San Damiano is a church with a monastery near Assisi, Italy. Built in the 12th century, it was the first monastery of the

Order of Saint Clare The Poor Clares, officially the Order of Saint Clare (Latin language, Latin: ''Ordo Sanctae Clarae''), originally referred to as the Order of Poor Ladies, and also known as the Clarisses or Clarissines, the Minoresses, the Franciscan Clarist Or ...

, where Saint Clare built her community. The church has a hut-shaped façade; the entrance is preceded by a short portico with three round arcades supported by brickwork pillars. Above the central arch is a circular

rose window Rose window is often used as a generic term applied to a circular window, but is especially used for those found in Gothic cathedrals and churches. The windows are divided into segments by stone mullions and tracery. The term ''rose window'' wa ...

. The interior has a single nave with ogival

barrel vault A barrel vault, also known as a tunnel vault, wagon vault or wagonhead vault, is an architectural element formed by the extrusion of a single curve (or pair of curves, in the case of a pointed barrel vault) along a given distance. The curves are ...

s. The right wall is home to a rectangular chapel with, at the altar, a wooden crucifix executed by Innocenzo da Petralia in 1637. The nave ends with a deep

apse In architecture, an apse (: apses; from Latin , 'arch, vault'; from Ancient Greek , , 'arch'; sometimes written apsis; : apsides) is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical Vault (architecture), vault or semi-dome, also known as an ' ...

with a modern stone altar, a Baroque wooden

tabernacle According to the Hebrew Bible, the tabernacle (), also known as the Tent of the Congregation (, also Tent of Meeting), was the portable earthly dwelling of God used by the Israelites from the Exodus until the conquest of Canaan. Moses was instru ...

and the choir.

Miracle of St Francis at San Damiano

According to Franciscan sources, a miracle in which Saint Francis' heard an exhortation from Christ occurred in 1205 in this church:Leggenda Maggiore di San Bonaventura da Bagnoregio
Translation by Simpliciano Olgiati, and notes by Feliciano Olgiati, in a website of ''Le Fonti Francescana'' of the Frati Minori dell'Umbria, Chapter 2, 1038.

One day out in the countryside to meditate. Finding himself near San Damiano, which threatened ruin, old as it was, driven by the impulse of the Holy Spirit, he entered to pray. Kneeling in prayer before the image of the Crucifix, he was invaded with a great spiritual consolation and, as he affixed his tearful eyes on the cross of the
Lord Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power (social and political), power over others, acting as a master, chief, or ruler. The appellation can also denote certain persons who hold a title of the Peerage o ...
, with the ears of his body he heard a voice descend to him from the cross and say three times ''Francis, go and repair my church which, as you see, is all in ruins!''. On hearing that voice, Francis remained astonished and trembling, being in the church alone and, perceiving in his heart the power of divine language, felt kidnapped of his senses. Finally returning to his senses, he girded himself to obey, concentrated everything on the mission to repair the church of walls, although the divine word was referring principally to the Church which Christ purchased by his blood, as the Holy Spirit had made him understand and how he later revealed to his fellow brothers.

Afterwards Saint Francis took action to physically repair the structure of the San Damiano church, although he eventually realized that God's message to him was to restore the entire Catholic Church as a whole body rather than literally repair one stone structure. The San Damiano cross which was said to speak to Francis currently hangs in the Basilica of Saint Clare in

Assisi Assisi (, also ; ; from ; Central Italian: ''Ascesi'') is a town and comune of Italy in the Province of Perugia in the Umbria region, on the western flank of Monte Subasio. It is generally regarded as the birthplace of the Latin poet Prope ...

. Other artworks in the church include a 14th-century ''Madonna with Child between Sts. Damian and Rufinus'' fresco, located in the apse.

Convent of Saint Clare

This convent became the home of Saint

Clare of Assisi Chiara Offreduccio (16 July 1194 – 11 August 1253), known as Clare of Assisi (sometimes spelled ''Clara'', ''Clair'' or ''Claire''; ), is an Italians, Italian saint who was one of the first followers of Francis of Assisi. Inspired by the te ...

and her followers in 1212.Every Pilgrim's Guide to Assisi and other Franciscan pilgrim places Judith Dean 2002 Work was carried out to provide buildings for this religious community. The Sisters stayed until Clare's death in 1253 when it was thought too dangerous to remain and it was exchanged with the Canons of San Rufino for the chapel of San Giorgio. The convent is open free of charge to the public. Downstairs off the cloister is the refectory in its original state. A fresco in the refectory recalls the visit of

Pope Gregory IX Pope Gregory IX (; born Ugolino di Conti; 1145 – 22 August 1241) was head of the Catholic Church and the ruler of the Papal States from 19 March 1227 until his death in 1241. He is known for issuing the '' Decretales'' and instituting the Pa ...

when he asked Clare to bless the loaves, which is said to have resulted in crosses appearing on the loaves. Upstairs is St. Clare's Oratory where the

Blessed Sacrament The Eucharist ( ; from , ), also called Holy Communion, the Blessed Sacrament or the Lord's Supper, is a Christian rite, considered a sacrament in most churches and an ordinance in others. Christians believe that the rite was instituted by J ...

was kept, and next to this is the dormitory. A cross marks the place where Clare died on 11 August 1253.

References

Sources

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External links

"Saint Francis of Assisi."
Encyclopædia Britannica Online. {{Coord, 43, 03, 42, N, 12, 37, 05, E, display=title, region:IT-PG_type:landmark_source:dewiki Damiano Romanesque architecture in Assisi 12th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy