Discover the Top 15 Fun Facts About St. Clare: Intriguing Stories and Secrets Revealed

1. Spiky Fashion Statement

Adding some, ahem, "thorn" to her rose gown: St. Clare of Assisi secretly sported a spiky penitential belt beneath her elegant attire in a bid to honor Christ's sufferings and maintain her chaste virginity for His sake.
Source => roman-catholic-saints.com

2. Holy Stitchuation

Who knew St. Clare had a "holy stitchuation" going on? This divine seamstress was wearing her faith on her sleeves and her altar cloths like it was going out of fashion: St. Clare is credited as the inventor of "Assisi embroidery," a distinct cross stitch style used to create beautiful altar cloths for churches in Assisi. It's no wonder she's now the patron saint of embroiderers and everyone involved in fabric work!
Source => catholicsaintmedals.com

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=> Fun Facts about Queen-Elizabeth-1

3. Barefoot Trendsetters

Before fancy footwear and rockin' a barefoot-style was cool, St. Clare and her crew already knew how to keep sole-searching both pure and fashionable: St. Clare and her fellow Poor Clares did not own shoes, as they committed to austere poverty—sleeping on wooden floors, forgoing meat, and practicing silence, other than lifting their voices in prayer. This unorthodox lifestyle proved to be quite the monastic influencer, leading to the establishment of multiple Poor Clare convents across Europe.
Source => stclare-queens.org

4. Original Home Entertainment

Before the modern world was binge-watching Netflix, St. Clare of Assisi was the OG home-entertainment subscriber: This mystically-inclined saint was declared the patron saint of television by Pope Pius XII in 1958, as her captivating spiritual experiences were likened to watching a live television broadcast, making her an extraordinary figure in Catholic history.
Source => christianapostles.com

5. Jesus in the Battlefield

When they said "you need some Jesus in your life," St. Clare took it to heart – and took it to the battlefield: With unshakable faith in the Holy Eucharist, a feeble and frail Clare confronted an invading army of Saracens, and as she held up a monstrance containing the Body of Christ, they skedaddled in sheer terror, leaving her monastery unscathed.
Source => catholic-link.org

6. Christmas Vision

Before FaceTime made Christmas with the family all too real, St. Clare of Assisi was having visions and catching the heavenly tunes of a Midnight Mass: On Christmas Eve in 1252, even though she was too ill to attend Mass, St. Clare miraculously experienced hearing the Christmas hymns from the Basilica of St. Francis in Assisi and had a supernatural vision of attending the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem, where she received Communion from the grown Jesus himself.
Source => bobandpennylord.wordpress.com

7. Heavenly Superhero Embroiderer

No stitch: no glory! Cloaked in a divine sense of humor, St. Clare moonlighted as Assisi's premier embroiderer and superhero by day, creating beautiful altar cloths that would make even the Holy Trinity do a double-take: Adept in her craft, she invented the "Assisi embroidery" technique, using a nifty double running stitch that left the background void of any stitches; thus, securing her spot as the patron saint of embroiderers, needle workers, and laundry workers.
Source => catholicsaintmedals.com

8. Minimalism Pioneer

Move over Marie Kondo, St. Clare of Assisi was sparking joy in the realm of minimalism long before it was mainstream: She wrote the first known monastic guidelines by a woman, the Rule of Life for the Order of Poor Ladies, which emphasized absolute non-possession of property and received the celestial stamp of approval from Cardinal Rainaldo and Pope Innocent IV.
Source => en.wikipedia.org

9. Divine Streaming Wars

If Netflix and St. Clare went head-to-head in the streaming wars, she'd have a miracle up her sleeve: St. Clare, the ultimate binge-watcher, reputedly experienced a miracle that allowed her to view live mass on her "television" while she was bedridden over a mile away from the Basilica of St. Francis. This divinely inspired streaming service is why she's beloved as the patron saint of television.
Source => catholicfire.blogspot.com

10. Sister Act Expansion

Move over, Sister Act: St. Clare's Order of Poor Ladies is way ahead of you with their impressive expansion and dedication to the Catholic Church: Founded in 1212, this contemplative community has grown to over 20,000 nuns and established numerous monasteries in more than 75 countries across the globe, making them an international powerhouse of prayer, poverty, and sisterly devotion.
Source => en.wikipedia.org

11. Holy Ghostbuster

Bread of Life or Holy Ghostbuster?: Saint Clare had a heavenly knack for fending off invaders with nothing but the Eucharist in hand and faith in her heart, causing the attackers to hightail it and leave her convent unscathed.
Source => stclaresi.com

12. Saintly Party Host

If St. Clare were to host a party, she'd definitely light up the room: She is often depicted holding a lamp to represent her name and a stalk of lilies, showcasing her devotion to virginity. Besides being the life of the party, she was also quite studious and spiritual - you'll never find her without a book in-hand!
Source => christianiconography.info

13. Hilarious Sewing Pun Saint

Next time you're in stitches over a hilarious sewing pun, spare a thought for Saint Clare: She's not just the patron saint of embroiderers, but also the inventor of Assisi embroidery – a delightful cross-stitch technique that slyly leaves the motif area unstitched, just like the punchline in a joke. Talk about a holy stitchuation!
Source => catholicsaintmedals.com

14. Multitalented Martha Stewart Rival

Move over, Martha Stewart: St. Clare is here to save your screen-time and stitch up your sight! As the patron saint of televisions, computer screens, sore eyes and, on a surprisingly crafty note, embroidery, St. Clare boasts unparalleled needlework skills revered to this day. Founder of the Order of Poor Ladies, which evolved into the Poor Clares, her life stands as a testament to poverty, humility, and love of God, etching her name in history as an everlasting source of inspiration.
Source => up.edu

15. Tech & Craft Patron Saint

For whom the bell tolls, St. Clare holds the TV remote: Known for miraculously witnessing a Christmas Eve mass while bedridden through a vision on her wall, St. Clare is the patron saint of communication technology like telephones and television, embroiderers, and also helps those with eye problems and the blind.
Source => novena.com