Rivotorto
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Rivotorto
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| History of the Church
This neo-Gothic church was named after the stream of "Rivotorto" that flows along its left-hand side. It was built in 1854 following the disastrous earthquake that demolished the previous sixteenth-century church and it was constructed to protect the Sacro Tugurio – the hovel that was the birthplace of the Franciscan order. Francis and his first companions in faith stayed here (1209-1211) and it thus marks an important step in the life of the saint. In fact, this is where he dictated the First Rule, which was approved orally by Pope Innocent III, and it is the place where he first started calling his disciples the Friars Minor. After establishing the first Franciscan community, Francis began the practice of inner and exterior mortification of his brothers, exhorting them to follow a life of prayer, meditation and manual labour. |
Several miraculous events also took place at this time, such as his apparition to his companions on a resplendent chariot that was carrying the saint. His brothers saw him circle around the hovel three times, although at that very moment the Poor One was preaching at the Assisi cathedral. There is an inscription over the door stating that the Order of the Friars Minor arose there. |
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