The feast of the great archangels Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael (September 29) should not go by without recalling the deep devotion Saint Francis had to these heavenly protectors of Christians.
On September 26, Franciscans remember the martyr St. Damian, patron of the small church in Assisi so central in Franciscan history, but we also celebrate St. Elzéar of Sabran (1285-1323) and his wife, Blessed Delphine of Glandèves (1284-1358), committed Secular Franciscans.
On September 23, Catholics celebrate the memory of Saint Pius of Pietrelcina (1887-1968), the Capuchin Franciscan friar still best known simply as "Padre Pio," who has become one of the most popular saints in the Catholic Church.
On September 18, the Franciscan family celebrates the memory of St. Joseph of Cupertino (1603-1663), a Conventual Franciscan friar popularly known for the paranormal phenomena that marked his life.
On September 17, Franciscans celebrate the Feast of the Stigmata of St. Francis, to recall Francis's body being wonderously marked with the wounds of Christ.
As the Church celebrates the Feast of Our Lady of Sorrows (September 15), it is good to know the important role that Franciscans played in promoting this particular image of Mary and why.
On September 7, Franciscans rejoice, especially with countless young people, as Pope Leo XIV canonizes Blessed Carlo Acutis (1991-2006), as the Church’s first millennial saint.
What does it really mean to live a penitential life today? For members of the Secular Franciscan Order—or anyone drawn to Franciscan spirituality—this question echoes through centuries of tradition, personal devotion, and communal renewal. St. Francis and the Third Order: The Franciscan and Pre-Franciscan Penitential Movement offers a rich historical and theological exploration of this path, grounding the contemporary Third Order in its earliest roots.
