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Clare
was born in Assisi in the late twelfth century. When she was
eighteen, she was so moved by a sermon given by St. Francis
that she abandoned her wealthy family and fled to him. Francis
stripped her of her finery and cut her hair. Her outraged father
sent thugs to drag her back, but she prevailed. She founded
the Poor Clares, an order of women with a doctrine similar to
the Franciscans, who were known for their strict austerities:
no meat, shoes or beds—but always a hair-shirt. Clare
was the last person to see Francis alive, washing his feet on
his deathbed. She called herself his "little plant.”
In 1958 Pope Pius XII, realizing the power of television, made
Clare its patron saint because of a vision she'd had in bed
one Christmas Eve: she witnessed Mass and the manger scene (which,
incidentally, was initially conceived by Francis as P. R. for
the church). Clare is also the patron of embroiderers; and she's
invoked against sore eyes. Her feast day is August 11. |
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| St.
Clare
Patron St. of
Television |
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