The passage of the Annunciation to the Virgin Mary, chosen to be the Mother of Jesus, is singularly dear to the Liturgy on the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception.

Mary the "filled with grace", as Luke emphasises in his Gospel, always found unspeakable love with Francis of Assisi because, as he repeated: "she had made the Lord of majesty our brother".

"To his honour he sang special praises, raised prayers, offered affections so many and such as human tongue could not express" (FF 786).

And in the Letter to the Faithful:

"The Most High Heavenly Father, through his holy angel Gabriel, announced this Word of the Father, so worthy, so holy and glorious, in the womb of the Holy and glorious Virgin Mary, and from her womb received the true flesh of our humanity and frailty" (FF 181).

The Poverello, who was in love with Mary, always concluded the recitation of the psalms with a wonderful Marian antiphon, extolling all the prerogatives of God in Her:

"Holy Virgin Mary, there is no one like you, born in the world, among women, daughter and handmaid of the Most High and Supreme King the heavenly Father, mother of our most holy Lord Jesus Christ, spouse of the Holy Spirit; pray for us with Saint Michael the Archangel and with all the powers of heaven and with all the saints, to your most holy beloved Son, Lord and Master. Glory to the Father [...]" (FF 281).

But what, in my opinion, most exalts the Beauty of Mary "she who has found Grace with God" (Lk 1:30) is Francis' wonderful prayer known as "Salutation to the Blessed Virgin Mary":

We read in his writings:

"Hail, Lady, Holy Queen,/ Holy Mother of God, Mary,/ who is a virgin made Church/ and chosen by the most holy heavenly Father,/ who has consecrated you/ together with her most holy beloved Son/ and with the Holy Paraclete Spirit;/ you in whom was and is all fullness of grace/ and all good.

Hail, his palace,/ Hail, his tabernacle,/ Hail, his house./ 

Hail, his robe,/ Hail, his handmaid,/ Hail, his Mother [...]" (FF 259).

Even in Clare, "àltera Maria", we find expressions that attest to the fact that the holy Virgin was the model of her daily life.

We read in the 3rd letter addressed to her spiritual daughter:

"In the same way, then, that the glorious Virgin of virgins bore Christ materially in her womb, you too, following his vestiges, especially of his humility and poverty, can always [...] bear him spiritually in your chaste and virginal body. And you will contain in you Him by whom you and all creatures are contained" (FF 2893).

"The Holy Spirit will descend upon you and the power of the Most High will cover you with his shadow" (Lk 1:35).

Immaculate Conception Blessed Virgin Mary (Lk 1:26-38)

Seeing the large crowd following him, Jesus emphasises the need to pray for more workers in his harvest to announce the Kingdom and heal the sick, in the sign of gratuity.

In the Sources we find different passages referring to the proclamation of the Kingdom of God and its Gratuity by Francis and his brothers. We read in fact:

"His speeches were not vain, but filled with the power of the Holy Spirit: they penetrated to the depths of the heart and aroused great amazement in his listeners.

In each of his sermons, at the beginning of the discourses, he greeted the people with the greeting of peace, saying: "May the Lord give you peace!"

He had learnt this form of greeting by revelation from the Lord.

Like the prophets, he announced peace, he preached salvation' (FF 1052).

But it is surprising to find episodes that highlight his naked gratuitousness, received and returned.

"Francis, a man of God, naked of the things of the world, consecrated himself to divine worship and, no longer minding his own advantage, committed himself to serving God in every possible way.

On his way back to the church of St Damian, he began to walk through squares and streets, raising praises to the Lord.

As he finished his praises, he worked to obtain the stones needed to restore the church.

He said: "Whoever gives me one stone will have one reward; whoever gives me two stones, two rewards; whoever gives me three, as many rewards!" (FF 1420).

Moreover: "One winter morning, while he was praying covered in miserable garments, his carnal brother, passing by him, remarked ironically addressing a fellow citizen:

Tell Francis to sell you at least a penny of his sweat!".

The man of God, hearing the mocking words, was seized with superhuman joy and replied in French:

"I will sell this sweat, and very dearly, to my Lord" (FF 1424).

Saturday 1st wk. in Advent (Mt 9,35-38-10,1.6-8)

In today's Gospel, the healing of the two blind men highlights the theme of the inner blindness of the ambitious disciples, correlated with deep faith.

Francis was convinced that this is not witnessed with fine words, but with the eloquence of deeds.

In his Testament - for example - the Servant of God emphasises all this.

