Christian Mission and Poverty

Chapter 4: Holy Poverty

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Whereas Francis was heir to a wealthy merchant family, Clare was born of nobility, with the political knowledge it entailed. Whereas Francis had received the call to reform the church through the pursuit of poverty, Clare realized that the pursuit of poverty was the only way to resist the decadence and greed of her times. Recognizing how political and economic systems and structures often worked to devalue the inherent dignity of the poor, she formed a friendship with Agnes of Prague, the daughter of Hungarian royalty who was destined to marry Frederick II, king of Germany and eventual Holy Roman Emperor. Agnes had rejected her political marriage and had used her fortune to found a hospital and a monastery. She then requested that Clare send monastic sisters from the Franciscan order to help and Clare obliged. Clare and Agnes carried on a correspondence of which several letters have survived. We may be confused today by Clare’s praise of poverty as holy, but Clare understood that only by standing in solidarity with the poor and committing herself to chastity could she resist the principalities and powers that stood in opposition to the Gospel. Francis and Clare took Jesus’ command to the rich young ruler as a literal command to them. In so doing, they provided an alternative to the alignment of political power and church power. It was the good news of the Gospel for the poor that propelled them to obey Jesus in this way. As you read Clare’s first letter to Agnes, pay attention to how she understands Christian mission as God’s embrace of the poor.