “Quanto è
vivida la potenza di questa luce e quanto forte è il chiarore di questa fonte
luminosa. Invero, questa luce si teneva chiusa nel nascondimento della vita
claustrale e fuori irradiava bagliori luminosi; si raccoglieva in un angusto
monastero, e fuori si spandeva quanto è vasto il mondo. Si custodiva dentro e
si diffondeva fuori. Chiara infatti si nascondeva; ma la sua vita era rivelata
a tutti. Chiara taceva, ma la sua fama gridava” (FF, 3284). Ed è proprio così,
cari amici: sono i santi coloro che cambiano il mondo in meglio, lo trasformano
in modo duraturo, immettendo le energie che solo l’amore ispirato dal Vangelo
può suscitare. I santi sono i grandi benefattori dell’umanità!
La spiritualità di santa
Chiara, la sintesi della sua proposta di santità è raccolta nella quarta
lettera a Sant’Agnese da Praga. Santa Chiara adopera un’immagine molto diffusa
nel Medioevo, di ascendenze patristiche, lo specchio. Ed invita la sua amica di
Praga a riflettersi in quello specchio di perfezione di ogni virtù che è il
Signore stesso. Ella scrive: “Felice certamente colei a cui è dato godere di
questo sacro connubio, per aderire con il profondo del cuore [a Cristo], a
colui la cui bellezza ammirano incessantemente tutte le beate schiere dei
cieli, il cui affetto appassiona, la cui contemplazione ristora, la cui
benignità sazia, la cui soavità ricolma, il cui ricordo risplende soavemente,
al cui profumo i morti torneranno in vita e la cui visione gloriosa renderà
beati tutti i cittadini della celeste Gerusalemme. E poiché egli è splendore
della gloria, candore della luce eterna e specchio senza macchia, guarda ogni
giorno questo specchio, o regina sposa di Gesù Cristo, e in esso scruta
continuamente il tuo volto, perché tu possa così adornarti tutta all’interno e
all’esterno… In questo specchio rifulgono la beata povertà, la santa umiltà e
l’ineffabile carità” (Lettera quarta: FF, 2901-2903).
Grati a Dio che ci dona i
Santi che parlano al nostro cuore e ci offrono un esempio di vita cristiana da
imitare, vorrei concludere con le stesse parole di benedizione che santa Chiara
compose per le sue consorelle e che ancora oggi le Clarisse, che svolgono un
prezioso ruolo nella Chiesa con la loro preghiera e con la loro opera,
custodiscono con grande devozione. Sono espressioni in cui emerge tutta la
tenerezza della sua maternità spirituale: “Vi benedico nella mia vita e dopo la
mia morte, come posso e più di quanto posso, con tutte le benedizioni con le
quali il Padre delle misericordie benedisse e benedirà in cielo e in terra i
figli e le figlie, e con le quali un padre e una madre spirituale benedisse e
benedirà i suoi figli e le sue figlie spirituali. Amen” (FF, 2856).
Saluti:
Je salue les francophones
présents et plus particulièrement les participants au pèlerinage promu par la
Conférence épiscopale de Guinée, et conduits par l’Evêque de N’Zérékoré, Mgr
Guilavogui, et ceux du Diocèse de Nancy, en France, guidés par Mgr Papin. Je
n’oublie pas les pèlerins de la Martinique, de Dijon et d’ailleurs. Puisse
Dieu vous bénir ! Bon séjour à Rome !
I welcome the pilgrimage
group from Iran, in the company of Archbishop Thomas Meram. My cordial greeting
also goes to the participants in the international symposium of Benedictine
Nuns and Sisters. I also greet those taking part in the biennial meeting of
KPMG International. Upon all the English-speaking visitors present at today’s
Audience, especially the pilgrim groups from England, Scotland, Sweden, the
United Arab Emirates, Australia and the United States of America, I invoke
God’s abundant blessings.
Ganz herzlich begrüße ich
die deutschsprachigen Pilger und Besucher; und aus den Niederlanden die
Verantwortlichen und Seminaristen des Theologischen Instituts Sint Willibrord
des Bistums Haarlem-Amsterdam in Begleitung von Bischof Joseph Maria Punt.
Allein die Heiligen können die Welt dauerhaft zum Besseren verändern, denn
durch sie werden Kräfte wirksam, die nur die Liebe zu Christus wecken kann.
Gehen wir in ihre Schule und lassen wir uns von ihnen zum Herrn
führen. Euch allen wünsche ich eine gesegnete Zeit in Rom.
Saludo a los peregrinos
de lengua española, en particular a los profesores y alumnos de la Arquidiócesis
de Salta, y a los sacerdotes de la diócesis de Autlán, acompañados por su
Pastor, Monseñor Gonzalo Galván Castillo. Os invito a agradecer a Dios el
precioso papel que, con sus obras y oraciones, desempeñan las Clarisas, como
tantas otras religiosas de clausura, para bien de toda la Iglesia.
Muchas gracias.
A minha saudação a todos
peregrinos de língua portuguesa, nomeadamente para os grupos vindos do Brasil e
para os fiéis da Torreira e da diocese da Guarda, em Portugal. Que a graça de
Deus, pela intercessão de Santa Clara, fortaleça a vossa vida para mostrardes a
todos a felicidade que é amar Jesus Cristo. De coração, dou-vos a minha Bênção,
extensiva às vossas famílias e comunidades.
Saluto in lingua polacca:
Drodzy polscy pielgrzymi.
Dziś przypada wspomnienie Matki Bożej Bolesnej. Powracają na pamięć słowa
ukrzyżowanego Pana: „Niewiasto, oto syn Twój”, „Oto Matka twoja”. Chrystus sam
zawierza swojej Matce Jana, a wraz z nim wszystkie pokolenia uczniów. Zaprośmy
Ją do domu naszej codzienności, aby Jej opieka i wstawiennictwo były dla nas
wsparciem w czasie pomyślnym i w dniach cierpienia. Niech będzie
pochwalony Jezus Chrystus.
Traduzione italiana:
Cari pellegrini polacchi.
Oggi commemoriamo la Beata Maria Vergine Addolorata. Ritornano alla memoria le
parole del Signore crocifisso: “Donna, ecco il tuo figlio”, “Ecco la tua
Madre”. Cristo stesso affida alla Madre Giovanni e con lui tutte le generazioni
dei discepoli. InvitiamoLa nella casa del nostro quotidiano, perché la sua
protezione e la sua intercessione siano per noi un sostegno nel tempo della
serenità e nei giorni di sofferenza. Sia lodato Gesù Cristo!
Saluto in lingua
slovacca:
S láskou vítam
slovenských pútnikov, osobitne z Nitry, Smoleníc, Suchej nad Parnou, Vranova -
Čemerného ako aj Chrámový zbor Fraňa Madvu z Nitrianskeho Rudna.
Bratia a sestry, dnes
Slovensko slávi slávnosť svojej hlavnej patrónky, Sedembolestnej Panny Márie.
Ježiš ju dal za Matku každému z nás. Ona nech vás matersky sprevádza na ceste k
Nemu. Rád žehnám vás i vašich drahých.
Pochválený buď Ježiš
Kristus!
Traduzione
italiana :
Con affetto do un
benvenuto ai pellegrini slovacchi, particolarmente a quelli provenienti da
Nitra, Smolenice, Suchá nad Parnou, Vranov - Čemerné, come pure al Coro Fraňo
Madva da Nitrianske Rudno.
Fratelli e sorelle, oggi
la Slovacchia celebra la solennità della sua Patrona principale, la Vergine
Addolorata. Gesù l’ha donata come madre ad ognuno di noi. Ella vi accompagni
maternamente sulla via verso di lui. Volentieri benedico voi ed i vostri
cari. Sia lodato Gesù Cristo!
Saluto in lingua croata:
S radošću pozdravljam sve
hrvatske hodočasnike, a na poseban način policajce i djelatnike Policijske
uprave iz Splita. Dragi prijatelji, neka Božji blagoslov bude uvijek nad vama i
nad vašim obiteljima te vas trajno čuva u radosti i miru. Hvaljen Isus i
Marija!
Traduzione italiana:
Con gioia saluto tutti i
pellegrini Croati, e in modo particolare i poliziotti e gli ufficiali della
Questura di Split. Cari amici, la benedizione di Dio sia sempre su di voi
e sulle vostre famiglie e vi custodisca nella gioia e nella pace. Siano lodati
Gesù e Maria!
Saluto in lingua lituana:
Nuoširdžiai sveikinu maldininkus
iš Lietuvos. Brangūs bičiuliai, linkiu, kad kelionė į Romą sus tiprintų jumyse
įsitikinimą, jog esate Kristaus Bažnyčios nariai. Laiminu jus kiekvieną.
Traduzione italiana:
Rivolgo un cordiale
saluto ai pellegrini provenienti dalla Lituania, Cari amici, auspico che la
vostra visita a Roma rafforzi la consapevolezza della vostra appartenenza alla
Chiesa di Cristo. A ciascuno la mia Benedizione
* * *
Rivolgo un cordiale
benvenuto a tutti i pellegrini di lingua italiana. In particolare, saluto i rappresentanti
dell’Associazione Mondo Libero; i fedeli della diocesi di Chiavari,
accompagnati dal loro Vescovo Mons. Alberto Tanasini; gli esponenti
dell’Associazione Nazionale Bersaglieri. A tutti assicuro la mia preghiera
perché il Signore accompagni sempre con la sua grazia le vostre aspirazioni e i
vostri propositi.
Desidero ora salutare con
particolare affetto i giovani, gli ammalati e gli sposi novelli.
Facciamo oggi memoria della Beata Vergine Maria Addolorata, che con fede sostò
presso la croce del suo Figlio. Cari giovani, non abbiate paura di restare
anche voi come Maria presso la Croce. Il Signore vi infonderà il coraggio di
superare ogni ostacolo nella vostra quotidiana esistenza. E voi, cari ammalati,
possiate trovare in Maria conforto e sostegno per apprendere dal Signore
Crocifisso il valore salvifico della sofferenza. Voi, cari sposi novelli,
rivolgetevi con fiducia nei momenti di difficoltà alla Vergine Addolorata, che
vi aiuterà ad affrontarli con la sua materna intercessione.
APPELLO DEL SANTO PADRE
Seguo con preoccupazione
gli avvenimenti verificatisi in questi giorni in varie regioni dell’Asia
meridionale, specialmente in India, in Pakistan ed in Afghanistan. Prego
per le vittime e chiedo che il rispetto della libertà religiosa e la logica
della riconciliazione e della pace prevalgano sull’odio e sulla violenza.
© Copyright 2010 -
Libreria Editrice Vaticana
SOURCE : http://www.vatican.va/content/benedict-xvi/it/audiences/2010/documents/hf_ben-xvi_aud_20100915.html
.jpg)
Simone
Martini, Sta. Clara y Sta. Elizabeth de Hungría, 1317
Paintings by Simone Martini ; Frescos of Clare of Assisi ; Frescos portraits of nuns ; Lilies in paintings ; Details of Cappella di San Martino, Lower Church, San Francesco, Assisi
.JPG)
it:Santa
Chiara in un it:affresco, it:Basilica inferiore di Assisi
Św.
Klara z Asyżu, fresk z 1317 w bazylice św. Franciszka w Asyżu.
Frescos of Clare of Assisi ; Frescos portraits of nuns ; Lilies in paintings ; Details
of Cappella di San Martino, Lower Church, San Francesco, Assisi
Vita di Santa Chiara
Assisi vanta di aver dato
i natali ad un altro personaggio che insieme a San Francesco ha significato
molto nella storia e nella vita della Città.
Chiara nasce da una
nobile famiglia nel 1194, da Favarone di Offreduccio di Bernardino e da
Ortolana.
La madre, recatasi a
pregare alla vigilia del parto nella Cattedrale di San
Rufino, sentì una voce che le predisse:"Oh, donna, non temere, perchè
felicemente partorirai una chiara luce che illuminerà il mondo". La
bambina fu chiamata Chiara e battezzata in quella stessa Chiesa.
Si può senza dubbio affermare che una parte predominante della educazione di
questa fanciulla è dovuta proprio alla Cattedrale di San Rufino, la sua Chiesa,
dove poco distante sorgeva la casa paterna.
L'ambiente familiare di
Chiara era pervaso da una grande spiritualità.
La madre educò con ogni
cura le sue figlie e fu tra quelle dame che ebbero la grande fortuna di
raggiungere la Terra Santa al seguito dei crociati.
L'esperienza della
completa rinuncia e delle predicazioni di San Francesco,
la fama delle doti che aveva Chiara per i suoi concittadini, fecero sì che
queste due grandi personalità s'intendessero perfettamente sul modo di fuggire
dal mondo comune e donarsi completamente alla vita contemplativa.
La notte dopo la Domenica
delle Palme (18 marzo 1212) accompagnata da Pacifica di Guelfuccio (prima suora
dell'ordine), la giovane si recò di nascosto alla Porziuncola, dove
era attesa da Francesco e dai suoi frati.
Qui il Santo la vestì del
saio francescano, le tagliò i capelli consacrandola alla penitenza e la
condusse presso le suore benedettine di S. Paolo a Bastia Umbra, dove il padre
inutilmente tentò di persuaderla a far ritorno a casa.
Consigliata da Francesco
si rifugiò allora nella Chiesina di San
Damiano che divenne la Casa Madre di tutte le sue consorelle chiamate
dapprima "Povere Dame recluse di San Damiano" e, dopo la morte della
Santa, Clarisse.
Qui visse per quarantadue
anni, quasi sempre malata, iniziando alla vita religiosa molte sue amiche e
parenti compresa la madre Ortolana e le sorelle Agnese e Beatrice.
Nel 1215 Francesco la
nominò badessa e formò una prima regola dell'Ordine che doveva espandersi per
tutta Europa.
La grande personalità di
Chiara non passò inosservata agli alti prelati, tanto che il Cardinale Ugolino
(legato pontificio) formulò la prima regola per i successivi monasteri e più
tardi le venne concesso il privilegio della povertà con il quale Chiara
rinunciava ad ogni tipo di possedimento.
Nel 1243 durante
un'incursione di milizie saracene nel Monastero di San Damiano, Chiara scacciò
con un atto di coraggio la soldatesca.
La fermezza di carattere,
la dolcezza del suo animo, il modo di governare la sua comunità con la massima
carità e avvedutezza, le procurarono la stima dei Papi che vollero persino
recarsi a visitarla.
La morte di San Francesco
e le notizie che vari monasteri accettavano possessi e rendite amareggiarono e
allarmarono la Santa che sempre più malata volle salvare fino all'ultimo la
povertà per il suo convento componendo una Regola (simile a quella
dei Frati Minori) approvata poi dal Cardinale Rainaldo (futuro papa Alessandro
IV) nel 1252 e alla vigilia della sua morte da Innocenzo IV, recatosi a S.
Damiano per portarle la benedizione e consegnarle la bolla papale che
confermava la su a regola; il giorno dopo (11 agosto 1253) Chiara muore,
officiata dal Papa che volle cantare per lei non l'ufficio dei morti, ma quello
festivo delle vergini.
Il suo corpo venne
sepolto a San Giorgio in attesa di innalzare la chiesa che porta il suo nome.
Nonostante l'intenzione
di Innocenzo IV fosse quella di canonizzarla subito dopo la morte, si giunse
alla bolla di canonizzazione nell'autunno del 1255, dopo averne seguito tutte
le formalità, per mezzo di Alessandro IV.
SOURCE : https://terrainvisibile.it/assisi/doc/ita/vitach.htm
%2C_Ferrara_-_Chiesa_del_Corpus_Domini_-_2023-09-20_18-17-24_001.JPG)
Giuseppe Antonio Ghedini, Maurelio Gotti, Santa Chiara, affresco, (1770 circa), Ferrara - Chiesa del Corpus Domini ; Chiesa del monastero del Corpus Domini (Ferrara) - Interior ; Giuseppe Antonio Ghedini
SANTA CHIARA D’ASSISI, 11
agosto, vergine
Chiara nasce nel 1194 da
una nobile famiglia d'Assisi, figlia di Favarone di Offreduccio di Bernardino e
di Ortolana. La madre, recatasi a pregare alla vigilia del parto nella
Cattedrale di San Rufino, sentì una voce che le predisse la nascita della
bambina con quest eparole :"Donna non temere, perchè felicemente
partorirai una chiara luce che illuminerà il mondo". Per questo motivo la
bambina fu chiamata Chiara e battezzata in quella stessa chiesa. Si può senza
dubbio affermare che una parte predominante della educazione di questa
fanciulla è dovuta alla grande spiritualità che pervadeva l'ambiente familiare
di Chiara ed in particolare la figura della madre che fu tra quelle dame che
ebbero la grande fortuna di raggiungere la Terra Santa al seguito dei crociati.
