By Elizabeth McNamer
The story is told that in 1219, while the fifth Crusade to win back Jerusalem from the Muslims was going on, Francis of Assisi went to Egypt and entered the camp of the Sultan to sue for peace. He was not successful but the Sultan was so impressed that he allowed him to preach to his subjects, and as Francis left his company said: “If all Christians were like him, there would be no need for war.”
Francis was born in 1181 into a wealthy family (his father was a cloth merchant) who could provide him with everything he needed to live the comfortable life. At the age of twenty, however, Francis went with the young men of Assisi to fight the Perugians in a petty war that often happened between rival cities. He was taken captive and imprisoned for more than a year. It was during that time and while ill with a fever that he began to think seriously of what to do with his life.
When he returned home he began wandering through the countryside and observing the sad state of the poor and the lepers. Leprosy was such a dreaded disease that those suspected of having it, were sent to live outside the town and fend for themselves. It was thought to be highly contagious. Many starved, but relatives often left out food for them to eat.
Francis prayed for an answer to what his vocation should be. It came one day, while out riding, he unexpectedly drew near a leper.
Francis was filled with loathing at the sight of the leper. But he begged for grace, and found himself brave enough to he got down from the horse, kiss the leper on the mouth and give him his cloak. This incident changed Francis’s life. Soon after, while praying before an ancient crucifix in the forsaken wayside chapel of St. Damian’s outside the town, he heard a voice saying: “Go, Francis, and repair my house, which as you see is falling into ruin.” Taking this literally, he rebuilt the broken down chapel and then another church farther down the hill, Saint Mary of the Angels.
One morning at Mass he heard proclaimed from the Gospel of Matthew that the disciples of Christ were to possess neither gold nor silver, nor scrip for their journey, nor two coats, nor shoes, nor a staff, and that they were to exhort sinners to repentance and announce the kingdom of God. He took these words as if spoken directly to himself. As soon as Mass was over he threw away his shoes, his cloak and all he owned. He also gave away merchandise from his father’s shop causing much anger with his parent. He dressed in a coarse woolen tunic “beast color,” the dress then worn by the poorest peasants, tied it round him with a knotted rope, and went forth exhorting the people of the country-side to penance, brotherly love, care for the poor, and peace.
In time, several young men came to join him. They lived in little huts by the church of Saint Mary of the Angels, which they called the Porziuncola, and engaged in works of charity, mainly caring for lepers and the most vulnerable in society. Francis drew up a Rule of life for his Friars Minor (little brothers), an adaptation of the Gospel precepts. They were to live as celibates, own nothing, and be obedient to him. They differed from monks in that they were not attached to a monastery (they were itinerates) nor were they priests. Francis went to Rome to seek approval for the Franciscan Rule. Pope Innocent III gave sanction to it and granted the Friars Minor leave to preach repentance everywhere.
His new order grew rapidly and spread to Germany, France, Hungary, Spain, Morocco and the East. They were, of course, all men. But in 1209, at the request of Clare, a young noblewoman in Assisi, he established a Rule suitable for women. This community headed by Clare, became known as the Poor Clares or Second Order. When, married people, not free to join the first two orders, begged to follow the gospel message, he created a third Rule for them. They became Third Order Franciscans Francis himself was the leading exponent of his message, living a life of extreme poverty and prayer. One day while he was praying on the mountain of Verna, during a forty day fast, Francis is said to have had a vision as a result of which he received the stigmata, marks on the hands and feet resembling the wound of Jesus‘s crucifixion.
During the Crusades, Muslims who died were assured by their religion of attaining instant Paradise. The pope took the opportunity to assure Christians who died in battle that they too would be assured of paradise by being given an indulgence. In 1216 Francis urged the pope to grant indulgences for doing peaceful things such as praying and confessing of sins. The pope complied and confirmed the indulgence known as the Pardon of Assisi which decreed a complete remission of their sins for all those who prayed in the Porziuncola.
Francis did a considerable amount of writing and is considered the first Italian poet. He believed commoners should be able to pray to God in their own language, and he wrote in the dialect of Umbria instead of Latin (the common language of the literati at the time). His writings are considered to have great literary value, as well as religious.
Many of the stories that surround the life of Saint Francis deal with his love for animals. Perhaps the most famous incident that illustrates the Saint’s humility towards nature is recounted in the ‘Fioretti’ (The Little Flowers), a collection of legends that sprang up after his death. It is said that one day while Francis was traveling with some companions they happened upon a place in the road where birds filled the trees on either side. Francis told his companions to “wait for me while I go to preach to my sisters the birds.” The birds surrounded him, drawn by the power of his voice, and not one of them flew away as Francis spoke to them.
Another legend from the Fioretti tells us that in the city of Gubbio there was a wolf “terrifying and ferocious, who devoured men as well as animals.” Francis had compassion upon the townsfolk, and went up into the hills to find the wolf. When he found the animal he made the sign of the cross and commanded the wolf to come to him and hurt no one. Miraculously the wolf closed his jaws and lay down at the feet of St. Francis. “Brother Wolf, you do much harm in these parts and you have done great evil,” said Francis. “All these people accuse you and curse you. But brother wolf, I would like to make peace between you and the people.” Then Francis led the wolf into the town, and surrounded by startled citizens he made a pact between them and the wolf. Because the wolf had “done evil out of hunger” the townsfolk were to feed the wolf regularly, and in return, the wolf would no longer prey upon them or their flocks. In this manner Gubbio was freed from the menace of the predator.
Around 1220 St Francis celebrated Christmas by setting up the first crèche in the town of Greccio near Assisi. He used real animals to create a living scene so that people could contemplate the birth of the child Jesus in a real way.
Francis died at the age of forty-five, on 3 October 1226, worn out by hard work, suffering from wounds in his hands and feet, and from an eye disease. Feeling the end approaching, he spent the last days of his life dictating his spiritual testament and welcoming “Sister Death.”
He is said to have lived the gospel message to a greater extent than any other person in history. Two years after his death Pope Gregory IX pronounced him a saint.
Today thousands of Franciscans all over the world proclaim Francis’s message of peace. The first order consists of Franciscans and Capuchin (these are now priests). The second order is for nuns, the Poor Clares. The Third order is for men and women, single or married, who feel called to a dedicated life of service through prayer, study, and work while following their normal work.
Franciscans make a lifetime commitment to live a Rule of Life in company with the sisters and brothers in their Order, following Francis in prayer and action by striving to be peacemakers, working for social justice, and sharing Francis’ concerns for the well-being of the earth, the poor, and the marginalized. They will be celebrating the feast of their founder on October the third.
There are hundreds of Third Order Franciscans all over the world. The Third Order of Saint Mary of the Angels fraternity meets at Saint Vincent’s chapel in Billings on the second Saturday of every month at 9:00 a.m. They are currently engaged in recruiting new members. If interested in joining, please call David Bofto at 406-656-2532.
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