Franciscan
 |
The Order of Friars Minor and other Franciscan movements are disciples of Saint Francis of Assisi. |
The
Franciscans are several Roman Catholic order of men and women who follow the monastic
rule of St Francis. Among the most important Franciscans are its founders, Francis and
Clare of Assisi, as well as
Anthony of Padua,
Bonaventure,
John Duns Scotus,
Roger Bacon,
Alexander of Hales,
William of Ockham, and
Giovanni da Pian del Carpini.
The best known group, the
Order of Friars Minor (commonly called the
Franciscans) is a
mendicant religious
order of men tracing their origin to
Francis of Assisi and following the Rule of St. Francis. The official
Latin name is the
Ordo Fratrum Minorum (literally, "Order of Little Brothers"); Francis thus referred to his followers as "Fraticelli", meaning "Little Brothers". Franciscan brothers are informally called
friars. The order has historically been known as the
greyfriars. The modern organization of the Friars Minor now comprises three separate branches: the 'Friars Minor properly so called' (OFM); the '
Friars Minor Conventuals' (OFM Conv), and the '
Friars Minor Capuchins' (OFM Cap). The Friars Minor were constituted officially in 1517 and the Capuchins in 1619.
While the various Orders of St. Francis are all Catholic foundations dating to the thirteenth century, there are several historically unrelated communities dating back to 1895 or later which bear the name of St. Francis and his habit within the
Anglican Communion. These and all other Anglican religious communities are products of the
Oxford Movement.
A sermon which Francis heard in
1209 on
Mt 10:9 made such an impression on him that he decided to devote himself wholly to a life of apostolic poverty. Clad in a rough garment, barefoot, and, after the
Evangelical precept, without staff or scrip, he began to preach repentance.
He was soon joined by a prominent fellow townsman,
Bernardo di Quintavalle, who contributed all that he had to the work, and by other companions, who are said to have reached the number of eleven within a year. The brothers lived in the deserted lazar-house of Rivo Torto near
Assisi; but they spent much of their time traveling through the mountainous districts of
Umbria, always cheerful and full of songs, yet making a deep impression on their hearers by their earnest exhortations. Their life was extremely ascetic, though such practises were apparently not prescribed by the first rule which Francis gave them (probably as early as
1209), which seems to have been nothing more than a collection of Scriptural passages emphasizing the duty of poverty.
In spite of the obvious similarity between this principle and the fundamental ideas of the followers of
Peter Waldo, the brotherhood of Assisi succeeded in gaining the approval of
Pope Innocent III. What seems to have impressed first the Bishop of Assisi, Guido, then
Cardinal John of St. Paul and finally Innocent himself, was their utter loyalty to the
Church and her clergy. Innocent probably saw in them a possible answer to his desire for an orthodox preaching force to counter heresy. Many legends have clustered around the decisive audience of Francis with the Pope. The realistic account in
Matthew Paris, according to which the Pope originally sent the shabby saint off to keep swine, and only recognized his real worth by his ready obedience, has, in spite of its improbability, a certain historical interest, since it shows the natural antipathy of the older
Benedictine monasticism to the plebeian mendicant orders.
It was not, however, a life of idle mendicancy on which the brothers entered when they set out in
1210 with the papal approbation, but one of diligent labor. Their work embraced devoted service in the abodes of sickness and poverty, earnest preaching by both priests and
lay brothers, and missions in an ever expanding circle, which finally included heretics and
Muslims. They came together every year at
Pentecost in the little church of the
Porziuncola at Assisi, to report on their experiences and strengthen themselves for fresh efforts.
Francis had to suffer from the dissensions just alluded to and the transformation which they operated in the originally simple constitution of the brotherhood, making it a regular order under strict supervision from Rome. Exasperated by the demands of running a growing and fractious Order, Francis asked
Pope Honorius III for help in
1219. He was assigned Cardinal
Ugolino as protector of the order by the Pope. Francis resigned the day to day running of the Order into the hands of others but retained the power to shape the Order's legislation, writing a Rule in
1221 which he revised and had approved in
1223. At least after about
1223 the day to day running of the Order was in the hands of Brother
Elias of Cortona, an able friar who would be elected as leader of the friars a few years after Francis' death (1226) but who aroused much opposition because of his autocratic style of leadership. He planned and built the
Basilica of San Francesco d'Assisi in which
Saint Francis is buried, a building including the friary
Sacro Convento, which still today is the spiritual centre of the order.
