The Peace of Saint Francis of Assisi

This is a guest post by Kenji Crosland of TeachStreet.  TeachStreet is a website dedicated to providing online and local classes, as well as classes on religion.

I remember the first time I had visited Assisi Italy, the home of St. Francis in the Summer of 2003.  Before we had even entered the town where St. Francis preached, we witnessed the fields sweep by our bus windows, radiating gold in the sun.  It was no small wonder that it was in this place that St. Francis found his calling, forsook his father's wealth, and took a vow of poverty to pursue his devotion to God.

Golden Fields near Assisi in Umbria

Photo Source: Un Raggazo 


As we passed through the quiet cobblestone streets, we met the Franciscan monks who had, just like the founder of their order had done centuries ago, taken a vow of poverty and donned the brown robes.  I can still remember to this day how the monks had such an aura of peace about them.  Just being in there in that beautiful place was enough to feel divine peace, and through them it shined.

From the sunlight and the peace of the Assisi streets we entered into the Basilica of St. Clare where we saw the copy of crucifix of San Damiano.  Although only a copy of the original crucifix that had spoken to St. Francis with a mission from God, the feeling that the icon would speak to any of us there at any moment was palpable.

The San Damiano Cross

Also, equally impressive was the Basilica of St. Francis, with the walls adorned with frescoes from the master artist Giotto.  However, I was more impressed by the simple hedges that spelled the word "Pax" (Peace) in front of the Basilica.  Although St. Francis was a fierce follower of the Church, he recognized the value of peace and how it could bridge the gaps between faiths.  So important this was that the Franciscan order had made "Peace" part of the landscape as a reminder of what the Saint had striven for and what they should strive for as well.

"Peace"

Photo by: Sacred Destinations


Of the many places that one can make a pilgrimage, this is one of the most extraordinary. In Assisi you can feel the peace the simplicity and the faith of St. Francis everywhere you go. If you ever have a chance to visit Rome, be sure to plan a day trip to Assisi.  You won't regret it.

Pope Decrees Sainthood for Blessed Guido Maria Conforti and Beatification for Several Others

Pope decrees sainthood for Italian, beatification for 11 others - Catholic News Agency (CNA)

The following excerpt is from CNA/EWTN News:

Vatican City (CNA/EWTN News)- Pope Benedict XVI has advanced the sainthood causes of 16 Catholics. The announcement was made following the Pope’s meeting with Cardinal Angelo Amato, head of the Vatican’s office for the causes of saints, Dec. 10.

The Church’s newest saint will be Blessed Guido Maria Conforti, a missionary order founder and Italian bishop who died in 1931. The Pope has authorized a miracle attributed to Conforti’s intercession, the second needed to affirm his sainthood.

He founded the Pious Society of St. Francis Xavier for Foreign Missions, the Xaverian missionaries, who through his guidance brought about a renewal of the missionary spirit at the turn of the 20th century. The missionaries first spearheaded evangelization efforts to China. They are now present in a variety of countries throughout Africa, Asia, Europe and the Americas.

While his most recent miracle was not described, the first miracle attributed to Blessed Conforti came about in 1965. After prayers for his intercession from Xaverian sisters in Burundi, 12-year old Sabina Kamariza was cured of pancreatic cancer. He was beatified by Pope John Paul II in 1996.

In addition to the miracle attributed to Blessed Conforti, the Pope has also authorized miracles attributed to an Italian priest, the Spanish foundress of a religious institute, the Portuguese foundress of an order of hospitalier sisters and a Brazilian sister who died in 1992. They will all be beatified for miracles attributed to their intercession.

Further papally-authorized decrees will recognize the martyrdom of German Father Alois Andritzki killed in the Nazi’s Dachau concentration camp in 1943 and six Spanish priests who all died for the faith during their country's civil war in 1936. No dates have been released yet for the ceremonies that will recognize them as blesseds.

"Heroic virtue" was decreed in the lives of a 20th-century Italian priest, a Lebanese religious brother of the Melkite Catholic tradition, an Italian sister and foundress of a religious congregation and a Spanish religious sister.

A series of steps marks the road to sainthood. First, the cause is begun on a local, diocesan level at which time information is collected on the person known to have led an exemplary or "heroic" Christian life.

Information is collected at the local bishop's request, resulting in a biography of the person, any writings they created, and testimonies from witnesses being sent to the Vatican's Congregation for the Causes of Saints. After further investigation by a panel, those who advance are either recognized for their "heroic virtue" and declared "venerable" or declared martyrs for the faith, thus bypassing the venerable stage to be beatified and declared "blessed."

"Venerables" to whose intercession a miracle is attributed advance by further papal decree to be beatified and declared “blessed.”

Once a person is declared “blessed,” the final step to canonization and recognition as a saint is the attribution of a second miracle for non-martyrs and a single miracle for those who suffered martyrdom.

Read More: CNA News