Invest in Saint Francis Statues and Usher Holiness to the Garden

One of the most popular saints known to us, Saint Francis of Assisi abandoned a life of luxury and devoted himself to a life filled with poverty after hearing a voice that he believed was that of God’s, who told him to rebuild the Christian church. He was born in 1171 in Assisi and had spent most of his childhood years in wealth. It was in his 20s that he began turning his focus towards God. During this time, he would spend a huge amount of his time at a remote mountain hideaway and in old churches around Assisi. It was in the church of San Damiano that Saint Francis had heard the voice of Christ telling him to rebuild the church and abandon his life of luxury to one of poverty. The voice of God changed him and Saint Francis began to preach around Assisi where he was joined by 12 loyal followers. He was seen as a mad man by some people but his work soon became well-known throughout the Christian world. After severing ties with his father, he declared that God was the only father he had and left Assisi with the tunic given to him by the bishop. Experts have claimed that this is the final conversion for Saint Francis and there is no record he ever returned to his family in Assisi. Once he left Assisi, Saint Francis set out on a mission to restore Jesus Christ's own, original values to the now-decadent church. He was able to draw thousands of followers with his sermons and those who joined him became known as Franciscan friars. As time passed, Saint Francis taught a new kind of Christian religion that everyday people could follow and he also began to preach to animals which soon earned him a nickname as “God’s fool”. Though he was laughed at and criticized often, Saint Francis drew crowds of loyal followers who were simply captivated by his sermons.

In 1224, Saint Francis reportedly received a vision that left him with the stigmata of Christ and he had wounds on both his hands and the same gaping lance wound that Jesus suffered when he was crucified. There were some who thought that these wounds were signs of leprosy Saint Francis had gotten when he was attending to lepers. As time went on, Saint Francis became ill and his health began to decline rapidly. He made a decision to return to Assisi with escorts given by knights who guarded him to make sure he was not carried away by people eager to gain good luck, as some believed his body and the saintliness he brought forth, would bring them fortune and prosperity. People believed Saint Francis would become a saint and this means his body would be an extremely valuable relic that would bring, among many things, glory to the town where it rested.

Saint Francis died on October 3, 1226 at the age of 44 in Assisi, Italy but he left a lasting impression with millions of followers all across the world. On July 16, 1228, he was canonized as a saint just two years after his death by Pope Gregory IX. In 2013, Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio chose to honor Saint Francis by taking his name, becoming Pope Francis and the head of the Catholic Church.

Please visit our Catholic Saint statues catalog to discover a wide selection of Saint Francis marble and granite statues in many varied and peaceful styles. We even have our popular life size Saint Francis bronze statues where the Saint is surrounded by the animals which know and love him. These Saint Francis statues are reproductions based on European statues and are inspiring sculptures to add to a church, school, monastery or cemetery. Please email us at tion_art@yahoo.com for any information you may need on our Saint Francis statues. We thrive on bringing you only the best Saint Francis statues and sculptures you can find and thank you for your continued patronage at TimelessBronze.com.