In the external successes of the brothers, as they were reported at the yearly general chapters, there was much to encourage Francis.
Caesarius of Speyer, the first German
provincial, a zealous advocate of the founder's strict principle of poverty, began in
1221 from
Augsburg, with twenty-five companions, to win for the order the land watered by the
Rhine and the
Danube. In
1224 Agnellus of Pisa led a small group of friars to England. Beginning at
Canterbury, the ecclesiastical capital, they moved on to
London, the political capital and
Oxford, the intellectual capital. From these three bases the Franciscans swiftly expanded to embrace the principal towns of
England.
The first rule
The oldest "rule", referred to above, no longer preserved in its original form, seems to have contained not much more than the three Scriptural commands in
Mt 19:21;
Lk 9:3; and Mt 16:24. Thus it was more a
propositum vitae, a life project, than a rule as traditionally understood. The attempted reconstruction by Muller ascribes to it too extensive a content, though
Sabatier goes too far in the other direction when he limits it to these three sayings of Christ, which, according to
Tommaso da Celano, formed the kernel of the rule, surrounded by certain other more detailed prescriptions.
Sabatier's theory that these were gradual accretions, depending especially on decisions of the yearly general chapter, needs further evidence to confirm it although
Oktavian Schmucki has discerned definite stages in the development of the
1221 Rule. The oldest biographers say nothing of any intermediate stage between the primitive rule and that of
1221. The former, based upon the idea of poverty and self-denying labor in the cause of Christ, was intended for an association of a similar kind to the
Pauperes Catholici or "Poor Men of Lyon." It had little or nothing in common with the older monastic rules,
Benedictine or
Augustinian.
The rule of 1221
The rule of 1221 is more adapted to the needs of a monastic order intended to further the general ends of the Church and based upon the three usual vows, but laying special stress on that of poverty. It was drawn up by Francis himself, but under the influence of Cardinal Ugolino, as well as of the learned and practical Caesarius of Speyer and apparently of Brother Leo, who from 1220 on was the constant companion of the founder. The matter of the primitive rule was included in it, but scattered among a large part of detailed directions, besides many edifying thoughts and pious outpourings of the heart, probably the work of Francis. But there is much in the new rule which breathes a different spirit. The humble founder, though refusing the title of Superior of the order, and appearing simply as "Minister General," sometimes with the addition "the servant of the whole brotherhood," appears now at the head of a regular monastic hierarchy, consisting of Ministers Provincial over large regions (provinces), and
custodes (guardians) over smaller districts. Definite rules for the novitiate, the habit, hours of prayer, and the discipline of the houses were modeled after the older monastic tradition. In place of the informal yearly gatherings of the brotherhood, there are now regular chapters at fixed times. Of special interest are the provisions for
apostolic poverty and the
ascetic life in general, which show this rule to be essentially a development of the older discipline, with the obligation of poverty made more strict while that of other ascetic practises was mitigated, partly for the reason that the new
Fratres minores were expected to be diligently occupied in exhausting works
A modern translation of the rule can be found here: http://www.bspenance.org/The_Rule_of_1221.shtml
The later rule
The Later Rule, confirmed by Honorius III on
November 29,
1223, is a distillation of the 1221 Rule written in the more terse style of a canonist. The edifying tone, the citation of the Scriptural texts, have disappeared from it. Instead of the strong emphasis upon Christ's admonitions to his disciples with which the rule of 1221 had begun, the enumeration of the three traditional monastic vows is here substituted. The character of the order as a mendicant order, pledged to an ideal of the strictest poverty, is retained and the prescriptions on poverty strengthened as the support of the lay Franciscan penitents allowed the brothers to dispense with reliance on money in any form. The spirit of the earlier rules is intermingled with a number of other prescriptions which clearly show the official character of the new statutes, framed so that the order can serve the church in the interest of the papacy and in conformity with the other organs of the hierarchy. A cardinal appointed by the Pope as protector of the whole order was to support the elected Minister General in his governance of the order. The conditions for entrance are more definitely laid down; the Roman Breviary is expressly named as the obligatory basis of the daily devotions of priests belonging to it; and the preaching brothers have a more dependent position than before. In a word, the life here regulated is no longer the old free, wandering life of the first years, marked by apostolic poverty and loving, simple-hearted devotion to the Lord, but rather it is tamed to a more sedate quasi-monastic system, shorn of much of its original freedom but with a sustainability that the original ideals had failed to provide.
