One of the most important churches in the Franciscan faith, the Portiuncula has a story to tell that intertwines Francis' call to Christ, stewardship, and the reformation of the Catholic Church in the 13th Century.
Located in the home of St Francis, Assisi, the Portiuncula is a visible sign of St Francis' commitment to the faith and a symbol of St Francis' persistence and determination. In the early thirteenth century, the Portiuncula had gone into ruins. Falling apart, derelict and dilapidated, it was a sign of the lessening faith of the Assisi community as the Catholic Church proceeded to value money and greed over faith.
Picture this: young Francis had just arrived back to Assisi after a pilgrimage to Rome begging for the poor. He was praying in the chapel of San Damiano and suddenly saw a bright light - the face of Jesus. Jesus said to Francis three times, "Francis, Francis, go and repair my house which, as you can see, is falling into ruins."
Francis took this message very literally and immediately set out to repair the mess that was now the Portiuncula. At this point, Francis had already repaired the San Damiano church and was going to keep on renovating churches to prove his point of stewardship and faith. While the message of what Jesus said to Francis could be interpreted as very literal, it can also be interpreted as a message to repair the entire Catholic Church from the mess it was becoming as well. Francis knew that the message of the Church was eroding, and that it was now so corrupt that the message of why it was founded in the first place had disappeared completely. The Portiuncula was one of three country churches that Francis repaired
"Francis, Francis, go and repair my house which, as you can see, is falling into ruins."
As Francis repaired the Church, he created a following where other men had come to admire his passion and mission for restoring the Church to what it was actually about. He also tried to reflect his own passion into the reformation which is evident through all of the paintings and classic Gothic architecture within the small chapel.
Today, the Portiuncula is located in the Papal Basilica of Saint Mary of the Angels in Assisi. It is a tiny chapel that is situated in an even bigger chapel that is located in one of the most religious and faithful towns in the world; the home of Francis, Clare and the Franciscan religion.
The Portiuncula is and will remain to be a standing point in Franciscan history. On the 28th of March, 1211, this chapel is where Clare received her habit and initiated the Poor Clare Sisters. It's where Francis not only rebuilt the Church but rebuilt many other's faiths, and it's where Francis started his mission of restoring the physical Catholic Church.