Posts Tagged ‘Francis of Assisi’
Saint Francis of Assisi, Patron Saint of Ecology – Br. David Vryhof
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Subscribe: RSS
Br. David Vryhof
Francis of Assisi
Today we remember Francis, the little poor man of Assisi. There is a lot about him that is worth remembering.
Saint Francis was fascinated by the poverty of Christ – his lowly birth in Bethlehem, his inauspicious upbringing in Nazareth, his wanderings through Galilee and Judea as an itinerant preacher and healer, his terrible suffering on the Cross. He sought to imitate that poverty in his own life, forsaking his family’s wealth to embrace a life of simplicity and suffering. Like Christ, he was drawn to the poor, the sick and the outcasts, and overcoming his initial repulsion, chose to live and work among them.
We remember today his boundless love for God and for God’s Church. He frequently wept at the sight of a crucifix and spent hours and even days in prayer. He was a charismatic preacher and many chose to follow him. Thousands joined the religious orders he founded: friars and nuns and lay people embraced his message and his values. He was a peacemaker, a reconciler, a lover of all. Read More
Awakened to New Life – Br. David Vryhof
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Subscribe: RSS
St Francis of Assisi
You may have noticed upon entering the chapel this morning that the liturgical color is white rather than green, which it would normally be during this season of the Church’s year. It is white because we are observing the Feast of St Francis of Assisi, the little poor man (Il Poverello) who has long been recognized as one of the most beloved saints of all time. His actual feast day is October 4, but we have transferred the feast to today to bring to a close our month-long observance of the Season of Creation, during which we have celebrated and prayed for the earth and its creatures.
I have twice had the good fortune of visiting the town of Assisi, which rests on a hilltop in the breathtakingly-beautiful central region of Italy called Umbria. Assisi is, of course, the birthplace of St Francis, and of the religious order he founded, the Order of Friars Minor (OFM). During my visits to Assisi, my favorite pastime has been to sit in the small chapel in the undercroft of the great Franciscan basilica, where the body of St Francis and four of his early companions are buried, to witness the silent, steady stream of admirers and devotees from all over the world, as they approached his tomb to offer their prayers and to pay their respects. I have literally spent hours there, wondering, as I looked on, how one man, one life, could have had such an enormous impact on the world and could have influenced for good millions upon millions of lives. Read More