Born of a rich cloth merchant in Italy in 1182, Francis abandoned his patrimony and  took to a life of renunciation and service at the age of 24. Simplicity and joy  marked  his life. The  poor  and  the down-trodden, lepers  and the destitutes attracted him most. Animals and plants also received his love and affection. He would speak of the mother earth, the brother sun and the sister moon. A wolf that attacked a village was addressed by him as brother and it became a friend of the people who later fed it regularly. The birds of the air and the fish of the sea found in him a loving friend to play with. His love for plants and trees too was unusual. He has become the world patron for ecology and wild life.

Thousands followed his life style of simplicity and service. As he died at the age of 44 (1226) there were 10,000 Franciscan religious men and 8 convents of sisters. Thousands of laymen also followed his inspiration, grouping themselves as  the 3rd Order of St. Francis. Today his followers, the Franciscans all over the world, go into lakhs. Imitation of St. Francis has produced hundreds of other saints.

The dust jacket of THE FRANCIS BOOK, a major anthology published for the Centenary Year of St. Francis has the following: "Rembrandt painted him, Zeffirelli filmed him, Chesterton eulogized him, Lenin died with  his name on his lips, Toynbee compared him to Jesus and Buddha, Kerouac picked him as the patron of the Beat Generation, Sir Kenneth Clark called him Europe's greatest religious genius. Merchants and revolutionaries, religious leaders and hippies, writers and film makers all turn to him for inspiration and a glimpse of a better life. The Francis phenomenon grows and cross­ fertilizes the earth's culture..."

Many historians trace the origins of Renaissance, modern poetry, art and drama to St. Francis. His poems, especially the "Canticle of the Creatures"  are famous.

He was a great peace maker between warring factions and townships in Italy. During the Crusades, he went unarmed to the Sultan of Egypt for peace talks. His prayer for peace is still popular all over the world. It is his prayer "Lord make me an instrument of peace..." which Mother Teresa made her own.

St. Francis is one of the most popular Saints in India not only among Christians but among all peoples. Members of the religious congregations founded by him are engaged in service activities in most states of India. It is his inspiration and life example that sustain them. They number 1198 priests and 11,242 sisters.

It is hoped that the stamp being issued in honour of this ecologist, philanthropist and peace maker of world fame would inspire our country-men and women to love their fellow beings and sympathise with nature.

Indian Posts and Telegraphs Department is privileged to issue a commemorative stamp on St. Francis of Assisi on the occasion of his 800th birth anniversary.

Source : Information Folder issued by Indian Posts & Telegraph Department, Government of India