Consider the Poverty, Humility and Charity of Christ
A short reflection on the Feast of Saint Clare
Saint Clare once wrote to Blessed Agnes of Prague:
Happy the soul to whom it is given to attain this life with Christ, to cleave with all one’s heart to him whose beauty all the heavenly hosts behold forever, whose love inflames our love, the contemplation of whom is our refreshment, whose graciousness is our delight, whose gentleness fills us to overflowing, whose remembrance makes us glow with happiness, whose fragrance revives the dead, the glorious vision of whom will be the happiness of all the citizens of the heavenly Jerusalem. For he is the brightness of eternal glory, the splendour of eternal light, the mirror without spot.
Christ is Truth Itself, Love Itself, and Beauty Itself. Christ is the Source of all Happiness. He is also the Mirror of Contemplation into which the human soul must gaze in order to acquire virtue and grow in holiness.
God is present in our souls by nature and by grace. We need to recollect ourselves continually in God’s presence through the bodily humanity of Christ.
Even in the highest stage of prayer, the humanity of Christ is constantly the object of our contemplation. We ought never to abandon the humanity of Christ, and we should habitually imagine him present with us bodily as a friend.
We ought to meditate constantly on the mysteries of his life and passion as much as possible. Why? Because He enables us to see and judge things clearly. He enables us to see ourselves as we really are.
In the film “The Most Reluctant Convert,” C. S. Lewis gazes into the mirror in his room and sees himself as he really is—because he is looking at himself through Christ. It can be a shocking and unpleasant experience to see yourself and all the goods of the world in the light of Christ.
The universal means of sanctification are poverty, chastity, and obedience. These must be pursued at least spiritually even by those who live in the secular state of life.
They are very valuable goods, and Christ enables us to see and judge their value correctly.
In Christ, the one true Good, we see the true value of all things, and we see ourselves as we were meant to be.
Regardless of our sins and faults, we can enjoy daily intimacy with God through friendship with Christ because He is the divine Mirror and perfect Image of God.
And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being changed into his likeness from one degree of glory to another; for this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit. 2 Corinthians 3:18 RSV
Christ is the standard and the way to perfection. We can reach it only by his grace. It requires daily discipline and contemplation, which free us from ourselves and give us happiness and holiness.
Let us pray for one another. St Clare, pray for us.
© 2026, Lawain McNeil, Mission Surrender, LLC.