St. Francis is known as the man who was most like Christ, “the first after the only one”, the universal brother, a man of peace and reconciliation, the Poverello, the lover of the poor, the troubadour of creation. It is true.
Francis of Assisi, however, was first and foremost a mystic, a real contemplative, enamoured with the poor and crucified Christ. Francis was not only a man who prayed, he was “a man become prayer”.
The presence of God transfigured him until He made him “another Christ”.
Prayer of Saint Francis
Lord, make me an instrument of your 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;
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.
For it is in giving that we receive,
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
Amen.
ST FRANCIS OF ASSIS
St. Francis of Assisi (Giovanni Francesco di Bernardone; 1181/1182 – October 3, 1226) was a Catholic friar and preacher.
He founded the Franciscan Order, assisted in founding the woman’s Order of St. Clare, and the lay Third Order of Saint Francis. St. Francis is one of the most venerated religious figures in history.
On July 16, 1228, he was pronounced a saint by Pope Gregory IX. He is known as the patron saint of animals, the environment and one of the two patrons of Italy (with Catherine of Siena).
— Vatican Site (@vatican_site) April 23, 2017
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