L'esperienza della completa rinuncia e delle predicazioni di San Francesco, la
fama delle doti che aveva Chiara per i suoi concittadini, fecero sì che queste
due grandi personalità s'intendessero perfettamente sul modo di fuggire dal
mondo comune e donarsi completamente alla vita contemplativa. La notte dopo la
Domenica delle Palme, il 18 marzo 1212, Chiara, accompagnata da Pacifica di
Guelfuccio, si recherà di nascosto alla Porziuncola, dove era attesa da
Francesco e dai suoi frati. Qui Francesco la vestì del saio francescano, le
tagliò i capelli consacrandola alla penitenza e la condusse presso le suore
benedettine di San Paolo a Bastia Umbra, dove il padre inutilmente tentò di
persuaderla a far ritorno a casa. Chiara si rifugiò in seguito, su consiglio di
Francesco, nella Chiesetta di San Damiano che divenne la Casa Madre di tutte le
sue consorelle chiamate dapprima "Povere Dame recluse di San Damiano"
e, dopo la morte di Chiara, Clarisse. Qui visse per quarantadue anni, quasi
sempre malata, iniziando alla vita religiosa molte sue amiche e parenti compresa
la madre Ortolana e le sorelle Agnese e Beatrice. Nel 1215 Francesco la nominò
badessa e formò una prima regola dell'Ordine che doveva espandersi per tutta
Europa. La grande personalità di Chiara non passò inosservata agli alti
prelati, tanto che il legato pontificio, Cardinale Ugolino, formulò la prima
regola per i successivi monasteri e più tardi le venne concesso il privilegio
della povertà con il quale Chiara rinunciava ad ogni tipo di possedimento. La
fermezza di carattere, la dolcezza del suo animo, il modo di governare la sua
comunità con la massima carità e avvedutezza, le procurarono la stima dei Papi
che vollero persino recarsi a visitarla. La morte di Francesco e le
notizie che alcuni monasteri accettavano possessi e rendite amareggiarono e
allarmarono Chiara che sempre più malata volle salvare fino all'ultimo la
povertà per il suo convento componendo una Regola simile a quella dei Frati
Minori, approvata dal Cardinale Rainaldo (poi papa Alessandro IV) nel 1252 e
alla vigilia della sua morte da Innocenzo IV, recatosi a San Damiano per
portarle la benedizione e consegnarle la bolla papale che confermava la sua
regola; il giorno dopo, 11 agosto 1253, Chiara muore, officiata dal Papa che
volle cantare per lei non l'ufficio dei morti, ma quello festivo delle vergini.
Il suo corpo venne sepolto a San Giorgio ed in seguito trasferito nella chiesa
che porta il suo nome. Nonostante l'intenzione di Innocenzo IV fosse quella di
canonizzarla subito dopo la morte, si giunse alla bolla di canonizzazione
nell'autunno del 1255, dopo averne seguito tutte le formalità, per mezzo di
Alessandro IV.
SOURCE : http://www.enrosadira.it/santi/c/chiara.htm
Amalia dupré, santa chiara, gesso, 1886-1889, basilica di Santa Margherita. Santa Margherita (Cortona) - Interior ; Amalia Dupré Statues of Clare of Assisi in Italy
Amalia
dupré, santa chiara, gesso, 1886-1889, basilica di Santa Margherita. Santa Margherita
(Cortona) - Interior ; Amalia Dupré
Statues of Clare of Assisi
in Italy
CHIARA d'Assisi, santa
di Ugolino Nicolini
- Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani - Volume 24 (1980)
CHIARA d'Assisi,
santa. - Nacque ad Assisi nel 1193 da Favarone di Offreduccio di Bernardino e
da Ortolana. Sulla famiglia le notizie, non numerose ma autentiche, ci vengono
quasi esclusivamente dal Processo di canonizzazione. È ignoto il casato
del padre, che era certamente di antica nobiltà feudale; parimenti sconosciuta la
famiglia della madre Ortolana (fattasi anch'ella suora, più tardi, nel
monastero della figlia). Del gruppo familiare di C. fecero parte sicuramente le
sorelle Agnese e Beatrice come anche le nipoti - forse per parte di cugino -
Balvina e Amata. Altro particolare, chiarito sufficientemente dagli studi di G.
Abate e del Fortini, anche se con qualche divergenza, è quello della casa
paterna di C., che sorgeva sulla piazza di S. Rufino in Assisi.
Si è detto che
il Processo costituisce la migliore fonte per la biografia di C.,
data la ricchezza e la completezza delle notizie che fornisce. A poco più di
due mesi dalla morte di C., il 18 ott. 1253, Innocenzo IV incaricava
ufficialmente Bartolomeo, vescovo di Spoleto, di istruire il processo. Questo
venne svolto dalla commissione presieduta dal vescovo in sei giorni, dal 24 al
29 novembre e sostanzialmente in due luoghi: nel monastero di S. Damiano, dove
C. era vissuta e morta, furono interrogate quindici suore (a più riprese), e
nella chiesa di S. Paolo dentro le mura della città deposero altri cinque
testimoni, cittadini di Assisi, quattro uomini e una
donna. Il Processo, scoperto e pubblicato con adeguato commento
critico dal Lazzeri nel 1920, ci è pervenuto in un volgarizzamento
umbro-perugino del Quattrocento. Una contenuta ammirazione, soffusa di
devozione e affetto per la santa badessa, della quale le suore davano
testimonianza, ha conferito al testo una mirabile patina di semplicità e
realismo, doti che qualche volta sono state sfruttate dalla cattiva letteratura
di edificazione, facendo rimpiangere la originaria redazione latina, ben più
adatta allo studio analitico delle singole deposizioni. È ovvio che
dal Processo derivarono direttamente la bolla di canonizzazione di
Alessandro IV (Anagni, 19 ott. 1235?) e la Legenda sanctae Clarae
virginis attribuita, con molta fondatezza, al biografo di s. Francesco,
fra' Tommaso da Celano. Altra genesi si prospetta invece per
la Legenda versificata, il cui testo potrebbe dipendere, nella
redazione pervenutaci, da una delle varie stesure - attestate da più
manoscritti - della Legenda in prosa, e addirittura da una che
precedette la canonizzazione (Bughetti).
Fin dalla prima
giovinezza C. aveva seguito lo svolgimento della vicenda del suo concittadino
Francesco, che a conclusione di una crisi profonda e misteriosa, aveva
abbandonato la casa paterna, la mercatura e i sogni cavallereschi. Che
l'ambiente familiare di C. fosse pervaso da grande spirito religioso, e non
chiuso nelle ferree consuetudini feudali, potrebbe dimostrarlo il fatto che
nella casa nobile e opulenta era emersa una forte personalità femminile: la
madre di C., Ortolana, che aveva avuto la possibilità di fare grandi
pellegrinaggi e raggiungere anche la Terrasanta. Le figlie di Ortolana, come
personalità, carattere e fermezza, non saranno inferiori alla madre.
Non è facile stabilire il
preciso momento dell'incontro - ricostruire l'iter cronologico, indagare
le componenti psicologiche - delle due esperienze spirituali più significative
del Duecento, quello appunto di Francesco e di Chiara. Circa la domanda su chi,
tra i due, abbia preso l'iniziativa dell'incontro, l'analisi più attenta non
trova discordanze di rilievo nelle fonti. Secondo le deposizioni rese
nel Processo, fu Francesco ad andare da C., secondo l'agiografo il
desiderio d'incontrarsi, frutto di superiore ispirazione, sarebbe nato
contemporaneamente; "voto conveniunt parili" si dice
nella Legenda versificata, "visitat ille istam, et saepius ista
illum" nella Legenda in prosa. Ma, evidentemente, ciò che conta è
che Francesco e C. s'intendono alla perfezione sul modo di
"convertirsi", di fare penitenza, di fuggire il mondo. La fanciulla
decide di affidarsi alla guida del giovane convertito (cfr. Leg., 6). Tale
decisione provoca conseguenze e scelte a catena e irreversibili: la domenica
delle palme del 1211 (28 marzo), secondo il consiglio di Francesco, C. va in
chiesa con le altre nobildonne; durante la distribuzione delle palme, mentre le
altre donne processionalmente si avvicinano al vescovo celebrante, C. rimane
immobile al suo posto; il vescovo allora si dirige verso lei, consegnandole la
palma. Il gesto poteva essere un segnale convenuto tra C., il vescovo e
Francesco, anche se l'agiografo lo interpreta per un segno premonitore dei
privilegi di cui sarebbe stata arricchita da Dio la fanciulla di Assisi.
Difatti, la notte seguente C. fugge dal palazzo forse in compagnia di Pacifica
di Guelfuccio, che diventa suora con lei. Nella chiesa rurale di S. Maria degli
Angeli (Porziuncola) Francesco le taglia i capelli davanti all'altare della
Vergine, la consacra alla penitenza e la conduce poi nel monastero benedettino
di S. Paolo delle badesse presso Bastia, da dove i parenti tentano di
strapparla. Dopo pochi giorni passa a S. Angelo di Panzo, altro monastero
benedettino alle pendici del Subasio, poi, finalmente, nella chiesa di S.
Damiano, anch'essa nella campagna presso Assisi.
"Qui - dice
la Legenda - fissando l'àncora del suo spirito come in un porto
sicuro, non ondeggia più nell'incertezza di ulteriori mutamenti, non esita per
l'angustia del luogo, non si lascia impaurire dalla solitudine". La chiesa
di S. Damiano è il luogo dove si era verificato, secondo Tommaso da Celano,
l'inizio dell'esperienza religiosa di Francesco. "Qui - continua
la Legenda -"incarcerò il suo corpo per tutta la vita che aveva
innanzi, celandosi dalla tempesta del mondo".
Chiunque ripercorra le
fonti biografiche clariane, dal Processo alla bolla di
canonizzazione, alla Legenda, si trova di fronte al problema di una
vita - quella di C. - trascorsa per quarantadue anni (ventinove dei quali in
stato d'infermità) nel nascondimento di un chiostro, alla quale fa riscontro
una crescita grandiosa del movimento da lei suscitato. Il vescovo che raccolse
le deposizioni delle suore durante gli interrogatori del processo, l'autore
della biografia e il curiale che scrisse la bolla di canonizzazione si
trovarono di fronte alla realtà di una distanza cronologica - tra l'epoca della
conversione e quella della morte che avrebbe potuto fare perdere il senso della
vita trascorsa giorno dopo giorno, forse sentirono che il tempo aveva livellato
anni, mesi e stagioni per mostrare soltanto gli attimi memorabili, rarissimi e
diversi rispetto al vivere quotidiano. La lotta, insieme con Francesco, per
ottenere o difendere il Privilegiumpaupertatis;la sosta del santo presso
S. Damiano circa due anni prima della morte, la partenza della sorella Agnese
per Firenze, la morte di Francesco e il passaggio del corteo funebre per S.
Damiano; la morte della madre Ortolana e l'arrivo della sorella minore
Beatrice, qualche lettera scritta alla beata Agnese di Praga, l'assalto di
milizie sbandate di saraceni al seguito dell'esercito imperiale al monastero e
l'assedio posto alla città di Assisi, la visita del cardinale Rainaldo e, poco prima
della morte, quella del pontefice Innocenzo IV: sono questi alcuni momenti
della vita di C. immersa, per tanti anni, nella mera quotidianità, rischiarata
dalla fede, mediante la quale ella riusciva, secondo le unanimi testimonianze,
a rendere gioiosa la sua esistenza.
L'impostazione della vita
monastica a S. Damianoera stata data da Francesco con una Forma
vivendi e con delle Observantiae regulares, di cui la critica
storica ha discusso a lungo al fine di illuminarne l'originalità in rapporto ai
movimenti penitenziali femminili dell'epoca. Le testimonianze esterne
all'Ordine delle clarisse (ma così furono chiamate solo più tardi) tra il 1211
e il 1220 risalgono sostanzialmente a quelle di Giacomo da Vitry e ai
provvedimenti adottati dal cardinale Ugolino (vescovo ostiense) per i monasteri
di S. Damiano, di Porta Camollia di Siena, di Monticelli presso Firenze, della
Gattaiola a Lucca e di Monteluce a Perugia.
Senza pretendere di
portare nuovi chiarimenti nella discussione, è necessario almeno riassumerne
gli elementi essenziali. Della primitiva Forma e
delle Observantiae ben poco ci è direttamente pervenuto; delle
ultime, che furono adottate a Monticelli, parla anche C. in una lettera ad
Agnese di Praga. Ma i due suddetti nuclei di norme che costituivano
il modus vivendi di S. Damiano erano rinforzati e caratterizzati
essenzialmente dal fermo proposito di Francesco e di C. di escludere ogni
possibilità di dotazione patrimoniale; si trattava cioè di adottare anche per
le clarisse il principio della povertà assoluta, personale e comunitaria, come
Francesco aveva voluto per i frati minori. Tuttavia, dopo il concilio
lateranense IV del 1215, che con il canone 13 aveva proibito l'introduzione di
nuove forme di vita religiosa organizzata e l'obbligo, per eventuali fondatori,
di adottare una delle regole in vigore, il cardinale Ugolino, su delega papale,
preparò una nuova Formula vitae.Si trattava di strutturare la nuova
organizzazione di Francesco anche sotto l'aspetto giuridico e di legittimarla
canonicamente. Per questo la Formula ugoliniana si accompagnava alla
regola benedettina secondo la riforma cisterciense; il cardinale Ugolino la
impose ai cinque monasteri dell'Umbria e della Toscana, sopra nominati. Il
testo di questa Formula è ben conosciuto. Nel 1228 già era trascritto
nella bolla spedita alle "damianite" di Pamplona in Spagna; lo stesso
Gregorio IX è autore di un'altra stesura inviata al monastero di Ascoli Piceno
nel 1239, come Innocenzo IV si può considerare padre di una terza redazione con
le bolle del 1245 inviate ai monasteri di Pamplona e di Salamanca (Vasquez,
Omaechevarria). Il nucleo primitivo della Forma di s. Francesco
attraverso complicate vicende, studiate più o meno attentamente, si evolve e
poi viene riassorbito sostanzialmente nella Regula del 1252-53 che, a
pieno diritto, secondo l'autorità della Sede apostolica, è detta "la forma
di vita e il modo di santa unità e di altissima povertà che il beato padre
vostro Francesco vi consegnò a voce e in scritto da osservare" (Regula, 16).
Più acutamente, oggi si tende a individuare il modus
vivendi istituito da Francesco a S. Damiano confrontandolo con quello
descritto da lui stesso nella Regula pro eremitoriis data, brevi,
devote e umanissime indicazioni per i frati viventi in solitudine (Lainati).
Più complessa, senza
dubbio, la questione che concerne il privilegium paupertatis.Se anche per
i frati, pur pellegrini e itineranti, Francesco ben presto ebbe bisogno di
un'approvazione pontificia, la cosa diventava più delicata per i monasteri femminili
o "hospitia", come li chiamava Giacomo da Vitry; al concetto di
monastero si accompagnano la "stabilitas loci", il patrimonio
fondiario, i possedimenti. "Stabili" erano anche C. e le sue compagne
sia di S. Damiano sia degli altri quattro monasteri; ma sotto quale
giurisdizione, con quali leggi? (Callebaut). Il concilio lateranense IV doveva
essere rispettato ad ogni costo; sembra, anzi, che Innocenzo III già prima
dell'apertura del sinodo si sforzasse di normalizzarele situazioni che
avrebbero cozzato con i suoi progetti. Così con il titolo di badessa fatto
assumere a C. verso il 1215 e con il privilegium
paupertatis sicuramente accordatole - mediante il quale stabiliva che
nessuno la potesse obbligare a ricevere possedimenti -, Innocenzo III escogitava
degli strumenti giuridici atti "a conciliare la realizzazione dell'ideale
evangelico-francescano con la norma del concilio e, in sostanza, ad unire il
vecchio con il nuovo" (Callebaut). È ben noto che il documento introduceva
una tale novità nel modo di sostentamento di fondazioni monastiche femminili
(almeno di quella di S. Damiano), che lo stesso cardinale Ugolino, anche quando
fu papa Gregorio IX, cercò di eliminarlo o di mitigarlo; con C. non vi
riuscirono né lui né Innocenzo IV. D'altra parte, che lo stesso cardinale
Ugolino fosse un ammiratore irriducibile della regola benedettina secondo la
riforma cisterciense si desume anche dall'estrema asciuttezza del testo con cui
rinnovò a C. il detto privilegium il17 sett. 1228 e dall'intervento
del 9 febbr. 1237 con cui, in nome delle buone consuetudini cisterciensi,
proibiva alle clarisse l'uso della carne. Non è chiaro, invece, lo scopo
dell'altro privilegio concesso dallo stesso Gregorio IX a S. Damiano il 2 dic.
1234, con cui vietava agli uffici della Curia papale di citare in giudizio le
suore senza la menzione del detto privilegio.
Il movimento spirituale
iniziatosi con l'esperienza di C. ebbe un successo enorme nell'ambiente
femminile non solo italiano, ma europeo. Soltanto a fermarsi sull'aspetto
quantitativo, non è facile spiegare come nel 1253, alla morte di C., in Italia
fossero sorti almeno sessantasei monasteri (Pratesi), con un numero di suore
non inferiore a trenta per ciascuna casa; a S. Damiano ne vivevano cinquanta.
