In a wealthy Asian city, a play asks why St. Clare of Assisi chose to own nothing
The play “TO GAZE: St. Clare of Assisi” was performed Oct. 16–17 at the Church of St. Mary of the Angels in western Singapore. Written and directed by Sharda Harrison, who plays Clare, the production also features Franciscan friar Fra Rowland Yeo as St. Francis; proceeds support the Franciscan friars’ development office. Presented by CANA and Saint Max, the play formed part of celebrations marking 800 years since St. Francis of Assisi’s death. The production uses modern references, including an audience vote on Clare’s suitors, to explore her choice to leave wealth and devote herself to Christ.
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A Singapore production of TO GAZE: St. Clare of Assisi used the saint’s decision to renounce wealth to explore her vocation and commitment to poverty. Presented at a Franciscan parish during the Jubilee Year marking 800 years since St. Francis of Assisi’s death, the play ran Oct. 16–17, 2026. 1 2
The performances took place at the Church of St. Mary of the Angels in Bukit Batok, western Singapore. The show was presented by CANA, a faith-based community and cultural hub, and Saint Max; its poster said proceeds would go to the Franciscan friars’ development office. 1 2
Sharda Harrison wrote and directed the play and portrayed Clare. Franciscan friar Fra Rowland Yeo played St. Francis, while Fra Michael D’Cruz welcomed the opening-night audience. The CANA organizer said Harrison was invited after writing and performing in a 2024 production about St. Thérèse of Lisieux. 1 2
The play begins with Clare describing her family’s wealth and the expectations placed on her. In one comic scene, prospective husbands appear on a screen, and Clare invites the audience to choose among them by “swiping” right or left. 1 2
It then depicts Clare’s encounter with Francis, her departure from her family home on Palm Sunday night, and the cutting of her hair. She tells her father, “I belong to Christ now,” and the production brings women from the audience into the story as Clare’s community of sisters grows. 1 2
Poverty is a central theme. The play recalls Clare’s mother, Ortolana, as someone who saw God in the poor, and presents Clare’s embrace of poverty as “the right to possess nothing.” The CANA organizer framed the question for audiences as why Clare saw poverty as a privilege and chose it so resolutely. 1 2
The title echoes Clare’s letters to Agnes of Prague, a princess who also gave up wealth to pursue a life of poverty. In his welcome, Fra Michael D’Cruz described Francis as “the voice” and Clare as “the quiet powerhouse of prayer”; near the play’s end, Clare reflects that her refusals led her to say yes to Christ and poverty. 1 2
The final performance coincided with the United Nations’ International Day for the Eradication of Poverty. The play’s account closes with Clare’s death in 1253 at San Damiano, near Assisi, where she had lived for about 40 years. 1 2
Voluntary poverty as Christian discipleship and critique of wealth
Voluntary poverty is a Christian way of following Christ: not a claim that material goods are evil, nor a romanticization of deprivation, but a free choice to loosen wealth’s hold, trust God, live simply, and share more generously. The Gospel’s challenge reaches every Christian, though its concrete expression differs by vocation and circumstance.
Christ’s poverty is the model. He entered human vulnerability and chose a poor, deprived condition, directing his disciples toward a wealth deeper than possessions: communion with God. The apostles’ leaving things behind expressed their participation in his life and mission.
This does not mean that every Christian must take a vow or give away everything. John Paul II describes the spirit of poverty as interior detachment that makes a person generous in sharing; its practical demands vary with a person’s circumstances and vocation. A religious vow of poverty is a particular, more radical form of this calling, not the sole form.
Nor is poverty the same as involuntary economic hardship. The latter can be painful and unjust; evangelical poverty is freely embraced as a way of depending on God and treating material goods as gifts meant for the good of all. Christian poverty should therefore move people toward solidarity with those who suffer—not indifference to their need.
The critique is not simply of owning or using goods, but of wealth becoming an idol: something that commands a person’s desires, priorities, and sense of security. John Paul II warns that the pursuit of riches can dominate life, while Vita Consecrata says that evangelical poverty challenges the idolatry of money and invites restraint in consumption and desire.
Wealth can also obstruct discipleship through greed, vanity, and excessive concern for possessions. The Catholic Encyclopedia—an older reference work—summarizes this danger using St. Thomas Aquinas’s account of how riches can hinder the pursuit of perfection. Its practical point is that detachment means refusing luxury and the anxious pursuit of more, not necessarily abolishing all ownership for every Christian.
Voluntary poverty also has a social dimension. Simpler living and reduced consumption can witness against excess, but the witness is incomplete if it stops at private restraint. Christian poverty is joined to active love for the poor and sharing with them; it should not become a spiritual excuse for ignoring material suffering or injustice.
Thus, the Christian question is not only, “How much do I possess?” but also, “What possesses my heart, and how are my resources serving others?” Poverty becomes discipleship when detachment from riches produces trust in God, freedom from excess, and concrete generosity.