Who can consider the wonderful life of St Francis and not cry out with our Divine Redeemer, “ I bless you Father Lord of Heaven and earth for having revealed these things not to the learned but to the little ones or like Our Mother in her Magnificat, You have cast down the mighty from their throne and exalted the lowly.
God takes pleasure to communicate himself to those that are simple of heart, the little ones, whose hearts are disengaged from earthly things. Our hidden and loving God, dwells in inaccessible light, unknown to the world, but imparts himself abundantly and lovingly to those who, having purified their soils from the spots of earthly filth and attachments, express and show forth in their hearts and bodies Jesus Christ crucified.
Whatever he did or wherever he was, Francis’ soul was always raised to heaven. He consulted God before every thing he did, and taught his brethren to set a high value upon humility, humility, self denial and assiduous recollection which is the source of spiritual blessings.
In the school of his crucified Lord, he learned so vehement a love of holy poverty that he extended his rule of poverty to his friars through extinguish charity and devotion. This interior crucifixion of the heart, this perfect simplicity and disengagement of the affections, consist not in the exterior renunciation of the world, but in the spirit and is compatible with the state and employments of every lawful condition in the world, as many saints have shown, who, on thrones, in courts, or armies, learned to die to the world and themselves, used the things of this world as stewards only, while living as strangers and pilgrims on earth.
In today’s gospel, in order to disconcert our Lord, a lawyer came up with a question, what must I do inherit eternal life? To that question, Jesus further told him the story of the Good Samaritan. This reminds us a famous quote by St. Francis of Assisi, ‘The deeds you do may be the only sermon some persons will hear today.’ The Good Samaritan had compassion and took care of the one who was attacked by brigands. Thus, loving God who we cannot see requires loving our neighbor who we see. If in our world, we exclude people from our shelter and compassion, then we will have men who will continue to deal likewise with their fellow men. Our minds and hearts will be set on indifference or revenge.
Using the words of Francis, I conclude, ’ Start by doing what is necessary; then do what is possible; and suddenly you are doing the impossible’.
PRAYER FOR PEACE
Lord, make me an instrument of thy peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love,
Where there is injury, pardon;
Where there is doubt, faith;
Where there is despair, hope;
Where there is darkness, light;
And where there is sadness, joy.
O Divine Master,
Grant that I may not so much seek
To be consoled as to console,
To be understood as to understand,
To be loved, as to love.
-St Francis of Assisi. Pray for us. Amen.