Le fonti legislative, narrative e letterarie sulla presenza della donna nella
società medievale ci informano ampiamente, dallo Speculum
virginum, redatto probabilmente verso il 1100, fino all'autore
della Legenda di s. Chiara, circa la funzione della verginità e circa
la condotta della monaca nel monastero (Verdon): il lavoro la preghiera, la
mortificazione, il vitto, il riposo, insomma tutti gli aspetti della vita
religiosa sono descritti minutamente e il quadro che ne risulta è una grande e
unanime esaltazione dei vantaggi della vita monastica stessa rispetto alle
condizioni della vita secolare. Ma se tutto ciò è riconducibile alla visione
tradizionale della esperienza religiosa claustrale ed è sicuramente connesso
anche a cause di sviluppo demografico, economico e sociale in genere, non lo è
per l'esperienza fatta da C. a S. Damiano, fenomeno unico e irripetibile, come,
per altro, quello di Francesco.
Per quanto poi il santo
di Assisi avesse promesso ogni assistenza a C., il suo modo di comportarsi
denotava una certa trascuratezza agli occhi dei compagni e di C. stessa.
Tuttavia, nell'inverno del 1224-25, Francesco soggiornò a S. Damiano a lungo
per curarsi la malattia degli occhi; in quel periodo compose il Cantico
delle creature e "dettò altresì alcune sante parole con melodia, a
maggiore consolazione delle povere signore del monastero". Nell'ottobre
dell'anno 1226, all'indomani della morte di Francesco, i cittadini di Assisi,
trasportando le spoglie del santo dalla Porziuncola alla chiesa di S. Giorgio,
passarono per S. Damiano perché C. e le compagne potessero rivedere e baciare
il corpo del loro padre attraverso la grata appositamente aperta. Tommaso da
Celano tramanda anche il "pianto" detto da C. sulle spoglie mortali
di Francesco.
Non si sa nulla di
particolare circa le reazioni di C. di fronte alla glorificazione di Francesco,
alla canonizzazione fatta da Gregorio IX in Assisi nel luglio del 1228, alla
costruzione della grande basilica. È naturale supporre, tuttavia, che la sua
testimonianza vivente dell'ideale evangelico di Francesco, specialmente in
materia di povertà, desse adito ad interpretazioni rigoriste, fino a
coinvolgerla in uno schieramento ben definito, quello degli spirituali. Del
resto C. stessa nel 1231, di fronte alla bolla Quo elongati di
Gregorio IX, che interpretava in modo alquanto restrittivo il cap. XI
della Regula bollata dei frati minori circa i rapporti di questi con
i monasteri, reagì drasticamente, allontanando anche i fratelli questuanti con
i quali l'Ordine l'assisteva economicamente.
Dopo la morte di Francesco,
C. rimase sola a lottare per conservare la purezza dell'ideale evangelico tra
le "povere donne", specialmente per quanto riguardava
il privilegium paupertatis in vigore a S. Damiano. La Formula
vitae ugoliniana guadagnava sempre più consensi tra i monasteri, in modo
particolare, come è ovvio, dopo che l'autore nel 1227 fu eletto papa. Il suo
cappellano, il cisterciense frate Ambrogio, continuò a rappresentarlo nel
proposito fermo di dotare i monasteri con adeguati possedimenti ma C. si oppose
e ottenne dal papa, come si è accennato sopra, la conferma del privilegio; si
oppose anche alla nuova Regula emanata da Innocenzo IV nel 1247, la
quale, anche se aveva eliminato il richiamo alla regola di s. Benedetto,
contenuto - con valore puramente formale - nella
suddetta Formula ugoliniana, aveva riaffermato l'autorizzazione ai
monasteri di possedere in comune beni immobili e di percepirne i frutti. Per
più motivi tale Regula innocenziana non incontrò il favore delle
monache, e non solo di quelle di S. Damiano; ragion per cui lo stesso
pontefice, viste inutili le sue molte pressioni, nel 1250 dichiarò che non
intendeva imporla. C. in questo periodo si vide autorizzata a rielaborare
quella "sua" Regula che, secondo la deposizione di suor Filippa
nel Processo, potébaciare due giorni prima di morire, inserita nella
bolla papale fattale pervenire da Innocenzo IV.
Molti interrogativi ha
suscitato la genesi di questa Regula del 1252-53. Come dice
espressamente il pontefice, il testo era quello approvato dal cardinale
Rainaldo (vescovo ostiense, poi Alessandro IV), protettore dei frati minori e
delle clarisse, sottoscritto a Perugia il 16 sett. 1252. Il cardinale a sua
volta afferma che la Regula non è altro che quella data alle suore di
S. Damiano da s. Francesco. Secondo il Lazzeri, Francesco, l'anno successivo
all'approvazione della Regula dei frati minori da parte di Onorio
III, avrebbe curato la stesura della Regula delle "povere
donne", la quale ricalca ordinatamente quella dei minori: stesso numero di
capitoli (dodici, che neppure in questa figurano con la indicazione numerica),
stessa titolazione dei capitoli, stesso formulario della Cancelleria
pontificia. Si deve ritenere, tuttavia, che C. abbia vegliato personalmente
sulla stesura del 1252 per "fermare e sottolineare con chiarezza i
legami" considerati "essenziali per il nuovo Ordine: osservanza del
Vangelo, obbedienza al papa e alla Chiesa, obbedienza a s. Francesco e ai
successori di lui. Tutte le suore poi sono tenute ad obbedire alla abbadessa che
esprime tali impegni e legami" (Olgiati).
Tra il 1235 e l'anno
della morte si colloca un periodo di una certa attività scrittoria di Chiara.
Suoi scritti autentici si considerano oltre la Regula del 1252-53,
quattro lettere alla beata Agnese di Praga; non autentici sono ritenuti
il Testamento (ricalcato su quello di s. Francesco) e la lettera a
Ermentrude. Le quattro lettere ad Agnese non sfuggono alla questione
fondamentale che la critica storica si è posta a mo' di interrogativo
preliminare: su quale cultura o su quale formazione intellettuale si basa la
spiritualità di Chiara? Gli studi, le analisi, gli approfondimenti in questo
settore, proprio come è accaduto per gli scritti di s. Francesco, non hanno
raggiunto alcuna certezza. Stimolata anche dalla necessità di dare un volto
uniforme al suo Ordine che si diffondeva in tutta l'Europa, C. intraprese la
corrispondenza epistolare con la figlia del re di Boemia Ottocaro, Agnese, la
quale fin dal 1234 aveva fondato un monastero e ne aveva assunto la guida
seguendo la Forma vitae di S. Damiano. Al di là di alcune notizie
storiche sulle Observantiae in vigore nel monastero di Assisi, le
lettere mettono in evidenza i propositi che muovono l'azione di C., i principî
che illuminano l'attitudine del suo spirito, insomma il suo mondo interiore,
che è sempre un "riflesso" del mondo di Francesco (Breton, Lainati).
Due fatti strepitosi
irrompono in modo assolutamente insolito nella vita di C. e del suo monastero,
l'una e l'altro immersi nella preghiera e nel silenzio; entrambi gli episodi si
riferiscono ad azioni di guerra. Sono narrati in modo distinto dalle suore che
depongono nel Processo e dall'autore della Legenda (alla
quale ultima attinge per il suo racconto il cronista fra' Elemosina), e
cronologicamente collocati "in quel periodo travagliato che la Chiesa
attraversò in diverse parti del mondo sotto l'impero di Federico [II]" e
quando specialmente la "valle Spoletana beveva più spesso delle altre il
calice dell'ira" (Legenda, 21). Il primo episodio sembra alludere
all'incursione di milizie sbandate di saraceni, al seguito dell'esercito
imperiale, che assalgono il monastero di S. Damiano; nel secondo si parla
espressamente dell'assedio posto ad Assisi da Vitale d'Aversa, valoroso
comandante dell'esercito di Federico II. In entrambi i casi la liberazione o la
salvezza (del monastero e della città) sono attribuiti all'intervento
prodigioso della preghiera di Chiara.
Arrivata la Curia romana
a Perugia da Lione nel novembre del 1251, C., tramite il cardinale Rainaldo,
aumenta le pressioni per avere la conferma della Regula, che dal
cardinale stesso ottiene, come detto sopra, nel settembre dell'anno successivo,
forse in una delle visite da lui fatte al monastero. Ma ormai C., dopo
ventinove anni di malattia, è giunta agli estremi. Innocenzo IV nel maggio del
1253 si trasferisce in Assisi con la Curia e più tardi si reca a visitare la
inferma; essa gli chiede la bolla per la Regula approvata dal
cardinale Rainaldo. Il 9 agosto due frati gliela portano e C. muore in pace l'11
agosto. La notizia della morte fa accorrere a S. Damiano il papa con la Curia e
tutta la città. Innocenzo IV, secondo il racconto dell'agiografo, ordinando di
recitare l'ufficio delle vergini, non quello dei morti, manifesta la volontà di
canonizzarla subito. Con maggiore calma e prudenza si percorse, in seguito,
tutto l'iter delle formalità per giungere, nell'autunno del 1255, alla
bolla di canonizzazione Clara clarispraeclara meritis nella quale,
prima di narrare succintamente la vita, l'autore, con sfoggio di artifici
retorici, usa undici volte la parola "Clara" e diciannove dei
vocaboli derivati.
Fonti e Bibl.: Si deve
premettere che essendo la biografia clariana collegata, almeno nel capitolo
della conversione, con quella di s. Francesco, tutta la bibliografia francescana
dovrebbe essere qui citata, cosa, evidentemente, impossibile. Si farà quindi
una scelta, avvertendo che tutte le riviste di studi francescani che escono
attualmente nelle lingue principali alimentano ininterrottamente la ricerca e
la discussione anche sulla figura e l'azione di s. Chiara.
L. Wadding, Annales
Minorum, ad Claras Aquas 1931, II, pp. 88-96; III, pp. 338-357, 421-425;
Thomas de Celano, Vita prima sancti Francisci e Vita secunda
s. Francisci, in Analecta franciscana, X(1941), pp. 17, 92;
S. Bonaventura, Legenda maior sancti Francisci, ibid., pp. 573, 611,
625; Regula pro eremitoriis data, a cura di K. Esser, in Die
Opuscula des hl. Franziskus von Assisi, Grottaferrata 1976, pp.
405-12; Z. Lazzeri, Il processo di canonizz. di s. C. d'Assisi, in Arch. franc. histor.,
XIII (1920), pp. 403-507; Lettres de Jacques de Vitry, a cura di R.
B. C. Huygens, Leiden 1960, p. 76; Escrítos de s. C. y
documéntos contempor., a c. di I. Omaechevarria, Madrid 1970; Textus
opuscul. s. Francisci et s. Clarae Assis., a c. di G. M.
Boccali, Assisi 1976; Fonti francescane. Cronache e altre
testimon. del primo secolo francescano. Scritti e biografie di
s. C. d'Assisi, sez. quarta, a cura di C. A. Lainati-F. Olgiati,
II, Assisi 1977, pp. 2207-2465; Opuscula s. Francisci et scripta
s. Clarae Assisiensium, a cura di G. M. Boccali-L. Canonici, Assisi
1978; E. Frascadore-H. Ooms, Bibliogr. delle bibliografie
francescane, Firenze-Quaracchi 1964-1965, nn. 1845, 2556-70; G. G.
Sbaraglia, Bullarium franciscanum, I, Romae 1759, pp. 37, 143, 209,
771; L. Oliger, De origine Regularum Ordinis
S. Clarae, in Arch. franc. hist., V (1912), pp.
181-209, 413-47; B. Bughetti, Legenda versificata s. Clarae
Assisiensis, ibid., pp. 237-60, 459-81, 621 ss.; L. Bracaloni, Storia di
S. Damiano in Assisi, Todi 1926; A. Callebaut, St. François
et les privilèges, surtout celui de la pauvreté concédé à s. Claire par
Innocent III, in Arch. franc. hist., XX(1927), pp. 182-93;
G. Abate, La casa paterna di s. C. e falsific. storiche dei
sec. XVI e XVII intorno alla medesima santa e a s. Francesco
d'Assisi, in Boll. della Deput. di st. patria per
l'Umbria, XLI (1944), pp. 34-160; F. Casolini, Il protomonastero di
s. C. in Assisi. Studi e cronaca, Milano 1950; E.
Grau, Das Privilegium paupertatis Innocenz III., in Franziskanische
Studien, XXXII (1950), pp. 337-49; K. Esser, Die Briefe Gregors
IX., an die hl. Klara von Assisi, ibid., XXXV (1953), pp. 274-95; G.
Abate, Nuovi studi sull'ubicaz. della casa paterna di s. C. d'Assisi, in Boll. della
Deput. di st. patria per l'Umbria, L (1953), pp. 111-44; A.
Fortini, Nuove notizie intorno a
s. C. d'Assisi, in Arch. franc. hist., XLVI
(1953), pp. 3-43; E. Franceschini, I due assalti dei Saraceni a
S. Damiano e ad Assisi, in Aevum, XXVII (1953), pp.
289-306; S. C. d'Assisi. Studi e cronaca del VII
centenario,1253-1953, Perugia 1954 (in questo vol. gli studi
di Z. Lazzeri, La "Forma vitae" di s. C. e le
regole sue e del suo Ordine, pp. 79-121; A. Van Dijk, Il culto di
s. C. nel Medioevo, pp. 155-205; E Franceschini, Biografie
di s. C., pp. 263-74; R.Pratesi, Le clarisse in Italia, pp.
339-77; V. Breton, La spiritualità di C., pp. 61-78); A.
Fortini, Nuova vita di s. Francesco, Assisi 1959, pp. 315-426;
I. Omaechevarria, La regla y las reglas de la Orden de santa Clara, in Collect. franc.,
XLVI (1976), pp. 93-119; I. Vázquez, La "Forma vitae"
hugoliniana para las clarisas en una bula desconocida de
1245, in Antonianum, LII (1977), pp. 94-125; J. Verdon, Les
sources de l'hist. de la femme en Occident aux Xe-XIIIe siècles, in La
femme dans les civilis. des Xe-XIIIe siècles. Actes du colloque tenu
à Poitiers les 23-25 sept. 1976, Poitiers 1977, pp. 129-61; A.
Bartoli Langeli, La realtà sociale assisiana e il patto del
1210, in Assisi al tempo di s. Francesco. Atti del V
Convegno internaz., Assisi,13-16 ott. 1977, Assisi 1978, p. 333;
I. Omaechevarria, L'Ordine di s. C. sotto diverse
regole, in Forma sororum, XV (1978), pp. 141-53; G.
Mancini, Dalla "Forma vitae" iniziale alla maturità delle
grandi regole, ibid., pp. 129-139; Enc. catt., III. coll.
1419-21; Dictionn. d'Hist. et de Géogr. Eccl., XII, coll.
1032-36; Lexikon für Theologie und Kirche, VI, col.
314; Bibliotheca sanctorum, III, Coll.
1201-17; Diz. degli Istituti di perfezione, II, coll.
885-92; Dict. de spiritualité ascétique
et mystique, V, coll.
1401-1409; Enc. dantesca, I, p. 954.
SOURCE http://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/santa-chiara-d-assisi_(Dizionario-Biografico)
Hauzenberg
( Niederbayern ). Pfarrkirche St. Vitus - Gotische Apsis ( 15.Jhdt. ):
Buntglasfenster ( 1934 ) - Heilige Clara
Hauzenberg ( Niederbayern ). Saint Vitus parish church - Gothic apse ( 15th century ): Stained glass windows ( 1934 ) - Saint Claire.
Liebe Schwestern!
1. Am 11. August
1253 beendete die hl. Klara von Assisi ihren irdischen Pilgerweg. Sie war
Anhängerin des hl. Franziskus und Gründerin Eures Ordens der Armen Schwestern
der hl. Klara (Klarissen), der heute mit seinen verschiedenen Verzweigungen
etwa 900 Klöster zählt, die auf alle fünf Kontinente verteilt sind. 750 Jahre
nach ihrem Tod ist das Andenken an diese große Heilige in den Herzen der
Gläubigen nach wie vor sehr lebendig, und daher ist es mir eine besondere
Freude, Eurer Ordensfamilie aus diesem Anlaß meine herzlichen Gedanken und
meine zuneigungsvollen Grüße übermitteln zu können.
Zu diesem bedeutsamen
Jubiläum fordert die hl. Klara alle auf, den Wert der Berufung, die ein
Geschenk Gottes ist, das Früchte bringen muß, stets tiefer zu ergründen. In
ihrem Testament schrieb sie in diesem Zusammenhang: »Unter den verschiedenen
Gnadenerweisen, die wir vom Vater der Erbarmungen, der uns so reichlich
beschenkt, erhalten haben und täglich erhalten, und für die wir ihm, dem
glorreichen Vater Christi ganz besonders Dank sagen müssen, ist es vor allem
unsere Berufung, für die wir ihm desto mehr verpflichtet sind, als diese
Berufung vollkommen und erhaben ist. Daher sagt der Apostel: ›Werde deiner
Berufung inne!‹« (2–4).
