Memorial of St. Clare of Assisi, Virgin (Philippians 3:8-14; Psalm 16:1-2ab;5,7-8;11; Matthew 19:27-29)
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I
consider everything as a loss because of the supreme good of knowing Christ
Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have accepted the loss of all things and I
consider them so much rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not
having any righteousness of my own based on the law but that which comes
through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God…(Philippians
3:8-9).
These words of St. Paul to the Philippians also
reflect the life of St. Clare of Assisi (1194-1253), who chose to give up all
earthly things in order to gain Christ.
Inspired by the Holy Spirit in words preached by St.
Francis of Assisi (1181-1226), St. Clare of Assisi chose to embrace loss of all
earthly things, including her noble family privilege and a prospect of marrying
to wealthy man. She gave up everything, to which she was entitled, in order to
follow Christ more closely in abject poverty, as Francis did. At that time, she
might have had a vivid evocation of the Holy Spirit in these words of Jesus:
Everyone
who has given up houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children
or lands for the sake of my name will receive a hundred times more, and will
inherit eternal life (Matthew 19:29).
So, she detached herself from all things that may
compromise this pursuit and strove to live a life as austerely as possible, as
Francis and his brother friars were already doing. It was her pursuit of the prize of God’s upward calling, in Christ
Jesus (Philippians 3:14) – her way to enter into the Kingdom. By living in
poverty, she found much closer to Christ, whose life on earth was in poverty,
as reflected in these words of his:
Foxes
have dens and birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to
rest his head (Luke 9:59).
Her earthly family’s wealth and privilege meant
nothing to her anymore when the Holy Spirit in words of St. Francis opened her
eyes, ears, and heart, to the truth of inheriting the Kingdom, as reflected in
these words:
Pleasant
places were measured out for me; fair
to me indeed is my inheritance (Psalm 16:6). Blessed are you who are poor, for the
kingdom of God is yours (Luke 6:20).
St. Francis served as a catalyst, as well as, a
channel of the Holy Spirit, to bring St. Clare into intimacy with Christ and
shared this sanctified intimacy in him, as soul mates and confidants. So Clare
wrote to Francis:
I
can safely say that my small light in the garden of my heart has become a
diamond. I feel quite strong and God shines very bright. In a few hours in the
dark of night, I will be sinking inside to our Lord in gratitude. Then I go to
sleep. Thank you, Francis, for leading me on this path of chasing God, instead
of worldly things. Thank you for showing me it is not really a chase at all,
but rather a great finding, finding God always very close at hand, as close as
my heart.
Francis,
we share the true relationship. Many couples live together under one roof and
never share what we know together. Sure I miss sometimes not having more time
with you in the small moments of life. Then I think of most couples living with
one another day after day, but so separate from each other in their thoughts
and feelings. Francis, we have fallen in love again and again landing in the
great heart, the garden that extends forever. The eternity we know is the true
poetry of life. The canticle you share is music for the heart inside every
heart.
We can imagine St. Clare and her soul mate in
Christ, St. Francis, chant these words:
Keep
me safe, O God; in you I take refuge. I say to the LORD, you are my Lord, you
are my only good (Psalm 16:1-2).
Are you willing to embrace a loss and take a vow of
poverty in order to gain what is promised by Christ in heaven?
Do you have a soul mate in Christ, as St. Clare had
St. Francis, in pursuit of the prize of
God’s upward calling, in Christ Jesus?
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