During the prayer of the Angelus on November 18th, 2001, the Holy Father had asked that December 14th be known as a day of fasting and had invited the representatives of the world's religions to go to Assisi for a day for peace. That is why the Most Reverend Bishop Jean-Marie was anxious to have the Congregation participate in day of prayer and sent us to Assisi, which was an opportunity for us to go on a pilgrimage and to follow in the footsteps of Saint Claire and Saint Francis.

It is at the end of the day that we reach Assisi in the beautiful province of Ombrie, a lovely city built on Mount Subasse, enshrined in the old battlefields. A serene panorama lined with elms, olive trees, vines and cypresses conveys a restful ambiance to the countryside. We discover with joy, a city which in preserving in its old battlefields, in its old houses, monasteries and basilicas, has reminded the world of the saints, who, along the centuries, were able to engrave in stone, upon our memory, true masterpieces of architecture. Providence leads us curiously into the courtyard of Saint Claire's Monastery, looking for the monastery which would host us: these are the religious of Saint Claire, the first persons that we meet, who show us our way.

Warmly welcomed in a monastery, we will have the possibility to participate in the Offices and the Daily Mass celebrated by the Bishop of Assisi.

We visit as many sites as we can and pray where Saint Francis and Saint Claire lived. The very narrow streets, which are steep and sloping, cause us quickly to give up on driving the car and to walk on foot in the footsteps of Saint Francis and Saint Claire. Our first visit will be to the Basilica of Saint Mary of the Angels, where is kept the Portioncule; that is to say, the little chapel where Saint Claire received the veil and the Habit. Our Lady, all in gold and illuminated, hangs over the Basilica. Wonderful frescos from the 12th century adorn the walls and the dome of the Basilica.

In this silent province of Ombrie, a few kilometers from Assisi, a herd of sheep are the only ones to break the calm of a solitary setting, so fitting for meditation, where Saint Francis heard the Crucifix giving him this order: " Go, Francis we enter with emotion in the Saint Damien Monastery (San Damiano, build my house again, which has fallen into ruin. " He understood that he had to work for the restoration of the great Church; that is to say, the mystical Body of Christ, made up of all Christians. We mediate there, where Saint Claire lived with her religious (nuns) in the choir, the refectory, the dormitory, the cloister and the little oratory, which falls right into the garden where she said her meditative prayers. A statue of Saint Francis marks the spot where he wrote his Canticle of the Creatures. We leave Saint Damien Monastery (San Damiano), during the Vesper psalm chant (Vespers), in the Chapel, which contains the original choir stalls.

If Saint Claire's birthplace is now the seat of the Bishop of Assisi, then, Saint Francis' birthplace has now become a church. One can still see the cell where Mr. Bernardone, Saint Francis' father, locked up his son. The first very rudimentary house, which hosted Saint Francis. The first brothers are preserved in the Rivotorto Sanctuary, a few kilometers from Assis and from Saint Mary of the Angels. It is a humble, poor shelter made of stone.

The huge Saint Francis Basilica splits into an Inferior Basilica and a Superior one, which overlooks the city. Frescoes from the 12th century retracing Saint Francis' life, cover all of the interior areas of the Basilicas, which contain inside a crypt, the tomb of Saint Francis. It is suspended above an altar where we meditate. There is a great influx of pilgrims who come inside to pray. A few feet from Saint Francis' resting place are the first brothers' tombs: Brother Leon, Brother Bernard, Brother Ruffin and Brother Matteo (Matthew). Some relics of Saint Francis are also exposed: his Habit frock, which is all patched-up and sewn in the most rudimentary fabric of the wealthy P. Bernadone, Saint Francis' father; the chalice and the paten offered to Saint Francis by the Abbot from San Benedetto Abbey of Mount Subasio; Saint Francis' stigmata in a silver reliquary; a hair-shirt; the stone where Saint Francis laid his head, and a parchment of his Holy Rule dated from November 29, 1223.

In Assisi, we venerate the Crucifix of Saint Damien Monastery and get acquainted with a Sister of Saint Claire's Monastery and nuns of Saint Brigette Monastery. Saint Ruffin was the first Bishop of Assisi and martyr and in the Saint Ruffin Cathedral, we go up to a baptismal font where Sainte Clarie and Saint Francis were baptized.

From Saint Francis Basilica, the Holy Father, with the religious leaders, will preside over the Christians' prayer, after having listened to the religious leaders' testimonies, such as the representatives of the Orthodox Church, the Anglican (Episcopalian) Community, the Hindu faith and the Muslim world.

Symbolically, the Holy Father lights a taper, a flame, which is transmitted to all the different religious representatives here, to pledge for PEACE. The Holy Father makes a private visit to the nuns of Saint Claire in the Saint Claire Basilica. We hurry under a driving rain, to return to Saint Claire Basilica, in order to be just in front of the side door, where he comes inside, accompanied by the Bishop of Assisi, The Most Reverend Bishop Sergio Goretti.

In the course of our comings and goings, we make acquaintance with nuns from various monasteries: The Franciscan Sisters of Many Immaculate and Benedictine Sisters, who have kept their old Habit of their Order. While proceeding to Perouse, we are reminded that on a certain winter's day, Saint Francis was going from Perouse to Saint Mary of the Angels and was very cruelly afflicted by the cold. He disclosed to Brother Leon what would consist of perfect joy: " …Because among all the graces of the Holy Spirit that Christ granted and gave to his friends, there is nothing more precious than to have victory over oneself and to willingly bear all the disgraces for Christ and for God's love. "

The Holy Father had wished that the leaders of the different religions could pray at the same time, but separately, in different places, before meeting again for a pledge for PEACE. It was at that moment that, under an incessant rain that a nun offers us an opportunity to get warm in their chapel and we go and pray in the Chapel of the Franciscan Monastery of Mary Immaculate.

Our last visit will be in a monastery of Benedictines in Perugia, where they have kept the Habit of their Order, devoting their time to prayer as well as embroidery and book-binding. Behind their cloister grille, numerous souls come to entrust their pain and recommend themselves for their prayers, as they feel that those consecrated souls would be more free to lift their hearts joyfully to the Good Lord, as they are less attached to worldly goods, here below… One of them, having worked in Africa, is very happy to hear us speak of the Faternite Notre Dame's missions. They also express sadness over the lack of vocations in the Church.

On the way back, we pray again to Saint Francis and Saint Claire for our dear Fathers and Mothers, who, eight centuries later, pursue their own task in a world that is even further away from God, in order to give back to the Church a true evangelical life in Peace, Charity and Unity.

Sister Marie Sabine & Sister Marie de l'Evangile + snd.