Nearly 400,000 people are expected to venerate the saint’s relics while on public display through March 22. By Hannah Brockhaus February 22, 2026 at 12:14 PM ET Hundreds of pilgrims lined up before dawn on Sunday to be among the first to pray before the exposed relics of St. Francis in …

by Hannah Brockhaus Rome Newsroom, Dec 23, 2023 / 07:00 am It’s a well-known origin story: how the young and wealthy Francis of Assisi freely abandoned his noble patrimony to serve Christ’s Church as a poor, itinerant preacher. One of the world’s most beloved saints, the founder of the Franciscan …

Pope Leo XIV arrives in Assisi and pays a visit to the tomb of St Francis, saying his witness is especially important “at a time when the world is searching for signs of hope.” By Benedetta Capelli – Assisi “It is a blessing to be able to come here today …

By CNA Staff CNA Staff, Nov 17, 2025 / 04:00 am On Nov. 17, the Catholic Church celebrates the life and example of St. Elizabeth of Hungary, a medieval noblewoman who responded to personal tragedy by embracing St. Francis’ ideals of poverty and service. A patron of secular Franciscans, she is …

By ACI Stampa Rome Newsroom, Oct 8, 2025 / 08:00 am For the first time, the body of St. Francis of Assisi will be visible to all, from Feb. 22 to March 22, 2026. This religious and historical event was announced on the memorial of the saint of Assisi (Oct. 4) …

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 …

Most days, John Van Hook works alone performing maintenance. After nearly three decades at St. Leonard Faith Community and eight more at St. Francis of Assisi Parish in Centerville, he knows every corner of the church buildings. His days are filled with quiet service, such as setting up for weddings, …

The people of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati are invited to join Archbishop Robert G. Casey in remembering and praying for the repose of the soul of Pope Francis. Four Memorial Masses for Pope Francis will be celebrated by Archbishop Casey throughout the archdiocese during thirty days of mourning. • Monday, …

Franciscan Spirituality flows from the experience of a single man, St. Francis of Assisi (1181-1226). Son of cloth merchant Pietro Bernardone, St. Francis went from fighting for the values of wealth and fame to feeling contempt for those same values. After suffering for a year in an open pit prison …

By Jonah McKeown, Kate Olivera CNA Staff, Oct 4, 2023 / 04:00 am In the Italian town of Gubbio, some 130 miles north of Rome, sits the church of San Francisco della Pace — the Church of St. Francis “of the Peace.” The church is large and old, and its white stone exterior is …