Today is August 11, the Memorial of St. Clare, Virgin.
We read at today’s Mass, “Moses said to the people: ‘And now, Israel, what does the LORD, your God, ask of you but to fear the LORD, your God, and follow his ways exactly, to love and serve the LORD, your God, with all your heart and all your soul, to keep the commandments and statutes of the LORD which I enjoin on you today for your own good?'” (Dt 10:12-13)
Today Deuteronomy poses a bold and beautiful question: “What does the Lord ask of you?” Moses answers: to love, to serve, to follow and to fear the Lord not out of dread, but out of reverence and devotion.
But how do we actually do this? How do we respond to such a high call every day?
St. Clare gives us an answer in one of her letters to her spiritual daughter, Sister Agnes of Prague. In it, she offers a striking image for the spiritual life: the mirror of Christ.
She writes, “Look upon that mirror each day, O Queen and spouse of Jesus Christ, and continually study your face within it, so that you may adorn yourself within and without with beautiful robes and cover yourself with the flowers and garments of all the virtues.”
Transformed by grace
The mirror Clare speaks of is Christ himself, especially Christ crucified, the perfect reflection of the Father’s glory. She draws from Scripture (Hebrews 1:3, Wisdom 7:26) where Christ is called the brilliance of eternal light, the spotless mirror of God’s majesty. And she urges us to see ourselves in that mirror — not just to admire it, but to examine our hearts by it.
In the mirror of Christ, we see clearly the virtues we are called to: poverty, humility and charity.
These were the pillars of St. Clare’s life as a contemplative nun, but they are meant for every Christian. Gazing into this mirror isn’t always easy; it requires honesty, courage and humility. But Clare reminds us that what we see reflected are not things we must fix alone. These are the very places where God desires to work, to heal and to transform us by his grace.
So today, let’s pray for the courage to look into that mirror not with fear, but with trust. Christ reveals not our failures, but the path to our transformation. Let us be unafraid to see, because he is ready to remake us in his image.
Let us pray,
O God, who in your mercy led Saint Clare to a love of poverty, grant, through her intercession, that, following Christ in poverty of spirit, we may merit to contemplate you one day in the heavenly Kingdom. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. Amen.
