The Franciscans

The original Franciscan rule forbade all property ownership, requiring friars to beg for food while preaching, a radical austerity meant to directly emulate the life of Jesus Christ. This was a startling proposition in thirteenth-century Italy, where the Church had grown wealthy and powerful. A former soldier's son from the town of Assisi drove this movement. He insisted that true Christian devotion required absolute poverty and direct service to the poorest people in society.

Francis of Assisi began preaching around 1207 after abandoning a life of luxury. He gathered followers who shared his commitment to owning nothing and living entirely on charity. In 1209, Francis traveled to Rome to seek formal recognition from Pope Innocent III. The pope approved the new religious order, giving Francis and his friars official sanction to live and preach as beggars. The movement expanded rapidly. Around 1212, a young noblewoman named Clare of Assisi joined Francis's movement under his guidance. She established a cloistered community of nuns that became known as the Poor Clares. The Franciscan structure eventually grew into three distinct branches. The Order of Friars Minor became the largest male order. The Poor Clares served as the enclosed female order. A Third Order of Saint Francis opened membership to both men and women who wanted to live Franciscan ideals while remaining in the secular world.

Franciscan influence outlasted the medieval era and crossed denominational boundaries. Since the late nineteenth century, several Protestant Franciscan orders have been established, primarily in Lutheran and Anglican traditions. Some modern Franciscan communities are entirely ecumenical, drawing members from multiple Christian denominations into shared life and service.