In fact, in that precious document we find a succession of expressions that emphasise the 'believing' of a grateful Francis, capable of shrouding in silence even the faults he saw in his community.

We read:

"And the Lord gave me such faith in the churches" (FF 111).

"The Lord gave me [...] such great faith in priests" (FF 112).

Even more faith he had in the Word, the bearer of inner healing.

In fact, on the basis of this, many healings took place in the same community of brothers, afflicted, at times, by various forms of blindness, before which Francis expressed himself thus:

"And all the brothers, who are aware of the sin of him [...] keep the sin of their brother very secret, because it is not the healthy who need the doctor, but the sick" (FF 237).

This was the evangelical logic adopted by the community of Francis, who, invested by the Spirit, healed every brother who transgressed.

"The Saint hated pride, the origin of all evil, and disobedience its worst daughter.

He welcomed, however, those who humbly repented.

Once a monk, who had transgressed the commands of obedience, was presented to him so that he might correct him with the magisterial chastisement.

But the man of God noticed from clear signs that this friar was sincerely repentant and therefore felt inclined to be lenient with him, for the sake of his humility.

However, lest the ease of forgiveness be an incentive for others to fail, he commanded that the friar's hood be removed and thrown into the flames, so that all might observe how much and what vengeance transgression against obedience demands.

And after the hood had remained a good while in the fire, he ordered it to be removed from the flames and given back to the humble and repentant friar.

Marvel: the hood had no sign of burning!

So it came to pass that by this miracle alone God exalted the power of the Saint and the humility of the repentant friar" (FF 1116).

Friday 1st wk. in Advent (Mt 9,27-31)

Trust in the Lord is a house on the Rock.

Jesus calls us to concretely do his will, to be like a dwelling founded on his Rock, resisting rain and wind.

Brother Francis loved doing God's will deeply, so much so that it was his true consolation.

He was happy when he saw even among his brothers full adherence to the divine will, or at least repentance, where some act was a little reluctant.

The Sources, clear informants of authentic experience, document this and offer material for careful reflection.

"And they, receiving with great joy and gladness the precept of holy obedience, prostrated themselves before the blessed father, who, embracing them with tenderness and devotion, said to each one:

"Put your trust in the Lord and He will take care of you".

This phrase he repeated every time he sent some brothers to perform obedience" (FF 367).

And he always recommended to his brothers:

"Keep his precepts in the depths of your heart and fulfil his counsels perfectly" (FF 216 - Letter to the whole Order).

The Poor Man of Assisi, even in the face of a great accumulation of evils and trials, attested his incomparable adherence to the divine will, like another Job.

We read with emotion:

"But no matter how agonising his sorrows were, he did not call them sufferings, but sisters.

[...] And though exhausted by long and severe infirmity, he threw himself on the ground, beating his bones weakened in the crude fall.

Then he kissed the earth, saying:

"I thank thee, Lord God, for all these pains of mine, and I beseech thee, O my Lord, to give me a hundred times more, if it pleases thee so.

I will be most content, if Thou dost afflict me and spare me no sorrow, for to fulfil Thy will is for me exceeding consolation'" (FF 1239).

And when the time came for his departure:

"Lying on the earth, after having laid down his sackcloth, he lifted his face to heaven, according to his habit, totally intent on that heavenly glory, while with his left hand he covered the wound on his right side, that it might not be seen.

And he said to the brothers: "I have done my part; may Christ teach you yours" (FF 1239).

He also said: "AS MUCH AS A MAN KNOWS, AS MUCH AS HE DOES; AND AS MUCH AS A RELIGIOUS MAN IS A GOOD PREDICATOR, AS MUCH AS HE HIMSELF ACTS.

"Not everyone who says to me, "Lord, Lord!" will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father who [is] in heaven" (Mt 7:21).

Thursday 1st wk. Advent (Mt 7,21.24-27)

Jesus had told His disciples that, bound to Him like the branch to the vine, they would do greater things than those hitherto wrought by His Person.

Francis is one of those disciples through whom God was able to perform wonders.

Indeed, invested by the Spirit, we read in the Sources thus:

"A citizen of Fano named Buonuomo was a paralytic and leper. Taken by his parents to the church of Blessed Francis, he was cured of both diseases.

But a young man from San Severino, named Atto, who had his body all covered with leprosy, was also cured by the merits of the Saint, after having made a vow and visited his tomb" (FF 1312).

The crowd gathered around was healed.

Multiple healings took place through the work of his Servant.

But all this had a secret: Francis' unspeakable faith in the efficacy of the Word that transforms bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ. 

