22/05/2026
A Letter from St. Francis to St. Clare of Assisi
Dear Clare,
A new brother arrived today. You won’t believe this but he arrived on his horse in full armor, with spear, and sword at his side. He jumped off his horse and announced to me and the few brothers standing by, “I am here to report to Sir Francis! I am ready to do battle for my Lord and swear in the name of my family to give all of my being to serve and do my best.” Little brother Juniper jumped back in fear. The new brother didn’t know me, so he was looking for “Sir Francis” to report to. Slowly I introduced myself. I guess I was not exactly what he expected. To be honest, he was not what I expected either. We invited him to take off his armor and have a cup of tea around the fire with us. It was a hot day, so we could only imagine how extra hot he was in his war attire. Juniper offered some water to his horse as well. “Why do you think you need to do battle for our Lord?” I asked. “Because heathens are stealing the hearts and minds of innocent souls,” he quickly replied. “And what are you going to do with these heathens?” I asked. “Slay them, of course! Unless you tell me just to capture them. But what could you do with them after that? What good are they? You can’t change their ways.” I took a deep breath. “You know, until recently, there were many who thought I and my brothers were heathens. I’m glad you are not here to slay us!” The new brother quickly interrupted, “Of course not, your reputation as a soldier of Christ reached our village in the north country long ago.” I replied, “I am a soldier with no weapons but my heart. Are you ready to throw away all your weapons and just stand with us with your heart?” The new brother looked at me for a while and began taking off more of his armor as Juniper and another brother began looking for a robe for him. I began thinking of so many members of our Church. There are many Christians ready with their armor to fight the enemies of Christ. How many wars have we fought when our Lord specifically told us to turn our cheek and forgive seven times seventy anyone who has wronged us? What can we offer to all the soldiers who are ready to find wrong with anyone they disagree with? How do we explain that the real war is with the war in our hearts? Do we dare point to the ill, the children, and innocent who live in our midst needing a war of care and attention? Can we tell the soldiers in the Church to take off the armor covering their naked heart? My new brother without his horse, sword, and spear suddenly looked very different with a robe on instead. He looked vulnerable as if asking, “What am I going to do now?” I told him, “To get started there is one prayer I want you to make morning, noon, and night. Whenever you find your thoughts wandering away from the simple peace of living here with the brothers, I want you to offer everything in your heart. Yes, offer everything, all your concerns, your doubts, your wishes, whatever you find. Offer what it is in your heart. And then when you are quiet inside, go deep in your heart and receive our Lord.” The brother looked at me as if I was a wild bear or something totally foreign. He was trying to organize in his mind what I had just said. If I had told him to guard the southern entrance to the camp or to watch over the food supplies he would have quickly understood. I will never forget the look on his face as I asked him to offer everything in his heart. Finally, I said, “Don’t worry. You stay with simple brother Juniper and he will show you.” Clare, helping one brother to take off his armor and find his heart is one thing. But what can we offer to all those who want to fight instead of absorbing the love which is present? What can we offer to the armor of the rich and powerful? There is the armor of the intellectuals trying to protect the doctrine of their faith. Then there is the armor that we all carry to stop us from seeing the nakedness of our heart. Clare you and I know how vulnerable life is. How can we give, really give? Brother Death is never far away. How can we disarm enough to carry love as its only weapon? People say the Church is strong and powerful and this is the problem. Our Lord is naked and generous. On the Cross, the soldiers tease and tempt him. He looks at his mother and tells his followers to follow her. There is not a word to his tormentors. He offers everything to God and receives God in his heart. Can we follow in the same footsteps? Surely our concerns are not as great as our Lord on the Cross. Today this new brother is like a Roman soldier. Someday may he be on the way to being one of the disciples. I was only giving a suggestion, “Offer everything you carry in your heart. “I didn’t go into the rest of our normal greeting about living with us in simplicity and compassion. We are brothers looking out for the lepers living down the road and others who come to us with nothing but a wish for something to eat. Our Lord never said anything about building a church. He never said anything about armies defending the faith. He had no doctrine to judge others but simply said he who is without sin throw the first stone. He did not become a tax collector but just the opposite. He invited the tax collector to join him. Oh, Clare, what can I and our humble brothers do? Peace. I hear your heart repeating to me, peace. Yes, simple peace and more gentle peace. This is the war we are waging. Against all odds, we wage peace. We must pray more. Brother humility is waging the greatest battle of all! Clare, we are of one heart, now, and in eternity.
Thank you. Your brother, Francis
The Love Letters of St. Francis and St. Clare of Assisi
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