Sr. Marie Colette OSC
Extract of a talk given at the General Assembly of the Conferenza Francescana Internazionale - TOR, Assisi 16-22 May 1993.
Clare, Image of God
"- The mirror of the morning star, the beautiful mirror in which we admired the image of the true light, has disappeared from our eyes -".
These words begin the letter by which Clare's companions announced her death to the sisters of some 150 monasteries of Poor Clares throughout Europe. For them, Clare was like a mirror reflecting the image of Christ, the God-Man; she was his image. Hence the title chosen for this talk is appropriately: "-Saint Clare, an image of God-".
Image of God
"-God made man in his image-", Scripture tells us ( Gen 1,27); however, that image was marred by sin, and only the Christ, the God-Man, is his true image: "-He is the image of the invisible God-", says St. Paul, and it is in union with him that we can once again become the "-image of God-". "-Those he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, so that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters-" ( Rom 8,29).
To say that Clare is an "-image of God-" is to say that she was so closely conformed to Christ that she reproduced his image in herself (we find her sisters attesting to that) and it also means that Christ sanctified her so much that he reestablished in her, as it were, the primitive image of mankind before original sin.
But who is Clare?
I think that you all know something about her life, so I
will but briefly mention:
-- her birth in Assisi in 1193 or 1194;
-- her aristocratic childhood, troubled by a few years of
exile in Perugia;
-- her hasty departure for San Damiano.
As Clare approached her 16th birthday, her parents wanted to arrange her marriage, so that is when she set into action her resolve to consecrate her life to the Lord under the spiritual authority of St. Francis.
Francis
For several years Clare had heard others speak of him before and especially after his rather sensational conversion. Despite her reserve, for several months she had been determined to visit him, accompanied by a friend, and she had resolved to make him the "-guide of her life-"*.
* ----------------------------------
Legend of Saint Clare, 6. (The English translation of the
quotations, unless indicated otherwise, are taken from
Clare of Assisi, Early Documents. Regis J. Armstrong, ed.
and trans. Paulist Press, New York, 1988).
------------------------------------
On the evening of Palm Sunday in the year 1212 Clare fled her parents' home and hastened to meet Francis and his friars who were waiting for her at Saint Mary of the Angels. There she abandoned her rich clothing and put on the habit of penance. Francis cut her hair as a sign of her consecration then led her to the Benedictine monastery of San Paolo in Bastia not far from there. From that moment on, without losing any of her gentleness, that sweet, modest young woman showed herself to be filled with strength and an unshakable tenacity. Her act was extremely bold and Clare had to assume all its consequences.
Clare's choice
Clare did not go to San Paolo in Bastia to become a Benedictine nun; that would have been enough to ruin her family's marriage plans, but it would not have been a shocking break. On the other hand, Clare could have retired, as so many others did, to some beguinage; keeping all her property, there she could have devoted her life to prayer and works of mercy. There were many of these penitential communities in Umbria: Sant'Angelo de Panzo, where she lived for several weeks, was one of them with a more eremitical bent. That would not have been scandalous.
On the contrary, she goes to the Benedictines in order to live in the humble, poor condition of a servant, as Francis had once done among the Benedictines on Mount Subasio. How could it be otherwise? She had just abandoned all her property, and she now presented herself voluntarily in her total poverty.
This radical step reveals Clare's intention to follow Christ with all her heart in poverty and humility; to imitate Christ who "-became poor although he was rich-" ( 2 Cor 8,9), to imitate him in his kenosis by becoming a servant. Thus she entered the vast Gospel movement of penitents of her day, but she went much further... With a total lack of security for her future, she set off on an adventure. That was especially unthinkable for a woman of her class; it caused a scandal, incurred rejection and misunderstanding, even to a greater degree than Francis had endured; hers was not only a break with her family, but also, and above all, with her whole environment at a time when social pressure was very strong.
It does not take long to see how her family will react. Raging mad, the men of her clan hurry after her and attempt to bring her back; she resists and shows them her shaved head; they do not dare force her, because by doing so they would run the risk of excommunication, so they go away. Shortly after that her sister joins her and the two of them are subjected to an even more violent assault. Finally, Francis takes them to San Damiano. Why didn't he do that sooner? He himself had once prophesied: "- Ladies will again dwell here who will glorify our heavenly Father throughout his holy, universal Church by their celebrated and holy manner of life -" ( Testament of St. Clare, 14).
