Lausanne World Pulse – Urban Articles – Simple Spirituality. The Spirit of Francis: A Prophetic Sign of Hope in a Slum Community

By Christopher L. Heuertz
April 2008

After a year of suffering in an underground dungeon, Francis was released, perhaps due to his tuberculosis. He returned to Assisi humiliated and defeated. It was upon his homecoming that he turned to prayer. Cultivating core contemplative practices and committing to a life of deep reflection, Francis started his journey toward Christ.

After recovering from sickness and incarceration, and again hoping to secure fame and honor, Francis set off to continue his valiant crusade. Dressed in the most expensive and elaborate suit of armor, he set off on what would be a meeting with Christ.

The Transformation
The Franciscan stories tell of a meeting between Francis and a man with leprosy. Francis hated leprosy—the mere sight of the open wounds or the smell of decaying flesh was enough to turn his queasy stomach. But as Francis laid his eyes on this man, something inside him broke. Francis found himself compelled to get off the horse he was riding and approach the man. With tears streaming down his cheeks, Francis embraced him, kissing him on the cheek. Francis took off the expensive robe he was wearing and cloaked him. As he turned and rode away, he looked back and was surprised—the man had disappeared.

Francis considered that his encounter with the man had been a meeting with Christ—essentially his conversion to Jesus. That conversion led Francis to a vocation of prayer and utter dependence on God. He found an old, dilapidated church on the hillside of Assisi, where he would spend hours upon hours praying and pleading with God.

While deep in prayer, Francis gazed at the large San Damiano icon hanging in the front of the church. In a vision or in a miraculous and divine pronouncement, Christ on the icon spoke to Francis: “Rebuild my church which is in ruins.”

Immediately, Francis knew what needed to be done. He went from door to door in his small town, begging for money or supplies so that he could literally repair the broken-down structure of that hillside church building. Francis even went as far as plundering materials from his father’s shop to sell them as a means of raising money to buy supplies and building materials to fix up that little cathedral.

Francis’ father was furious and humiliated at the conversion and subsequent vocational trajectory at which his son had thrown himself. Unwilling to support his son and still angered at having his own shop ransacked, he took his son to the bishop in hopes that a priest would talk some sense into him.

In what may be one of the most recounted stories of his life, Francis declared on the steps of the bishop’s residence that his sonship was not defined by a bloodline, but by a divine commitment to God. Francis then took off his clothing and threw it at the feet of his forsaken father. The bishop suddenly covered Francis’ nakedness with his priestly robe, echoing the hint of an ecclesial covering that would guide the submission known to be true of future Franciscans.

During the following years, Francis rebuilt many churches in the area, prayerfully serving the community as he served God. He also joyfully began his own romance with “Lady Poverty,” beginning his vocation of dependence. Francis was known to beg for his food and wine, often exchanging his fresh food with others whose begged food was staler or less appealing. Francis was even known to go naked after having given up his own clothing to cover the nakedness of another.

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