St Clare of Assisi

This Sunday we'll focus on St. Clare of Assisi, whose feast day is August 11. Our parish hall has been loosely called 'St. Clare's Hall' for years, and the vestry voted this summer to make that official. We'll dedicate a plaque to that effect on St. Francis Day, October 4. 

Clare, or Chiara, came from a similarly privileged background to St. Francis. She was about ten years younger than him, and was apparently inspired by hearing him preach. She committed herself to poverty and a life of prayer and founded a women's order known as the 'Poor Ladies' or the 'Poor Clares.' Her leadership and indomitable faith carried her and her sisters through many obstacles and challenges, and her absolute commitment to poverty held the growing Franciscan movement to account. She lived for some 30 years after Francis, and it is clear that her witness and perseverance shaped both male and female followers of the Franciscan way. 

In some ways it would make more sense to name the church after St. Clare and the parish hall after St. Francis - her order is cloistered and devoted to prayer, while Franciscans are out and about in the world, serving others. But her name will serve as a good reminder that all we do together as a community - be it worship, study, fellowship, even finance meetings - is based in our faith and devotion to Jesus. If we put God first in all we do, everything else will follow. May St. Clare keep us constant in our faith that with God, we have all we need.