St. Clare's most recent biographer, Marco Bartoli, holds that Francis wanted to test the young woman's courage and determination. Clare seems to confirm as much when she writes in her Testament: "- When the Blessed Francis saw, however, that, although we were physically weak and frail, we did not shirk deprivation, poverty, hard work, trial, or the shame or contempt of the world... he greatly rejoiced in the Lord. And moved by compassion for us, he bound himself, both through himself and through his Order, to always have the same loving care and special solicitude for us as for his own brothers -" ( Testament, 27-29).
At San Damiano
From that time on Clare would no longer leave San Damiano. She would live there 42 years. It is there that she unites her whole being to Christ; it is there that she perfectly fulfills Francis' prophecy that she would give birth to a new order of nuns, currently the largest in the world.
What did she do that was so extraordinary? If you look only at externals, nothing much; she prayed, she did penance, she performed the domestic tasks common to all community living. If you are looking for exceptional acts, you will be disappointed. However, her life is marked by teaching. It is rather like a miniature: from a distance it does not seem like a big deal, but upon closer inspection you will discover a wonderful world in which each little detail speaks, opening up horizons. You will particularly notice that Clare had an extraordinary love for Christ. Then you will understand that she had a certain attraction, that her holiness impressed popes and cardinals, that she could be described as a "-teacher of life-" and that she continues to attract, not for her own sake, but in order to lead people to Christ, her beloved Lord.
It is rather her way of loving, of living in communion with Christ, with her sisters, and with the world around her that links us to her; according to one of her contemporaries, Francis referred to her simply as "-the Christian-", that is, the perfect imitator of Christ, his "-image-", so to say. On her part, Clare called Francis the "-true lover and imitator-" of Christ ( Testament, 2).
Well, then, you might ask, was Clare simply a carbon copy of Francis? That is not what she thought. She regarded herself as "-his little plant-" and she called him "-the gardener-". However, although the gardener takes care of the plant's development, he or she does not change its nature; the air, water and soil which nourish it do not come from the gardener. Clare clearly states that all grace comes to her from God, the Father of mercies, and that it is God who maintains her behavior, although it is frequently through Francis' mediation.
Clare, the faithful disciple, gives us women a lesson about how to follow Christ. Clare was a being of communion, despite, and perhaps because of, her initial break which we have mentioned. Clare experienced deeply and naturally that quality which we have such great need of in our interpersonal relations and our relations with God and self today. Let us see how she lived it.
Clare, a woman of her day, a woman for today
Celano writes: "-From all sides women ran after the odor of her ointments... The newness of such great things went far and wide in the world and everywhere it began to gain souls for Christ-" ( Legend of St. Clare, 10).
Of course these statements are slightly exaggerated, but
they also have a real basis: indeed, there were flourishing
communities of the Poor Ladies just about everywhere, as
Celano says so nicely, "-like hawthorns in
spring-".
Clare, a mirror, radiated. She radiated as an "-image of
Christ-", but also by her own personality which, under
the action of grace, became the most polished model of a
medieval woman and a beautiful image of women which transcends
all times.
A woman of her day
She was the daughter of a knight, whose education and culture she inherited; the daughter of one of the Italian cities which were the crucible of modern economy and society, but by choice she was firmly on the side of the poorest of the poor. However, there was nothing blatant about her. By the grace of her union with Christ she unifies all these elements and synthesizes them harmoniously. She integrates them, sifts them out with the Gospel, but she does not let herself be weakened by any of them.
Her initial break was not some violent rejection but a choice for God, and little by little the Lord gives everything back to her transformed.
She leaves her family, her world, and shortly after that her sisters, her mother and her friends come to her to be her disciples. She chooses to live outside the city, outside the walls which, in a medieval society, in addition to security, represented the idea of belonging, of a common destiny; however, it is not very long before the towns people come running to her to ask for miracles and to place themselves under the protection of her prayer.
Clare, who is no longer a prisoner of its structures, its social divisions and rumors, develops solidarity with it. We can see this during the attack of the Saracens (1240): after having received the assurance that she and her community would be protested, Clare also intercedes to the Lord: "-Lord, please defend the city as well!-" ( Process of canonization, Ninth witness, 2).