2. Die um 1193/94 in
Assisi als Kind der Adelsfamilie Favarone di Offreduccio geborene Heilige
erhielt vor allem durch ihre Mutter Ortolana eine solide christliche Erziehung.
Von der Gnade Gottes erleuchtet, fand sie Begeisterung an der neuen Form
evangelischen Lebens, die der hl. Franziskus und seine Gefährten begründet
hatten, und entschied sich ihrerseits für eine radikale Nachfolge Christi.
Nachdem sie in der Nacht vom Palmsonntag auf den Montag in der Karwoche 1211
(oder 1212) das väterliche Haus verlassen hatte, begab sie sich, dem Rat des
Heiligen folgend, in die kleine Kirche der Portiuncula, der Wiege der
franziskanischen Erfahrung, wo sie sich vor dem Altar der hl. Maria all ihres
Reichtums entledigte, um das einfache kreuzförmige Bußgewand anzulegen.
Nach einer kurzen Zeit
der Suche erreichte sie schließlich das kleine Kloster »San Damiano«, wohin ihr
auch ihre jüngere Schwester Agnes folgte. Hier schlossen sich ihr weitere
Gefährtinnen an, die vom Wunsch beseelt waren, das Evangelium in einer
kontemplativen Dimension zu verkörpern. Angesichts der Entschlossenheit, mit
der die neue monastische Gemeinschaft den Spuren Christi folgte und Armut,
Mühe, Leid, Demütigung sowie die Abkehr von der Welt als Grund großer
spiritueller Freude erachtete, schrieb der hl. Franziskus ihnen in väterlicher
Zuneigung: »Da ihr euch auf göttliche Eingebung hin zu Töchtern und Dienerinnen
des erhabensten höchsten Königs, des himmlischen Vaters, gemacht und euch dem
Heiligen Geist verlobt habt, indem ihr das Leben nach der Vollkommenheit des
heiligen Evangeliums erwähltet, so will ich und verspreche dies für mich und
meine Brüder, für euch genauso wie für diese immer liebevolle Sorge und
besondere Verantwortung tragen« (Regel der hl. Klara, Kap. VI. 3–4).
3. Diese Worte fügte
Klara in das zentrale Kapitel ihrer Ordensregel ein, denn in ihnen erkannte sie
nicht nur eine der Lehren des Heiligen, sondern den wesentlichen Kern seines
Charismas, das sich im trinitarischen und marianischen Kontext des Evangeliums
von der Verkündigung abzeichnet. Der hl. Franziskus sah die Berufung der Armen
Schwestern im Licht der Jungfrau Maria, der demütigen Dienerin des Herrn, die
mit und durch den Heiligen Geist zur Mutter Gottes wurde. Die demütige Dienerin
des Herrn ist das Urbild der Kirche, der Jungfrau, Braut und Mutter.
Klara sah ihre Berufung
als Aufforderung, so zu leben wie Maria, die ihre Jungfräulichkeit dem Wirken
des Heiligen Geistes darbrachte, um zur Mutter Christi und seines mystischen
Leibes zu werden. Sie fühlte sich der Mutter des Herrn tief verbunden, und
richtete daher folgende Worte an die hl. Agnes von Prag, eine böhmische
Prinzessin, die in den Klarissenorden eingetreten ist: »Seiner liebsten Mutter
hange fest an, die einen solchen Sohn geboren hat: den die Himmel nicht zu
fassen vermochten, den hielt sie im verschlossenen Kämmerlein ihre Leibes
umfangen und trug ihn im jungfräulichen Schoß« (3. Brief an Agnes von Prag,
18–19).
Die Person Marias
begleitete die Berufung der Heiligen aus Assisi bis an ihr Lebensende. Einem
Zeugenbericht zufolge, der bei ihrem Heiligsprechungsprozeß abgegeben wurde,
näherte sich die Muttergottes dem Bett der im Sterben liegenden Klara und
neigte sich über sie, deren Leben ein leuchtendes Abbild des ihren gewesen war.
4. Allein aus der
ausschließlichen, aus inniger Liebe getroffenen Entscheidung für den
gekreuzigten Christus läßt sich die Entschlossenheit erklären, mit der die hl.
Klara den Weg »höchster Armut« einschlagen konnte. Die Bedeutung dieser Worte
schließt die Erfahrung der Selbstenteignung ein, die der Sohn Gottes in der
Menschwerdung lebte. Mit der Bezeichnung »höchster« wollte Klara gewissermaßen
die Erniedrigung des Gottessohnes zum Ausdruck bringen, die sie mit
ehrfürchtigem Staunen erfüllte: »Wenn also ein Herr von solcher Erhabenheit und
solch edlem Wesen in den jungfräulichen Schoß eintreten und verachtet,
bedürftig und arm in der Welt erscheinen wollte, damit die Menschen, die ganz
und gar arm und bedürftig waren und überaus großen Mangel an himmlischer Speise
litten, in ihm reich würden und die Reiche der Himmel in Besitz nehmen könnten«
(1. Brief an Agnes von Prag, 19–20). Sie erkannte diese Armut im gesamten
irdischen Leben Jesu, von Betlehem bis Golgota, wo der Herr »nackt am
Marterholz verblieb« (Testament der hl. Klara, 45).
Dem Sohn Gottes zu
folgen, der für uns zum Weg geworden ist, bedeutete für sie, kein anderes
Bestreben zu haben, als mit Christus in die Erfahrung einer radikalen Demut und
Armut einzutauchen, die sich auf jeden Aspekt des menschlichen Lebens bezieht,
bis hin zur Entäußerung des Kreuzes. Die Entscheidung für die Armut war für die
hl. Klara eine innere Konsequenz ihrer Treue zum Evangelium, durch die sie sich
sogar veranlaßt sah, den Papst um ein »Armutsprivileg« zu bitten, als
besonderes Vorrecht der von ihr begonnenen monastischen Lebensweise. Dieses
»Privileg«, das sie ihr ganzes Leben lang beharrlich verteidigte, nahm sie in die
Regel auf, die zwei Tage vor ihrem Tod mit der Bulle Solet annuere vom
9. August 1253, vor 750 Jahren, die päpstliche Bestätigung erhielt.
5. Bis zuletzt richtete
Klara den Blick fest auf den Sohn Gottes, dessen Geheimnisse sie unablässig
betrachtete. Ihr Blick war der einer liebenden Braut, die erfüllt ist von dem
Wunsch nach einer stets vollkommeneren Anteilnahme. Sie vertiefte sich vor
allem in die Meditation der Passion, wobei sie das Mysterium Christi
betrachtete, der sie vom Kreuz herab rief und zu dem sie sich hingezogen
fühlte. Sie schrieb: »Ihr alle, die ihr des Weges vorüberzieht, merkt auf und
seht, ob ein Schmerz ist gleich meinem Schmerz. Wir sollten ihm antworten« – so
ihre Worte – »ihm, der da ruft und klagt, eins mit ihm in Stimme und Geist: Stets
werde ich dessen eingedenk sein, und meine Seele wird dahinschwinden in mir« (4.
Brief an Agnes, 25–26). Und sie forderte: »In der Glut dieser Liebe mögest Du
immer stärker entbrennen…, mögest Du seufzend vor übergroßer Sehnsucht und
Liebe des Herzens rufen: ›Zieh mich dir nach, … himmlischer Bräutigam!‹« (ebd.,
27.29–32).
Diese vollkommene Einheit
mit dem Mysterium Christi führte sie ein in die Erfahrung der Innewohnung des
dreifaltigen Gottes, in der sich die Seele mehr und mehr der Gegenwart Gottes
in ihr bewußt wird: »Denn die Himmel, mitsamt den übrigen Geschöpfen, vermögen
ihren Schöpfer nicht zu fassen, die gläubige Seele allein ist seine Bleibe und
(Thron) Sitz, und dies allein durch die Liebe, welche die Gottlosen nicht
haben« (3. Brief an Agnes, 22–23).
6. Unter Klaras Führung
entschloß sich die in »San Damiano« versammelte Gemeinschaft, dem Geist des
heiligen Evangeliums entsprechend in einer kontemplativen klösterlichen
Atmosphäre zu leben, die sich beschreiben läßt als »Gemeinschaft in der
Eintracht des Geistes« (vgl. Regel der hl. Klara, Prolog), gemäß »einer
Lebensform heiliger Gemeinschaft« (vgl. ebd.). Das tiefe Verständnis, das
Klara für den Wert der Einheit in der Bruderschaft zeigte, scheint auf eine
ausgereifte kontemplative Erfahrung des trinitarischen Mysteriums
zurückzugehen. Wahre Kontemplation verschließt sich nicht im Individualismus,
sondern erkennt die Wahrheit des Eins-Seins im Vater, im Sohn und im Heiligen
Geist. In ihrer Ordensregel gestaltete Klara das brüderliche Leben nicht nur
nach den Werten des gegenseitigen Dienstes, der Teilhabe, des Teilens, sondern
sie sorgte auch dafür, daß die Gemeinschaft fest auf »der Einheit der
gegenseitigen Liebe und des Friedens « aufgebaut wurde (Kap. IV. 22), und
forderte, daß die Schwestern »immer besorgt sein [sollen], untereinander die
Einigkeit der gegenseitigen Liebe zu bewahren, die das Band der Vollkommenheit
ist« (Kap. X, 7).
Sie war der festen
Überzeugung, daß die gegenseitige Liebe die Gemeinschaft aufbaut und ein
Wachsen in der Berufung bewirkt. Daher mahnte sie in ihrem Testament: »Ihr
solltet einander aus der Liebe Christi lieben, und die Liebe, die ihr im
Inneren habt, nach außen im Werk zeigen, damit die Schwestern, durch solches
Beispiel aufgerufen, beständig in der Liebe zu Gott und untereinander zunehmen«
(59–60).
7. Diesen Wert der
Einheit erkannte Klara in seiner ganzen Tragweite. Daher bestand sie darauf,
daß die Klostergemeinschaft vollkommen in die Kirche eingegliedert und durch
das Band des Gehorsams und in kindlicher Unterwerfung fest in ihr verankert
sein sollte (vgl. Regel, Kap 1, XII). Sehr wohl war ihr bewußt, daß das
Leben der Klosterfrauen zum Vorbild werden sollte für andere Schwestern, die
der gleichen Berufung folgen, und zum leuchtenden Zeugnis für alle, die auf
Erden leben.
Die 40 Jahre, die sie in
dem kleinen Kloster von »San Damiano« verbracht hat, engten den Horizont ihres
Herzens keineswegs ein, sondern sie vertieften ihren Glauben an die Gegenwart
Gottes, der in der Geschichte das Heil bewirkt. Bekannt sind zwei Episoden, in
denen Klara, kraft ihres Glaubens an die Eucharistie und durch demütiges Gebet,
die Befreiung Assisis erreichte und das Kloster vor der Gefahr drohender
Zerstörung bewahrte.
8. Auch soll
hervorgehoben werden, daß 750 Jahre nach der päpstlichen Approbation die
Ordensregel der hl. Klara ihre geistlichen Faszination und ihren theologischen
Reichtum noch immer voll bewahrt. Der perfekte Einklang zwischen menschlichen
und christlichen Werten, die weise Harmonie kontemplativen Eifers und
evangeliumsgemäßer Strenge bekräftigen sie für Euch, liebe Klarissen des
dritten Jahrtausends, als jenen Weg, dem Ihr ohne Angleichung oder
Zugeständnisse an den Geist der Welt folgen sollt.
An jede von Euch richtet
Klara jene Worte, die sie Agnes von Prag hinterließ: »Ja, wahrhaft glücklich,
wem es gegeben ist, an diesem heiligen Gastmahl teilzunehmen, um mit allen
Fasern des Herzens dem anzuhangen, dessen Schönheit alle seligen Scharen des
Himmels ohne Unterlaß bewundern« (4. Brief an Agnes, 9).
Dieser Jahrestag gibt
Euch Gelegenheit, über das charakteristische Charisma Eurer Berufung als
Klarissen nachzudenken. Ein Charisma, das vor allem im Ruf besteht, gemäß
der Vollkommenheit des heiligen Evangeliums zu leben, mit fester Bezugnahme auf
Christus als unser einziges und wahres Lebensprogramm. Ist dies etwa keine
Herausforderung für die Menschen von heute? Hier wird eine Alternative zur
Unzufriedenheit und Oberflächlichkeit der heutigen Welt angeboten, die oft ihre
Identität verloren zu haben scheint, weil sie sich nicht mehr bewußt ist, daß
sie von der Liebe Gottes erschaffen worden ist und von Ihm erwartet wird in der
Gemeinschaft ohne Ende.
Ihr, liebe Klarissen,
lebt die Nachfolge des Herrn in einer bräutlichen Dimension durch die
Erneuerung des Mysteriums der fruchtbaren Jungfräulichkeit der Jungfrau Maria,
der Braut des Heiligen Geistes und vollendeten Frau. Die Präsenz Eurer ganz dem
kontemplativen Leben geweihten Klöster möge auch heute an das bräutliche Herz
der Kirche (vgl. Verbi
Sponsa, 1) erinnern, die erfüllt ist vom sehnlichen Wunsch des Geistes, der
unablässig das Kommen Christi, des Bräutigams, erfleht (vgl. Offb 22,17).
In einer Zeit, in der ein
neues Streben nach Heiligkeit notwendig ist, bietet die hl. Klara auch ein
Beispiel für jene Pädagogik der Heiligkeit, die, genährt vom unablässigen
Gebet, uns zu Betrachtern des Antlitzes Gottes werden läßt und das Herz öffnet
für den Geist des Herrn, der die ganze Person, Geist, Herz und Taten gemäß den
Anforderungen des Evangeliums verwandelt.
9. Mein inniger, vom
Gebet begleiteter Wunsch ist, daß Eure Klöster dem allgemeinen Verlangen nach
Spiritualität und Gebet in der heutigen Welt auch weiterhin das anspruchsvolle
Zeugnis einer vollkommenen und wahren Erfahrung des dreifaltigen Gottes
anbieten mögen, durch die seine liebevolle und heilbringende Gegenwart
ausgestrahlt wird.
Maria, die Jungfrau vom
Hören, stehe Euch zur Seite, und die hl. Klara wie auch die anderen Heiligen
und Seligen Eures Ordens mögen Fürsprache für Euch einlegen.
Eurer, liebe Schwestern,
und all jener, die mit Euch die Gnade dieses bedeutenden Jubiläums teilen,
werde ich in besonderer Weise gedenken, und ich erteile allen von Herzen meinen
besonderen Apostolischen Segen.
Aus dem Vatikan, am 9.
August 2003
JOHANNES PAUL II.
Copyright © Dicastero per
la Comunicazione - Libreria Editrice Vaticana
Stained-glass
windows of W. H. Jansen in St. Servatius (Landkern) ; Claire of Assisi on
stained-glass windows ; 1912
stained-glass windows in Rhineland-Palatinate
BENEDIKT XVI.
GENERALAUDIENZ
Klara von Assisi
Liebe Brüder und
Schwestern!
Eine der beliebtesten
Heiligen ist zweifellos die hl. Klara von Assisi. Sie hat im 13. Jahrhundert
gelebt und war Zeitgenossin des hl. Franziskus. Ihr Zeugnis zeigt uns, wieviel
die ganze Kirche mutigen Frauen verdankt, die wie sie reich waren an Glauben
und die einen entscheidenden Anstoß zur Erneuerung der Kirche geben konnten.
Wer also war Klara von
Assisi? Zur Beantwortung dieser Frage besitzen wir gesicherte Quellen: nicht
nur die zeitgenössischen Biographien, wie die des Thomas von Celano, sondern
auch die Akten des Heiligsprechungsprozesses, den der Papst nur wenige Monate
nach Klaras Tod einleitete und der die Zeugnisse jener enthält, die lange Zeit
an ihrer Seite gelebt haben.
Klara, die 1193 geboren
wurde, entstammte einer adeligen und reichen Familie. Sie verzichtete auf Adel
und Reichtum, um demütig und arm zu leben, indem sie die Lebensform annahm, die
Franz von Assisi vorschlug. Auch wenn ihre Angehörigen, wie damals üblich, eine
Ehe mit einer hochgestellten Persönlichkeit für sie planten, verließ Klara mit
18 Jahren ihr Vaterhaus: ein mutiger Schritt, der aus dem tiefen Wunsch heraus
kam, Christus nachzufolgen, sowie aus der Bewunderung für Franziskus. In
Begleitung einer Freundin, Bona di Guelfuccio, ging sie heimlich zu den
Minderbrüdern bei der »Portiunkula«-Kapelle. Es war der Abend des Palmsonntags
1211. Unter allgemeiner bewegter Anteilnahme wurde eine hochsymbolische Geste
vollbracht: Im Schein brennender Fackeln, die seine Gefährten in den Händen
hielten, schnitt Franziskus ihr Haar ab, und Klara legte ein rauhes Büßergewand
an. Von diesem Augenblick an war sie zur jungfräulichen Braut des demütigen und
armen Christus geworden und weihte sich ihm vollkommen. Wie Klara und ihre
Gefährtinnen wurden zahllose Frauen im Laufe der Geschichte angezogen von der
Liebe zu Christus, der in der Schönheit seiner göttlichen Person ihr Herz
erfüllt. Und durch die Berufung der geweihten Jungfrauen zur mystischen Ehe
zeigt sich die ganze Kirche als das, was sie für immer sein wird: die schöne
und reine Braut Christi.
