“Saint Francis”

That prayer that I just said is the prayer we use to open our prayer time in the Franciscan third order, it is followed by a principle that is read; one for each day of the month.  Within the principles are teachings about what it means to follow the way of St. Francis, who is our example, for he showed us what following Jesus looks like.

So who was this man Francis who seems to be loved by all Faiths, even including non-Christian faiths?  Who was this man that we associate with loving animals and indeed all of creation, who did not see this world as being intrinsically evil, but instead saw it as intrinsically good, because it was the creation of a loving God, and that all things whether animate or inanimate were holy because like any magnificent work of art they were an expression of the artist and then signed with the creators name.

St. Francis was born late 1181 or early 1182, the exact date isn’t known for sure.  He was born in the town of Assisi in the Province of Umbria which is located in Italy.  He was the son of Peter and Donna Bernardone.  Francis was not brought up in poverty; his father was a rich cloth merchant, who seemed to spoil Francis.  The combination of having money to blow with youth made for many late nights and Francis was sort of known as the Prince of the party goers.  Luckily his mother added some balance, for she was a devout woman who was Francis’s spiritual guide.

Francis lived during a time when cities were fighting with each other and it was also a time when fighting as a knight for your city was seen as a great honor; Francis wished to be a knight more than anything and because his father had the money, he was able to buy all that was needed to fulfill his dream.  When Assisi went to war with neighboring Perugia, Francis joined one of the legions, but he was quickly captured and held for ransom.  He spent a year in prison before his ransom was paid and during that time he also became quite ill.

But after a couple of years back home he again joined the forces, this time of the Pope to fight in the crusades, but he just about left town when in a dream he was asked the question, “Who is it better to serve, the Master or the servant, he replied the Master, then the voice asked why are you serving the servant and not me, who is the master.”  When Francis awoke he knew that the master was the Lord and so he left the ranks giving all his armor and horse to a less fortunate person who could sell them for a good sum of money.

When Francis got home he spent much time in prayer seeking direction from God on what he should do.  He no longer partied but instead roamed the streets learning from those who were poor; he was learning to depend on God.  As our Gospel reading today says, what was hidden from the wise was revealed to the children; Francis was becoming as a child depending totally on his heavenly Father for everything.

Then one day as he prayed in a dilapidated chapel just outside of Assisi called San Damiano, he heard a voice tell him to rebuild His Church.  Taking this literally and being happy that he knew what to do now he began rebuilding; Francis didn’t realize that the church he was called to rebuild was indeed the church; the church universal.  Little by little he started to receive some help from his friends, many who latter joined the order.  They went around and restored many fallen down churches in the area.  Little by little, people who thought Francis had lost his mind began to see that he had a joy and peace that could only come from God.

But the conversion experience that really turned his life around occurred one day as he was riding into town and before entering:  he saw up ahead a leper - they lived outside of town in designated areas - his first instinct was to turn away, for he always avoided them in the past because he thought they were repulsive, but on this day he rode right up to him and he got off his horse and walked up to him and gave him his cloak.  The man took Francis’s hand and kissed it; Francis in turn took the man’s hand and kissed his.  Francis later said that what he once found repulsive he now found sweet, because it was no longer a leper’s hand that he kissed but Christ’s, for Francis saw the image of Christ in all people.

Francis’s father, in the mean time, thought that his son did lose his mind and he would yell and scream at Francis to come to his senses.  He even went to the local Bishop asking him to talk some sense into his son, but instead the Bishop could see that Francis was doing the Lord’s work and so he protected him instead and it was at that time that Francis gave away all that he had that came from his father and dedicated himself to the Father of all.

There are many stories about St. Francis; some may be true, some not.  One of the stories is about Francis preaching to the birds.  It happened one day as he and another Brother were traveling that Francis stopped because he could hear the many birds around them, so he yelled to them that he would like to speak to them; they became quiet and gathered around St. Francis.  He told them how precious they were in God’s eyes and that he appointed them to give comfort to us humans by way of their singing.  He told them to always be thankful for the gift of having wings to see from above the beauty of this world.  After he was done he Blessed them and sent them on their way; they bowed their heads and then flew away.

Whether the story is true or not it does show Francis’s love for all creatures and I do believe that animals do respond to our love.  I have two birds one is a pigeon and another is a crow, both were injured when I found them.  I have had the pigeon for 15 years and the crow for 8.  Never would I have guessed that each of them likes to have their backs scratched or that they just like to be held and talked to.

There is so much to say about St. Francis that I could never do it in a short time, but there is one true story I want to share with you about St. Francis and what it says about this man of Peace and what it can teach us today.

That story is about his mission to see the sultan of Egypt in the middle of the crusades.  Francis became a man of peace after his conversion and would not allow any of the Brothers to ever go to war or carry a weapon.  In 1219, St. Francis decided that he would go into the center of the Muslim world and preach the peace of Christ to the leader and all who would listen.  He knew that he might be killed in the process but felt that anything he could do to end the war would be worth it.

As you can imagine, he was captured quite quickly and he did get to meet the Sultan; his name was Melek-Al-Kamil.  Immediately, Francis began to share his faith.  The sultan was so impressed with Francis’ sincerity, zeal and love of God, that he told Francis that his reflection of God made him think twice about the negative view he had on Christianity.  They became friends and Francis stayed there for several months; it is said that he also learned from being there; witnessing how often the Moslems stopped to pray to God during the day.  To this day because of that friendship, most of the Holy Christian sites in Moslem lands are taken care of by Franciscans.

What drew me to St. Francis was the joy and peace he seemed to have because he was a free man, a truly free man.  His simple prayer was my God and my all, if one is so filled with God what else does one need; this is simplicity; this is the heart of Franciscanism; it takes a lot of work to simplify; that is, where prayer comes in, it is the foundation of Franciscan life; without it nothing can be done; along with that, is humility, which means we draw our strength from God and by acknowledging that by giving Him our praise and thanksgiving.  As I said before, there is much more to say about St. Francis, but I’ll save that for another time.  Pace e Bene, Peace and All Good

Let us pray:  Prayer of St. Francis from prayer book Page 833 #62

Return to Grace Church Newsletter Page