On the 4 October the church remembers Francis of Assisi, Friar and deacon, Patron Saint of animals 1226.

But who was Saint Francis?

The son of Pietro Bernardone, a wealthy cloth merchant, Francis worked with his father until he was 20. He was well known in Assisi for his love of parties and celebrations.

In 1202, as a result of a border dispute between Assisi and Perugia, Francis was taken prisoner and held for a year. On his release he returned to Assisi and continued his energetic way of life. However, after a long period of illness and a further taste of army life, Francis began to grow weary of his lifestyle.

He made a pilgrimage to Rome, and was greatly affected by the beggars that he met in the city. When he returned to Assisi Francis resigned from his father’s business and left his old friends behind. He stole a bag of cloth from his father and sold it, using the proceeds to repair church buildings. He was never reconciled with his father.

While he was working on the Church of Saint Damiano one morning he heard a reading from Matthew chapter 10, in which Jesus asks his disciples to leave all behind them. Francis understood these words to be directly spoken to him.

People soon began to join the man who by now had a reputation for simple living and charity rather than for extreme behaviour and partying. He formed a group of followers, who called themselves the ‘Friars Minor’ and they quickly developed into a religious order. The order spread, and Francis travelled.

He attempted to reach Africa, but illness forced him back to Italy. He journeyed with the Crusaders, but preached a spiritual crusade rather than a physical war. He returned to Italy, and divided his rapidly growing order into manageable districts. He appointed other people to be in charge and wrote a ‘Rule of Life’.

Francis resisted seeking full approval for his order from the Papacy until 1223. By the time of his death there was a men’s order, a women’s order (instituted by Clare – see 11 August) and a lay order. He received the gift of stigmata in 1224, and died in 1226.

Saint Francis is known as the Patron Saint of Animals. This is one his prayers:

God our Heavenly Father, you created the world to serve humanity’s needs and to lead them to you. By our own fault we have lost the beautiful relationship which we once had with all your creation. Help us to see that by restoring our relationship with you we will also restore it with all your creation. Give us the grace to see all animals as gifts from you and to treat them with respect for they are your creation. We pray for all animals who are suffering as a result of our neglect. May the order you originally established be once again restored to the whole world through the merits and mediation of your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you now and forever. Amen.

Francis is known as a gentle and generous man who radically altered his life in response to God. Fully devoted to God, and fully prepared to give everything for others, his life of humility and action have led to him to be remembered as one of the most influential men of medieval times.

Make Me A Channel Of Your Peace is one of the nation’s favourite hymns, based on the words of Saint Francis:

Lord, make me an instrument of your 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;
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.

Prayer

O God, you ever delight to reveal yourself
to the childlike and lowly of heart:
grant that, following the example of the blessed Francis,
we may count the wisdom of this world as foolishness
and know only Jesus Christ and him crucified,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.
Amen.

Revd Paul A. Carr and extract from ‘Saints on Earth: A biographical companion to Common Worship’ by John H Darch and Stuart K Burns

We hold our annual PET SERVICE in the grounds of #AyiaKyriaki, #KatoPaphos on Monday 6 October 2025 at 4.00 pm.

All things bright and beautiful,
All creatures great and small,
All things wise and wonderful:
The Lord God made them all.

Do come along and bring your furry friend with you! All shapes and sizes welcome – whether on a lead, carried or in a cage!!

You can download a copy of the service sheet here Pet Blessing Service 2025 vs2

NB. For those of you who are wondering, this statue is by Frank C. Gaylord and is located at the Saint Peter and Paul Cemetery in Naperville, Chicago. If you look closely, you can see a sculpted bird behind the real bird! I saw this on Google Images and I just had to use it!!