In einem der vier Briefe,
die Klara an die hl. Agnes von Prag sandte, die Tochter des Königs von Böhmen,
die ihren Spuren folgen wollte, spricht sie von Christus, ihrem geliebten
Bräutigam, mit bräutlichen Worten, die Erstaunen hervorrufen können, aber sehr
ergreifend sind: »Wenn Ihr ihn liebt, seid Ihr keusch, wenn Ihr ihn berührt,
werdet Ihr noch reiner, wenn Ihr ihn aufnehmt, bleibt Ihr Jungfrau. Seine Macht
ist stärker, seine edle Art erhabener, sein Aussehen schöner, seine Liebe
holder und alle seine Anmut feiner. Von seinen Umarmungen seid Ihr schon
umfangen, er hat Eure Brust mit kostbaren Steinen geschmückt… und Euch gekrönt
mit einer goldenen Krone, dem ausdrücklichen Zeichen seiner Heiligkeit« (Erster
Brief: FF, 2862).
Vor allem zu Anfang ihrer
religiösen Erfahrung fand Klara in Franz von Assisi nicht nur einen Meister,
dessen Lehren sie folgen konnte, sondern auch einen brüderlichen Freund. Die
Freundschaft zwischen diesen beiden Heiligen ist ein sehr schöner und wichtiger
Aspekt. Wenn nämlich zwei reine und von derselben Liebe zu Gott entflammte
Seelen einander begegnen, dann bekommen sie aus der gegenseitigen Freundschaft
einen sehr starken Ansporn, den Weg der Vollkommenheit zu beschreiten. Die
Freundschaft ist eine der edelsten und erhabensten menschlichen Empfindungen,
die von der göttlichen Gnade gereinigt und verklärt wird. Wie der hl.
Franziskus und die hl. Klara haben auch andere Heilige den Weg zur christlichen
Vollkommenheit in tiefer Freundschaft zueinander beschritten, zum Beispiel der
hl. Franz von Sales und die hl. Johanna Franziska von Chantal. Und eben der hl.
Franz von Sales schreibt: »O wie gut ist es, auf Erden zu lieben, wie man im
Himmel liebt; in dieser Welt so inniglich sich teuer sein zu lernen, wie wir in
der andern ewiglich uns teuer sein werden! Nicht von der einfachen christlichen
Liebe rede ich hier, die man gegen jeden Menschen zu hegen verpflichtet ist;
von der geistlichen Freundschaft gilt, was ich hier sage, durch welche zwei,
drei oder mehrere Seelen ihre Andacht, ihre frommen Gefühle gegenseitig sich
mitteilen, und zu einem Herzen und zu einer Seele werden« (Anleitung zum
frommen Leben III, 19).
Nachdem sie einige Monate
in anderen monastischen Gemeinschaften verbracht hatte, ließ Klara sich gegen
den Widerstand ihrer Angehörigen, die ihre Entscheidung zunächst nicht
guthießen, mit den ersten Gefährtinnen in der Kirche San Damiano nieder, wo die
Minderbrüder ihnen einen kleinen Konvent eingerichtet hatten. In diesem Kloster
lebte sie über 40 Jahre lang, bis zu ihrem Tod im Jahre 1253. Uns ist eine
Beschreibung aus erster Hand über das Leben dieser Frauen in jenen
Anfangsjahren der franziskanischen Bewegung überliefert. Es handelt sich um den
Bericht eines flämischen Bischofs auf Besuch in Italien, Jakob von Vitry, der
Bewunderung zum Ausdruck bringt: er habe eine große Anzahl von Männern und
Frauen aller sozialen Schichten vorgefunden, die »alles für Christus verlassen
hatten und der Welt entflohen waren. Sie nannten sich Minderbrüder und Minderschwestern
und genießen große Achtung beim Papst und bei den Kardinälen… Die Frauen… leben
gemeinsam an mehreren Stätten unweit der Städte. Sie erhalten nichts, sondern
leben von ihrer Hände Arbeit. Und es schmerzt und betrübt sie sehr, daß sie vom
Klerus und von den Laien mehr geehrt werden, als ihnen recht ist« (Brief vom
Oktober 1216: FF, 2205.2207).
Jakob von Vitry hatte mit
Scharfblick einen charakteristischen Zug der franziskanischen Spiritualität
erkannt, für den Klara sehr empfänglich war: die Radikalität der Armut in
Verbindung mit dem völligen Vertrauen auf die göttliche Vorsehung. Aus diesem
Grund handelte sie mit großer Entschlossenheit und erlangte von Papst Gregor
IX. oder wahrscheinlich schon von Papst Innozenz III. das sogenannte »Privilegium
Paupertatis« (vgl. FF, 3279), demgemäß Klara und ihre Gefährtinnen von San
Damiano keinerlei materiellen Besitz haben durften. Es handelte sich um eine
wirklich ungewöhnliche Ausnahme gegenüber dem geltenden Kirchenrecht, und die
kirchlichen Autoritäten jener Zeit gewährten sie in Anerkennung der Früchte
evangeliumsgemäßer Heiligkeit, die sie in der Lebensweise Klaras und ihrer
Mitschwestern erkannten. Das zeigt, daß auch in den Jahrhunderten des
Mittelalters die Frauen keine zweitrangige, sondern eine beachtliche Rolle
spielten. In diesem Zusammenhang sollte daran erinnert werden, daß Klara die
erste Frau in der Kirchengeschichte war, die eine schriftliche Regel verfaßt
hat, die dem Papst zur Approbation unterbreitet wurde, um das Charisma des
Franz von Assisi in allen Frauengemeinschaften zu bewahren, die schon zu ihrer
Zeit zahlreich entstanden und die sich am Vorbild von Franziskus und Klara
orientieren wollten.
Im Konvent von San
Damiano lebte Klara in heroischer Weise die Tugenden, die jeden Christen
auszeichnen sollten: die Demut, den Geist der Frömmigkeit und der Buße, die
Nächstenliebe. Obgleich sie die Oberin war, wollte sie den kranken
Mitschwestern persönlich dienen, indem sie auch niederste Aufgaben übernahm:
Die Liebe nämlich überwindet jeden Widerstand, und wer liebt, vollbringt jedes
Opfer mit Freude. Ihr Glaube an die Realpräsenz in der Eucharistie war so groß,
daß zweimal wunderbare Dinge geschahen. Allein durch die Aussetzung des
Allerheiligsten Sakraments vertrieb sie die sarazenischen Söldnertruppen, die
im Begriff waren, das Kloster von San Damiano anzugreifen und die Stadt Assisi
zu verwüsten.
Diese Geschehnisse sowie
andere Wunder, an die die Erinnerung bewahrt wurde, veranlaßten Papst Alexander
IV., sie 1255, nur zwei Jahre nach ihrem Tod, heiligzusprechen. Er verkündete
ihr Lob in der Heiligsprechungsbulle, in der es heißt: »Welch eine Leuchtkraft
besitzt dieses Licht, und wie hell ist der Glanz dieser leuchtenden Quelle!
Wahrlich, dieses Licht war in der Verborgenheit des klösterlichen Lebens
verschlossen und strahlte draußen mit hellem Schein; es sammelte sich in engen
Klostermauern und verbreitete sich draußen in der ganzen Welt. Es wurde drinnen
bewahrt und verbreitete sich draußen. Klara nämlich hielt sich verborgen; aber
ihr Leben wurde allen offenbar. Klara schwieg, aber ihr Ruhm wurde laut« (FF,
3284). Und genau so ist es, liebe Freunde: Die Heiligen sind es, die die Welt
zum Besseren wandeln, sie dauerhaft verändern, indem sie ihr Kräfte zuführen,
die nur die vom Evangelium inspirierte Liebe hervorbringen kann. Die Heiligen
sind die großen Wohltäter der Menschheit!
Die Spiritualität der hl.
Klara, ihr Entwurf der Heiligkeit ist im vierten Brief an die hl. Agnes von
Prag zusammengefaßt. Die hl. Klara gebraucht das Bild des Spiegels, das im
Mittelalter sehr verbreitet war und von den Kirchenvätern herkommt. Sie fordert
ihre Freundin in Prag auf, sich in jenem Spiegel der Vollkommenheit aller
Tugenden zu betrachten, der der Herr selbst ist. So schreibt sie: »Wahrhaft
glücklich, wem es gegeben wird, dieses heilige Gastmahl zu genießen, um mit
allen Fasern des Herzens dem anzuhangen [Christus], dessen Schönheit alle
seligen himmlischen Heerscharen unaufhörlich bewundern, dessen Liebe reich
beschenkt, dessen Betrachtung erquickt, dessen Güte erfüllt, dessen Liebenswürdigkeit
wieder herstellt, dessen Andenken lieblich leuchtet, durch dessen Duft Tote
wieder aufleben werden, dessen glorreicher Anblick selig machen wird alle
Bewohner des himmlischen Jerusalem, da es ein Abglanz der ewigen Herrlichkeit,
ein Schein des ewigen Lichtes und ein Spiegel ohne Makel ist. In diesen Spiegel
schaue täglich, o Königin, Braut Jesu Christi, und betrachte immer in ihm Dein
Antlitz, auf daß Du Dich so gänzlich innerlich und äußerlich schmückst… In
diesem Spiegel erstrahlen die selige Armut, die heilige Demut und die
unaussprechliche Liebe« (Vierter Brief: FF, 2901– 2903).
Wir wollen Gott danken,
der uns die Heiligen schenkt, die unser Herz ansprechen und uns ein Vorbild
christlichen Lebens zur Nachahmung geben. So möchte ich mit dem Segen
schließen, den die hl. Klara für ihre Mitschwestern in Worte faßte und den die
Klarissen, die durch ihr Gebet und ihr Wirken eine wertvolle Rolle in der
Kirche spielen, mit großer Ehrfurcht bewahren. In diesen Worten kommt die ganze
zärtliche Liebe ihrer geistlichen Mutterschaft zum Ausdruck: »Ich segne euch in
meinem Leben und nach meinem Tode, soviel ich vermag, und mehr als ich vermag,
mit all dem Segen, mit dem der Vater der Erbarmungen seine Söhne und seine
Töchter im Himmel und auf Erden gesegnet hat und noch segnen wird, und mit dem
ein geistlicher Vater und eine geistliche Mutter ihre geistlichen Söhne und
Töchter gesegnet haben und noch segnen werden. Amen« (FF, 2856).
* * *
Ganz herzlich begrüße ich
die deutschsprachigen Pilger und Besucher; und aus den Niederlanden die
Verantwortlichen und Seminaristen des Theologischen Instituts Sint Willibrord
des Bistums Haarlem-Amsterdam in Begleitung von Bischof Joseph Maria Punt.
Allein die Heiligen können die Welt dauerhaft zum Besseren verändern, denn
durch sie werden Kräfte wirksam, die nur die Liebe zu Christus wecken kann.
Gehen wir in ihre Schule und lassen wir uns von ihnen zum Herrn führen. Euch
allen wünsche ich eine gesegnete Zeit in Rom.
© Copyright 2010 -
Libreria Editrice Vaticana
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.jpg)
Convento de Santa Clara (Sevilla). Panel de azulejos con la figura de Santa Clara de Asís. Azulejos planos pintados del siglo XVIII.
Amadísimas hermanas:
1. El 11 de agosto de
1253 concluía su peregrinación terrena santa Clara de Asís, discípula de san
Francisco y fundadora de vuestra Orden, llamada Hermanas Pobres o Clarisas, que
hoy, en sus diversas ramas, cuenta con aproximadamente novecientos monasterios
esparcidos por los cinco continentes. A setecientos cincuenta años de su
muerte, el recuerdo de esta gran santa sigue estando muy vivo en el corazón de
los fieles; por eso, en esta circunstancia, me complace particularmente enviar
a vuestra familia religiosa un cordial pensamiento y un afectuoso saludo.
En una celebración
jubilar tan significativa, santa Clara exhorta a todos a comprender cada vez
más profundamente el valor de la vocación, que es un don de Dios que ha de
hacerse fructificar. A este propósito, escribió en su Testamento: "Entre
tantos beneficios como hemos recibido y estamos recibiendo cada día de la
liberalidad de nuestro Padre de las misericordias, por los cuales debemos
mayormente rendir acciones de gracias al mismo Señor de la gloria, uno de los
mayores es el de nuestra vocación; y cuanto esta es más grande y más perfecta,
tanto más deudoras le somos. Por lo cual dice el Apóstol: Reconoce tu
vocación" (2-4).
2. Santa Clara, nacida en
Asís en torno a los años 1193-1194, en el seno de la noble familia de Favarone
de Offreduccio, recibió, sobre todo de su madre Ortolana, una sólida educación
cristiana. Iluminada por la gracia divina, se dejó atraer por la nueva forma de
vida evangélica iniciada por san Francisco y sus compañeros, y decidió, a su
vez, emprender un seguimiento más radical de Cristo. Dejó su casa paterna en la
noche entre el domingo de Ramos y el Lunes santo de 1211 (ó 1212) y, por
consejo del mismo santo, se dirigió a la iglesita de la Porciúncula, cuna de la
experiencia franciscana, donde, ante el altar de Santa María, se desprendió de
todas sus riquezas, para vestir el hábito pobre de penitencia en forma de cruz.
Después de un breve
período de búsqueda, llegó al pequeño monasterio de San Damián, a donde la
siguió también su hermana menor, Inés. Allí se le unieron otras compañeras,
deseosas de encarnar el Evangelio en una dimensión contemplativa. Ante la
determinación con la que la nueva comunidad monástica seguía las huellas de
Cristo, considerando que la pobreza, el esfuerzo, la tribulación, la
humillación y el desprecio del mundo eran motivo de gran alegría espiritual,
san Francisco se sintió movido por afecto paterno y les escribió: "Ya que,
por inspiración divina, os habéis hecho hijas y esclavas del altísimo sumo Rey,
el Padre celestial, y os habéis desposado con el Espíritu Santo, eligiendo
vivir conforme a la perfección del santo Evangelio, quiero y prometo tener
siempre, por mí mismo y por medio de mis hermanos, diligente cuidado y especial
solicitud de vosotras no menos que de ellos" (Regla de santa Clara, cap.
VI, 3-4).
3. Santa Clara insertó
estas palabras en el capítulo central de su Regla, reconociendo en ellas no
sólo una de las enseñanzas recibidas del santo, sino también el núcleo
fundamental de su carisma, que se delinea en el contexto trinitario y mariano
del evangelio de la Anunciación. En efecto, san Francisco veía la vocación de
las Hermanas Pobres a la luz de la Virgen María, la humilde esclava del Señor
que, al concebir por obra del Espíritu Santo, se convirtió en la Madre de Dios.
La humilde esclava del Señor es el prototipo de la Iglesia, virgen, esposa y
madre.
Santa Clara percibía su
vocación como una llamada a vivir siguiendo el ejemplo de María, que ofreció su
virginidad a la acción del Espíritu Santo para convertirse en Madre de Cristo y
de su Cuerpo místico. Se sentía estrechamente asociada a la Madre del Señor y,
por eso, exhortaba así a santa Inés de Praga, princesa bohemia que se había
hecho clarisa: "Llégate a esta dulcísima Madre, que engendró un Hijo que
los cielos no podían contener, pero ella lo acogió en el estrecho claustro de
su santo vientre y lo llevó en su seno virginal" (Carta tercera a Inés de
Praga, 18-19).
La figura de María
acompañó el camino vocacional de la santa de Asís hasta el final de su vida.
Según un significativo testimonio dado durante su proceso de canonización, en
el momento en que Clara estaba a punto de morir, la Virgen se acercó a su lecho
e inclinó la cabeza sobre ella, cuya vida había sido una radiante imagen de la
suya.
4. Sólo la opción
exclusiva por Cristo crucificado, que realizó con ardiente amor, explica la
decisión con la que santa Clara se adentró en el camino de la "altísima
pobreza", expresión que encierra en su significado la experiencia de
desprendimiento vivida por el Hijo de Dios en la Encarnación. Al llamarla
"altísima", santa Clara quería expresar en cierto modo el
anonadamiento del Hijo de Dios, que la llenaba de asombro: "Tal y tan gran
Señor —escribió—, descendiendo al seno de la Virgen, quiso aparecer en el mundo
hecho despreciable, indigente y pobre, a fin de que los hombres, que eran
pobrísimos e indigentes, y sufrían el hambre del alimento celestial, llegaran a
ser ricos, mediante la posesión del reino de los cielos" (Carta primera a
Inés de Praga, 19-20). Percibía esta pobreza en toda la experiencia terrena de
Jesús, desde Belén hasta el Calvario, donde el Señor "desnudo permaneció
en el patíbulo" (Testamento de santa Clara, 45).
