Portiuncula Indulgence The first written document we have regarding this indulgence is dated October 31, 1277, some sixty years after the indulgence is said to have been granted. As a result, many different accounts have come down to us purporting to relate the vision of St. Francis and the way in which the Pope consented to grant this indulgence. One time when Francis was kneeling in prayer before the image of Our Lady, he seemed to behold men and women from every corner of the world converging upon this obscure little chapel in the Umbrian forest. He had been praying for the forgiveness of the sins of mankind when suddenly the dark interior seemed illumined by the light of a million candles. Jesus and Mary appeared in the midst of a dazzling cloud of angels, and he heard a voice that fell like music on his soul, What do you wish me to do to help poor sinners? Francis hardly knew how to answer, but suddenly the words came tumbling out and he asked the Lord to grant a full pardon to all who came to visit the church of Portiuncula and made a good confession. It then seemed that Jesus was in favor of this. He turned smilingly to His Mother and she, in turn, nodded to St. Francis and smiled. Typical of the saints impetuosity and generosity of soul, he marched off to see the Pope and beg from him the coveted indulgence. The reigning Holy Father, Honorius III, was literally dumbfounded at the request to grant such a generous indulgence. At that time, the summer of 1216, plenary indulgences were rarely granted by the Church. The plenary indulgences that had been granted were given to those fighting men who took up the cross and the sword and went as crusaders to the Holy Land. Later, this hard won indulgence was extended to those who remained at home but helped the Crusaders in supplying men and alms. Francis, however, was not to be refused. The Lord Himself had promised him, and the Roman Curia was bound to relent! The Pope finally yielded and left it to the astonished cardinals to limit the application of the new indulgence. The date set was from vespers of the first of August until sundown on the second. It is said that Francis chose this date because the feast of the Chains of St. Peter (his release from prison) is celebrated on the first of August, and Francis felt that sinners should also be freed from the chains of their sins on the day following this great feast. Furthermore, this date was the anniversary of the consecration of the Portiuncula chapel. As Francis took his leave of the Holy Father, after obtaining the unprecedented privilege, the Pope is said to have asked if he did not wish some document to prove that his request had been officially granted. With characteristic Franciscan lightheartedness came the saints reply: I need nothing more than your word. Our Lady is the parchment, Christ the notary, and the angels our witnesses! When the first great August first arrived, seven bishops gathered in the little chapel of Our Lady of the Angels to dedicate it as Our Lady of the Angels of the Portiuncula. And St. Francis, overjoyed, cried out to the crowd that overflowed the narrow building, I want to make all of you go to heaven! But at the time there seemed something almost scandalous in this indulgence, and conservative prelates did little to make it known. In St. Francis own lifetime the Portiuncula Indulgence was enjoyed by comparatively few Christians. Travel and communications were slow, and not even such good news as a plenary indulgence could travel swiftly over the mud-choked trails that passed for roads in thirteenth-century Europe. Later, of course, the indulgence was extended to all Franciscan churches on August first and second. CONDITIONS TO OBTAIN THE PLENARY INDULGENCE OF THE FORGIVENESS OF ASSISI (for oneself or for a departed soul) * Sacramental Confession to be in Gods grace (during the eight days before or after); * Participation in the Holy Mass and Eucharist. * Visit to a Catholic Church, followed by PROFESSION OF FAITH, in order to reaffirm ones own Christian identity; * Say the OUR FATHER, in order to reaffirm the dignity as child of God that one received in Baptism; * A prayer for the Popes intention, in order to reaffirm ones membership in the Church, of which the Roman Pontiff is the foundation and sign of visible unity.
Posted on: Sat, 02 Aug 2014 04:06:05 +0000
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