Letter to the Entire Order

With Franciscan Clarean Commentary

Greeting

To all the friars, Brother Francis, your little servant in the Lord, sends greeting with reverence of great love and a holy kiss.

Clarean Commentary:
Francis greets the whole community not as a superior but as a “little servant.” He adds “a holy kiss” — intimacy, tenderness, kinship. For Clareans today, this sets the tone: we are family, not an institution. Our order is bound by love, not hierarchy.

On Reverence for the Eucharist

Let us all, brothers, consider the Good Shepherd who bore the suffering of the cross to save His sheep. The sheep of the Lord followed Him in tribulation and persecution, in shame and hunger, in weakness and temptation, and in all other ways, and they have received everlasting life from the Lord. Therefore it is a great shame for us, servants of God, that the saints did such works, and we wish to receive glory and honor merely by recounting them.

And the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ is received and eaten by us daily, and we who handle it and minister to others ought to do so with great reverence and fear, considering our own unworthiness.

Clarean Commentary:
Francis links discipleship directly to the Eucharist. If the saints suffered much, why do we expect ease while receiving Christ’s very Body? For Clareans today, this is a reminder that communion is not a ritual of comfort, but a call to costly discipleship. Eucharist is fuel for justice, not a spiritual snack.

On Scripture and the Lord’s Name

And let all the names and words of the Lord, wherever they are found in unclean places, be gathered together and kept in a becoming place. And we ought to honor all theologians and those who minister the most holy divine words, as they minister to us spirit and life.

Clarean Commentary:
Francis shows sacramental reverence not just for Eucharist but also for Scripture — even scraps with God’s name must be treated with care. For Clareans today, this expands into a sacramental worldview: the holy is everywhere. Every word, every person, every fragment of creation must be honored as bearing God’s imprint.

On Obedience and Humility

And let all of us, clerics and lay brothers, remember what the Lord says in the Gospel: “Beware of the scribes who desire to walk in long robes, and love greetings in the marketplace, and the first chairs in the synagogues, and the first places at feasts, who devour the houses of widows, feigning long prayers.” For they shall receive a greater judgment. But you should not be called Rabbi, for one is your Master, Christ, and all you are brothers. Neither should you call anyone Father upon earth, for one is your Father, who is in heaven. Nor should you be called Master, because one is your Master, who is in heaven.

Clarean Commentary:
Francis blasts spiritual pride. His dream is a community of brothers, not a ladder of titles. For Clareans today, this is a sharp word: resist clericalism, resist celebrity spirituality. We are all siblings, all servants, all pilgrims. True authority is Christ’s alone.

On Prayer and the Spirit

Let all of us, brothers, watch carefully what the Lord says: “Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who persecute and calumniate you.” For our Lord says: “Pray always and do not grow weary.” And the Spirit of the Lord will rest upon them who persevere in prayer.

Clarean Commentary:
Francis centers everything on prayer, even for enemies. Prayer is not retreat but revolution. For Clareans today, this reminds us: activism without prayer burns out; prayer without action dries up. True Clarean spirituality is both — prayer that fuels justice, justice that deepens prayer.

On Joy and Holy Living

Let us, dearest brothers, joyfully serve the Lord in poverty and humility and in pure simplicity of heart. The Lord Himself says: “When you do these things, rejoice and be exceeding glad, for great is your reward in heaven.” And let us be careful not to be gloomy hypocrites, but let us show ourselves joyful in the Lord, merry, becomingly gracious, as the Lord says: “When you fast, be not as the hypocrites, sad.”

Clarean Commentary:
Francis ends with joy. His order is not meant to be dour or heavy-handed, but radiant with gladness. Joy itself is a form of evangelism. For Clareans today, this is essential: the Gospel is good news, and our lives should look like it. Joy is resistance against despair, the mark of those who trust God’s kingdom is real.