Francis & His Brothers
St. Francis of Assisi:
His Life and Message
The life of St. Francis of Assisi inspires us, even after 800 years! He lived from 1182 to 1226 and became the founder of the Franciscan Order. He did not set out to begin a new religious order, but his way of life became so popular in medieval Italy that more and more people wanted to live like he did.
St. Francis was born into a wealthy Italian family as the son of a merchant who wanted his son to become a well-respected member of the upper class. This did not turn out so well. Failures in worldly endeavors followed by serious illness resulted in a complete change in his life. To the surprise of all who knew him, this rich young man decided to live life from now on in complete poverty, with nothing of his own. Instead of becoming rich and powerful, he would devote his life to prayer and humble work in the service to God.
We must listen to how he himself describes the moment of his conversion: “While I was in sin, it seemed very bitter to me to see lepers. And the Lord Himself led me among them and I had mercy upon them. And when I left them that which seemed bitter to me was changed into sweetness of soul and body; and afterward I lingered a little and left the world.”
Finding mercy by being merciful was the secret. This was how he found Christ in serving other people. Many other men and women were inspired by his way of life, and the Franciscan movement grew rapidly to become a major influence on life in medieval Europe.
One episode is especially inspiring for us today. St. Francis had decided to take the risk of negotiating between the Sultan of Egypt and the Crusaders during one of their last wars. He simply decided to cross between the warring armies and meet the Sultan. They must have talked about religion and what it meant to them to be a Muslim or a Christian. We do not know what they said to each other. But we do know that they met, and that the meeting was important to each of them. Today, 800 years later, this meeting remains as an example for the power of peaceful dialogue between people of different faiths. Attentiveness to the goodness present in another person must stand at the beginning of every dialogue, and only on this basis can we search together for true understanding.
St. Francis’s most beautiful writing is the Canticle of Creatures, the hymn about Brother Sun and Sister Moon, all the heavenly bodies and earthly creatures who, each in their own way, give praise to God. Francis’s mission continues in all those men and women whose faith is lived in simplicity, humility, and appreciation for the gift of life in all of God’s creatures.
Most High, all-powerful, good Lord,
Yours are the praises, the glory,
and the honour and all blessing.
To You alone, Most High, do they belong
and no human is worthy to mention Your name.
Praised be you, my Lord,
with all Your creatures,
especially Sir Brother Sun,
who is the day,
and through whom You give us light.
And he is beautiful
and radiant with great splendour;
and bears a likeness of You, Most High one.
Praised be You, my Lord,
through Sister Moon and the stars,
in heaven You formed them
clear and precious and beautiful.
Praised be You, my Lord,
through Brother Wind,
and through the air, cloudy and serene,
and every kind of weather
through which you give sustance to your creatures.
Praised be You, my Lord,
through Sister water,
who is very useful and humble
and precious and chaste.
Praised be You, my Lord,
through Brother fire,
through whom You light the night,
and he is beautiful and playful
and robust and strong.
Praised be You, my Lord,
through our Sister Mother Earth,
who sustains and governs us,
and who produces various fruit
with coloured flowers and herbs.
Praised be You, my Lord,
through those who give pardon for Your love,
and bear infirmity and tribulation.
Blessed those who endure in peace,
for by You, Most High, shall they be crowned.
Praised be You, my Lord,
through our Sister Bodily Death,
from whom no one living can escape.
Woe to those who die in mortal sin.
Blessed are those whom death
will find in Your most holy will,
for the second death shall do them no harm.
Praise and bless my Lord and give Him thanks
and serve Him with great humility.
Franciscan life and values
The Order of Friars Minor, founded by St. Francis of Assisi, is a fraternity. In this fraternity the friars follow Jesus Christ more closely under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit; through profession they dedicate themselves totally to God whom they love above all, living the Gospel in the Church according to the form observed and proposed by St. Francis. The friars, as followers of St. Francis, are bound to lead a radically evangelical life, namely: to live in a spirit of prayer and devotion and in fraternal fellowship; they are to offer a witness of penance and minority; and, in charity towards all mankind, they are to announce the Gospel throughout the whole world and to preach reconciliation, peace and justice by their deeds; and to show respect for creation.
(General Constitutions of the Order of Friars Minor, Article 1)
What makes Franciscan life special and different from other religious communities is what keeps us together in practical terms: Each one of us is inspired by the life of St. Francis. Rather than his rule or the traditions of the Order, it is his personal life that inspires us and guides us in our personal decisions.
The Order of Friars Minor
When we say the Franciscans, then we mean all the members of the movement started by St. Francis of Assisi in 13th century Italy. The Order of Friars Minor is a large part of this movement, and it considers itself part of what we call the First Order. We are men who live by the rule written by St. Francis for himself and the men who lived with him. There is also a Second Order, which was founded by St. Clare, who applied St. Francis’s ideals to the life of monastic women. And there is a Third Order, which was originally an Order of laypeople. Today, the original charism of the Third Order continues in the Secular Franciscan Order.
Those in the Order of Friars Minor call themselves friars, which is another word for brothers. We live our religious life in community, in poverty, chastity, and obedience. We are an order of preachers who go into the world, and each preaches in his own way: Some by words, some by deeds, some both, but each according to his abilities. We are not meant for monastic seclusion, and to remind us of this, we call our houses friaries rather than monasteries.
Calling us Minor Friars is meant to remind us that we are not to seek work as powerful superiors. We want to be among ordinary people living ordinary lives, just as Jesus Christ did when he preached his message of a new life.
You can recognize us by the brown habit that we wear and the letters we put behind our names: OFM. This is not a degree or an honorific, but it becomes part of our names so that we remember being part of the Franciscan family.
As an Order in the Roman Catholic Church, we have a General Minister in Rome who is supported by General Councillors who help him with in leading the worldwide Franciscan Order. Each Franciscan Province, however, governs itself as it pursues its mission in the country to which it belongs in its own characteristic way.
