St. Francis of Assisi
The universal Catholic Church is taking an entire year to honor one of its most beloved saints.
Pope Leo XIV declared a Jubilee Year for St. Francis of Assisi on Jan. 10, marking 800 years since his death.
The year calls Catholics to follow the saint’s example of holiness and compassion, and two religious orders share that Franciscan charism in their everyday ministries in the Philadelphia region.
“St. Francis really has a lot to say for our time,” said Capuchin Franciscan Father Thomas Betz, the pastor of St. John the Evangelist Parish in center city Philadelphia. He is one of many Franciscan friars serving in center city and Northeast Philadelphia.
“Pope Francis was the first pope in history to choose the name Francis. It was very clear that he felt what the Church needed in the 21st century was St. Francis. What he stood for, what he was all about, is actually what the Church needs in this time, and a renewal that is of St. Francis.”
The Sisters of St. Francis of Philadelphia, a religious order founded here in 1855, have served the temporal and spiritual needs of people in need across the United States for the last 171 years.
“Our charism is rooted in the life of St. Francis and the life of St. Clare, and some of the core values there are our sense of brotherhood and sisterhood with all creation,” said Sister Diane Tomkinson, O.S.F., the Charism Engagement Minister for the order.
“It’s rooted in a particular vision of God as the triune God who is love, the most high God who becomes most low in the person of Jesus. Because God has loved us from all creation and become part of creation in Jesus, we are all brothers and sisters, and that includes all human persons are brothers and sisters to one another (and) all creation as brother and sister.”
To that end, both the Capuchin Franciscans and the Sisters of St. Francis of Philadelphia spread their Franciscan ministries across greater Philadelphia in service of all people with numerous needs.
The Capuchins operate both from St. John the Evangelist Parish, where pilgrims are invited to come to receive a plenary indulgence for the Jubilee Year, and from the Padre Pio Prayer Center in Northeast Philadelphia’s Frankford neighborhood.
Their combined efforts offer everything from health care ministries at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital to their partnership with Annie’s Home in Northeast Philadelphia, which helps at-risk pregnant mothers not only to bring their baby to term but also helping them to succeed.
Father Betz says that these ministries stem from a desire to live the Franciscan call to a life of service and simplicity.
“The ultimate humility is when you receive someone else and you look that person in the eye and you feel, ‘I’m not better than you. I’m not higher than you. We’re both humble sinners together,” said Father Betz. “Hopefully the friars would convey, and the lay people who help us convey, that sense of ‘We’re all in this together.’”
Those words well describe the outreach of the Sisters of St. Francis of Philadelphia. They have long served in orphanages, hospitals and schools such as Drexel Neumann Academy in Chester, and they founded Neumann University.
In recent years the sisters have pivoted to parishes and community centers -with ministries that care for the environment and address the impacts of gun violence, homelessness and immigration. They also offer a spiritual center in Aston Township, Delaware County.
“Our mission has always been to respond to what the needs of the most vulnerable of the time are. That’s changed over time, depending on the needs of the time,” Sister Diane said.
“One of our favorite quotes from our foundress is, ‘As long as God does not stop giving to us, we will not stop giving to the poor.’”
The Secular Franciscans who partner with St. John the Evangelist additionally encourage lay people to live that Franciscan life of faith, simplicity and compassion.
“All people are called to holiness, not just priests and religious,” Father Betz said.
“Sometimes we think that somewhere that was thought up in the 20th century. Francis didn’t think it up either. It’s as old as the Gospel. But Francis saw that his movement needed a way for lay people to join it and to be part of it. So it’s a real order. It’s a secular order, but it’s a Catholic order.“
Each Franciscan ministry in Philadelphia, whether secular or in a consecrated religious order, aims to turn one’s inner encounter with Christ outward with love for others in Christ. It’s a philosophy rooted in the life of the saint for whom this Jubilee Year is being celebrated.
“St. Francis has a wonderful quote in one of his writings, ‘Hold back nothing of yourself for yourself so that the One who gives Himself totally to you can receive you totally,’” said Sister Diane.
“I think that’s one of the key characteristics of our Franciscan tradition. We have this deep, deep sense rooted in Francis’ experience of God, that God is overflowing, abundant love and so we don’t have to have a scarcity mindset.”
Share this story