Approval of the Franciscan Way of Life by Pope Innocent III (1210)

When Saint Francis of Assisi appeared before Pope Innocent III in 1210 to obtain approval of the first Rule, some cardinals judged it beyond human strength because of the absolute poverty it prescribed. However, one cardinal intervened and declared:

“If we condemn the life that Francis wishes to embrace, there is great danger that we may be attacking the Gospel itself, since he asks only to observe it; for if anyone maintains that the perfection it teaches contains something contrary to reason, or beyond human strength, does he not utter a blasphemy against Jesus Christ who recommended it to us.” ¹

Following this intervention, Pope Innocent III asked Saint Francis to pray to Jesus Christ to inspire them as to what they should do. Indeed, he could not understand how an order could subsist without any possessions.

To complete his persuasion of the pope, Saint Francis told him a parable:

“A maiden of exquisite beauty lived in a desert. A King, having learned of her worth, took her as his Bride, and after begetting several children with her, entrusted them to her care in this solitude and returned to his Palace. The mother, having raised them and seeing in them a royal character, said to them: my children, you have a great King for a Father; go and find him, he will recognize you as his own by the marks you bear, and will provide for you in a manner worthy of your birth;

The children followed this good advice, and their father, noticing on their faces his own features and those of the beauty of his Bride, received them with joy and provided very generously for their sustenance, saying that if he had always fed foreign servants, it was only just that he should take care of his legitimate children;

Most Holy Father,” Francis added, “this King is Jesus Christ, and his Bride is Poverty. She was cast aside in this desert, and captivated by her beauty, he came down from Heaven to earth to wed her. The Apostles, the Anchorites, and the ancient Monks are the fruits of their union, whom this holy mother has sent to him. He has pledged his word that, having cared for sinners and unbelievers, he will not neglect to provide for his beloved children. Those whom you see here are the younger sons of this Queen. They do not shame their elders; they bear upon their foreheads the mark of their mother’s beauty and the nobility of their Father. Therefore, there is no need to fear that the children of so noble a family might die of hunger. He who promises the Kingdom of Heaven to his imitators cannot refuse them the things necessary on earth.” ²

Pope Innocent III, impressed and confirmed by a vision of what he was meant to do, exclaimed: “Here is truly the one who will uphold the Church of Jesus Christ, both by his deeds and by his teaching.”

The pope approved the Rule orally, conferred the diaconate on Saint Francis, gave the minor orders to his companions, and received their solemn vows.