Franciscans

The Franciscans are a group of related <a href="/facts/Mendicant_orders/Y0ka8G4z">mendicant</a> <a href="/facts/Religious_order_(Catholic)/UH3Wyh7a">religious orders</a> of the <a href="/facts/Catholic_Church/rJ4F4gqH">Catholic Church</a>. Founded in 1209 by the Italian saint <a href="/facts/Francis_of_Assisi/0bLfzd26">Francis of Assisi</a>, these orders include three independent orders for men (the <a href="/facts/Order_of_Friars_Minor/ezz1tGVz">Order of Friars Minor</a> being the largest contemporary male order), an order for <a href="/facts/Nun/3mQbmbHv">nuns</a> known as the <a href="/facts/Order_of_Saint_Clare/ApUyH1g3">Order of Saint Clare</a>, and the <a href="/facts/Third_Order_of_Saint_Francis/JCeJMDxo">Third Order of Saint Francis</a> open to male and female members. They adhere to the teachings and spiritual disciplines of the founder and of his main associates and followers, such as <a href="/facts/Clare_of_Assisi/z4W4DSut">Clare of Assisi</a>, <a href="/facts/Anthony_of_Padua/yvbBN8Vn">Anthony of Padua</a>, and <a href="/facts/Elizabeth_of_Hungary/Xklvt7RF">Elizabeth of Hungary</a>. Several smaller <a href="/facts/Franciscan_spirituality_in_Protestantism/KUI07snm">Protestant Franciscan</a> orders have been established since the late 19th century as well, particularly in the <a href="/facts/Lutheranism/L4pMlRcS">Lutheran</a> and <a href="/facts/Anglicanism/CDICRNVn">Anglican</a> traditions. Certain Franciscan communities are <a href="/facts/Ecumenism/1Yyzv1zM">ecumenical</a> in nature, having members who belong to several <a href="/facts/Christian_denomination/rRQgoQd8">Christian denominations</a>.
Francis began preaching around 1207 and traveled to <a href="/facts/Rome/bh1Ttx3T">Rome</a> to seek approval from <a href="/facts/Pope_Innocent_III/GrWh740f">Pope Innocent III</a> in 1209 to form a religious order. The original <a href="/facts/Rule_of_Saint_Francis/mwaXjEU5">Rule of Saint Francis</a> approved by the pope did not allow ownership of property, requiring members of the order to beg for food while preaching. The austerity was meant to emulate the life and ministry of <a href="/facts/Jesus_Christ/1q0H0m4n">Jesus Christ</a>. Franciscans traveled and preached in the streets, while staying in church properties. Clare, under Francis's guidance, founded the Poor Clares (Order of Saint Clare) of the Franciscans.
The extreme poverty required of members was relaxed in the final revision of the rule in 1223. The degree of observance required of members remained a major source of conflict within the order, resulting in numerous secessions. The Order of Friars Minor, previously known as the "Observant" branch, is one of the three Franciscan <a href="/facts/Religious_institute/tLQAsGhj">First Orders</a> within the Catholic Church, the others being the "<a href="/facts/Order_of_Friars_Minor_Conventual/lgTUFCbl">Conventuals</a>" (formed 1517) and "<a href="/facts/Order_of_Friars_Minor_Capuchin/SKFb6KU4">Capuchins</a>" (1520). The Order of Friars Minor in its current form is the result of an amalgamation of several smaller orders completed in 1897 by <a href="/facts/Pope_Leo_XIII/bdovwR3o">Pope Leo XIII</a>. The Capuchins and Conventuals remain distinct <a href="/facts/Religious_institute/tLQAsGhj">religious institutes</a> within the Catholic Church, observing the Rule of Saint Francis with different emphases. Conventual Franciscans are sometimes referred to as minorites or greyfriars because of their <a href="/facts/Religious_habit/rm1qb45V">habit</a>. In Poland and Lithuania they are known as <a href="/facts/Bernardines_(Franciscans)/SxBLJBzV">Bernardines</a>, after <a href="/facts/Bernardino_of_Siena/lPxQQoWF">Bernardino of Siena</a>, although the term elsewhere refers to <a href="/facts/Cistercians/dQPQRWTg">Cistercians</a> instead.

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Franciscans