Francis rested on such certainties.

The Sources offer us splendid passages where all the beauty of the Poverello's heartfelt love for the Eucharist appears: Bread of Life to be distributed to men.

"Behold, every day he humbles himself, as when from the royal seat he descended into the womb of the Virgin; every day he himself comes to us in humble appearance; every day he descends from the bosom of the Father onto the altar in the hands of the priest. And as to the holy apostles he showed himself in the true flesh, so also now he shows himself to us in the consecrated bread" (FF 144 - Admonitions).

And again:

"We know that there can be no body if it is not first sanctified by the word.

For nothing do we bodily possess and see in this world of the Most High Himself except the body and blood, the names and words by which we were created and redeemed 'from death to life'" (FF 207 - Letter to all clerics).

Yes, Bread of Life that feeds to satiety those who believe in Him who gave Himself entirely to us.

"I have compassion on the crowd, for [it is] three days that they remain with me and have nothing to eat, and I will not dismiss them fasting lest they fail in life" (Mt 15:32)

Wednesday 1st wk. Advent (Mt 15:29-37)

"[...] He rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said, 'I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and the learned and revealed them to babes'" (Lk 10:21).

Jesus is the only one who can truly call the Lord of heaven and earth Father, but into this familiarity he introduces everyone.

Clare, seedling of the blessed Father Francis, with her special character of simplicity and littleness had achieved, by Grace, such a great familiarity with the Lord that she moved in total harmony with Him.

Consulting the Sources, in the Legend we read of the degree of intimate union of the Saint with the divine Bridegroom.

"How much strength and support she received in the furnace of ardent prayer, how sweet the divine goodness was to her in that fruition, is testified to by proven evidence.

For when she returned in the joy of holy prayer, she brought back from the fire of the Lord's altar burning words, such as inflamed the hearts of the sisters.

They noted with admiration that a certain sweetness radiated from her face and that her face seemed brighter than usual" (FF 3199).

In a letter to Ermentrude of Bruges* he recommends:

"Always be attentive and vigilant in prayer. Bring to its consummation the good you have begun, and fulfil the mystery you have embraced in holy poverty and sincere humility' (FF 2916).

Such was Clare, a simple and small creature, capable of rejoicing in every gift received, in every tiny reality that spoke to her of the Eternal.

"She welcomed with great joy the fragments of alms, the pieces of bread that the beggars brought back and, almost sad for the whole loaves, she was happy instead for those little pieces" (FF 3188).

A woman conformed to Christ in everything, she considered herself a nothing before God.

In her Testament she exhorted meekness and humility of heart, as a loving Mother:

"I still pray to her who will be in the government of the sisters, that she may endeavour to preside over the others more by virtue and holiness of life than by dignity, so that, animated by her example, the sisters may lend obedience to her, not so much because of the office she occupies, but out of love.

Let her also be provident and discreet towards her sisters, like a good mother towards her daughters [...].

Let her still be so affable and accessible to all that the sisters can confidently manifest their needs to her and have recourse to her at all times with confidence [...]" (FF 2848).

Meekness and humility: the stature of little ones, to whom the Mysteries of the Kingdom are revealed, finding consolation in loving with the sentiments of Christ.

*Ermentrude of Bruges: to her we owe the spread of the Order of the Poor Clares in Flanders.

Tuesday 1st wk. Advent (Lk 10,21-24)

Jesus draws attention to the operative power of the Word of God, even at a distance, where authentic Faith palpitates.

In this sense, an episode narrated by the Sources is symptomatic.

In conversation with Cardinal Ugolino (the future pope), faced with the latter's reproach as to why he had sent his friars to foreign lands and so far away, Francis, a man of profound faith in the Word of God, responds with a great outburst of spirit:

"Do not think, sir, that the Lord has sent the brothers only for the good of these regions.

I tell you in truth that God has chosen and sent the brothers for the spiritual benefit and salvation of the souls of men throughout the world; they will be received not only in the lands of Christians, but also in those of the infidels.

Provided they observe what they have promised the Lord. God will give them what they need in the lands of the infidels as in Christian lands" (FF 1638).

Here Francis manifested a solid and universal faith in the Word that works always and everywhere where it finds open doors and sincere reliance.

Clare of Assisi too, who grew up in the shadow of Saint Francis, a woman of clear and strong ideas, revealed a granitic faith in the Word of God whose saving and transforming power she sensed, so much so that she refused material support from the begging friars if Pope Gregory then decided to prohibit the friars from going to the Monasteries without prior authorisation.

