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If ever there was a time when we needed something stable to count on, it is today. The economy is in the tank and politics increasingly feels like an exercise in choosing the lesser of evils. We want something that we can count on and trust. And who could be more stable than the lovable, bird-bath inspiring St. Francis of Assisi. He is the epitome of all things reliable and true.
Or is he? What if I told you that meek and mild St. Francis is not all we thought he is? In truth, there are a few things no one should know about him. At least, unless you willing for just a little more instability. You’ve been warned.
St. Francis was not an environmentalist.
When Pope John Paul II named St. Francis Patron Saint of Ecology, it was a well-deserved honor. Yet it would be a mistake to romantically reinterpret him as a modern environmentalist. When Francis looked at creation he saw something deeply mystical. After all, it is from the earth that the elements of communion are produced, the source and symbol of our unity in Christ. To that end, his sense of fraternity extended even to creation, calling the sun as his brother, the moon his sister.
Now more than ever we need to regain a sense of our sacred connection to creation. It is not enough for us to see the earth as a source of material resource, regardless of how responsibly we manage it. Neither is it adequate to settle for environmental advocacy. Francis’s love for creation is inseparably linked to his commitment to peace, and his radical generosity to and fraternity with the poor. In the same way, how we relate to creation will impact the authority of our witness.
St. Francis was not a pacifist.
In his youth, Francis enlisted as a soldier to win himself glory only to find himself a prisoner of war, changing him for life. Once in ministry, he even went so far as to walk to Egypt in order to put an end to the Crusade. When his fellow Christians refused to listen, he walked into the enemy camp, facing sure death, to make his plea for peace. His humility and passion were so moving, the Sultan released him, praising his faith.
Yet to define this commitment as pacifism falls short of the truth. He was not merely opposed to violence and war, but instead, when he read Jesus’s words that said, “blessed are the peacemakers”, he dedicated himself, not simply to ending war, but to bringing shalom. Shalom, that all-encompassing salvation and wholeness of both the spiritual and material. For Francis there was no distinction between the gospel and the so-called “social gospel”.
St. Francis was not an activist.
Francis was, perhaps, best known for his commitment to the poor. Unlike those who were called to the cloistered life of a monastery, Francis disdained property to live like the common people, sharing in their demanding labors and simple joys. He took for his religious garb the same tunic worn by the peasants. He chose a radical simplicity that stood as a living rebuke to the decadence so often associated with the medieval church.
Yet this commitment wasn’t an early example of social justice. While he stood firmly against any injustice suffered by the poor, he was drawn to their company because he was convinced that, in the least of these he found Jesus. What appears to be solidarity with the poor is in fact devotion to the Jesus. Christ is with the least of these and if we are with them, He is with us.
St. Francis was no saint.
While Francis canonized as a saint in 1228, he was was no stranger to sin. The son of a wealthy merchant, Francis lived a playboys life, carousing through the streets of Assisi with the wealthy sons of the city. Inspired by the minstrels tales of gallant knights, he was devoted to wooing the young maidens of his city, earning him a less than flattering reputation.
Even when serving God Francis was prone to such literal obedience to Christ, that he drove himself into an early grave. Whether throwing himself into an icy ditch to quench impure thoughts or when he scattered ashes in his food so not to take too much pleasure in the flavors, he later repented to “Brother Body” for treating it so poorly.
Yet, it is in his imperfections that St. Francis holds his greatest appeal. Apart from his failings, we might be tempted to venerate him so fully that we would never look to him as an example to follow. However, if he was as prone to failure as any of us, then his life stands as a challenge, pointing to the potential of what our own lives might become.
The more we discover about this St. Francis of Assisi, the more we see how important he is for Christians- for all people- today. Some might balk at such high praise, saying instead that we should be looking to Jesus. Francis would agree. And yet, when we discover who this simple man is, we realize that as we follow in his footsteps that they lie within the deeper prints of Christ Himself.
(For more about the life & example of St. Francis, check out my book, “The Cost of Community: Jesus, St. Francis & Life in the Kingdom”)