Witnesses tell that the following year the city was once again under siege by another warrior, Vitalis d'Aversa: the sisters are not worried for themselves but Clare calls them together and tells them: "-"Every day we receive many good things from the city. It would be terrible if, at a proper time, we did not help it, as we now can". She commanded that some ashes be brought and that the sisters bare their heads. First she scattered a lot of ashes over her own head and then placed them on the heads of those sisters. "Go to our Lord", she said, "and with all your heart beg for the liberation of the city".-" ( The Legend of St. Clare, 23).
Assisi is saved. For some unknown reason Vitalis d'Aversa's troops lift the siege. Clare appears as the protectress of the city, which commemorates this event each year.
Her attentiveness to the signs of the times
Her freedom from her roots makes her capable of understanding and accepting the newness of the Franciscan evangelical life; at once, without the slightest hesitation, among all the possible ways of serving God, she chooses to follow Francis; she is perfectly at ease with these new forms of life and spirituality. She even breaks new ground. The manner in which she lives poverty and works within the society of her day are an example.
Her choice of the most high poverty completely reverses the usual situation of monasteries and how they relate to society; she creates a situation in which the community is dependent on the surrounding world at a time when the presence of an abbey usually causes villages to spring up around it, a whole group of artisans, and tradesmen, work to satisfy the needs of the abbeys, which are sometimes significant. Because of the necessity of begging alms, Clare's monastery is in a state of dependence on the city; this is the practical application of minority.
Some of the new orders do not dare impose such a precarious condition on the women. St. Dominic wants his friars to own nothing, but does not take that risk for his sisters; he solicits property for them and charges one of his friars to manage their temporal possessions in order to ensure their material security.
The effect of the monastery's dependence is a close bond with society; even though their enclosure is strict, they have a close solidarity because the community suffers the same hazards as the inhabitants; like the poor, they suffer the consequences of crises, famines and wars, but also reap the benefits of the generosity of their benefactors in times of plenty.
Work reveals a change of mentality: like Francis, Clare wants to "-work with her hands-". This is also a novelty in monastic life of the time: monks and nuns of a certain class no longer do manual labor; the lay brothers and sisters assure their material service.
"-To work with one's hands-" is an expression from St. Paul which was in use during the 13th century by those who sought to foster a new attitude in the Church about work, explains Marco Bartoli in his book on St. Clare. Work is a sign of minority.
At San Damiano the sisters work with their hands to earn a living, but also in order to be able to give. They wear rough clothing and eat the crusts of bread, but they also make corporals from precious material which they then distribute to all the churches of the area.
This, Bartoli says, is the economic paradox of San Damiano; they work in order to give gifts and beg in order to live. It goes against sound economic policy, but it creates another type of relationship, a circuit of charity. Work is not something of an economic nature; it increases poverty.
By her birth and her options, Clare is representing the deep social changes of the 13th century, where social dynamics shift from the country to the city. She belongs to two worlds and she chooses to take her place particularly in the condition of the new poor who, abandoning the country, come to the cities to work there with their hands. Materially and spiritually, she fully accepts her age and its evolution, but in the heart of the cities where money reigns supreme, she preserves the evangelical leaven of poverty as a reminder of the first beatitude.
Clare, the image of God for today?
At first sight, one could wonder, perhaps some people even
with a bit of skepticism, if a nun who chose to live as a
recluse eight centuries ago could have anything to say today.
Clare did not do any preaching; she did not leave any tangible
heritage. She is a woman of silence and prayer who chooses to
withdraw and does it so well that at this distance she has all
but disappeared behind Francis. We must take the time to study
her attentively. Then that medieval miniature gradually begins
to take on detail and come alive, and the mirror becomes
clearer. Then one can contemplate the face of a woman who is a
mirror and model for all ages, for today and tomorrow too; of
a woman who is free because she is liberated not for her own
personal satisfaction, but in order to live the Gospel better;
of a woman of solidarity and communion. Behind her, covering
her with her mantle, one can see the Blessed Virgin presiding
at her consecration in the chapel of St. Mary of the Angels
and close to her is the Christ-servant whose characteristics
Clare spent her life reproducing in her feminine nature.