Regretting the scarcity of the bread of the Word, she groaned and said:

"Take them all away from us now, the friars, after you have taken away those who gave us the nourishment of life!

As the Bride of the Canticle, Clare knew by direct knowledge what benefits her soul and those of her sisters had received for the healing of soul and body.

She, a woman enclosed in the secret of the Word, certain of its boundless efficacy, knew the transformation that had taken place at St Damian's through the power of the Word - which does not return to God before it has effectively worked what it desires.

"Truly I tell you, with no one in Israel have I found such faith!" (Mt 8:10).

Monday 1st wk. Advent (Mt 8:5-11)

As mons. Tonino Bello said: 'to wait is the infinitive of the verb to love'.

In Francis and Clare we see all the signs of this Waiting-Event.

They had understood that the Lord is coming, and must be sighed for with zeal not only at certain liturgical times, almost as if to make up for the carelessness of previous times, but that the journey of faith is a parable of waiting for the Coming One, for the Kingdom that approaches and knocks at the door.

In the light of all this, for the two saints Advent was every morning, every day, every moment, and for this reason they had the 'ears of the heart' always alert not to miss the appointment.

Clare herself had become a lamp that emanates light for the coming Light.

We read in the Sources, as she writes to her spiritual daughter, Agnes of Bohemia:

"Then you too will experience what is reserved for his friends alone, and you will taste the secret sweetness that God himself has reserved from the beginning for those who love him.

Without allowing even a glance at the seductions, which in this deceitful and restless world tend to lace the blind who cling to your heart, with all your being love Him who for love of you has given Himself entirely" (FF 2889).

To love: infinitive of the verb to wait!

And again, Chiara:

"In the same way, then, that the glorious Virgin of virgins bore Christ materially in her womb, you too. following his traces, especially of his humility and poverty, can always, without any doubt, bear him spiritually in your chaste and virginal body" (FF 2893).

Expectation and Hope of an Event that passes through the existence of those who watch and are not distracted by the importance of the Encounter.

All this made her, by Grace, a vivid and powerful Light that opens the way to the Advent of the Great King. 

In the papal document "Clara Claris praeclara" we read:

"It could not happen that such a vivid, such a shining lamp should remain hidden without diffusing light and giving forth clear light in the house of the Lord" (FF 3285).

The Expectation of the Bridegroom Who Is Coming was so substantial in Clare as to leave no room for lukewarmness of any kind.

She herself had become a Lamp that waits and shines.

Her life had been transformed into an Advent in praise of the Lord.

1st Advent Sunday (year C) (Lk 21:25-28.34-36)

Jesus passes by and invites people to follow him promptly in his path as an envoy of the Father.

He calls not to catch more "fish", but to save men to be led back to God.

Francis, after his conversion, full of zeal for Christ, received the first brothers as a gift.

In the Sources, in his Testament, emphasising God's free initiative, we read:

"And after the Lord gave me brothers, no one showed me what I should do, but the Most High Himself revealed to me that I should live according to the form of the holy Gospel" (FF 116).

"Shortly afterwards, the same Spirit called five other men and the number of brothers rose to six.

Among them the third place fell to the holy father Aegidius, a man truly full of God and worthy of being solemnly remembered.

In fact, he later became very famous for his sublime virtues, as the Lord's servant had foretold of him, and, although illiterate and simple, he rose to the highest heights of contemplation.

For long periods of time Aegidius devoted himself unceasingly to mystical ascensions and was raptured into God, with such frequent ecstasies that, although he was among men, he seemed to lead a life more angelic than human" (FF 1055).

And Francis, on his way with Egidius to the March of Ancona, spoke to Brother Egidius thus:

"Our religious movement will be like the fisherman who casts his nets into the water and catches a multitude of fish; then, letting the small ones fall into the water, he piles up the big ones in baskets".

She prophesied with this simile the expansion of her Order" (FF 1436).

Clare herself, sister among sisters, raising prayers to the Great Elector, in her Testament points out:

"In fact, the Lord himself has placed us as a model, an example and mirror not only for other men, but also for our sisters, those whom the Lord himself has called to follow our vocation, so that they too may shine as a mirror and example for all those who live in the world" (FF 2829).

Not even the walls of the cloister had the power to remove Clare from her spiritual going "pilgrim and stranger in this world".

And this itinerancy in faith and poverty made her a silent but authentic drawer of souls to God.

"Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men" (Mt 4:19)

s. Andrew the Apostle (Mt 4:18-22)