Probably one of the most beloved and well‑known Saints,
even among non‑Catholics, St Francis became affectionately known as the patron
saint of animals. And in his honor, we bless our dogs, our cats, our lizards,
horses and noisy cockatiels every year. He became one of the Church's most
efficient reformers and started by reforming himself. The son of a cloth‑merchant,
one day he stripped naked in the local piazza and gave his father Bernardone everything he
had, including the clothes he was wearing. Instead he put on him a simple robe
and gathered around him a few other men (among them St Anthony) and thus started
the Franciscan order.
The catalyst for this move came after a vision he had at
the church of San Damiano, when Jesus spoke to him through the famous colorful
cross and asked him to go and rebuild his church. This meant literally and
figuratively, because he did fix the dilapidated church, but also founded an
order which is still going very strong around the world, 800 years after its
foundation.
Later in his life, St Francis received the stigmata, the
wounds of Christ and also inspired St Clare to start the female counterpart of
the Franciscan Order, the Poor Clares. He was also known to have created the
first nativity during the Christmas midnight Mass, taking the image of the baby
Jesus down to the crypt, where he had already placed a donkey and cow and a
manger with straw.
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