The "Testament"
Francis, as may be seen from more than one passage in the accounts of his last years, was unhappy about some of the changes that occurred as the order grew. As a demonstration against them, he left what is called his "Testament", whose occasional reading together with the rule was enjoined on the brethren. Its tone is rather plaintive than angry; it looks back in a spirit of regret to the primitive days of the first love. It urges unswerving obedience to the Pope and the heads of the order, but at the same time emphasizes the necessity of following its principles, especially the imitation of the poverty of Christ. The brethren are commanded to oppose the introduction of any future secularizing influences, and at the same time are forbidden to ask for any special privileges from the Pope. In spite of the direct command in the "Testament" against considering it as a new rule, the Observantist section of the Franciscans practically regarded it as even more binding than the formal rule, while the advocates of a less strict observance paid little attention to it, especially to its prohibition of asking for ecclesiastical privileges.
*
Rule of Saint Francis - Catholic Encyclopedia article
Dissentions during the life of Francis
The controversy about poverty which extends through the first three centuries of Franciscan history began in the lifetime of the founder. The ascetic brothers
Matthew of Narni and
Gregory of Naples, a nephew of Hugolino, the two vicars-general to whom Francis had entrusted the direction of the order during his absence, carried through at a chapter which they held certain stricter regulations in regard to fasting and the reception of alms, which really departed from the spirit of the original rule. It did not take Francis long, on his return, to suppress this insubordinate tendency; but he was less successful in regard to another of an opposite nature which soon came up. Elias of Cortona originated a movement for the increase of the worldly consideration of the order and the adaptation of its system to the plans of the hierarchy which conflicted with the original notions of the founder and helped to bring about the successive changes in the rule already described. Francis was not alone in opposition to this lax and secularizing tendency. On the contrary, the party which clung to his original views and after his death took his "Testament" for their guide, known as Observantists or
Zelanti, was at least equal in numbers and activity to the followers of Elias. The conflict between the two lasted many years, and the
Zelanti won several notable victories, in spite of the favor shown to their opponents by the papal administration -- until finally the reconciliation of the two points of view was seen to be impossible, and the order was actually split into halves.
Development to 1239. The laxer party
St.
Anthony of Padua has usually been regarded as the first leader of the Observantists; but recent investigations have shown that he was inclined to the opposite side. When Elias sent a delegation to Rome in 1230 to obtain papal sanction for his views, Anthony was one of the envoys; and there is little doubt that the bull
Quo elongati of
Pope Gregory IX, favoring this side, was due in large measure to his influence. The earliest leader of the strict party was rather Brother Leo, the witness of the ecstasies of Francis on Monte Alverno and the author of the
Speculum perfectionis, a strong polemic against the laxer party. Next to him came
John Parenti, the first successor of Francis in the headship of the order. In
1232, however, Elias succeeded him, and administered the affairs of the order in the interest of his own party for seven years. Much external progress was made during these years; many new houses were founded, especially in Italy, and in them, without regard to the founder's depreciation of secular learning, special attention was paid to education. The somewhat earlier settlements of Franciscan teachers at the universities (in
Oxford, for example, where
Alexander of Hales was teaching) continued to develop. Contributions toward the promotion of the order's work came in abundantly, and Elias authorized his subordinates to get around the provision of the rule against the receiving of money, usually by the appointment of agents outside the order, who had the custody of the funds. Elias pursued with great severity the principal leaders of the opposition, and even Bernardo di Quintavalle, the founder's first disciple, was obliged to conceal himself for years in the forest of Monte Sefro. It must be noted that
St. Clare of Assisi, whom St. Francis saw as a co-founder of his movement, consistently backed Elias as faithfully reflecting the mind of their founder.
