Francis Unwavering Commitment to Helping the Needy

There are several examples that highlight Francis’s unwavering commitment to helping the needy and his deep humility and compassion. He once met a nobleman who had fallen into poverty and, moved by pity, gave him his own clothes. On other occasions, Francis gave his mantle to an elderly woman in Celano, to a poor man he met while returning from Siena, and to another man who had just lost his wife. 

Resources: The Remembrance of the Desire of a Soul by Thomas of Celano, Second Book, Chapter LIII - LIX (FA:ED II, p. 304 - 306) 

Bonaventure - The Major Legend of Saint Francis, Chapter 1:1-2 (FA:ED II, p. 531-532)

Saint Francis and Care for Creation

Saint Francis of Assisi expressed his care for creation not through abstract theories, but through a way of living that revealed his deep reverence for all that exists. His love for the natural world flowed from a profound awareness that everything comes from the same divine source.

Saint Bonaventure, one of Francis’s closest followers, tells us that when Francis reflected on the origin of all things, he was moved to call every creature—no matter how small—brother or sister. This was not sentimental language. It sprang from a genuine sense of kinship rooted in his love for God, the Creator of all.

Stories from Francis’s life make this conviction tangible. He once instructed a gardener to leave the edges of a garden untouched so that wildflowers could grow freely. Along the road, he would stop to lift small worms out of harm’s way so they would not be crushed. He preached to the birds, rescued “Brother Rabbit” from a snare, and treated even the most fragile forms of life with care and attention.

This same vision finds poetic expression in The Canticle of the Creatures. There, Francis extends the language of brotherhood and sisterhood beyond animals and plants to include the sun and the moon, fire and water, wind and earth. Each is addressed as a member of one great family, living under God’s loving providence.

For Francis, care for creation was not an optional devotion. It was a natural consequence of seeing the world as a gift and every creature as a relative. To love God, in his view, meant learning to love all that God has made.

Resources: 

The Writings of Saint Francis, “The Canticle of the Creatures” (FA:ED I, p. 113)

The Remembrance of the Desire of the Soul by Thomas of Celano, Chapter CXXIV (FA:ED II, p. 353 - 354)

Bonaventure - The Major Legend of Saint Francis, Chapter 8:6 (FA:ED II, p. 590)

Jubilee Year of St. Francis

News is spreading quickly around the world about the Jubilee Year of St. Francis, proclaimed by Pope Leo XIV, that began Jan.10, 2026, and continues to Jan. 10, 2027. The Holy Father is bringing the world’s attention to the Saint of Assisi to coincide with the 800th anniversary of his death. Click to read the decree.

The jubilee year is a time to reflect on the life and death of Francis, who was canonized a saint only two years after his passing. To help celebrate the jubilee, in the months ahead we will look at some of the favorite stories about St. Francis that are cherished by the members of the People of Peace OFS Fraternity.