Italy Reinstates St Francis of Assisi Day as a National Holiday
St Francis of Assisi Day will return as an Italian holiday in 2026.
The national day dedicated to the nation’s saint was axed in 1977 as part of broader loan approval conditions set by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
According to The New York Times (NYT), the IMF “demanded” a severe austerity program as collateral for $530 million Italy needed to stimulate its industry.
Catholic News Agency (CNA) heralded the day’s 2026 resurrection with enthusiasm.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni visited Assisi yesterday for the Feast of Saint Francis and has received praise for a speech on the message of the great saint for our world today pic.twitter.com/KFXyDweTUz
— Catholic Arena (@CatholicArena) October 5, 2025
Citing Cardinal Matteo Maria Zuppi, president of the Italian Bishops’ Conference, they said,
“The decision offers an opportunity to rediscover the figure of the patron saint of Italy, who has profoundly shaped the character of the country.”
“This is even more so in this time, torn by divisions, growing international tensions, and a dramatic escalation of global violence,” Zuppi added.
Speaking from St Francis’ example, Zuppi remarked that Francis’ main goal was “to proclaim peace.”
He reminds us that a “fraternity and an unarmed world where everyone has their own space” is achievable.
“Starting with the poorest and most vulnerable,” Zuppi continued.
“Francis of Assisi still encourages us today to be authentic Christians wherever we may be in the world,” he said.
Italian Identity
In a 12-minute speech about the importance of remembrance, Giorgia Meloni also welcomed the decision.
The fiercely spirited Italian Prime Minister marked the date during a visit to Assisi.
Meloni said this was her first time celebrating the life of Saint Francis, although she had been to Assisi many times.
Calling the visit an honour, Meloni said she understood “how deeply rooted this occasion is in the heart of the Italian people.
“Today, the Italian people turn their gaze here, to the Poor Man of Assisi, “the most amiable, the most poetic, and the most Italian of our saints.”
Uniquely Italian and distinctly Christian, Meloni said,
“St Francis is one of the founding figures of Italian identity, perhaps the most important one.
“His message of peace, brotherhood, and love for creation resonates more than ever in a world marked by conflicts and divisions.”
The life of this medieval Italian Christian hero reminds us that “true strength lies in humility.”
St Francis’ example reminds us that strength rests “in the ability to listen, and in the courage to build bridges instead of walls,” she asserted.
Adding to this, Meloni called his “example a light of hope in these difficult times.”
“It teaches us that even in the darkest moments, it is possible to find the light, to sow seeds of peace, and to work for a better future.”
“The message of Saint Francis is universal, but it is also profoundly Italian,” Meloni said.
“In celebrating him, we renew our commitment to these values, to build a society that is more just, more united, and more humane.”
Meloni’s remarks were part of the 4 October Catholic feast day of St Francis.
This year, the celebration coincided with the decision to reinstate the date as a national holiday.
As per Reuters, the “holiday will join Italy’s 12 existing national celebrations, including April 25 Liberation Day and June 2 Republic Day.”
Faith-Filled Friar
There is, G.K. Chesterton wrote in 1923, a great deal to be said about St Francis of Assisi.
The man who “tried to end the Crusades by walking into a Muslim camp to talk to the Sultan. The man who also interceded with the Emperor for the birds.”
Neither, Chesterton added, will we be able to understand the “story of the man presented as a Mirror of Christ without understanding his final phase as a Man of Sorrows.”
He was a fighter, troubadour, and prisoner of war, who eventually “abandoned the military for monastic life.”
For instance, “his conversion involved being thrown from a warhorse. There was not a rag of him left that was not ridiculous.”
Assisi “plunged after poverty as men have dug madly for gold. He wasn’t a lover of nature. He was a realist,” who saw nature reaching for its Creator.
Men like him, Chesterton recounted, “are not common in any age.”
“The difference between Jesus Christ and Saint Francis is the difference between the Creator and its creature.”
“Certainly,” Chesterton concluded, “no creature was ever so conscious of that colossal contrast as Saint Francis himself.”
___
Image courtesy of Adobe.
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the IMF is I’m certain as is the World bank and the UN all run from the Vatican really .The only church with a permanent FREE guest seat at the UN is the VATICAN .No one else gets that .
The wef Catholic Soros led ,always receives written instructions from the Pope before each meeting outlining exactly what he wants the outcome to be .
You need to understand the basics first .The Pope is a the moral authority for rule of law ,over the world .Get the point.
He is also Post Master General of the World .
He is King of Kings .All of them By rule of LAW . It’s not little sentimental nonsense .It’s the Law .
It’s all the Church ,being the Catholic is Universal Church as the only true church in the universe and the Crown ,held in the tower of London by the private owners of the corporation trading as the City of London .
They rule the whole world .They run the psyop that is their theatre of operations
In the city ,that is divided into three, are the Inns , the three inns wherein is the Temple Bar .That’s where all bar societies are run from .It’s the only privately owned parcel of land in the City .It belonged ,or belongs ,to the Templars The Catholic knights fhaf led the crusades ,created banking as we know it and established Switzerland .As it is today .The Vatican’s sister state ,with the same square flag .
They use red and white to symbolise the royal houses of Egypt The flag represents the Great pyramid ,with its eight sides .The symbol of the City is the Dragon statue there .
The octagonal Great pyramid is symbolised wherever you see the symbol of eight ,even when people use the octopus.
Eg Chicago’s cops caps or New York’s or both etcetera etcetera .
In Egyptology the munbers 4 and 3 are used in buildings architecture signs The 4 sides of the triangle as in Freemasonry s builders tools .
You will see 4 and 3 become 7 like Oct the 7th .
Everything goes back to Rome conquering Egypt .Egypt and Rome were not Christian or Jews. Egypt enslaved the Jews .Rome crucified them Rome slaughtered Christians Fed them to the Lion King of the jungle for fun .
Well worth having a holiday for, in my opinion.
All the historic evidence points to the fact that St Francis was a lover of God and of God’s creation.
and prisoners have their own space And they talking amongst themselves refer to communities as cells .That’s their lingo In private .That’s the intentions of community ,ie, communist values .
Everyone on their own space ,where they belong in virtual reality actually is the long term plan Transhumans locked into virtual reality or cells .