To 1274. Bonaventure
At last, however, the reaction came. At the general chapter of 1239, held in Rome under the personal presidency of
Gregory IX, Elias was deposed in favor of
Albert of Pisa, the former provincial of England, a moderate Observantist. None the less, Elias' attitude remained widely prevalent in the order. The next two Ministers General
Haymo of Faversham (1240-44) and
Crescentius of Jesi (1244-47), governed to a great extent in this sense, and had the new
Pope Innocent IV on their side. In a bull of November 14, 1245, this pope even sanctioned an extension of the system of financial agents, and declared the funds in their custody the property of the Church, to be held at the disposal of the Cardinal Protector and not to be alienated without his permission. The Observantist party took a strong stand in opposition to this ruling, and carried on so successful an agitation against the lax General that in 1247, at a chapter held in Lyon, Francehe was replaced by the strict Observantist
John of Parma (1247-57). Elias, who had been excommunicated and taken under the protection of Frederick II, was now forced to give up all hope of recovering his power in the order. He died in
1253, after succeeding by recantation in obtaining the removal of his censures. Under John of Parma, who enjoyed the favor of Innocent IV. and
Pope Alexander IV, the influence of the order was notably increased, especially by the provisions of the latter pope in regard to the academic activity of the brothers. He not only sanctioned the theological institutes in Franciscan houses, but did all he could to facilitate the entrance of their teachers to the universities, especially Paris, the headquarters of theological study. It was due to the action of his representatives, who were obliged to threaten the university authorities with excommunication, that the degree of doctor of theology was conceded to the Dominican
Thomas Aquinas and the Franciscan
Bonaventure (1257), who had previously been able to lecture only as licentiates. In the same year Bonaventure succeeded John of Parma. In spite of his adherence to Observantist principles, Bonaventure took a decided stand against the teaching of Joachim of Fiore, which John of Parma had been inclined to favor. Not a few of the "Spiritual" party, as they were now coming to be called, were condemned to lifelong imprisonment; and, for the purpose of discouraging their extreme tendency, a new life of the founder was compiled by Bonaventure, at the request of the general chapter held at Narbonne, France, in 1260, and authorized by that of Pisa three years later as the only approved biography. Apart from the severe measures taken against Joachim's followers, Bonaventure seems to have ruled (1257-74) in a moderate spirit, which is represented also by various works produced by the order in his time -- especially by the
Expositio regulae written by David of Augsburg (q.v.) soon after 1260.
To 1300. Continued dissensions
The successor of Bonaventura, Jerome of Ascoli (1274-79), the future
Pope Nicholas IV, and his successor,
Bonagratia (1279-85), also followed a middle course. Severe measures were taken against certain extreme Spirituals who, on the strength of the rumor that
Pope Gregory X was intending at the
Council of Lyon (1274-75) to force the mendicant orders to tolerate the possession of property, threatened both pope and council with the renunciation of allegiance. Attempts were made, however, to satisfy the reasonable demands of the Spiritual party, as in the bull
Exiit qui seminiat of
Pope Nicholas III (
1279), which pronounced the principle of complete poverty meritorious and holy, but interpreted it in the way of a somewhat sophistical distinction between possession and usufruct. The bull was received respectfully by Bonagratia and the next two generals,
Arlotto of Prato (1285-87) and
Matthew of Aqua Sparta (1287-89); but the Spiritual party under the leadership of the fanatical apocalyptic
Pierre Jean Olivi regarded its provisions for the dependence of the friars upon the Pope and the division between brothers occupied in manual labor and those employed on spiritual missions as a corruption of the fundamental principles of the order. They were not won over by the conciliatory attitude of the next general,
Raymond Gaufredi (1289-96), and of the Franciscan
Pope Nicholas IV (1288-92). The attempt made by the next pope,
Pope Celestine V, an old friend of the order, to end the strife by uniting the Observantist party with his own order of hermits (see
Celestines) was scarcely more successful. Only a part of the Spirituals joined the new order, and the secession scarcely lasted beyond the reign of the hermit-pope.
Pope Boniface VIII annulled Celestine's bull of foundation with his other acts, deposed the general Raymond Gaufredi, and appointed a man of laxer tendency, John de Murro, in his place. The Benedictine section of the Celestines was separated from the Franciscan section, and the latter was formally suppressed by Boniface in
1302. The leader of the Observantists, Olivi, who spent his last years in the Franciscan house at Narbonne and died there in 1298, had pronounced against the extremer "Spiritual" attitude, and given an exposition of the theory of poverty which was approved by the more moderate Observantists, and for a long time constituted their principle.
