Peace Prayer of Saint Francis of Assisi

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace: 

where there is hatred, let me sow love; 

where there is injury, pardon; 

where there is doubt, faith; 

where there is despair, hope; 

where there is darkness, light; 

where there is sadness, joy. 

O divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console, 

to be understood as to understand, 

to be loved as to love. 

For it is in giving that we receive,

it is in pardoning that we are pardoned, 

and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. 

Amen.

Pope Leo XIV has declared 2026 a “Special Year of St Francis”, honouring the 800th anniversary of the death of St Francis of Assisi. The jubilee year was inaugurated on January 10 with a decree issued by the Apostolic Penitentiary of the Holy See, and will run until January 10, 2027.

The decree asked that every Christian, “following the example of the Saint of Assisi, may himself become a model of holiness of life and a constant witness of peace.” Pope Leo XIV said the example of St Francis was needed now more than ever. “In this age, marked by so many seemingly interminable wars, by internal and social divisions that create mistrust and fear, he continues to speak. Not because he offers technical solutions, but because his life points to the authentic source of peace,” the pope wrote.

St Francis of Assisi was born in 1181 and following a life of extravagance as a young man, he lived a life of poverty and founded the Order of Friars Minor, know more commonly as the Franciscans, as many people followed his example. His spirituality has inspired the creation of many other religious orders throughout the centuries and he remains one of the most influential saints in the life of the Church.

He died on Saturday, 3 October 1226 and was declared a saint just two years later. His body was buried in the Basilica of St Francis which was built shortly after his death.