October 4: Saint Francis of Assisi—Memorial

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October 4: Saint Francis of Assisi—Memorial

1182–1226 Patron Saint of animals, ecologists, families, lacemakers, merchants, needleworkers, peace, and zoos Invoked against dying alone and fire Canonized by Pope Gregory IX on July 16, 1228 Liturgical Color: White

Quote: Hear, my lords, my sons and my brothers, and with your ears receive my words. Incline the ear of your heart and obey the voice of the Son of God. Keep His commandments with all your heart and fulfill His counsels with a perfect mind. Praise Him for He is good and extol Him in your works, for therefore He has sent you through all the world that by word and deed you may bear witness to His voice, and you may make known to all that there is no other Almighty besides Him. Persevere under discipline and obedience and with a good and firm purpose fulfill what you have promised Him. The Lord God offers Himself to you as to His sons. ~Excerpt from a letter to his friars, by Saint Francis

Prayer: Saint Francis, you fell radically in love with God and with God’s people. You embraced poverty, prayer, sacrifice, and every form of suffering for the sake of Christ. You became a true knight in the army of the Kingdom. Please pray for me, that I will be able to detach from everything in this life that keeps me from the love and service of God, so that I can imitate the life that you lived. Saint Francis of Assisi, pray for me. Jesus, I trust in You.

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