Young
Francis had an expansive nature and was a lover of life, spending his
father’s money lavishly. He was also devoted to romantic chivalry then
being extolled by troubadours.
At twenty he fought for Assisi
against Perugia and was imprisoned for a year. Later, he sought to join
another general, and bought a handsome horse and outfit, but meeting a
poor man on the way, gave him his clothes. Taken ill, he heard a voice
that invited him to fight for “the master” rather than the man.
As
he prayed in the Church of San Damiano, he heard a voice coming from
the crucifix: “Francis go and repair my house, which you see is falling
down.” Thinking he was ordered to rebuild the crumbling church, he sold a
bolt of cloth, and his horse and offered the money to the pastor who
refused to use it.
From
then on, young Francis embarked upon a spiritual path that culminated
in his father publicly disowning him. In a dramatic gesture, Francis
handed his father all his clothes, and was covered by the bishop’s
cloak. He then set out to beg alms to repair churches in his area.
Knowing him, the town’s people mocked him, all of which he bore
joyfully.
Francis had fallen in love with “Lady Poverty”, leaving
all to find ALL. His was the calling to counteract the worldly spirit
then infecting society, so contrary to the spirit of the Gospel that had
built the Middle Ages.
Around the small chapel of Portiuncula,
in the valley below Assisi, he built a first community of wood and mud
huts. As others joined him, the community grew to the point that he
sought approval of Pope Innocent III in Rome, who, having had a dream of
Francis holding up God’s falling church, blessed his Order.
Out
of humility, Francis gave his order the name of “Friars Minor”, and
never sought ordination, thinking himself unworthy of such an honor.
He also co-founded a feminine branch of the Franciscans with St. Clare of Assisi.
In
the fall of 1212, St. Francis resolved to go and preach to the Muslims.
His first two attempts were foiled, and he returned to Italy where he
preached extensively.
In 1219 he went into Egypt with the
Crusading army, and fearlessly sought and faced Sultan Malek-al-Kamil,
who, impressed with his teaching, invited the monk to stay with him,
but, ultimately, did not make a commitment.
Disappointed, Francis
returned to Italy to face a crisis developing in his Order, now spread
throughout Europe. In response to a movement attempting to overturn his
initial ideal of strict poverty, he revised his rule. The form
ultimately approved by Pope Honorius III in 1223 substantially
represented the spirit of St. Francis.
In August of 1224, Francis
retired with a companion to Mount Alvernia where he was granted the
stigmata of Christ. As his health worsened, the wounds were a source of
further pain and weakness and he also became nearly blind.
He
died surrounded by his spiritual sons, laying on the floor as he had
requested, exhorting his brethren to love of God, of poverty and of the
Gospel, “before all other ordinances”. He was forty five, and was
canonized only two years later by Pope Gregory IX.
Sunday, October 4, 2020
St. Francis of Assisi
Francis
was born in Assisi, a charming hill town in the Italian region of
Umbria. His father, Pietro Bernardone, was a wealthy cloth merchant who
traded often in France, and his mother, Pica, is said to have belonged
to a noble family of Provence. Though baptized “John”, their only son
was called “Francesco” or “the Frenchman”.
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