Once in a while, something out of the ordinary happens within the Church. It may be a new movement, or it may be the arrival on the scene of an extraordinary individual. At the beginning of the thirteenth century it was both. One of the most startling characters in two thousand years of Christianity appeared in Italy: Francis of Assisi. The son of an Italian merchant, Francis gave up everything to respond to the Lord’s command to rebuild his Church. First, he literally rebuilt the tumbledown Church of San Damiano, stone by stone. Others joined him, and within a short time hundreds and then thousands of men, inspired by Francis and his way of life, were tramping the roads of Europe telling people of the love of God. Il Poverello, the “little poor man”, who owned nothing and believed himself to be the smallest of God’s servants, inspired a new religious order known as the Franciscans, or Grey Friars (after the colour of their habits). The Franciscans spread rapidly throughout Europe and beyond, committed to preaching and poverty.
At the same time, a Spanish priest named Dominic devoted himself to fighting the Cathar* heresy which had arisen in southern France. He gathered a group of well-trained and committed men whose aim was to win souls back to the Church. Like the Franciscans, these Dominicans (or Black Friars) were vowed to poverty and a life as wandering preachers. Although the Orders began very differently, by the middle of the thirteenth century the Franciscans and Dominicans had become very similar. At this time towns were growing fast, and the spiritual needs of the new town dwellers were often not being met. Both Orders gravitated to the towns, where there were many people keen to listen to their sermons and prepared to supply their daily needs. Like the Dominicans, the Franciscans began to make study a high priority, as they knew that they needed to thoroughly understand the Faith if they were to be able to teach it to others. The friars soon had a leading role in the study and teaching of theology at the universities.
The first friars arrived in England in 1221. Twelve Dominicans travelled to Dover, through Canterbury and London, and on to Oxford where they founded the first English Dominican friary. In 1224 they were followed by nine Franciscans, including three Englishmen. These men established a series of small friaries, where they were soon joined by more Englishmen. By 1300 there were at least one hundred and twenty Franciscan and Dominican friaries in England. The friars became an important part of life in the English towns and the country as a whole. They were leading lights at the universities of Oxford and Cambridge; they became bishops, with each Order providing an archbishop of Canterbury; they corresponded with kings and other great men of the realm. Robert Grosseteste, bishop of Lincoln, wrote to Pope Gregory IX that the friars “illuminate our whole country with the bright light of their preaching and teaching”.
Other smaller orders of Friars also grew up at this time, including the Carmelites, or White Friars. In their early years they suffered a number of difficulties. In 1251 the Virgin Mary appeared at Cambridge to an English member of the Order, Simon Stock. She held out a brown scapular to him and said:
Receive, my beloved son, this scapular of thy Order; it is the special sign of my favour, which I have obtained for thee and for thy children of Mount Carmel. He who dies clothed with this habit shall be preserved from eternal fire. It is the badge of salvation, a shield in time of danger, and a pledge of special peace and protection.”
The message of the scapular** spread, and soon lay people as well as Carmelites began to wear it. Today many Catholics wear the brown scapular, to show that they wish to live a holy life, to imitate the Blessed Virgin, and to place themselves under her protection.
As time passed, the early zeal of the friars lessened and the Franciscans, in particular, became entangled in a series of squabbles over their vow of poverty and what exactly it should mean. Their reputation was damaged by some friars who appeared to be money-grabbing. However, many friars continued to hold to the high ideals of Francis and Dominic, as they do today. Now there is little left in England to remind us of the medieval friars. Hardly any of their buildings have survived, but if you look at a map of an old English town you will often be able to find a street called Greyfriars or Blackfriars. In London, there is even a railway station to remind us of the Dominican friary that once stood there.
* The Cathars believed in opposing powers of good and evil, and saw everything connected with the body as bad.
** The scapular worn by monks and friars is a long piece of cloth with a hole for the head which covers an protects both the front and the back of their habit. The scapular worn by laypeople is much smaller. It has two small square pieces of fabric linked by thin strips of cloth, and can be worn under clothes.
PRAYERS: Father, you called St. Simon Stock to serve you in the brotherhood of Our Lady of Mount Carmel. Through his prayers help us like him to live in your presence and to work for the salvation of the human family. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen
FEAST DAYS:
St. Francis of Assisi: October 4th
St. Dominic: August 8th
St. Simon Stock: May 16th
TIMELINE:
St. Francis of Assisi: born 1181, died 1226
St. Dominic: born 1170, died 1221
St. Simon Stock: born c.1165, died 1265
HISTORICAL NOTE: Little is known about the life of Simon Stock before his old age, though he is said to have become a hermit at the age of twelve! He was never formally canonised, but has been venerated by the Carmelite order for hundreds of years. His remains were scattered at the Reformation, but in 1951 his skull was returned to the rebuilt Carmelite Friary at Aylesford, Kent.
FURTHER READING:
Saint Francis by Brian Wildsmith – a beautifully illustrated picture book
Francis and Clare: Saints of Assisi by Helen Homan (Vision series)
St. Dominic and the Rosary by Catherine Beebe (Vision series)
© Kathryn Faulkner 2005. All rights reserved.