Seguir al Hijo de Dios,
que se ha hecho nuestro camino, representaba para ella no desear más que
sumergirse con Cristo en la experiencia de una humildad y de una pobreza
radicales, que implicaban todos los aspectos de la experiencia humana, hasta el
desprendimiento de la cruz. La opción por la pobreza era para santa Clara una
exigencia de fidelidad al Evangelio, hasta el punto de que la impulsó a pedir
al Papa un "privilegio de pobreza", como prerrogativa de la forma de
vida monástica iniciada por ella. Insertó este "privilegio",
defendido tenazmente durante toda su vida, en la Regla que recibió la
confirmación papal en la antevíspera de su muerte, con la bula Solet
annuere, del 9 de agosto de 1253, hace 750 años.
5. La mirada de santa
Clara permaneció hasta el final fija en el Hijo de Dios, cuyos misterios
contemplaba sin cesar. Tenía la mirada amante de la esposa, llena del deseo de
una comunión cada vez más plena. En particular, se entregaba a la meditación de
la Pasión, contemplando el misterio de Cristo, que desde lo alto de la cruz la
llamaba y la atraía. Escribió: "¡Oh vosotros, todos los que pasáis por el
camino: mirad y ved si hay dolor semejante a mi dolor! No hay sino
responder, con una sola voz y un solo espíritu, a su clamor y gemido: No se
apartará de mí tu recuerdo y dentro de mí se derretirá mi alma" (Carta
cuarta a Inés de Praga, 25-26). Y exhortaba: "Déjate abrasar, por lo
tanto, ...cada vez con mayor fuerza por este ardor de caridad... y grita con
todo el ardor de tu deseo y de amor: Llévame en pos de ti, Esposo celestial"
(ib., 27-29).
Esta comunión plena con
el misterio de Cristo la introdujo en la experiencia de la inhabitación
trinitaria, en la que el alma toma cada vez mayor conciencia de que Dios mora
en ella: "Mientras los cielos, con todas las otras cosas creadas, no
pueden contener a su Creador, en cambio el alma fiel, y sólo ella, es su morada
y su trono, y ello solamente por efecto de la caridad, de la que carecen los
impíos" (Carta tercera a Inés de Praga, 22-23).
6. La comunidad reunida
en San Damián, guiada por santa Clara, eligió vivir según la forma del santo
Evangelio en una dimensión contemplativa claustral, que se distinguía como un
"vivir comunitariamente en unidad de espíritus" (Regla de santa Clara,
Prólogo, 5), según un "modo de santa unidad" (ib., 16). La particular
comprensión que tuvo santa Clara del valor de la unidad en la fraternidad
parece referirse a una madura experiencia contemplativa del Misterio
trinitario. En efecto, la auténtica contemplación no se aísla en el
individualismo, sino que realiza la verdad de ser uno en el Padre, en el Hijo y
en el Espíritu Santo. Santa Clara no sólo organizó en su Regla la vida fraterna
en torno a los valores del servicio recíproco, de la participación y de la
comunión, sino que también se preocupó de que la comunidad estuviera
sólidamente edificada sobre "la unión del mutuo amor y de la paz" (cap.
IV, 22), y también de que las hermanas fueran "solícitas siempre en
guardar unas con otras la unidad del amor recíproco, que es vínculo de
perfección" (cap. X, 7).
En efecto, estaba
convencida de que el amor mutuo edifica la comunidad y produce un crecimiento
en la vocación; por eso, en su Testamento exhortaba: "Y amándoos
mutuamente en la caridad de Cristo, manifestad externamente, con vuestras
obras, el amor que os tenéis internamente, a fin de que, estimuladas las
hermanas con este ejemplo, crezcan continuamente en el amor de Dios y en la
recíproca caridad" (59-60).
7. Santa Clara percibió
este valor de la unidad también en su dimensión más amplia. Por eso, quiso que
la comunidad claustral se insertara plenamente en la Iglesia y se arraigara
sólidamente en ella con el vínculo de la obediencia y la sumisión filial
(cf. Regla, cap. I, XII). Era muy consciente de que la vida de las monjas
de clausura debía ser espejo para las demás hermanas llamadas a seguir la misma
vocación, así como testimonio luminoso para cuantos vivían en el mundo.
Los cuarenta años que
vivió dentro del pequeño monasterio de San Damián no redujeron los horizontes
de su corazón, sino que dilataron su fe en la presencia de Dios, que realiza la
salvación en la historia. Son conocidos los dos episodios en los que, con la
fuerza de su fe en la Eucaristía y con la humildad de la oración, santa Clara
obtuvo la liberación de la ciudad de Asís y del monasterio del peligro de una
inminente destrucción.
8. No podemos dejar de
destacar que a 750 años de la confirmación pontificia, la Regla de santa Clara
conserva intacta su fascinación espiritual y su riqueza teológica. La perfecta
consonancia de valores humanos y cristianos, y la sabia armonía de ardor
contemplativo y de rigor evangélico, la confirman para vosotras, queridas
clarisas del tercer milenio, como un camino real que es preciso seguir sin
componendas o concesiones al espíritu del mundo.
A cada una de vosotras
santa Clara dirige las palabras que dejó a Inés de Praga: "¡Dichosa tú, a
quien se concede gozar de este sagrado convite, para poder unirte con todas las
fibras de tu corazón a Aquel, cuya belleza es la admiración incansable de los
escuadrones bienaventurados del cielo" (Carta cuarta a Inés de Praga,
9-10).
Este centenario os brinda
la oportunidad de reflexionar en el carisma típico de vuestra vocación de
clarisas. Un carisma que se caracteriza, en primer lugar, por ser una llamada
a vivir según la perfección del santo Evangelio, con una clara referencia a
Cristo, como único y verdadero programa de vida. ¿No es este un desafío para
los hombres y las mujeres de hoy? Es una propuesta alternativa a la
insatisfacción y a la superficialidad del mundo contemporáneo, que a menudo
parece haber perdido su identidad, porque ya no percibe que ha sido creado por
el amor de Dios y que él lo espera en la comunión sin fin.
Vosotras, queridas
clarisas, realizáis el seguimiento del Señor en una dimensión esponsal,
renovando el misterio de virginidad fecunda de la Virgen María, Esposa del
Espíritu Santo, la mujer perfecta. Ojalá que la presencia de vuestros
monasterios totalmente dedicados a la vida contemplativa sea también hoy
"memoria del corazón esponsal de la Iglesia" (Verbi Sponsa, 1), llena
del ardiente deseo del Espíritu, que implora incesantemente la venida de Cristo
Esposo (cf. Ap 22, 17).
Ante la necesidad de un
renovado compromiso de santidad, santa Clara da también un ejemplo de la pedagogía
de la santidad que, alimentándose de una oración incesante, lleva a
convertirse en contempladores del rostro de Dios, abriendo de par en par el
corazón al Espíritu del Señor, que transforma toda la persona, la mente, el
corazón y las acciones, según las exigencias del Evangelio.
9. Mi deseo más vivo,
avalado por la oración, es que vuestros monasterios sigan presentando a la
generalizada exigencia de espiritualidad y oración del mundo actual la
propuesta exigente de una plena y auténtica experiencia de Dios, uno y trino,
que se convierta en irradiación de su presencia de amor y salvación.
Que os ayude María, la
Virgen de la escucha. Que intercedan por vosotras santa Clara y las santas y
beatas de vuestra Orden.
Os aseguro un recuerdo cordial
por vosotras, queridas hermanas, y por cuantos comparten con vosotras la gracia
de este significativo acontecimiento jubilar, y a todos imparto de corazón una
especial bendición apostólica.
Vaticano, 9 de agosto de
2003
JUAN PABLO II
Copyright © Dicastero per
la Comunicazione - Libreria Editrice Vaticana
Santa
Clara de Asís
BENEDICTO XVI
AUDIENCIA GENERAL
Clara de Asís
Queridos hermanos y
hermanas:
Una de las santas más
queridas es sin duda santa Clara de Asís, que vivió en el siglo XIII,
contemporánea de san Francisco. Su testimonio nos muestra cuánto debe la
Iglesia a mujeres valientes y llenas de fe como ella, capaces de dar un impulso
decisivo para la renovación de la Iglesia.
¿Quién era Clara de Asís?
Para responder a esta pregunta contamos con fuentes seguras: no sólo las
antiguas biografías, como la de Tomás de Celano, sino también las Actas del
proceso de canonización promovido por el Papa sólo pocos meses después de la
muerte de Clara y que contiene los testimonios de quienes vivieron a su lado
durante mucho tiempo.
Clara nació en 1193, en
el seno de una familia aristocrática y rica. Renunció a la nobleza y a la
riqueza para vivir humilde y pobre, adoptando la forma de vida que proponía
Francisco de Asís. Aunque sus parientes, como sucedía entonces, estaban
proyectando un matrimonio con algún personaje de relieve, Clara, a los 18 años,
con un gesto audaz inspirado por el profundo deseo de seguir a Cristo y por la
admiración por Francisco, dejó su casa paterna y, en compañía de una amiga
suya, Bona de Guelfuccio, se unió en secreto a los Frailes Menores en la
pequeña iglesia de la Porciúncula. Era la noche del domingo de Ramos de 1211.
En la conmoción general, se realizó un gesto altamente simbólico: mientras sus
compañeros empuñaban antorchas encendidas, Francisco le cortó su cabello y
Clara se vistió con un burdo hábito penitencial. Desde ese momento se había
convertido en virgen esposa de Cristo, humilde y pobre, y se consagraba
totalmente a él. Como Clara y sus compañeras, innumerables mujeres a lo largo
de la historia se han sentido atraídas por el amor a Cristo que, en la belleza
de su divina Persona, llena su corazón. Y toda la Iglesia, mediante la mística
vocación nupcial de las vírgenes consagradas, se muestra como lo que será para
siempre: la Esposa hermosa y pura de Cristo.
En una de las cuatro
cartas que Clara envió a santa Inés de Praga, la hija del rey de Bohemia, que
quiso seguir sus pasos, habla de Cristo, su Esposo amado, con expresiones
nupciales, que pueden ser sorprendentes, pero conmueven: «Amándolo, eres casta;
tocándolo, serás más pura; dejándote poseer por él eres virgen. Su poder es más
fuerte, su generosidad más elevada, su aspecto más bello, su amor más suave y
toda gracia más fina. Ya te ha estrechado en su abrazo, que ha adornado tu
pecho con piedras preciosas… y te ha coronado con una corona de oro grabada con
el signo de la santidad» (Carta I: FF, 2862).
Para Clara, sobre todo al
principio de su experiencia religiosa, Francisco de Asís no sólo fue un maestro
cuyas enseñanzas seguir, sino también un amigo fraterno. La amistad entre estos
dos santos constituye un aspecto muy hermoso e importante. De hecho, cuando dos
almas puras y enardecidas por el mismo amor a Dios se encuentran, la amistad
recíproca supone un estímulo fuertísimo para recorrer el camino de la
perfección. La amistad es uno de los sentimientos humanos más nobles y elevados
que la gracia divina purifica y transfigura. Al igual que san Francisco y santa
Clara, también otros santos han vivido una profunda amistad en el camino hacia
la perfección cristiana, como san Francisco de Sales y santa Juana Francisca de
Chantal. Precisamente san Francisco de Sales escribe: «Es hermoso poder amar en
la tierra como se ama en el cielo, y aprender a quererse en este mundo como
haremos eternamente en el otro. No hablo aquí del simple amor de caridad,
porque ese deberíamos sentirlo hacia todos los hombres; hablo de la amistad
espiritual, en el ámbito de la cual dos, tres o más personas se intercambian la
devoción, los afectos espirituales y llegan a ser realmente un solo espíritu» (Introducción
a la vida devota III, 19).
Después de pasar algunos
meses en otras comunidades monásticas, resistiendo a las presiones de sus
familiares, que inicialmente no aprobaron su elección, Clara se estableció con
sus primeras compañeras en la iglesia de san Damián, donde los frailes menores
habían arreglado un pequeño convento para ellas. En aquel monasterio vivió más
de cuarenta años, hasta su muerte, acontecida en 1253. Nos ha llegado una
descripción de primera mano de cómo vivían estas mujeres en aquellos años, en
los inicios del movimiento franciscano. Se trata de la relación admirada de un
obispo flamenco de visita a Italia, Jaime de Vitry, el cual afirma que encontró
a un gran número de hombres y mujeres, de todas las clases sociales, que
«dejándolo todo por Cristo, huían del mundo. Se llamaban Frailes
Menores y Hermanas Menores, y el Papa y los cardenales los
tienen en gran consideración… Las mujeres… viven juntas en varias casas, no
lejos de las ciudades. No reciben nada, sino que viven del trabajo de sus
propias manos. Y se sienten profundamente afligidas y turbadas, porque clérigos
y laicos las honran más de lo que quisieran» (Carta de octubre de 1216: FF,
2205.2207).
Jaime de Vitry captó con
perspicacia un rasgo característico de la espiritualidad franciscana al que
Clara fue muy sensible: la radicalidad de la pobreza, unida a la confianza
total en la Providencia divina. Por este motivo, ella actuó con gran
determinación, obteniendo del Papa Gregorio IX o, probablemente, ya del Papa
Inocencio III, el llamado Privilegium paupertatis (cf. FF, 3279). De
acuerdo con este privilegio, Clara y sus compañeras de san Damián no podían
poseer ninguna propiedad material. Se trataba de una excepción verdaderamente
extraordinaria respecto al derecho canónico vigente y las autoridades
eclesiásticas de aquel tiempo lo concedieron apreciando los frutos de santidad
evangélica que reconocían en el modo de vivir de Clara y de sus hermanas. Esto
demuestra que en los siglos de la Edad Media el papel de las mujeres no era
secundario, sino considerable. Al respecto, conviene recordar que Clara fue la
primera mujer en la historia de la Iglesia que compuso una Regla escrita,
sometida a la aprobación del Papa, para que el carisma de Francisco de Asís se
conservara en todas las comunidades femeninas que ya se iban fundando en gran
número en su tiempo y que deseaban inspirarse en el ejemplo de Francisco y de
Clara.
En el convento de san
Damián Clara practicó de modo heroico las virtudes que deberían distinguir a
todo cristiano: la humildad, el espíritu de piedad y de penitencia, y la
caridad. Aunque era la superiora, ella quería servir personalmente a las
hermanas enfermas, dedicándose incluso a tareas muy humildes, pues la caridad
supera toda resistencia y quien ama hace todos los sacrificios con alegría. Su
fe en la presencia real de la Eucaristía era tan grande que, en dos ocasiones,
se verificó un hecho prodigioso. Sólo con la ostensión del Santísimo
Sacramento, alejó a los soldados mercenarios sarracenos, que estaban a punto de
atacar el convento de san Damián y de devastar la ciudad de Asís.
También estos episodios,
como otros milagros, cuyo recuerdo se conservaba, impulsaron al Papa Alejandro
IV a canonizarla sólo dos años después de su muerte, en 1255, elogiándola en la
bula de canonización, en la que se lee: «¡Cuán intensa es la potencia de esta
luz y qué fuerte el resplandor de esta fuente luminosa! En verdad, esta luz se
mantenía encerrada en el ocultamiento de la vida claustral y fuera irradiaba
fulgores luminosos; se recogía en un angosto monasterio, y fuera se expandía en
todo el vasto mundo. Se custodiaba dentro y se difundía fuera. Clara, en
efecto, se escondía; pero su vida se revelaba a todos. Clara callaba, pero su
fama gritaba» (FF, 3284). Y es exactamente así, queridos amigos: son los santos
quienes cambian el mundo a mejor, lo transforman de modo duradero,
introduciendo las energías que sólo el amor inspirado por el Evangelio puede
suscitar. Los santos son los grandes bienhechores de la humanidad.
La espiritualidad de
santa Clara, la síntesis de su propuesta de santidad está recogida en la cuarta
carta a santa Inés de Praga. Santa Clara utiliza una imagen muy difundida en la
Edad Media, de ascendencias patrísticas: el espejo. E invita a su amiga de
Praga a reflejarse en ese espejo de perfección de toda virtud que es el Señor
mismo. Escribe: «Feliz, ciertamente, aquella a la que se concede gozar de estas
sagradas nupcias, para adherirse desde lo más hondo del corazón a aquel [a
Cristo] cuya belleza admiran incesantemente todos los dichosos ejércitos de los
cielos, cuyo afecto apasiona, cuya contemplación conforta, cuya benignidad
sacia, cuya suavidad colma, cuyo recuerdo resplandece suavemente, cuyo perfume
devuelve los muertos a la vida y cuya visión gloriosa hará bienaventurados a
todos los ciudadanos de la Jerusalén celestial. Y, puesto que él es esplendor
de la gloria, candor de la luz eterna y espejo sin mancha, mira cada día este
espejo, oh reina esposa de Jesucristo, y escruta continuamente en él su rostro,
para que de ese modo puedas adornarte toda por dentro y por fuera… En este
espejo refulgen la bienaventurada pobreza, la santa humildad y la inefable
caridad» (Carta IV: FF, 2901-2903).
