Francis of Assisi

St. Francis of Assisi (Italian: San Francesco d'Assisi, born Giovanni di Pietro di Bernardone, but nicknamed Francesco ("the Frenchman") by his father, 1181/1182 – October 3, 1226) is an Italian Catholic friar and preacher.

He founds the men's Order of Friars Minor, the women’s Order of St. Clare, and the Third Order of Saint Francis for men and women not able to live the lives of itinerant preachers followed by the early members of the Order of Friars Minor or the monastic lives of the Poor Clares.

Though he is never ordained to the Catholic priesthood, Francis is one of the most venerated religious figures in history.

Francis' father is Pietro di Bernardone, a prosperous silk merchant, and the Donna Pica.

He lives the high-spirited life typical of a wealthy young man, even fighting as a soldier for Assisi.

While going off to war in 1204, Francis has a vision that directs him back to Assisi, where he loses his taste for his worldly life.

On a pilgrimage to Rome, he joins the poor in begging at St. Peter's Basilica.

The experience moves him to live in poverty.

Francis returns home, begins preaching on the streets, and soon amasses a following.

His Order is authorized by Pope Innocent III in 1210.

He then founds the Order of Poor Clares, which becomes an enclosed religious order for women, as well as the Order of Brothers and Sisters of Penance (commonly called the Third Order).

In 1219, he goes to Egypt in an attempt to convert the Sultan to put an end to the conflict of the Crusades.

By this point, the Franciscan Order has grown to such an extent that its primitive organizational structure is no longer sufficient.

He returns to Italy to organize the Order.

Once his community is authorized by the Pope, he withdraws increasingly from external affairs.

In 1223, Francis arranges for the first Christmas manger scene.

In 1224, he receives the stigmata,making him the first recorded person to bear the wounds of Christ's Passion.

He dies during the evening hours of October 3, 1226, while listening to a reading he had requested of Psalm 140.

On July 16, 1228, he is pronounced a saint by Pope Gregory IX.

He is known as the patron saint of animals, the environment, and is one of the two patron saints of Italy (with Catherine of Siena).

It is customary for Catholic and Anglican churches to hold ceremonies blessing animals on his feast day of October 4.

He is also known for his love of the Eucharist, his sorrow during the Stations of the Cross, and for the creation of the Christmas creche or Nativity Scene.

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