top of page

FRANCISCUS ASSISILAINEN

Francis of Assisi is one of the most famous patron saints of the Catholic Church.  He has been declared a saint of nature conservation. 

Fransiscus was born in 1182 in the small village of Assisi in central Italy. His  his full name was Giovanni Bernardone, but Francis' father gave him  nicknamed Francesco, meaning little Frenchman. The nickname came from Franciscus ’mother’s homeland, France.

 

Younger Franciscus  spent a similar life  than other peers, but  at the age of 25, he was forced on a military expedition  Imprisoned in Perugia. He crawled in the dungeon sick for a year,  during which God spoke to him.

 

After release  Franciscus began to help the poor and sick, such as lepers  financially, which the rich fabric merchant felt was absurd.

 

Francis of Assisi. In front of Rauma Church

Franciscus was given a new life mission while in the chapel of San Damiano, where he heard God say; "Franciscus, don't you  see that, my house is deteriorating? Start fixing it. "Franciscus bought a brick with his father's money and began repairing the chapel of San Damiano. This waste was not on Dad's mind either.  led to a rift in the father-son relationship. Franciscus returned all his property to his family, even to the last degree of clothing.

 

 

 

 

Now   he began touring villages and towns, telling of a new way of life  , living in poverty. The question arose, was it right that the church lived in the midst of wealth and power?  Were the words "deterioration of my house"  and the call to repair it meant nothing more than repairing a small chapel with new bricks?   

 

He gathered around him  like-minded at first into a small crowd that began to expand rapidly. One of these  was  brother Leo, who  later wrote a biography of Francis and published his poems, the most famous of which is The Song of the Sun.

The followers of Francis began to be called Franciscans, beggar brothers, and Francis sent them around the world.  Their only rule was,  was not allowed to own anything. The Franciscans had to earn their food by work or begging. When  other people watched how humble these devotees were to God, they started themselves  help the poor. A great popular movement was born, which  the bishops watched in fear. Episcopate  thought Franciscus would be a dangerous heretic to the church. For heretics, the Catholic Church was effective  and the dreaded means of silencing them: the Inquisition.

 

  In the end, though  pope  Innocent III  in 1209 gave the “little poor of God,” whose name Francis himself used, permission to continue preaching. The only condition was that their  had to wear formal monk clothes and commit to absolute obedience to the Catholic Church.

 

The number grew rapidly and by the end of the 13th century there were 30,000 of them all over Europe. What was special to them was that they were not bound  to fixed local monasteries, but they roamed freely from place to place  and were often very popular among the common people.

                  

Women also wanted to join the rule and were set up for them

Clarinet rules.

Franciscus joined the Crusaders and was given the opportunity to preach in Egypt  to the Muslim Sultan.

Franciscus had heard   while at the fair  The words of Jesus to his disciples and aroused him, " Do not store gold, silver, or copper in your belt, and do not bring a bag, or an extra shirt, or shoes, or a staff. A laborer has earned his food." 

After Francis resigned from his leadership roles, he often visited Mount Alverno to pray. There he is  got stigma  in his hands and feet, wounds similar to those Jesus had.

Francis of Assisi died on October 3, 1226, in the chapel of Portiucula, lying on the ground floor alone.   He was 44 years old at the time.

Bishop Jari Jolkkonen's program about Franciscus from Assisi

bottom of page