Agradeciendo a Dios que
nos da a los santos que hablan a nuestro corazón y nos ofrecen un ejemplo de
vida cristiana a imitar, quiero concluir con las mismas palabras de bendición
que santa Clara compuso para sus hermanas y que todavía hoy custodian con gran
devoción las Clarisas, que desempeñan un papel precioso en la Iglesia con su
oración y con su obra. Son expresiones en las que se muestra toda la ternura de
su maternidad espiritual: «Os bendigo en vida y después de mi muerte, como
puedo y más de cuanto puedo, con todas las bendiciones con las que el Padre de
las misericordias bendice y bendecirá en el cielo y en la tierra a su hijos e
hijas, y con las que un padre y una madre espiritual bendicen y bendecirán a
sus hijos e hijas espirituales. Amén» (FF, 2856).
Llamamiento en favor de la paz y el respeto de la libertad religiosa en Asia
Sigo con preocupación los
acontecimientos que se han sucedido durante estos días en varias regiones de
Asia meridional, especialmente en la India, en Pakistán y en Afganistán. Rezo
por las víctimas y pido que se respete la libertad religiosa y que la lógica de
la reconciliación y de la paz prevalezca sobre el odio y la violencia.
Saludos
(En español)
Saludo a los peregrinos
de lengua española, en particular a los profesores y alumnos de la arquidiócesis
de Salta, y a los sacerdotes de la diócesis de Autlán, acompañados por su
pastor, monseñor Gonzalo Galván Castillo. Os invito a agradecer a Dios el
precioso papel que, con sus obras y oraciones, desempeñan las clarisas, como
tantas otras religiosas de clausura, para bien de toda la Iglesia.
(En polaco)
Hoy conmemoramos a
Nuestra Señora la Virgen de los Dolores. Vuelven a nuestra memoria las palabras
del Señor crucificado: “Mujer, he aquí a tu hijo”, “He aquí a tu Madre”. Cristo
mismo encomienda a su Madre a san Juan y con él a todas las generaciones de
discípulos. Invitémosla a nuestra casa, para que su protección y su intercesión
sean para nosotros un apoyo tanto en el tiempo de serenidad como en los días de
sufrimiento.
(En eslovaco)
Hermanos y hermanas, hoy
Eslovaquia celebra la solemnidad de su patrona principal, la Virgen de los
Dolores. Jesús nos la dio como Madre a cada uno de nosotros. Que ella os
acompañe maternalmente en el camino hacia Cristo.
(A los jóvenes, a los
enfermos y a los recién casados)
Hoy celebramos la memoria
de Nuestra Señora, la Virgen de los Dolores, que con fe estuvo al pie de la
cruz de su Hijo. Queridos jóvenes, no tengáis miedo de permanecer
también vosotros como María al pie de la cruz. El Señor os infundirá la valentía
para superar cualquier obstáculo en vuestra vida diaria. Y vosotros,
queridos enfermos, encontrad en María consuelo y apoyo para aprender
del Señor crucificado el valor salvífico del sufrimiento. Y vosotros,
queridos recién casados, acudid con confianza a la Virgen de los
Dolores, que os ayudará a afrontarlo con su intercesión maternal».
Copyright © Dicastero per
la Comunicazione - Libreria Editrice Vaticana
SOURCE : https://www.vatican.va/content/benedict-xvi/es/audiences/2010/documents/hf_ben-xvi_aud_20100915.html
Santa
Clara de Asís
Santa CLARA DE ASÍS.
(c.1194 - 1253).
Martirologio Romano: Memoria
de santa Clara, virgen, que, como primer ejemplo de las Damas Pobres de la
Orden de los Hermanos Menores, siguió a san Francisco, llevando una áspera vida
en Asís, en la Umbría, pero, en cambio, rica en obras de caridad y de piedad.
Enamorada de verdad por la pobreza, no consintió ser apartada de la misma ni
siquiera en la extrema indigencia y enfermedad.
Clara Sciffi nació en
Asís. Hija de los condes de Sasso Rosso de Asís: Favarone y la beata Hortolana.
Durante su adolescencia se encontró varias veces con Francisco (Clara era 12
años menor que el santo de Asís). A los 18 años, la noche del domingo de Ramos
de 1212, después de haber oído misa en la catedral, haber recibido la palma de
manos del obispo y repartido su dote entre los pobres, huyó de la casa paterna
para evitar la propuesta de matrimonio (procedente de su tío Monaldo). Con su
prima Pacífica y su tía Bianca, bajó a Santa María de los Ángeles (la
Porciúncula restaurada por san Francisco) y allí el mismo san Francisco le
cortó solemnemente los cabellos antes de que la acogieran, por un corto tiempo,
las benedictinas de San Pablo en Bastia Umbra. Pasada la ira familiar, se
trasladó al convento de Sant’Angelo in Panzo en Asís para vivir según la forma
de san Francisco.
Seguida pronto por su
hermana la beata Inés y, más tarde su hermana pequeña Beatriz y su madre,
después de haber abrazado una pobreza radical y luchado para obtener una regla
propia, según el espíritu franciscano, obtuvo del papa Gregorio IX el "Privilegium
paupertalis" (o sea, no poseer nada), y así fundó con Francisco la segunda
Orden franciscana (1215), que lleva su nombre: las Clarisas o Damas Pobres. Fue
la primera mujer en conseguir, tras una larga lucha, la aprobación pontificia
de una regla propia. De este modo empezó la vida de aquellas dieciséis "pobres
mujeres" que se instalaron en San Damiano. Clara recibió el título de
abadesa de San Damiano. Las Damas Pobres insistían en un modo particular en la
santa pobreza, queriendo ser mendigas para vivir sólo de limosna, y aún de
limosna de poca consideración, rechazando los panes enteros y sin aceptar más
que mendrugos. En 43 años de vida monástica, 29 de ellos con dolorosas
enfermedades, Clara realizó plenamente el ideal concebido por Francisco. Cuando
el papa Inocencio IV quiso suavizar esas normas, Clara defendió apasionadamente
su pobreza. "Santo Padre, absolverme de mis pecados, pero no del voto de
pobreza al que he estado y seré siempre fiel". Es la única Orden monástica
que jamas ha sido renovada. "Mi Señor -rezaba Clara- te declaro mi único
dueño de mis territorios. Extiende tus alas de mando sobre los horizontes de
mis mundos. No habrá para mi otra voz ni otro rostro que el de mi Elegido.
Entre Tu y yo no se interponga otra criatura sino la espada de la
fidelidad". Fundó monasterios en Perugia, Arezzo, Padua, Venecia, Mantua,
Bolonia, Milán, Siena, Pisa y también en las principales ciudades alemanas.
Escribió la “Regla” y el “Testamento”, base de la vida de las
clarisas.
Dos veces hizo huir a los
sarracenos alistados por Vitale d'Aversa al servicio del emperador Federico II
(que querían asolar Asís, y violar los conventos); la primera, ordenando a un
sacerdote que dirigiera contra ellos la custodia (1240) desde la ventana del
dormitorio; y la segunda totalmente inmovilizada, exhortando a las hermanas a
la oración (1241). Dio el último saludo a los restos de Francisco, que había
albergado unas semanas, en una pequeña celda de ramaje levantada en el huerto
de San Damiano y al que ayudó en sus momentos de sufrimiento cuando vio
separarse la Orden de su espíritu fundador. Dos días después de la muerte del
santo, obtuvo el permiso para que el cuerpo fuera introducido en la clausura
del convento, ante la reja que servía para la comunión. Obligada a guardar cama
(de 1224 a 1253), escribió su testamento: "Sed siempre enamoradas de
Dios"; y murió delante del Papa y los cardenales que fueron de Perugia,
diciendo: "Oh Dios, seas bendito por haberme creado". Patrona de
Asís. MEMORIA OBLIGATORIA.
SOURCE : https://hagiopedia.blogspot.com/2013/08/santa-clara-de-asis-c1194-1253.html
Mosteiro São Damião em Porto Alegre
Mosteiro São Damião em Porto Alegre
Caríssimas Irmãs
1. No dia 11 de Agosto de
1253 encerrava a sua peregrinação terrena Santa Clara de Assis, discípula de
São Francisco e fundadora da vossa Ordem, chamada das Irmãs Pobres ou
Clarissas, que hoje conta, nas suas várias ramificações, cerca de novecentos
mosteiros espalhados pelos cinco continentes. Depois de 750 anos da sua morte,
a recordação desta grande Santa continua a estar muito viva no coração dos
fiéis, e portanto é com particular prazer que, nesta ocasião, envio à vossa
Família religiosa um cordial pensamento e uma afectuosa saudação.
Nesta data jubilar tão
significativa, Santa Clara exorta todos a compreender cada vez mais
profundamente o valor da vocação, um dom de Deus que devemos fazer frutificar.
A este propósito, escrevia no seu Testamento: "Entre os outros
benefícios, que recebemos e continuamos a receber todos os dias do nosso
Doador, Pai das misericórdias, pelos quais temos o dever de prestar, a Ele que
é glorioso, sentidas acções de graças, porque é grande o dom da nossa vocação.
E quanto maior e mais perfeita ela é, tanto mais lhe somos devedoras. Por isso,
o Apóstolo admoesta: Conhece bem a tua vocação" (2-4).
2. Tendo nascido em Assis
por volta dos anos de 1193-1194 da nobre família de Favarone de Offreduccio,
Santa Clara recebeu, sobretudo da mãe Hortulana, uma sólida educação cristã.
Iluminada pela graça
divina, deixou-se atrair pela nova forma de vida evangélica começada por São
Francisco e pelos seus companheiros, e decidiu, por sua vez, empreender um
seguimento de Cristo ainda mais radical. Deixou a casa paterna na noite entre o
Domingo de Ramos e a Segunda-Feira Santa de 1211 (ou 1212), seguindo o conselho
do mesmo Santo, dirigiu-se para a pequena igreja da Porciúncula, berço da
experiência franciscana onde, em frente do altar de Santa Maria se despojou de
todas as suas riquezas, para vestir as pobres vestes de penitência em forma de
cruz.
Depois de um breve
período de busca, chegou ao pequeno mosteiro de São Damião, onde se uniu a ela
também a irmã mais pequena, Inês. Aqui, juntaram-se-lhe outras companheiras,
desejosas de encarnar o Evangelho numa dimensão contemplativa. Face à
determinação com que a nova comunidade monástica seguia as pegadas de Cristo,
considerando a pobreza, as fadigas, as tribulações, as humilhações e o desprezo
do mundo, motivos de grande alegria espiritual, São Francisco, movido por
afecto paterno, escreveu-lhes: "Dado que por inspiração divina vos
fizestes filhas e escravas do altíssimo sumo Rei, o Pai celeste, e desposastes
o Espírito Santo, escolhendo viver segundo a perfeição do Santo Evangelho,
quero e prometo, tanto eu como os meus irmãos, ocupar-me de vós, como deles,
com atenção e especial solicitude" (Regra de Santa Clara, cap.
VI, 3-4).
3. Clara inseriu estas
palavras no capítulo central da sua Regra, reconhecendo nelas não só um dos
ensinamentos recebidos do Santo, mas o núcleo fundamental do seu carisma, que
se delineia no contexto trinitário e mariano do Evangelho da Anunciação. Com
efeito, São Francisco via a vocação das Irmãs Pobres à luz da Virgem Maria, a
humilde escrava do Senhor que, cheia do Espírito Santo, se tornou a Mãe de
Deus. A humilde serva do Senhor é o protótipo da Igreja, Virgem, Esposa e Mãe.
Clara sentia a sua vocação
como uma chamada a viver seguindo o exemplo de Maria, que ofereceu a própria
virgindade à acção do Espírito Santo para se tornar Mãe de Cristo e do seu
Corpo místico. Sentia-se estreitamente associada à Mãe do Senhor e por isso
exortava Santa Inês de Praga, a princesa boémia que se tornou clarissa, do
seguinte modo: "Estreita-te à sua dulcíssima Mãe, que gerou um Filho
que nem os céus o podiam conter, e apesar disso ela recolheu-o no pequeno
claustro do seu santo seio e levou-o no seu ventre virginal" (3ª
Carta a Inês de Praga, 18-19).
A figura de Maria
acompanhou o caminho vocacional da Santa de Assis até ao fim da sua vida.
Segundo um significativo testemunho dado no Processo de canonização, do leito
de Clara moribunda aproximou-se Nossa Senhora inclinando o seu rosto sobre ela,
cuja vida tinha sido uma imagem radiosa da Sua.
4. Só a escolha exclusiva
de Cristo crucificado, que empreendeu com amor fervoroso, explica a decisão com
que Santa Clara se encaminhou pela via da "nobilíssima pobreza",
expressão que encerra no seu significado a experiência de despojamento, vivida
pelo Filho de Deus na Encarnação. Com a qualificação de "nobilíssima"
Clara desejava expressar, de certa forma, a submissão do Filho de Deus, que a
enchia de estupefacção: "Esse tão grande Senhor escrevia descendo ao
seio da Virgem, quis mostrar-se ao mundo como um homem desprezível, necessitado
e pobre, para que os homens que eram muito pobres e indigentes, famintos devido
à excessiva penúria do alimento celeste se tornassem n'Ele ricos com a posse do
reino celeste" (1ª Carta a Inês, 19-20). Ela aceitava esta
pobreza em toda a experiência terrena de Jesus, de Belém ao Calvário, onde o
Senhor "despojado permaneceu na cruz" (Testamento de Santa
Clara, 45).
Seguir o Filho de Deus, que se fez caminho para nós, exigia que ela só
desejasse mergulhar com Cristo na experiência de humildade e de pobreza
radicais, que incluíam qualquer aspecto da experiência humana, até ao
despojamento da Cruz. A escolha da pobreza era para Santa Clara uma exigência
de fidelidade ao Evangelho, a ponto de determinar o pedido ao Papa de um
"privilégio da pobreza", como prerrogativa da forma de vida monástica
por ela começada. Inseriu este "privilégio", defendido com tenacidade
durante toda a vida, na Regra que recebeu a confirmação papal nas vésperas da
sua morte, com a Bula Solet annuere de 9 de Agosto de 1253, há 750
anos.
5. O olhar de Clara
permaneceu até ao fim fixo no Filho de Deus, de quem contemplava
incessantemente os mistérios. O seu olhar era o olhar amante da esposa, repleto
do desejo de uma partilha sempre mais plena. Em particular, mergulhava na
meditação da Paixão, contemplando o mistério de Cristo, que do alto da Cruz a
chamava e atraía. Escrevia assim: "Vós, todos, que passais pela
estrada, parai para ver se existe um sofrimento semelhante ao meu; e
respondemos, digo a Ele que chama e geme, com uma só voz e um só
coração: nunca me abandonará a tua recordação e consome-se em mim a
minha alma" (4ª Carta a Inês, 25-26). E exortava:
"Portanto, deixa-te arder de modo cada vez mais forte por este fervor de
caridade... E brada com todo o ardor do teu desejo e do teu amor: Atrai-me
para ti, ó Esposo celeste!" (Ibid., 27.29-32).
Esta comunhão plena com o
mistério de Cristo iniciou-a na experiência da habitação trinitária interior,
em que a alma assume uma consciência cada vez mais viva da habitação de Deus
nela: "Enquanto o céu e todas as outras coisas criadas não podem
conter o Criador, ao contrário, a alma fiel, sozinha, é sua morada e estadia, e
isto apenas devido à caridade, da qual os ímpios estão privados" (3ª Carta
a Inês, 22-23).
Guiada por Clara, a
comunidade reunida em São Damião escolheu viver segundo a forma do Santo
Evangelho numa dimensão contemplativa claustral, que se distinguia como um
"viver comunitariamente em unidade de espírito" Regra de Santa
Clara, Prólogo, 5), segundo um "modo de santa unidade" (Ibid., 16).
A compreensão particular demonstrada por Clara do valor da unidade na
fraternidade parece relacionar-se a uma experiência contemplativa madura do
Mistério trinitário. De facto, a contemplação autêntica não leva ao
individualismo mas realiza a verdade de ser um só no Pai, no Filho e no
Espírito Santo. Clara não só orientou na sua Regra a vida fraterna para os
valores de serviço recíproco, de participação, de partilha, mas preocupou-se
com que a comunidade estivesse também firmemente edificada na "unidade da
caridade e paz intercambiáveis" (cap. IV, 22), e ainda que as irmãs fossem
"solícitas em conservar sempre reciprocamente a unidade da caridade
intercambiável, que é vínculo da perfeição" (cap. X, 7).
