The St. Clare Prayer Book: Listening for God's Leading

by Jon M. Sweeney, N. Erichsen (Illustrator)

For all who love St. Francis and his spirit of passionate creativity and devotion to God, this prayer book is an invitation to experience the spiritual gifts of one of his closest companions. Clare was a deep, ready source of wisdom—a well to Francis's river.  Discover the spirituality of St. Clare and how it complements that of St. Francis. Enter into a week of morning and evening prayer centered on themes from Clare's life. Pray with Clare's own words in a variety of occasions. And enjoy a special appendix that dramatizes what it might have been like to be there on that first night when Clare fled to the little chapel called Portiuncula to become a brother , and much more.

Genres: Christian

192 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2007

About the author

Jon M. Sweeney is an independent scholar and writer of popular history. He is married, the father of three, and lives in Montpelier, Vermont. He has worked in book publishing for 25 years: after co-founding SkyLight Paths Publishing, he was the editor in chief and publisher at Paraclete Press, and in August 2015 became editorial director at Franciscan Media Books.

He has written more than 20 books, seven about Francis of Assisi, including "When Saint Francis Saved the Church" and "The Complete Francis of Assisi." HBO has optioned the film rights to "The Pope Who Quit."

Jon's first 20 years were spent as an involved evangelical (a story told in the memoir "Born Again and Again"); he then spent 22 years as an active Episcopalian (see "Almost Catholic," among others); and on the feast day of St. Francis of Assisi in 2009 he was received into the Catholic Church. Today, Jon is a practicing Catholic who also prays regularly with his wife, a rabbi. He loves the church, the synagogue, and other aspects of organized religion. He would never say that he's "spiritual but not religious."

In all of his writing, Jon is drawn to the ancient and medieval (see "The Road to Assisi," and "Inventing Hell"). Many of his books have been selections of the History Book Club, Book-of-the-Month Club, and Quality Paperback Book Club.

Reviews

[Sam Desir-Spinelli · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some of these prayers felt inspired, others just formulaic litany.

I had expected a lot more first hand information, from Clare’s own letters, her testament and her rule for the poor sisters. And I was kind of let down. There wasn’t much spirituality in Clare’s own words here.

All in all not a bad prayer book by any stretch, and while it’s obvious that this drew inspiration from Clare’s Franciscan spirituality, this seemed to lend more time focusing on and drawing directly from Francis and other spiritual contemporaries than it did Clare herself.

[Kyle Potter · Rating 4 out of 5]

This attractive prayer book begins with an introduction and biographical chapter that commends the life and witness of Clare of Assisi before moving into the short daily offices (prayer services). The offices can each be prayed slowly and meditatively in ten to fifteen minutes. There is one separate morning prayer and one evening prayer office for each of seven days, and a quick compline (night prayer) that's the same for each night. Each day includes collects (set prayers) quotations, and Scripture readings that enlarge upon a particular theme in the spiritual life. The St. Clare Prayer Book is oriented toward discernment, or "listening prayer": Embracing Christ / Purity / Walking the path of conversion / Listening with the heart / Adoring Christ / True discipleship / Redefining family.

It's important that a breviary (book of short prayers) be accessible and easy to use. While they are paperbacks, they are well bound and attractively designed. The type is reasonably large and the different sections are easy to read. Finding one's place requires only to know what day of the week it is, and the prayer offices require no flipping back and forth.

Because the offices are specific in their themes, and contain only small selections from the Psalter and the New Testament, it is best suited for prayer retreats or otherwise limited periods of time.

The introductory material provides an excellent popular account of this Christian saint and her contribution to the spiritual life of the wider Church. The book itself is easy to use for prayers, aesthetically attractive, and well-priced. This volume is an excellent gateway to the practice of regular structured prayer as well as Franciscan Christian spirituality.

[Tanya Marlow · Rating 5 out of 5]

After reading Sweeney’s outstanding biography of St Francis, I thought I’d get this book, which is a combination of a mini-biography of St Clare (St Francis’ best friend) and a liturgy of prayers written by her for morning and evening prayer.

It wasn’t quite as sparkling as his St Francis book, but still a thoroughly enjoyable biography, beautiful prayers, and a pleasingly quick read. This book would be useful for anyone looking for a breviary, or similar: there are some good Bible passages and written prayers.

[Pat · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the fact that the author provided a background on St. Clare. That seemed to help me connect more with the prayers.