That World Environment Day and the Feast Day of St. Boniface, an axe-wielding, tree-chopping Christian saint, fall on the same date seems strangely -- and sadly -- ironic.

Everyone wants peace, Francis, but they do not know the source of this peace. You must teach them. Real peace comes only from a peaceful heart! And a peaceful heart comes from finding so much God inside that there is no room for anything else but peace.

Just as God's Spirit surprised Saint Peter by leading him to the Gentiles and showing him that they too can be God's people, so too perhaps God's Spirit is gently nudging Pope Francis, the Catholic Church and indeed all of us to be similarly surprised by the Other.

Clare, Lady Poverty has found a home in your simplicity. May you be held and protected in your golden silence. May your meditation touch the world. Mother Church needs you!

Though I'm not a Catholic, I'm always genuinely inspired by followers of Christ who try to live lives of true humility and true right-sizedness. I hope, for both the sake of his church and the church universal, that Pope Francis lives into the name he has chosen for himself.

The key to achieving the reform so desperately needed by both Catholic and Protestant churches was right under Pope Francis' nose the moment he stepped out on the Vatican balcony. Clues can be found in a cloud of pink smoke and in the legacy of his patron saint, Francis of Assisi.

In my reading this week I came across a fascinating story about St. Francis that speaks deeply to that last commitment to work toward the repair of an ailing church. This story is a challenge for us all.

Francis of Assisi is among the most beloved saints of the Church. In taking the name Francis, the new pope has signaled to the world something of his intentions for his papacy.

Imagine what could happen if Pope Francis truly follows in the footsteps of his namesake. Imagine a more peaceful world that respects religious difference. I believe it can happen.

St. Francis' whole program of the "Gospel Life," was about the renunciation of power that placed barriers between him and others, him and God, and him and the rest of creation. Pope Francis seems to understand the significance of his name.

In a moment of silence at St. Peter's, we saw something we don't see much on the world stage: authentic humility. That's the essence of our faith, and that's what will renew our Church.

St. Francis, like no one before or since, captured the essence of what it meant to follow the example of Jesus Christ. Jesus commanded and St. Francis, more than any other human being, attempted to fulfill his simple yet unachievable demand.

When the now familiar face of the Cardinal from Buenos Aires appeared I found myself shouting at the screen: "who is that?" And soon we knew: Pope Francis, potentially the most transformative pope the church has seen in 50 years.

By Omar Sacirbey Religion News Service (RNS) Just as many Catholics have connected Pope Francis' humility and austere lifestyle with that of St. F...

Pope Francis could use the choice of his name to recall the message of St. Francis' teaching on the holiness of self-chosen poverty, not just for individuals but especially for the church which claims to represent the message of Jesus himself.

Saint Francis and Sultan al Malik found something special from God in each other that changed their worlds for the better. In their memory, I wish Pope Francis all the best, and all the blessings God can give him in his life and his service.

It feels once again that a pope is about to let fresh air run through every aspect of the Church. He may transform its grinding politics, financial imbroglios and leadership vacuum. He has the ability to deal directly with the serious sins of the recent past and clean house. Let the wind blow!

Yesterday, he asked us to pray for him. And I did. I offered up my own version of the prayer of his namesake, St. Francis.

I always think about you at this time of sunset. It is during this hour that I put aside everything about the day which is not important and hold to my heart our inner path, the love we know.

Because we are still near the beginning of a new calendar year, it's not a bad thing to listen to Francis' wisdom and consider the ways in which we might better live out our Christian lives in a spirit of humility.

Our over-familiarity with the nativity story can make us just as blind to the inherent meaning it contains. The result is often nativity scenes that bear little resemblance to the powerful events they attempt to represent.

When I read Cardinal Dolan's budget deficit message, I wept for St. Francis. Cardinal Dolan has domesticated this great Saint, tamed this wild man, reduced him from a radical, destabilizing force of nature into the patron saint of household pets.

ASSISI, Italy (RNS) When some 550 religious and humanitarian leaders gathered in this Umbrian hill town last month to promote the causes of love and f...

The "Prayer of St. Francis" offers us is a chance to pause, pray and reflect on who it is that we are and what it is that we are created to do. As we mark this day in honor of the great peacemaker, lover of all creation, and icon of holiness from Assisi, may the prayer show us a way to live.