Saint Clare of Montefalco: The 13th Century Italian Nun

Saint Clare of Montefalco was born about. 1268, and she died on August 18, 1308. She was an Augustinian nun and abbess. She was formerly a member of the Third Order of St. Francis. Saint Clare of Montefalco was canonized by Pope Leo XIII on December 8, 1881. Clare was born in Montefalco, in Umbria, probably in 1268. She was born into a wealthy family. Her father, Damiano, had built a hermitage within the town of Montefalco. Clare’s older sister Joan (Giovanna in Italian) and her friend Andreola lived as Franciscan tertiaries in that hermitage as part of the Secular Third Order of St. Francis. Are you familiar with the third order of St. Francis?

Saint Clare of Montefalco Biography

In 1274, when Clare was six years old, her local Bishop of Spolet permitted more sisters, and it was at this time that Saint Clare joined the Secular Third Order of St. Francis, and she moved into the hermitage and adopted the Franciscan habit. In 1278, the community had grown sufficiently large that they had to build a larger hermitage.

In 1290, Saint Clare, her sister Joan, and their companions sought to enter the monastic life in a more strict sense. Saint Clare made her vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience and became an Augustinian nun. Her sister Joan was elected as the first abbess, and their small monastery, which was built by their father. On November 22, 1291, Joan died, after which Clare was elected abbess. She was initially reluctant to accept her position, but did so after the intervention of the Bishop.

1294 was a decisive year for Saint Clare. During the celebration of the Epiphany, after making a general confession in front of all her fellow nuns, she fell into ecstasy and remained in that state for several weeks. Since she was unable even to eat during this period, the other nuns sustained Clare’s life by feeding her sugar water. During this time, Clare reported having a vision in which she saw herself being judged in front of God.

Saint Clare also reported having a vision of Jesus dressed as a poor traveller. She described his countenance as being overwhelmed by the weight of the cross and his body as showing signs of fatigue. During the vision, Clare knelt in front of him, and whilst trying to stop him, she asked, “My Lord, where art Thou going?” Jesus answered her: “I have looked all over the world for a strong place where to plant this Cross firmly, and I have not found any.”

Saint Clare took her belief in this vision seriously. She spent the remainder of her life in pain and suffering, yet she continued to joyfully serve as abbess, teacher, mother, and spiritual directress of her nuns. While Clare’s reputation for holiness and wisdom attracted visitors to the Monastery of the Holy Cross, she proved to be worldly-wise and canny in the way she governed her monastery.

In 1303, Clare was able to build a church in Montefalco. The first stone was blessed by the Bishop on June 24, and that day the church was dedicated to the Holy Cross. The remnant portion of that small church comprises the frescoed Chapel of Santa Croce, which still exists today in Montefalco.

Saint Clare had served as abbess for sixteen years. By August 1308, she had become so ill that she was bedridden. On August 15, she asked to receive Extreme Unction, otherwise known as the anointing of the sick, and on the next day, she sent for her brother to come to the monastery. Clare made her last confession on August 17 and died at about 40 years of age in the convent on August 18.

Saint Clare of Montefalco Contraversies

Immediately following Saint Clare’s death, her heart was inspected, and symbols of Christ’s passion, a crucifix and a scourge, were found there. Other historians report that an “autopsy” was conducted and a small crucifix was found in her heart, while three gallstones found in her gallbladder were taken to symbolise the Holy Trinity.

A commission consisting of physicians, jurists, and theologians was assembled to conduct an investigation, which subsequently “ruled out the possibility of fabrication or artifice.” The vicar, who visited Montefalco as an inquisitor eager to punish those responsible for fraud, came to be convinced of the signs’ authenticity after personally verifying that these were not the result of trickery.

However, doubts about the veracity of the findings persisted even at Saint Clare’s canonization proceedings, which had many conflicts. During the proceedings, a Franciscan Tommaso Boni from Foligno and sometime chaplain to Clare’s community, voiced suspicions that the “symbols in her heart were planted by a nun from Foligno;” furthermore, John Pulicinus, who had been chaplain at the time of Clare’s death, had opposed veneration of the symbols found in her heart.

Conclusion

The autopsy of Saint Clare is interesting. She was canonized and became a Saint, but there was a lot of furor at the time. Many people thought the items had been planted in her body by her sister nuns. However, such a thing would require cutting the body open, and there was no evidence of that.