Editing Pope Innocent III (section)

===Francis of Assisi===
In 1209, [[Francis of Assisi]] led his first eleven followers to Rome to seek permission from Pope Innocent III to found a new religious order which was ultimately granted.<ref name="chest107">St. Francis of Assisi by G.K. Chesterton (1924), pp.&nbsp;107–108</ref> Upon entry to Rome, the brothers encountered Bishop [[Guido of Assisi]], who had in his company [[Giovanni di San Paolo]], the [[Cardinal-Bishop of Sabina]]. The cardinal, who was the confessor of Pope Innocent III, was immediately sympathetic to Francis and agreed to represent Francis to the pope. Reluctantly, Pope Innocent agreed to meet with Francis and the brothers the next day. After several days, the pope agreed to admit the group informally, adding that when God increased the group in grace and number, they could return for an official admittance. The group was [[tonsure|tonsured]].<ref name="Francis of Assisi and His World">Galli (2002), pp.&nbsp;74–80</ref> This was important in part because it recognized Church authority and protected his followers from possible accusations of heresy, as had happened to the [[Waldensians]] decades earlier. Though Pope Innocent initially had his doubts, following a dream in which he saw Francis holding up the [[Basilica of St. John Lateran]] (the [[cathedral]] of Rome, thus the 'home church' of all Christendom), he decided to endorse Francis's order. This occurred, according to tradition, on 16 April 1210, and constituted the official founding of the [[Franciscan Order]]. The group, then the "Lesser Brothers" (''Order of Friars Minor'' also known as the ''Franciscan Order''), preached on the streets and had no possessions. They were centered in Porziuncola and preached first in Umbria, before expanding throughout Italy.<ref>[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/06221a.htm Robinson, Paschal. "St. Francis of Assisi." The Catholic Encyclopedia] Vol. 6. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1909. 16 December 2018</ref>