Temporary success of the stricter party. Persecution
Under
Pope Clement V (1305-14) this party succeeded in exercising some influence on papal decisions. In
1309 Clement had a commission sit at
Avignon for the purpose of reconciling the conflicting parties.
Ubertino of Casale, the leader, after Olivi's death, of the stricter party, who was a member of the commission, induced the
Council of Vienne to arrive at a decision in the main favoring his views, and the papal constitution
Exivi de paradiso (1313) was on the whole conceived in the same sense. Clement's successor,
Pope John XXII (1316-34), favored the laxer or conventual party. By the bull
Quorundam exigit he modified several provisions of the constitution
Exivi, and required the formal submission of the Spirituals. Some of them, encouraged by the strongly Observantist general
Michael of Cesena, ventured to dispute the Pope's right so to deal with the provisions of his predecessor. Sixty-four of them were summoned to Avignon, and the most obstinate delivered over to the Inquisition, four of them being burned (
1318). Shortly before this all the separate houses of the Observantists had been suppressed.
Renewed controversy on the question of poverty
A few years later a new controversy, this time theoretical, broke out on the question of
poverty. The Spirituals contended eagerly for the view that Christ and his apostles had possessed absolutely nothing, either separately or jointly. This proposition had been declared heretical in a trial before an inquisitor. A protest was now made against this decision by the chapter held at
Perugia in
1322, as well as by such influential members of the order as
William of Ockham (also spelled 'Occam'), the English provincial, and Bonagratia of Bergamo. John XXII ranged himself decidedly with the
Dominicans, who combated the theory, and by the papal bull
Cum inter nonnullos of
1322 declared the Franciscan doctrine of the poverty of Christ erroneous and heretical. Appealing from this decision, Bonagratia, Occam, and Michael of Cesena were imprisoned at Avignon for four years, until they escaped by the help of the Emperor Louis the Bavarian. Supported by him, they carried on a literary war against the papal and Dominican denial of the absolute poverty of Christ and his apostles. The Pope deposed Cessna and Occam from their offices in the order, and excommunicated them with the Franciscan Anti-Pope Peter of Corvara (Nicholas V.) and all their adherents. Only a small part of the order, however, joined them, and at a general chapter held in
Paris (
1329) the majority of all the houses declared their submission to the Pope. The same step was taken in the following year by the antipope, later by the ex-general Cesena, and finally, just before his death, by Occam.
Separate congregations
Out of all these dissensions in the fourteenth century sprang a number of separate congregations, almost of sects. To say nothing of the heretical parties of the
Beghards and
Fraticelli, some which developed within the order on both hermit and cenobitic principles may here be mentioned:
or Clarenini, an association of hermits established on the river Clareno in the march of
Ancona by
Angelo da Clareno after the suppression of the Franciscan Celestines by Boniface VIII. It maintained the principles of Olivi, and, outside of Umbria, spread also in the kingdom of
Naples, where Angelo died in
1337. Like several other smaller congregations, it was obliged in
1568 under
Pope Pius V to unite with the general body of Observantists.
The Minorites of Narbonne
As a separate congregation, this originated through the union of a number of houses which followed Olivi after 1308. It was limited to southwestern France and, its members being accused of the heresy of the Beghards, was suppressed by the Inquisition during the controversies under John XXII.
The reform of Johannes de Vallibus
This was founded in the hermitage of St. Bartholomew at Brugliano near Foligno in 1334. The congregation was suppressed by the Franciscan general chapter in 1354; reestablished in 1368 by Paolo de' Trinci of Foligno; confirmed by Gregory XI. in 1373, and spread rapidly from Central Italy to France, Spain, Hungary and elsewhere. Most of the Observantist houses joined this congregation by degrees, so that it became known simply as the "brothers of the regular Observance." It acquired the favor of the popes by its energetic opposition to the heretical
Fraticelli, and was expressly recognized by the
Council of Constance (
1415). It was allowed to have a special vicar-general of its own and legislate for its members without reference to the conventual part of the order. Through the work of such men as
Bernardin of Siena,
Giovanni da Capistrano, and Dietrich Coelde (b. 1435? at Munster; was a member of the
Brethren of the Common Life, died
December 11,
1515), it gained great prominence during the fifteenth century. By the end of the Middle Ages, the Observantists, with 1,400 houses, comprised nearly half of the entire order. Their influence brought about attempts at reform even among the Conventuals, including the Observantists of the Common Life, founded by Boniface de Ceva and spreading principally in France and Germany; the reformed congregation founded in 1426 by the Spaniard Philip de Berbegal and distinguished by the special importance they attached to the little hood (
cappuciola); the Neutri, a group of reformers originating about 1463 in Italy, who tried to take a middle ground between the Conventuals and Observantists, but refused to obey the heads of either, until they were compelled by the Pope to affiliate with the regular Observantists, or with those of the Common Life; the Caperolani, a congregation founded about 1470 in North Italy by Peter Caperolo, but dissolved again on the death of its founder in 1480; the Amadeists, founded by the noble Portuguese Amadeo, who entered the Franciscan order at Assisi in 1452, gathered around him a number of adherents to his fairly strict principles (numbering finally twenty-six houses) and, died in the odor of sanctity in 1482.
