Prayer:Prayer to St. Clare
Stored: Prayer to St. Clare
| Prayer to St. Clare | |
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| Author | Unknown |
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| Language | English |
| Approval | None |
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| Added on | 2026-08-13 |
Introduction
Saint Clare of Assisi (1194–1253) stands as one of the most luminous figures of medieval Catholic spirituality. The foundress of the Order of Poor Ladies — later known as the Poor Clares — she was the first woman to write a Rule of religious life for women, and she remained a devoted follower of the Franciscan ideal of radical poverty and contemplative prayer until her death. Her intimacy with Christ crucified and her deep Marian devotion made her a powerful intercessor in the eyes of the faithful, both during her lifetime and in the centuries since her canonization by Pope Alexander IV in 1255, just two years after her death.
The Prayer to St. Clare belongs to a long tradition of intercessory devotions addressed to this beloved saint. Rooted in confidence in her heavenly advocacy, this prayer reflects the Church's teaching that the saints, united to Christ in glory, intercede on behalf of the faithful still on pilgrimage on earth. Countless devotees of St. Clare have brought to her their needs, sufferings, and intentions, trusting in her maternal compassion and her closeness to the Blessed Virgin Mary.
This prayer has circulated widely in Catholic devotional literature for several centuries and is prayed especially by members and associates of the Franciscan family, by those who venerate St. Clare at her basilica in Assisi, and by the faithful around the world on her feast day of August 11.
The Prayer
O glorious Saint Clare, God has given you the power of working miracles continually, and the grace of healing the sick, the suffering, and those in need. How great is our confidence in your intercession! We now turn to you with childlike trust, asking you to obtain for us from God that which we seek through your powerful intercession.
O Saint Clare, by the love you bore to Jesus and to His Holy Mother, we beseech you, assist us in our necessities and obtain for us the favors we request. Present our prayers to the Mother of God, that she may plead our cause before the throne of her Divine Son.
Amen.
History and Background
The Saint
Clare Offreduccio was born in Assisi, Italy, in 1194, to a noble family. Inspired by the preaching of Saint Francis of Assisi, she fled her family home at the age of eighteen to embrace a life of evangelical poverty. Francis received her vows, cut her hair as a sign of her consecration, and established her at the small church of San Damiano outside Assisi, where she would remain for over forty years. Clare attracted numerous followers, including her own mother and sisters, forming the community that became the Order of Poor Ladies.
Clare was renowned during her lifetime for miraculous deeds. Most celebrated is the account from 1240, when she is said to have repelled an attack by the soldiers of Emperor Frederick II by standing at the gate of San Damiano holding the Blessed Sacrament in a monstrance and falling to her knees in prayer. This event became the basis for her patronage of television, attributed by Pope Pius XII in 1958 to the vision she reportedly witnessed of Christmas Mass on the wall of her cell.
Devotion and Intercessory Tradition
The intercessory prayer addressed to St. Clare draws upon the twin pillars of her sanctity: her fierce love for the Eucharistic Christ and her tender devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary. Both themes are explicitly invoked in this prayer, which asks Clare to unite her intercession with that of the Mother of God before the throne of the Holy Trinity. This Marian dimension is deeply consistent with the Franciscan tradition, which has always emphasized devotion to Mary as an integral part of its spirituality.
The prayer's reference to Clare's power of "working miracles continually" reflects the strong thaumaturgic tradition associated with her. Her biography, written by Thomas of Celano, records numerous healings and miraculous interventions during her lifetime, and the testimony gathered for her canonization process further confirmed the reputation for miraculous intercession that followed her into heaven.
How to Pray / Devotional Use
When to Pray
This prayer is especially appropriate on the following occasions:
- The Feast of St. Clare of Assisi, celebrated on **August 11**
- During novenas in preparation for her feast day (August 2–10)
- In times of personal suffering, illness, or urgent necessity
- At the conclusion of Holy Mass or Eucharistic Adoration, in union with Clare's Eucharistic devotion
- At any time when the faithful seek a powerful intercessor before the Blessed Virgin Mary and her Divine Son
How to Pray
The prayer may be recited individually or communally. It is fitting to begin with the Sign of the Cross and to conclude with a Hail Mary, entrusting one's petitions to our Lady through St. Clare's intercession. Many devotees of the Poor Clare tradition also recite this prayer as part of a novena, offering it for nine consecutive days before the feast of St. Clare, accompanying it with fasting or a corporal work of mercy in her honor.
Those who visit the Basilica of Saint Clare in Assisi traditionally pray before her relics in the crypt of the basilica. The prayer may also be recited before an image or statue of the saint, particularly one that depicts her holding a monstrance or the Blessed Sacrament, recalling her greatest miracle.
Intentions Traditionally Brought to St. Clare
- Healing of illness, especially of the eyes (she is the patron of eye disease)
- Protection of the family and of cloistered religious
- Assistance in times of financial hardship, in keeping with her spirit of holy poverty
- Clarity of vision — both physical and spiritual
- Perseverance in a vocation to religious life