Interesting Franciscan Information

It would be difficult, especially in our day of social consciousness and awareness, to find anyone who has not heard of Saint Francis of Assisi. From birdbaths to nuclear power plants, Saint Francis is an icon of peace and a protector of nature. Francis lived in the middle of the thirteenth century. He was a man of privilege and good breeding. While he was not of noble birth, he was certainly gifted with the talents of gallantry and chivalry. His nobility was earned, both in the realm of the world of his day--fraught with anger and dissension, and in the spiritual world where God issued even stronger challenges to his worldly manner.

We know that God won the war with Francis of Assisi. We know that Francis divested himself of everything and made himself a beggar among beggars. The first followers of Francis became known, as he was--a lesser brother, a minor. So they were called, from the beginning--friars minor, lesser brothers.

Francis of Assisi is still very much an appealing character among humankind because we are still vexed, as it were, with the same problems--similar challenges. Do we serve the world? Or do we serve the Master?

Francis learned that the world was perfected through the coming of God as a human being--our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Francis found that fact to be a compelling reason to believe that there was hope for humanity. Jesus Christ has become one with us and suffered and died for us. There is hope in that kind of Redemption and there is life in His Resurrection.

Today, Franciscans continue that quest. To make known the image of hope and life that comes from faith in Jesus Christ. Pure and simple. That's the Gospel way. It's the way Francis of Assisi conquered himself and followed the invitation of Christ to give witness to the world. This is the hallmark of Franciscan life: knowing Jesus Christ and the power of His cross and resurrection in our lives.