BIOGRAPHY OF ST. FRANCIS & ST. CLARE     (PDF)

     WORDS AND PRAYERS

  SAINT FRANCIS OF ASSISI

O God, make me an instrument of your peace:
where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light,
and where there is sadness, joy.  

O divine Teacher, grant that I may not so much seek
to be consoled as to console,
to be understood, as to understand,
to be loved, as to love.  

For it is in giving that we receive,
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.          

                    ~attributed to Francis of Assisi

BROTHERS SUN AND FIRE

At dawn, when the sun rises, everyone should praise God who has created Brother Sun for our service, for through him our eyes light up the day; in the evening, when night descends, everyone should praise God through Brother Fire, for through him our eyes light up the night.  We are all, as it were, blind, and it is through these two brothers that the Lord gives light to our eyes.  We should praise the Lord, then, in a special way for these creatures and for the others, too, who serve us day by day.

--Mirror of Perfection, 119

St. Francis of Assisi

 

Canticle of the Sun

Be Praised Good Lord for Brother Sun
who brings us each new day.
Be Praised for Sister Moon:
white beauty bright and fair,
with wandering stars she moves through night.  

Be Praised my Lord for Brother Wind
for air and clouds and the skies in every season.
Be Praised for Sister Water,
humble, helpful, precious, pure;
She cleanses us in rivers and renews us in rain. 

Be Praised my Lord for Brother Fire:
He purifies and enlightens us.
Be Praised my Lord for Mother Earth:
abundant source, all life sustaining;
She feeds us bread and fruit and gives us flowers.

Be Praised my Lord for the gift of life,
for changing dusk and dawn,
for touch and scent and song.
Be Praised Good Lord for Sister Death
who welcomes us in loving embrace.
 
Be Praised my Lord for all your creation
serving you joyfully.  

St. Francis of Assisi

1225 A.D.

 WORDS AND PRAYERS

SAINT CLARE OF ASSISI

BLESSING OF ST. CLARE

Always be lovers of God
and your souls,
and the souls of your sisters
and brothers,
and always be eager to
observe what you have
promised to God.  

May you always be with God
wherever you may be,
and may God be with you
always.

AMEN  

-- St. Clare of Assisi

CLARE OF ASSISI : Praises of God

O God, you are every good,
You are power,
You are generosity,
You are beauty.
You are tenderness, you are courtesy.
You embrace us, you adorn us,
You place priceless pearls on us
and surround us with gems.
You crown us with holiness.
You took on the passion for us,
You delivered us from darkness
And reconciled us to God.
You adorn us with virtue
and illuminate us with perfection.
You are our heavenly spouse.
You work in us through grace.  

Paraphrased from First and Second Letters, by Ingrid Peterson, OSF. All rights reserved.

 

Reading from Clare of Assisi :

from the Fourth Letter to Blessed 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,

          Whose affection excites,

          Whose contemplation refreshes,

          Whose kindness fulfills,

          Whose delight replenishes,

          Whose remembrance delightfully shines,

          By Whose fragrance the dead are revived,

Whose glorious vision will bless all the citizens            

of the heavenly Jerusalem :

          which, since it is the splendor of eternal glory,

                    is the brilliance of eternal light

                    and the mirror without blemish.

 

OTHER PRAYERS

PRAYER FOR FREEING THE FIRE

O Spirit of Fire and Love

you imbue every fiber of our beings with energy for a new creation. Hover over us; fan the fire of our lives into a flame which enlightens the whole world. Calm our anxious minds and spirits and set our hearts on fire.

O Creative and Loving Spirit

fill every fiber of our beings with the energy for a new world, a new creation. Burn away all that is dead and lifeless and free the fire of love so that once again,  inspired by Francis and Clare of Assisi, we might be a saving light in this fragile and troubled world. Draw us together, all people throughout the world that we might be light and fire of your presence in a wounded and fractured world.

 

O Gracious and Compassionate Spirit

set free our hearts that burn within us; let us be mindful of justice and seek peace with all of creation; for we are yours, endowed with your power to make our world whole.  Amen.

~adapted from Franciscan Federation 2004

Prayer for the Decade of Nonviolence  

I bow to the sacred in all creation.
May my spirit fill the world with beauty and wonder.
May my mind seek truth with humility and openness.
May my heart forgive without limit.
May my love for friend, enemy and outcast be without measure.
May my needs be few and my living simple.
May my actions bear witness to the suffering of others.
May my hands never harm a living being.
May my steps stay on the journey of justice.
May my tongue speak for those who are poor without fear of the powerful.
May my prayers rise with patient discontent until no child is hungry
May my life’s work be a passion for peace and nonviolence.
May my soul rejoice in the present moment.
May my imagination overcome death and despair with new possibility.
And may I risk reputation, comfort and security to bring this hope to the children.
Amen.

Pax Christi USA

Prayer: Mary Lou Kownacki, OSB