Unsuccessful attempts to unite the order
Projects for a union between the two main branches of the order were put forth not only by the Council of Constance but by several popes, without any positive result. By direction of Martin V., John of Capistrano drew up statutes which were to serve as a basis for reunion, and they were actually accepted by a general chapter at Assisi in 1430; but the majority of the Conventual houses refused to agree to them, and they remained without effect. At Capistrano's request Eugenius IV put forth a bull (
Ut sacra minorum, 1446) looking to the same result, but again nothing was accomplished. Equally unsuccessful were the attempts of the Franciscan Pope Sixtus IV, who bestowed a vast number of privileges on both the original mendicant orders, but by this very fact lost the favor of the Observantists and failed in his plans for reunion. Julius II succeeded in doing away with some of the smaller branches, but left the division of the two great parties untouched. This division was finally legalized by Leo X, after a general chapter held in Rome, in connection with the reform-movement of the Fifth Lateran Council, had once more declared the impossibility of reunion. The less strict principles of the Conventuals, permitting the posesssion of real estate and the enjoyment of fixed revenues, were recognized as tolerable, while the Observantists, in contrast to this
usus moderatus, were held strictly to their own
usus arctus or
pauper. The latter, as adhering more closely to the rule of the founder, were allowed to claim a certain superiority over the former. The Observantist general (elected now for six years, not for life) was to have the title of "Minister-General of the Whole Order of St. Francis" and the right to confirm the choice of a head for the Conventuals, who was known as "Master-General of the Friars Minor Conventual" -- although this privilege never became practically operative.
Spread of the order in modern times
See:
Franciscan Order in modern timesDistinguished names
Although surpassed in the number of prominent and influential theological authors by the
Jesuits and
Dominicans, the order still boasts a number of distinguished names. The first century of its existence produced the three great scholastics
Alexander of Hales,
Bonaventure, and
Duns Scotus, the "Admirable Doctor"
Roger Bacon, and the well-known mystic authors and popular preachers
David of Augsburg and
Berthold of Regensburg.
Among Franciscan celebrities of the later Middle Ages may be mentioned
Nicholas of Lyra, the Biblical commentator,
Bernardin of Sienna,
John of Capistrano,
Oliver Maillard and
Michel Menot as preachers, and the famous canonists
Astesanus de Ast,
Alvarus Pelagius, and
William of Ockham. Later again came sound historical investigators such as
Luke Wadding and
Antoine Pagi.
In the field of Christian art, during the later Middle Ages, the Franciscan movement exercised considerable influence, especially in Italy. Several great painters of the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, especially
Cimabue and
Giotto, who, though they were not friars, were spiritual sons of Francis in the wider sense, and the plastic masterpieces of the latter, as well as the architectural conceptions of both himself and his school, show the influence of Franciscan ideals. The Italian Gothic style, whose earliest important monument is the great convent church at
Assisi (built 1228-53), was cultivated as a rule principally by members of the order or men under their influence.
The early spiritual poetry of Italy was inspired by Francis himself, who was followed by Thomas of Celano, Bonaventure, and
Jacopone da Todi. Through a tradition which held him to have been a member of the Franciscan Third Order, even
Dante may be included within this artistic tradition (cf. especially
Paradiso, xi. 50).
For the history of the female branch of the order, founded in the lifetime of Francis, see
Poor Clares.
