Dear Parishioners,
This Tuesday is the feast day of one of the most popular and well-known saints of the Church – St. Francis of Assisi. Most people know that Francis was a gentle, loving man, but unaware of his heroic acts of self-denial, including rigorous fasting. Francis was not a wimp. He was a courageous man whose love was so deep and genuine that he daily sacrificed his own wants and desires in a radical way out of love for God and neighbor.
Francis wasn’t always this way. As a youngster, he sought the glory of the world and acknowledged that he “lived in sin”. Francis came to his senses as a young man and made the decision to renounce everything worldly. As he began to pray more and more, Francis began to see God more and more in the poor and in the beauty of creation. As a result, the animals would miraculously come to Francis without fear and enjoy his friendship. From this we can understand the ancient but still popular custom of blessing animals on his feast day.
After his spiritual awakening, what did Francis understand his mission to be? Many might be surprised to know that Francis saw his mission as being to “preach the Kingdom of God” and to bring conversion to sinners. Another way of saying this is that Francis sought to bring the spiritual awakening he experienced to others. One of the scripture passages Francis found to be powerful for himself was, “If anyone wishes to come after me, he must deny himself, take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” (Matt 16:24-25)
Francis’s transformation from sinner to saint needed time for God’s grace to reform his thoughts, words, and deeds. Initially, Francis did not have any desire to serve the poor because he was too focused on himself and enjoying the pleasures of the world. Even after his initial conversion, many smaller conversions were needed. The more Francis came to know God, the more he loved God and the more selfless he became. Francis did not look for reasons to not obey the directives of God, he instead looked for reasons to obey, to follow, and to sacrifice generously.
An example of this is Francis caring for the lepers, who were the most outcast people of his time. Francis did not go to them spontaneously, by his own will, or because he was moved by human and religious compassion. Francis tells us he went because “the Lord led me among them.” There Francis finds himself doing what to him was completely repulsive and unthinkable – kissing a leper out of mercy.
Francis could have politely ignored God’s directive, as we often do, but he didn’t. He finds the reason to say “yes” to God and we should do the same. It’s important to remember that God is the Good Shepherd who leads us where we need to go, not where we want to go. In your 30 minutes of prayer each day, pray that more people will have Francis’ spirit of humility, devotion, and commitment.
In His service,
Fr. Miller