De facto, estava
convencida de que o amor intercambiável edifica a comunidade e origina um
crescimento na vocação; por isso, exortava no Testamento: "Amando-vos
reciprocamente no amor de Cristo, aquele amor que tendes no coração, mostrai-o
fora com as obras, para que as Irmãs, estimuladas por este exemplo, cresçam
sempre no amor de Deus e na caridade recíproca" (59-60).
7. Clara compreendeu este
valor da unidade também na sua dimensão mais ampla. Por isso, quis que a
comunidade claustral estivesse plenamente inserida na Igreja e firmemente
ancorada nela com o vínculo da obediência e da submissão filial (cf. Regra, cap.
I, XII). Ela tinha total consciência de que a vida das claustrais devia
tornar-se espelho para outras Irmãs chamadas a seguir a mesma vocação, assim
como testemunho luminoso para todos os habitantes do mundo.
Os quarenta anos vividos
no âmbito do pequeno mosteiro de São Damião não limitaram os horizontes do seu
coração, mas dilataram a sua fé na presença de Deus, realizando a salvação na
história. São conhecidos os dois episódios em que, com a força da sua fé na
Eucaristia e com a humildade da oração, Clara obteve a libertação da cidade de
Assis e do mosteiro, do perigo de uma destruição iminente.
8. Como não realçar que
750 anos depois da confirmação pontifícia, a Regra de Santa Clara conserva
intactos o seu fascínio espiritual e a sua riqueza teológica? A perfeita
consonância de valores humanos e cristãos, a sábia harmonia de fervor
contemplativo e de rigor evangélico confirmam-na para vós, queridas Clarissas
do terceiro milénio, como uma via-mestra que deve ser seguida, sem adaptações
nem concessões ao espírito do mundo.
Clara dirige a cada uma
de vós as palavras que deixou a Inês de Praga: "Tu és
verdadeiramente feliz! É-te concedido gozar deste convívio sagrado, para poder
aderir com todas as fibras do teu coração Àquele cuja beleza é a admiração
incansável das bem-aventuradas multidões do céu" (4ª Carta a Inês, 9).
A data centenária
oferece-vos a oportunidade de reflectir acerca do carisma típico da vossa
vocação de Clarissas. Um carisma que se caracteriza, em primeiro lugar,
como chamada a viver segundo a perfeição do Santo Evangelho, com uma
referência decidida a Cristo, como único e verdadeiro programa de vida.
Porventura, não é este um desafio para os homens e para as mulheres de hoje? É
uma proposta alternativa à insatisfação e à superficialidade do mundo
contemporâneo, que com frequência parece ter perdido a sua identidade, porque
já não sente que foi gerado pelo Amor de Deus e que é esperado por Ele na
comunhão sem fim.
Vós, queridas Clarissas,
realizais o seguimento do Senhor numa dimensão esponsal, renovando o
mistério de virgindade fecunda da Virgem Maria, Esposa do Espírito Santo, a mulher
realizada. Oxalá a presença dos vossos mosteiros totalmente dedicados à vida
contemplativa sejam também hoje "memória do coração esponsal da
Igreja" (Verbi Sponsa, 1), repleta do fervoroso desejo do
Espírito, que implora incessantemente a vinda de Cristo Esposo (cf. Ap 22,
17).
Face à necessidade de um
renovado compromisso de santidade, santa Clara oferece também um exemplo
daquela pedagogia da santidade que, alimentando-se incessantemente na
oração, leva a tornar-se contemplativo do Rosto de Deus, abrindo o coração ao
Espírito do Senhor, que transforma toda a pessoa, mente, coração e acções,
segundo as exigências do Evangelho.
9. Os meus votos mais
sentidos, corroborados pela oração, são por que os vossos mosteiros continuem a
oferecer à exigência difundida de espiritualidade e de oração do mundo de hoje
a proposta exigente de uma plena e autêntica experiência de Deus, Uno e Trino,
que se torne irradiação da sua presença de amor e de salvação.
Ajude-vos Maria, a Virgem
da escuta. Intercedam por vós Santa Clara e as Santas e Beatas da vossa Ordem.
Garanto-vos uma cordial
recordação de vós, queridas Irmãs, de quantos compartilham convosco a graça
deste significativo acontecimento jubilar, e concedo-vos a todos de coração uma
especial Bênção apostólica.
Vaticano, 9 de Agosto de
2003.
Copyright © Dicastero per
la Comunicazione - Libreria Editrice Vaticana
Palácio Nacional de Mafra em Mafra -
Estátua de Santa Clara
PAPA BENTO XVI
AUDIÊNCIA GERAL
Clara de Assis
Prezados irmãos e irmãs
Uma das Santas mais
amadas é, sem dúvida, Santa Clara de Assis, que viveu no século XIII,
contemporânea de São Francisco. O seu testemunho mostra-nos como a Igreja
inteira é devedora a mulheres intrépidas e ricas de fé como ela, capazes de dar
um impulso decisivo para a renovação da Igreja.
Portanto, quem era Clara
de Assis? Para responder a esta pergunta, dispomos de fontes seguras: não
apenas das antigas biografias, como a de Tomás de Celano, mas também das Actas do
processo de canonização promovido pelo Papa só poucos meses depois da morte de
Clara e que contém os testemunhos daqueles que viveram ao seu lado durante
muito tempo.
Tendo nascido em 1193,
Clara pertencia a uma família aristocrática e rica. Renunciou à nobreza e à
riqueza para viver humilde e pobre, seguindo a forma de vida proposta por
Francisco de Assis. Embora os seus parentes, como acontecia nessa época,
começavam a programar para ela um matrimónio com uma personalidade importante,
Clara, com 18 anos de idade, com um gesto audaz inspirado pelo profundo desejo
de seguir Cristo e pela admiração que tinha por Francisco, deixou a casa
paterna e, em companhia de uma das suas amigas, Bona de Guelfuccio, uniu-se
secretamente aos frades menores na pequena igreja da Porciúncula. Era a tarde
do Domingo de Ramos de 1211. Na comoção geral, foi levado a cabo um gesto
profundamente simbólico: enquanto os seus companheiros seguravam nas mãos
algumas tochas acesas, Francisco cortou-lhe os cabelos e Clara vestiu o rude
hábito penitencial. A partir daquele momento, ela tornou-se a virgem esposa de
Cristo, humilde e pobre, consagrando-se totalmente a Ele. Como Clara e as suas
companheiras, inúmeras mulheres ao longo da história ficaram fascinadas pelo
amor a Cristo que, na beleza da sua Pessoa divina, enche o seu coração. E a
Igreja inteira, por intermédio da mística vocação nupcial das virgens
consagradas, mostra-se como sempre será: a Esposa bonita e pura de Cristo.
Numa das quatro cartas
que Clara enviou a Santa Inês de Praga, filha do rei da Boémia, que desejava
seguir os seus passos, fala de Cristo, seu amado Esposo, com expressões
nupciais que podem causar admiração, mas que comovem: «Amando-o, és casta,
tocando-o, serás pura, deixando-te possuir por Ele, és virgem. O seu poder é
mais forte, a sua generosidade é mais elevada, o seu aspecto é mais excelso, o
amor é mais suave e todas as graças mais sublimes. Já foste conquistada pelo
seu abraço, que ornamentou o seu peito com pedras preciosas... coroando-te com
um diadema de ouro, marcado com o sinal da santidade» (Primeira Carta: FF,
2862).
Principalmente no início
da sua experiência religiosa, Clara encontrou em Francisco de Assis não apenas
um mestre cujos ensinamentos devia seguir, mas inclusive um amigo fraterno. A
amizade entre estes dois santos constitui um aspecto muito bonito e importante.
Com efeito, quando se encontram duas almas puras e inflamadas pelo mesmo amor a
Deus, elas haurem da amizade recíproca um estímulo extremamente forte para
percorrer o caminho da perfeição. A amizade é um dos sentimentos humanos mais
nobres e elevados que a Graça divina purifica e transfigura. Como São Francisco
e Santa Clara, também outros Santos viveram uma profunda amizade no caminho
rumo à perfeição cristã, como São Francisco de Sales e Santa Joana Francisca de
Chantal. E é precisamente São Francisco de Sales que escreve: «É bom poder amar
na terra como se ama no céu, e aprendermos a amar neste mundo como havemos de
fazer eternamente no outro. Aqui não me refiro ao simples amor de caridade,
porque temos que ter este amor por todos os homens; refiro-me à amizade
espiritual, no âmbito da qual duas, três ou mais pessoas permutam entre si a
devoção e os afectos espirituais, tornando-se realmente um só espírito» (Introdução
à vida devota, III, 19).
Depois de ter transcorrido
um período de alguns meses no interior de outras comunidades monásticas,
resistindo às pressões dos seus familiares que inicialmente não aprovaram a sua
escolha, Clara estabeleceu-se com as primeiras companheiras na igreja de São
Damião, onde os frades menores tinham organizado um pequeno convento para si
mesmos. Naquele mosteiro ela viveu por mais de quarenta anos, até à morte,
ocorrida em 1253. Dispomos de uma descrição de primeira mão, sobre o modo como
estas mulheres viviam naqueles anos, nos primórdios do movimento franciscano.
Trata-se do relatório admirado de um bispo flamengo em visita à Itália, D.
Tiago de Vitry, que afirma ter-se encontrado com um grande número de homens e
mulheres, de todas as classes sociais que, «deixando tudo por Cristo, fugiam do
mundo. Chamavam-se frades menores e irmãs menores e são tidos em
grande consideração pelo Senhor Papa e pelos cardeais... As mulheres... vivem
juntas, em diversos hospícios não distantes das cidades. Nada recebem, mas
vivem do trabalho das suas próprias mãos. E sentem-se profundamente amarguradas
e incomodadas, porque são honradas mais do que desejariam por clérigos e
leigos» (Carta de Outubro de 1216: FF, 2205.2207).
Tiago de Vitry tinha
reconhecido com perspicácia uma característica da espiritualidade franciscana,
à qual Clara era muito sensível: a radicalidade da pobreza, associada à
confiança total na Providência divina. Por este motivo, ela agiu com grande
determinação, obtendo da parte do Papa Gregório IX ou, provavelmente, já do
Papa Inocêncio III, o chamado Privilegium paupertatis (cf. FF,
3279). Com base nisto, Clara e as suas companheiras de São Damião não podiam
possuir qualquer propriedade material. Tratava-se de uma excepção
verdadeiramente extraordinária em relação ao direito canónico então em vigor, e
as autoridades eclesiásticas daquela época concederam-no, valorizando os frutos
de santidade evangélica, que reconheciam no estilo de vida de Clara e das suas
irmãs. Isto demonstra que, também nos séculos da Idade Média, o papel das
mulheres não era secundário, mas considerável. A este propósito, é útil
recordar que Clara foi a primeira mulher na história da Igreja que compôs uma
Regra escrita, submetida à aprovação do Papa, para que o carisma de Francisco
de Assis fosse conservado em todas as comunidades femininas, que se iam
estabelecendo em grande número já naquela época e que desejavam inspirar-se no
exemplo de Francisco e de Clara.
No convento de São
Damião, Clara praticou de maneira heróica as virtudes que deveriam distinguir
cada cristão: a humildade, o espírito de piedade e de penitência, a caridade.
Não obstante fosse a superiora, ela queria servir pessoalmente as irmãs
enfermas, sujeitando-se inclusive a tarefas extremamente humildes: com efeito,
a caridade ultrapassa qualquer resistência, e quem ama realiza todo o
sacrifício com alegria. A sua fé na presença real da Eucaristia era tão grande
que, por duas vezes, se verificou um acontecimento milagroso. Só com a ostensão
do Santíssimo Sacramento, ela afugentou os soldados mercenários sarracenos, que
estavam prestes a invadir o convento de São Damião e a devastar a cidade de
Assis.
Também estes episódios,
assim como outros milagres dos quais se conservava a memória, impeliram o Papa
Alexandre IV a canonizá-la apenas dois anos depois da sua morte, em 1255,
delineando um seu elogio na Bula de canonização, em que lemos: «Como é vivo o
poder desta luz e como é forte a resplandecência desta fonte luminosa! Na
realidade, esta luz mantinha-se fechada no escondimento da vida claustral,
enquanto fora irradiava clarões luminosos; recolhia-se num mosteiro angusto,
enquanto fora se difundia em toda a vastidão do mundo. Conservava-se dentro e
propagava-se fora. Com efeito, Clara escondia-se, mas a sua vida era revelada a
todos. Clara calava-se, mas a sua fama clamava» (FF, 3284). E é precisamente
assim, estimados amigos: são os Santos que mudam o mundo para melhor, que o
transformam de forma duradoura, infundindo as energias que unicamente o amor
inspirado pelo Evangelho pode suscitar. Os Santos são os grandes benfeitores da
humanidade!
A espiritualidade de
Santa Clara, a síntese da sua proposta de santidade é condensada na quarta
Carta a Santa Inês de Praga. Santa Clara recorre a uma imagem muito difundida
na Idade Média, de ascendências patrísticas: o espelho. E convida a sua amiga
de Praga a reflectir-se naquele espelho de perfeição de todas as virtudes, que
é o próprio Senhor. Ela escreve: «Sem dúvida, feliz é aquela a quem é concedido
beneficiar desta sagrada união, para aderir com o profundo do coração [a
Cristo], Àquele cuja beleza é admirada incessantemente por todas as
bem-aventuradas plêiades dos céus, cujo afecto apaixona, cuja contemplação
restabelece, cuja benignidade sacia, cuja suavidade satisfaz, cuja recordação
resplandece suavemente, diante de cujo perfume os mortos voltarão à vida e cuja
visão gloriosa tornará bem-aventurados todos os cidadãos da Jerusalém celeste.
E dado que Ele é esplendor da glória, candura da luz eterna e espelho sem
mancha, olha todos os dias para este espelho, ó rainha esposa de Jesus Cristo,
e nela perscruta continuamente o teu rosto, para que assim tu possas adornar-te
inteiramente no interior e no exterior... Neste espelho refulgem a
bem-aventurada pobreza, a santa humildade e a inefável caridade» (Quarta Carta: FF,
2901-2903).
Gratos a Deus que nos doa
os Santos que falam ao nosso coração e nos oferecem um exemplo de vida cristã a
imitar, gostaria de concluir com as mesmas palavras de bênção que Santa Clara
compôs para as suas irmãs de hábito e que ainda hoje as Clarissas,
desempenhando um papel precioso na Igreja com a sua oração e a sua obra,
conservam com grande devoção. São expressões em que sobressai toda a ternura da
sua maternidade espiritual: «Abençoo-vos na minha vida e após a minha morte,
como posso e mais do que posso, com todas as bênçãos com as quais o Pai da
misericórdia abençoou e há-de abençoar no céu e na terra os filhos e as filhas,
e com as quais um pai e uma mãe espiritual abençoaram e hão-de abençoar os seus
filhos e as suas filhas espirituais. Amém!» (FF, 2856).
Apelo
Acompanho com preocupação
os acontecimentos que se verificaram nestes dias em várias regiões da Ásia
meridional, especialmente na Índia, no Paquistão e no Afeganistão. Rezo pelas
vítimas e peço que o respeito pela liberdade religiosa e a lógica da
reconciliação e da paz prevaleçam sobre o ódio e a violência.
* * *
Saudação
A minha saudação a todos
peregrinos de língua portuguesa, nomeadamente para os grupos vindos do Brasil e
para os fiéis da Torreira e da diocese da Guarda, em Portugal. Que a graça de
Deus, pela intercessão de Santa Clara, fortaleça a vossa vida para mostrardes a
todos a felicidade que é amar Jesus Cristo. De coração, dou-vos a minha Bênção,
extensiva às vossas famílias e comunidades.
© Copyright 2010 -
Libreria Editrice Vaticana
Copyright © Dicastero per
la Comunicazione - Libreria Editrice Vaticana
SOURCE : https://www.vatican.va/content/benedict-xvi/pt/audiences/2010/documents/hf_ben-xvi_aud_20100915.html
Écrits de Sainte
Claire : http://www.clarissesval.ca/%C3%89crits%20de%20Sainte%20Claire.htm
Santa Chiara
d'Assisi - Scritti (Il
Testamento ; Le lettere
ad Agnese di Boemia) : https://www.maranatha.it/Franchiara/Chiara04Text.htm
Sainte-Claire
d'Assise, la Foi prise au Mot [archive] (KTO TV, 29/09/2013) : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qRebs6vDuME
Saint Clare
of Assisi, by Nesta De Robeck : https://catholicsaints.info/saint-clare-of-assisi-by-nesta-de-robeck/
Saint Clare: The
Iconography : https://www.christianiconography.info/clare.html
Santa Chiara, la nobile bambina che imitò Francesco abbracciando la povertà : https://www.famigliacristiana.it/articolo/santa-chiara-la-nobile-che-imito-francesco-abbracciando-la-poverta.aspx