SAINT OF THE DAY · AUGUST 11

Who was Saint Clare?

Saintly Editorial 2 min read
In short

Saint Clare: A shining witness to Christ in poverty. Lived circa 1194 to 1253. Born and lived in Assisi, Italy. Abbess and foundress of the Poor Clares. Patron of television and Assisi. First woman to write a papally approved Rule. Saintly remembers this saint on August 11.

  • Lived circa 1194 to 1253
  • Born and lived in Assisi, Italy
  • Abbess and foundress of the Poor Clares
  • Patron of television and Assisi
  • First woman to write a papally approved Rule

Who was Saint Clare?

Clare was born into a wealthy noble family in Assisi. Her mother, Ortolana, gave her a strong Christian education. Clare grew up surrounded by comfort and family expectations. A marriage was being planned for her. Yet her heart had already begun to seek another life. She was waiting for a door to open.

At eighteen, Clare heard Francis preach during Lent at the church of San Giorgio. His words stirred a desire to live according to the Gospel. On Palm Sunday, she secretly left home with a companion. At the Portiuncula, Francis cut her hair and gave her a rough habit. Her old life ended that night.

Clare first stayed with Benedictine nuns, women living under an ancient monastic rule. Her relatives tried to bring her home by force. She held firmly to the altar and showed them her shorn head. They understood that she would not return. Soon her sister Agnes joined her, and their new community began.

At San Damiano, Clare gathered women who wanted to live the Gospel in prayer, work, humility, and poverty. She became their abbess, the woman responsible for guiding the community. She also wrote to Agnes of Prague, a princess who had joined the Poor Clares. Clare taught her to keep her eyes fixed on Christ.

Clare defended the community's right to live without property. This was called the privilege of poverty. Church officials sometimes urged her to accept possessions for security. Clare continued to ask that the sisters depend on God and honest work. She guarded this choice for decades. Its final approval came near the end of her life.

Clare saw poverty as a way to remain close to Jesus, who became poor in the Incarnation and remained poor on the Cross. Her letters describe Christ as the beloved Spouse of the soul. She urged Agnes of Prague to look closely at him and let his life shape her own. Clare's hidden life had become a clear witness.

Clare died at San Damiano in 1253 after a long illness. Two days before her death, Pope Innocent IV confirmed the Rule she had written for her sisters. Witnesses later told of Mary's presence near Clare's deathbed. The woman who had left her home in secret now left behind a way of life that spread throughout the Church.

What can we learn from Saint Clare today?

  • Choose one comfort today and offer its cost for someone living with less.
  • Read one paragraph from Clare's letters and keep Christ's poverty before your eyes.
  • Protect one quiet period today from noise, as Clare guarded her life at San Damiano.

Saint Clare shows how a hidden life can strengthen the whole Church. She chose Christ with courage, defended poverty with patience, and guided women across generations through her Rule and letters. Her witness still invites us to simplify our desires, trust God's care, and keep our eyes steadily turned toward Jesus.

When is the feast day of Saint Clare?

Saintly remembers Saint Clare on August 11, when the story above is the saint of the day in the app. Read how the Church declares someone a saint, or how to choose a patron saint.

Sources

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