Whenever Francis struggled with the direction of his mission, Clare provided him with insight and encouragement.
Prayer
Tender God, you have given each of us unique abilities to share with your people, the Church.
As the spouse of Christ, Clare was a shining example of one
who put her talents to good use. Through her intercession,
may we find our own gifts and emulate her as we use
them in service of the good news.
Amen.
Reflection
Being a humble as she was, Saint Clare would probably take issue with the words included below to describe her. But those who knew Clare would probably not. One person who found comfort and counsel in Clare was Saint Francis. Whenever he struggled with the direction of his mission and vocation, Clare provided him with insight and encouragement. She also provided comfort and counsel to others, including Francis’ brothers and her own sisters.
If you were to ask your friends and family what your strongest qualities and positive characteristics are, what do you think they would say? Would they be as noteworthy as those Clare received when she was canonized? And yet she lived a humble, modest life. Too often, we get caught in the belief that we are not holy enough, humble enough, or not in the correct state of life to emulate someone like Clare or the other saints.
Yet each of us has our own talents, honorable characteristics, and gifts to offer to others. The key is to uncover those things and bring them to light for the good of all.
Consider this…
- Have you ever felt alone on your faith journey? Did you ever feel like you weren’t worthy? How did you get over it? Who helped you?
- When you’ve been down or discouraged, how did prayer lead you out of it? Did you have a community of friends or associates to help you?
- What talents do you bring to your home, workplace, township, or parish? How do you use those gifts to build up the Kingdom of God?
Honoring Saint Clare
“Clare was a vessel of humility, a shrine of chastity, a flame of love, the essence of kindness, the strength of patience, the bond of peace, and the source of loving unity in her community.”
—from Clare’s canonization—
