St Francis of Assisi
St Francis was born in Assisi around 1182 and died in 1226. He was revered as a Saint in his lifetime and was officially canonised in 1228, just two years after his death.
Francis was the son of Pietro Bernardone, a cloth trader, and the lady Pica, who it is thought came originally from France. He had one brother, Angelo. Francis’ life is one of stark contrasts. As a young man he dreamed of being a knight and of fighting in the many local wars of the time. Assisi in the 12th Century was a brutal, violent, corrupt and bloody place in which the poor and marginalised suffered greatly at the hands of the rich. As a young man, Francis was caught up in this world and was very much part of it. However, following his imprisonment in a prisoner of war camp, things began to change.
He returned to Assisi a broken man; seen as a failure by his father and the local community. He began to lose interest in his former life he had and the fine clothes he wore. He started to see these exploits as symbols of the prevailing culture of violence and oppression. He was searching for deeper meaning, authenticity and truth. Where was he going to find this?
Francis conversion took time. One day while riding through the Umbrian countryside, he encountered a leper. Lepers were seen as non-persons, and were forced to live in abject poverty, humiliation and isolation. They were both hated and feared by the locals. Customarily, on encountering a leper, you would cover your face and make for a hasty retreat. This encounter, for Francis, was to be different and life-changing. On seeing the leper he got off his horse and embraced him. This simple act of human kindness was to open Francis eyes to the presence of God, not only in the lepers, but also in all of God’s wondrous Creation. His journey to become the great Saint, and the inspiration of millions, that we know today, was underway.
The Franciscan Family
Each of us need to find our way in life. As Christians we believe that we do this with the help and guidance of the Holy Spirit. Since the time of St Francis, his followers have been listing to the voice of the Spirit in their lives. In the Franciscan world we often call this paying attention of the ‘signs of the times’. Over the centuries since St Francis death, the Franciscan Mvement has expanded and developed. Today there are Franciscans living and working around the world as members of the First Order (Male Religious Orders – OFM, OFM Conventual and OFM Capuchin); the Second Order (Poor Clare Nuns and Sisters) and the Third Order (Regular and Secular Orders). These three Orders make up the Franciscan Family.
The Capuchin Branch of the Family
The Capuchin Friars emerged in 1536 in Italy as a reform of the earlier branches of the Franciscan Friars. The reform was fueled by a desire to life a life closer to the Gospel, closer to the life of St Francis and closer to the poor. This desire was galvanised in and through a life of brotherhood or fraternity as we often call it. This brotherhood calls on the Friars to be brothers to each other and brothers to all. The first name for this new Franciscan group was ‘the brothers of the people’. The name ‘Capuchin’ comes from the longer hood we wear on our habits called a ‘capuche’ – you may be familiar with the Capuchin Monkey and even the Capuccino coffee which gets it’s name from us.
Capuchin Spirituality
Our Spirituality is rooted in the Eucharist, the Gospel, and St Francis of Assisi. Our lives are active-contemplative. This means that while we all have ministry inside and / or outside the Friary, we are very much contemplatives at heart. Contemplation is the way in which we listen deeply to the voice of the Spirit in our lives. Ministry is the way in which we bring this voice to life in the World today. Our Order has been gifted many Saints and Blesseds, over one hundred. You may not have heard of many of these holy men however some will be much more familiar to you like Padre Pio, St Leopold Mandic and Blessed Solanus Casey.
