Section guide: [ God ] [ Jesus ] [ St. Francis of Assisi ] [ Padre Pio ] Saint Francis of Assisi My God and my all Known as "Il Poverello" -- the little poor man -- St. Francis of Assisi demonstrated more than anyone since Christ the spiritual riches to be gained from a life of complete self-abnegation.
Francis was born into a wealthy home, and like many sons and daughters of the middle class who feel called to religion, he met strident opposition from his own family. His father went so far as to lock him in the family dungeon when Francis began giving away his own (and his father's) goods. Fortunately for history, Francis' mother understood his heart better than her husband did, and she bravely let him go to follow God. St. Clare, the first female disciple of Francis, and her sister Agnes, were also pursued in a storm-trooper manner by their male relatives when they embraced the life of humility and poverty. It is a great testimony to their strength of spirit -- and God's protection -- that they were able to resist the onslaught of their enraged families. Francis is popularly remembered as the man who preached to the birds, and is often thought of as a hippie saint, or the first ecologist. However, Francis' concern went well beyond the welfare of animals. He was a dutiful son of the Church, an ardent lover of Christ, and the faithful spouse of his beloved Lady Poverty. With his flair for the dramatic it seems he created the first Nativity scene at Christmas in order to bring the story to life for a populace that could not read the Bible. He traveled as a peacemaker to the Holy Land as a Crusader for God, and found, like St. Joan after him, that the so-called Christian soldiers were as much in need of spiritual transformation as the "infidel" they battled. Many legends surround the life of this holiest of men, many of which are doubtless true at their core, at least (read about the Wolf of Gubbio for a sampling). We do know that St. Francis was the first recipient of the wounds of Christ, the stigmata, perhaps as a result of his perfect union with Jesus. By his own request, when he was dying, Francis was stretched out naked on the cold stone floor. His spirit finally departed as he listened to the words of his own Canticle of the Sun being sung: All praise be yours, my Lord, through Sister Death,
From whose embrace no mortal can escape.
Woe to those who die in mortal sin!
Happy those she finds doing your will!
The second death can do no harm to them.
Praise and bless my Lord, and give him Thanks,
And serve him with great humility.
Francis left us some poems and prayers of great beauty. Perhaps this is his most famous: Lord, make me an instrument of Thy peace;
Where there is hatred, let me sow charity;
Where there is injury, pardon;
Where there is error, truth;
Where there is doubt, faith;
Where there is despair, hope;
Where there is darkness, light; and
Where there is sadness, joy. O, Divine Master,
Grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled, as to console;
To be understood as to understand;
To be loved as to love;
For it is in giving that we receive;
It is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
And it is in dying to ourselves that we are born to eternal life. Amen.
Recommended links:The Society of Saint Francis - an Anglican order of Franciscans in America Franciscans International St. Francis of Assisi - a short biography D-I-Y Franciscan Animal Blessing - bless your pets and garden visitors! Our Work Today - some of the good works Franciscans are inspired to do
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