page_title: Franciscans
section_title: Order of Friars Minor Capuchin
hierarchical_section_title: Franciscans / Contemporary organizations / First Order / Order of Friars Minor Capuchin
caption_attribution_description: Bernardino Ochino
context_page_description: The Franciscans are a group of related mendicant religious orders within the Catholic Church, founded in 1209 by Saint Francis of Assisi. These orders include the Order of Friars Minor, the Order of Saint Clare, and the Third Order of Saint Francis. They adhere to the teachings and spiritual disciplines of the founder and of his main associates and followers, such as Clare of Assisi, Anthony of Padua, and Elizabeth of Hungary, among many others.
  Francis began preaching around 1207 and traveled to Rome to seek approval from Pope Innocent III in 1209 to form a new religious order. The original Rule of Saint Francis approved by the Pope did not allow ownership of property, requiring members of the order to beg for food while preaching. The austerity was meant to emulate the life and ministry of Jesus Christ. Franciscans traveled and preached in the streets, while staying in church properties. Saint Clare, under Francis's guidance, founded the Poor Clares in 1212, which remains a Second Order of the Franciscans.
  The extreme poverty required of members was relaxed in the final revision of the Rule in 1223.
context_section_description: The Order of Friars Minor Capuchin are the youngest branch of Franciscans, founded in 1525 by Matteo Serafini (Matteo Bassi, Matteo da Bascio), an Observant friar, who felt himself called to an even stricter observance of Franciscan austerity. With the support of the Papal Court, the new branch received early recognition and grew fast, first in Italy and after 1574 all over Europe and throughout the world. The Capuchins eventually became a separate order in 1619. The name Capuchins refers to the particular shape of the long hood or capuce; originally a popular nickname, it has become a part of the official name of the order. The order which now exists in 106 countries all over the world, with around 10,500 brothers living in more than 1700 communities known as fraternities or friaries.
caption: Bernardino Ochino (1487–1564), co-founder of the Capuchin Order
exif: {}