, sacrifice and courage.” -St. Francis of Assisi (1182-1226).“Born in 1181-2, his father Pietro Bernadone being a cloth merchant. After being taken a prisoner of war at Perugia in 1202 and an attempt to fight in the papal army in 1206, he renounced his former wayward life and embraced a life of evangelical poverty. With his first twelve followers he received approval of his Order from Pope Innocent III in 1209. The final rule of his Order was approved by Pope Honorius III in 1223. In 1219 he visited Syria and the Holy Land. When he was half blind in 1225 he composed his famous Canticle of the Sun. He died in 1226 and was canonized two years later.” 1
If you are interested in learning more about St. Francis, read the wonderful book St. Francis of Assisi: The Little Flowers of Saint Francis, The Mirror of Perfection. 1
From the introduction to chapter 1:
“In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Crucified, and of His Mother the Virgin Mary. In this book are contained certain little flowers, miracles, and devout examples of Christ’s poor little one, St. Francis, and of some of his companions; to the praise of Jesus Christ. Amen.”
A story from the book:
A story from the book:
“A youth of very noble birth and gently nurtured entered the Order of St. Francis; and after some days, at the instigation of the devil, began to hold the habit he wore in such abomination that it seemed to him of vilest sackcloth. The sleeves thereof he held in horror; he hated the cowl, and the length and coarseness thereof seemed to him an intolerable burden. And his dislike of the Order increasing also, he finally determined to quit the habit and return to the world.
“Now he was already wonted, even as he had been taught by his master, to kneel down with great reverence and draw off his cowl and cross his arms on his breast and prostrate himself whensoever he passed before the altar of the friary, where the body of Christ was reserved. Now it befell on the night when he was minded to depart and leave the Order, that it behoved him to pass before the altar of the convent: and passing there he knelt down as was his wont and did reverence. And suddenly he was rapt in spirit, and a wondrous vision was shown him by God; for he beheld, as it were, a countless multitude of saints pass before him, after the manner of a procession, two by two, clad in most fair and precious raiment; and the countenances and hands of them shone like the sun; and they paced to the chants and music of angels.
“And amid these saints were two more nobly arrayed and adorned than all the others; and they were encompassed with such brightness that he who beheld them was filled with great amaze; and well-nigh at the end of the procession he beheld one adorned so gloriously that he seemed a new-made knight, more honoured than the others. This youth, beholding the said vision, marveled greatly, and knew not what that procession betokened, yet dared not ask, and remained dazed with the sweetness thereof. And, nevertheless, when all the procession was passed, he took courage and ran after the last of them, and asked, saying, “O beloved, prithee of your courtesy tell me who be they so marvelously arrayed that walk in this venerable procession?”
"They answered, “Those are St. Francis and St. Anthony; and he the last of all whom thou sawest thus honoured is a holy friar that newly died, whom we are leading in triumph to the glory of paradise, for that he hath fought valiantly against temptation and persevered unto the end; and these fair garments of fine cloth we wear, are given to us by God in lieu of the coarse tunics we wore in the Order; and the glorious brightness that thou beholdest is given to us by God for the humility and patience, and for the holy poverty and obedience and chastity we kept even to the last.
“Therefore, my son, be it not hard to thee to wear the sackcloth of the Order, that is so fruitful, because, if clothes in the sackcloth of St. Francis, thou for love of Christ despise the world and mortify thy flesh and valiantly fight against the devil, thou, with us, shalt have a like raiment and exceeding brightness of glory.” These words said, the youth returned to himself, and heartened by this vision, cast away from him all temptation, and confessed his fault before the warden and the friars; and thenceforth he desired the bitterness of penitence and the coarseness of the habit, and ended his life in the Order in great sanctity.” 2
The life of St. Francis
While a prisoner of war, St. Francis had a dream and a voice said to him “One day you will be known and loved all over the world.” At the time he thought that meant he was going to become a famous soldier. He became very sick
at that time, and began to understand that there was more to life than having fun. After his release he joined the army again, and again became sick. This time he heard a voice say “You are trying to serve the servant, not the master. Go home and wait. You will be told what to do.” He returned home and one day, while praying in the neglected St. Damian Church, Jesus spoke to him from the cross and said “Francis, My house is falling down. You must rebuild it.” Francis began to see God’s goodness in nature. After rebuilding St. Damian’s, he restored several other churches. Then he heard the voice again, which said “Go into the countryside and preach.” And so he went from repairing church structures to “rebuilding the church” in another way: rebuilding faith and love for God in people’s hearts. He and his followers called themselves the “Friars Minor,” and his new Order of religious was approved by the Pope and spread all
over the world. To this day people still follow his way of living in imitation of Christ. 3St. Francis and The Stigmata
“…the true love of Christ had perfectly transformed St. Francis into God and into the true image of Christ crucified…the fame of his sanctity was noised abroad throughout the land…the fold of that country-side all flocked to behold him as he passed by: men and women, small and great, all with great devotion and desire, strove to touch him and to kiss his hands. And St. Francis, being unable to deny his hands to the devotion of the people, albeit he had bound up the palms, nevertheless bound them over again, and covered them with his sleeves, and only held forth his uncovered fingers for them to kiss. But albeit he sought to conceal and hide the sacred mystery of the holy stigmas, that he might flee all occasion of worldly glory, it pleased God to show forth many miracles for His own glory, by virtue of the said sacred, hallowed stigmas…”4
“Be Thou praised, my Lord,
of those who pardon for Thy love
and endure sickness and tribulations.
Blessed are they who will endure it in peace,
for by Thee, Most High,
they shall be crowned” 5
-St. Francis
In honor of St. Francis, let us continuously be forgiving, endure illness and trials, and endure all in a spirit of peace for our most loving, compassionate, and generous God. Let us be His instruments of peace.
God is at work in you!
____________________
Sources:
Top photo taken at Ss. Cyril & Methodius Slovak Catholic Church, Sterling Heights, Michigan, U.S.A.
1. St. Francis of Assisi: The Little Flowers of Saint Francis, The Mirror of Perfection (New York: Everyman’s Library/Dutton, 1973).
2. St. Francis of Assisi: The Little Flowers of Saint Francis, The Mirror of Perfection (New York: Everyman’s Library/Dutton, 1973), p. 37-38.
3. Fr. Robert J. Fox, Saints and Heroes Speak (Huntington, IN: Our Sunday Visitor, Inc., 1977).
4. St. Francis of Assisi: The Little Flowers of Saint Francis, The Mirror of Perfection (New York: Everyman’s Library/Dutton, 1973), p.117.
5. St. Francis of Assisi: The Little Flowers of Saint Francis, The Mirror of Perfection (New York: Everyman’s Library/Dutton, 1973), p.276.