I find St. Francis of Assisi ‘awesome’ in the true sense of the word. I cannot help but marvel at his story – one of complete conversion – a full 180 degree turning from a life lived for his own gratification to a life lived for God in communion with all creation. Francis' conversion, spanning 3-4 years, was a process of meditation, inner torment, repentance and heavenly visitation. Something that I find noteworthy, perhaps necessary for this process, was Francis’ separation from his comfortable merchant-class lifestyle for different reasons (just as many of us are separated from our everyday lives during this pandemic). He was imprisoned under deplorable conditions, he fell ill and was forced to spend time locked away in recovery, and he was called away by heavenly messengers from a battle that could have led ultimately to his knighthood. When he was separated from his comfortable life and his ideas of success, he could better see the suffering world around him. In a renewed relationship with Jesus and following His example, St. Francis responded to the most vulnerable in his world. He became a penitent, feeling true sorrow for his selfish actions and desiring to reconcile with God. I believe St. Francis understood at a deep level how his previous pursuit of a ‘comfortable life’ contributed to the marginalization of the less fortunate. In the new economy of money, those who could not carry their weight, who could not contribute to economic prosperity because of health, status, or age were cast aside in the name of progress. He saw how his love of self was a total act of disrespect for God’s masterpiece.
 Image from: http://www.cmq.org.uk/CMQ/2020/May | St. Francis' first act of penance was to unite himself to the lepers, the most vulnerable in 13th century Italy. After his radical conversion, St Francis preached the message of penance to all who would listen. Today, 800 years later, some of us equate St. Francis with poverty, humility, gentleness and/or joy. I can see all these attributes in St. Francis but I believe that each of us is attracted to a particular aspect of his personality according to our uniqueness and our call to action in life. The question is: “How does St. Francis inspire you to take action?” |
The aspect of the man that most resonates with me, is his absolute uncompromising love of all of God’s creation because he could see in all of creation, human and non-human, God’s love revealed to us. He saw the importance of relationships or the inter-connectedness in God’s work; and so realized how important it was to maintain those inter-connected relationships as we work for the common good in community.
| I asked my adult son what he found most inspiring about St. Francis of Assisi. His text reply came back, “I really like his attunement to nature!” This is rather a profound statement. Attunement is the reactiveness we have to the other. Neural scientists in the 21st century will tell us, this attunement or reactiveness to the other is what enables us to form relationships. Dr. Dan Siegel says, "When we attune with others we allow our own internal state to shift, to come to resonate with the inner world of another.” (Mindsight (2009) |  |
As Christians, we are told that we find Christ when we enter into relationship (when we attune) with the other; we can then respond with empathy to the needs of all (human & non-human).
If St. Francis is an exemplar of ‘the Way’ that Jesus teaches, then shouldn’t we as Secular Franciscans be walking that way? Shouldn’t we be moving with utmost love and respect for the other whether human or non-human? Shouldn’t we be responding to the cries of the earth and the cries of the poor which are so integrally connected?
If St. Francis is an exemplar of ‘the Way’ that Jesus teaches, then shouldn’t we as Secular Franciscans be walking that way? Shouldn’t we be moving with utmost love and respect for the other whether human or non-human? Shouldn’t we be responding to the cries of the earth and the cries of the poor which are so integrally connected?
Prompted by Pope Francis’ encyclical, Laudato Si, and hearing the cries of the earth and the cries of the poor, I took the training to be a Laudato Si Animator with the Global Catholic Climate Movement.
 | In my zeal to learn more, I have been watching a number of documentaries. One being Drowning in Plastic,
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 | In my excitement, I told my son about these documentaries and suggested he might want to watch them. Initially, I was surprised by his response. I thought he might be interested to know the truth but in hindsight, I believe he already did. Son: “Not sure if I’d want to watch that Drowning in Plastic film.” Me: “Oh….because it would be too upsetting?” Son: “Yeah” Me: “OK. I understand. I shed a few tears.” |
I think that St. Francis of Assisi would shed a few tears too. The desecration of God’s creation, and the detrimental effect to the health and welfare of the people living with the consequences of the environmental degradation that is affecting their ability to fish, to farm, and to access safe drinking water is heart wrenching. Like the merchants and nobles in 13th century Italy, we in the richer countries have cast aside the most vulnerable in our world. We have become immune to the suffering of others so we may continue to live a ‘comfortable life.’
During Laudato Si Week (May 16-24, 2020), consider how your lifestyle has prevented the world and those suffering in the world access to healing.
Start Living the Change!
During Laudato Si Week (May 16-24, 2020), consider how your lifestyle has prevented the world and those suffering in the world access to healing.
Start Living the Change!
Live life unified with all of creation both human and non-human because we are all ONE!
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