St. Francis of Assisi & the Peace Prayer

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Feast day: October 4  ·  1181 – 1226  ·  Patron of animals, ecology, and Italy

He gave away his wealth to embrace “Lady Poverty,” preached to the birds, bore the wounds of Christ in his own body, and left the Church one of her most beloved prayers. St. Francis of Assisi — patron of animals and of ecology — remains, eight centuries later, perhaps the most universally loved of all the saints.

Who was St. Francis?

Born in Assisi in 1181 to a wealthy cloth-merchant, Francis spent a worldly youth dreaming of knighthood until a series of conversions turned him wholly to God. Before the bishop and his own father he stripped off his fine clothes and renounced his inheritance, choosing radical poverty. Others joined him, and from that small band grew the Franciscan order, one of the largest in the history of the Church.

Francis preached the Gospel with disarming simplicity, made peace where there was war, and loved all creation as the work of one Father — calling the sun his brother and the moon his sister in his Canticle of the Creatures. Two years before his death he received the stigmata, the wounds of the crucified Christ, on Mount La Verna. He died in 1226 and was canonized just two years later. He is also remembered for creating the first Nativity scene, at Greccio in 1223.

Patron saint of animals, ecology, and Italy

St. Francis is the patron of animals, ecology, and Italy, and his feast on October 4 is marked in parishes around the world by the blessing of animals — pets brought to church to be blessed in his honor. His love of creation made him the natural patron of those who care for the environment. He is also a patron of merchants and of peacemakers, and his order continues his work among the poor on every continent.

The Peace Prayer of St. Francis

Though it was first printed in 1912 and only later attributed to him, the Peace Prayer breathes the spirit of Francis and is among the most beloved of all Catholic prayers:

Lord, make me an instrument of Thy peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love.
Where there is injury, pardon;
Where there is doubt, faith.
Where there is despair, hope;
Where there is darkness, light;
and where there is sadness, joy.

O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive,
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.

Frequently asked

What is St. Francis of Assisi the patron saint of?

St. Francis is the patron of animals and of ecology, and a patron of Italy, merchants, and peacemakers. His feast is widely marked by the blessing of animals.

When is the feast day of St. Francis?

October 4. On or near that day many parishes hold a blessing of animals in his honor, bringing pets to church to be blessed.

Did St. Francis really write the Peace Prayer?

Probably not in its current form — the 'Make me an instrument of your peace' prayer was first printed in French in 1912, centuries after his death. But it so perfectly captures his spirit that it has become inseparable from his name.

What was the stigmata of St. Francis?

Two years before his death, while praying on Mount La Verna, Francis received the stigmata — the visible wounds of the crucified Christ in his hands, feet, and side. He is the first widely documented saint to have borne them.

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