Franciscan

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 "Fratricelli", meaning "Little Brothers". Franciscan brothers are informally called friars. The order has historically been known as the greyfriars. Among the most important Franciscans are its founder, Francis, 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 beginning of the brotherhood

A sermon which Francis heard in 1209 on Matt. x. 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.

Related Topics:
1209 - Matt. - Evangelical

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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.

Related Topics:
Bernardo di Quintavalle - Assisi - Umbria - 1209

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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.

Related Topics:
Peter Waldo - Pope Innocent III - Cardinal - John of St. Paul - Church - Matthew Paris - Benedictine

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