Origin and rule
According to the traditions of the Order, a greedy merchant by the name of Luchesius had his life changed by meeting St. Francis about 1213. He and his wife Buonadonna were moved to dedicate their lives to prayer and serving the poor. While many couples of that era who experienced a religious conversion chose to separate and enter monasteries, this couple felt called to live out this new way of life together. Francis was moved to write a Rule for them which would allow them to do so. Thus began the Brothers and Sisters of Penance in the Franciscan movement, which came to be called the Franciscan Third Order.
St. Francis had already been concerned about the expansion of his order at the expense of families. He refused entrance to his order by married men (and the women from admission to the Poor Clares) who sought to follow the Franciscan way, because families should not suffer. He wrote a rule that was simple and clear, so that the lay person could live within the bonds of the Sacrament of Marriage and love and serve the Lord by serving their fellow human beings. This rule, with few changes, is still the framework of the present Rule of the Secular Franciscan Order. (source: "Rule of the Secular Franciscan Order").
The earliest Rule was found in the Guarnacci Library in Volterra, Italy. This primitive document is known as the Earlier Exhortation, or the Earlier Version, of "The Letter to All the Faithful" and was likely composed before 1215. An expanded version, the Later Exhortation, was completed by about 1220. Both have been established as having been composed by St. Francis. Both documents call the lay faithful to a life of penance, i.e., of turning away from sin and toward God. In the Earlier Exhortation, Francis describes the elements of the conversion process: 1) love God 2) love one's neighbor 3) turn away from our sinful tendencies 4)"receive the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ" and, as a result of the above, 5) producing worthy fruits of penance - a renewed life characterized by charity, forgiveness and compassion toward others. Francis speaks in ecstatic terms of those who embrace this way of life: "Oh, how happy and blessed are these men and women when they do these things and perservere in doing them since the Spirit of the Lord will rest upon them and He will make His home and dwelling among them. They are children of the heavenly Father whose works they do, and they are spouses, brothers and mothers of Our Lord Jesus Christ." (source:" 'De Illis Qui Faciunt Penitentiam': The Rule of the Secular Franciscan Order: Origins, Development, Interpretation," Robert M. Stewart, O.F.M.)
This way of life was quickly embraced by many couples and single men and women who did not feel called to the stark poverty of the friars and nuns, especially widows. Even canonical
hermits were able to follow this Rule and bring themselves into the orbit of the Franciscan vision. The Order came to be a force in the medieval legal system, since one of its tenets forbade the use of arms, and thus the male members of the order could not be drafted into the constant and frequent battles cities and regions waged against one another in that era.
Official websites of the three branches of First Order
*
Ordo Fratrum Minorum, official website
*
Ordo Fratrum Minorum Capuccinorum, official website
*
Ordo Fratrum Minorum Conventualium, official website
Official websites of Regular and Secular Third Order
*
Tertius Ordo Regularis, official website
*
Ordo Franciscanus Saecularis, official website
Other links
*
Franciscan Web Page - Listing of various Franciscan Organizations*
The National Fraternity of the Secular Franciscan Order - USA*
The Catholic Encyclopedia: The Franciscan Order*
The Catholic Encyclopedia: The Fraticelli*
Franciscans International: a non-governmental organisation at the United Nations - NY and Geneva*
Franciscan Web Page - International Ecumenical Franciscans*
Third Order Society of Saint Francis (TSSF)*
Confraternity of Penitents Roman Catholic Lay Confraternity living a modern Rule based on the Rule of 1221
Anglican Franciscan links
First Order (Society of Saint Francis, SSF)*
European Province*
Province of the Americas*
Australian Province*
New Zealand ProvinceFirst Order (Community of Saint Francis, CSF)*
European Province*
Province of the AmericasSecond Order (Community of Saint Clare, OSC)*
European ProvinceThird Order (TSSF)*
European Province*
Province of the Americas*
New Zealand ProvinceA History of the Franciscan Order: From Its Origins to the Year 1517 by John Moorman ISBN 0198264259
Medieval Monasticism: Forms of Religious Life in Western Europe in the Middle Ages (3rd Edition) by C.H. Lawrence, ISBN 0582404274
The Spiritual Franciscans: From Protest to Persecution in the Century After Saint Francis by David Burr. ISBN 0271021284
