Monastery of Poor Clares marks 800 years

Nestled in the hillside at Tewatte, Ragama is the Monastery of Poor Clares which houses a small community of contemplative nuns. Theirs is a life of prayer, penance and sacrifice based on the teachings of Jesus which were followed by St. Francis of Assisi and St. Clare, founder of the Poor Clare Order. They depend purely on Divine Providence for their basic needs and spend their time communing with God, seeking his love and will.

In the eyes of today’s world it can seem rather strange but in the wisdom of Jesus Christ, it is called Faith and Trust in God doing his will. The Poor Clare community at Tewatte, operating for nearly 60 years, is founded on these teachings. On August 11, they celebrate 800 years of their order.

The order began after Francis, a wealthy young man from an Italian merchant’s family gave up all his wealth and dedicated his life to serving Christ.

A few of his friends followed him and they began to be known as ‘Franciscan’ friars. In 1212, a wealthy 18-year-old inspired by these teachings decided to forsake all her wealth and serve God too. Kneeling at the altar at San Damiano, she allowed St. Francis to cut her hair as a symbol of giving up her worldly pleasures and said, “Here I am Lord, I come to do your will’. Eight hundred years after, the order founded by St. Clare lives on.

George Abeywickrema