When going to Assisi, many people miss the Porziuncola.
In fact, the University of Dallas skipped over it most trips to Assisi in institutional memory.
But Ron thinks it is the most important stop in Assisi for one who is making a Catholic pilgrimage. He has never missed it in any trip he has made there, and has taken every student to pass through Rome on his watch there.
The Porziuncola ("little portion") is the very chapel that Francis rebuilt with his own hands when he heard Christ say, "Francis, rebuild my church." This was a bit of a misunderstanding on Francis' part! He thought Christ meant a physical church, when Francis went on to rebuild the Catholic Church which was in its own state of spiritual dilapidation.
With his example, modeling for us how to imitate Christ, Francis rebuilt the Catholic Church. We still benefit today from his salacious impact on Christianity.
On this visit I saw things I had never seen before: the room where Francis slept, a garden, and a museum which I did not have the time to enter (but will hit next time for sure--I hear there is a Pisano Crucifix in there). I saw this lovely ceramic-tile image of the Annunciation.
And the bookstore had these handmade leather books--so beautiful! We got Sebastian a journal and dreamed of getting a Bible here someday.
St. Francis and St. Clare, pray for us!
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