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By Father Candide Chalippe
A. D. 1210
It was therefore in the small Church of St. Mary of the Angels, or of
Portiuncula, that Francis laid the foundations of the Order of Friars
Minor, which spread over the whole earth with wonderful rapidity. This
holy place was, as it were, the cradle of the Institute, and the nursery
of the houses of the religious; the source which supplied a great
river, which was divided into various channels; the citadel from whence
numerous brave warriors went forth to encounter the enemies of the
Church; the school which has produced a very great number of saints,
and a multitude of learned men, whose doctrine and piety have been
equally celebrated.
The new habitation, less confined than the hut of Rivo Torto, enabled
the Patriarch to receive the postulants who had before presented
themselves; among whom may be noticed, Leo, Rufino, Masseo of Marigan,
and Juniper:--Leo, whom Francis chose for his confessor and secretary,
and whom he generally called Pecorella Di Dio (the sheep of God), on
account of his admirable candor. Rufino, of whom he said: "I learnt,
by a revelation, that he is one of the most faithful and of the most
pure souls that there is in this world, and I should have no fear of
giving him, though in a mortal body, the title of Saint, since he is
already canonized in heaven." Masseo, whom he often sent, instead of
going himself, to converse with persons of piety, in order not to be
interrupted in his own meditations, because this religious added great
mildness and suavity of manner to a rare talent of speaking about
heavenly things. Juniper, whom he found so valuable for his evangelical
simplicity, for his contempt of himself, and for his great desire to
attract upon himself the contempt of the world, that, alluding to his
name, he used to say good-humoredly: "I wish to God we had a wood full
of such Junipers."
The charitable father had all his children in his heart, and he brought
them up with a tenderness truly maternal. He was the first to go from
door to door, to ask charity to provide for their wants; sometimes he
even went alone, to spare them the mortification of begging, under the
impression that they might still retain the prejudices of the world
on this head. But the weakness of his frame not admitting of his
providing for all, and his religious being bound to subsist on charity
alone, he resolved to teach them to solicit it for the love of God,
and he made them the following exhortation, which they have recorded:--
"My very dear brethren and well-beloved children, be not ashamed of
soliciting alms, since our Lord became poor in this world for the love
of us, and that, following His example, we have chosen this state of
the most perfect poverty. For, if we have made this choice for the
love of Jesus Christ, we must not blush at begging in our quality of
poor. Heirs of the kingdom of God should not blush at what is a pledge
of their heirship. Yes, we are heirs of heaven; this is a benefit which
our Lord has obtained for us, to which He has given us a right, as He
has to all those who choose to live in a state of holy poverty. I make
known to you as a truth, that a great number of the most noble of the
age will become members of the Order, who will consider it an honor
to solicit alms, and who will look upon it as a favor to be permitted
to do so. You, therefore, who are the very first of the Order, do this
cheerfully; do not refuse to practise what you will have to teach these
saintly personages. Go, then, and with the blessing of God solicit
alms, full of confidence and joy, more than would be felt by him who
should offer a hundred for one. For it is the love of God you offer
in asking, when you say, 'For the love of God, bestow your charity on
me;' and in comparison with this divine love, heaven and earth are as
nothing."
To mitigate the reluctance still felt by some of them, he brought
forward the two following motives: "The bread which holy poverty causes
to be collected from door to door, is the bread of angels, because it
is the good angels who inspire the faithful to bestow it for the love
of God. It is thus that the words of the prophet, 'Man ate the bread
of angels,' are fulfilled in these holy poor ones. God has given the
Friars Minor to the world in these latter times, that the elect may
have it in their power to practise what will cause them to be glorified
by the Supreme Judge, when He will address them in these mellifluous
words: 'What you did to one of these, the least of My brethren, you
did it to Me.' It is pleasing to solicit charity in the capacity of
a Friar Minor, whom our Master seemed to designate expressly by the
appellation, 'the least of My brethren.'"
The disciples, persuaded and moved by this appeal, went of their own
accord to quest in the neighboring places, to get the better of the
natural repugnance they felt to it. At their return they presented
themselves to their Father with satisfied countenances, which delighted
him, and by a holy emulation they were proud of the things they had
collected for the love of God. One of them returning one day with much
cheerfulness, singing loudly the praises of the great Benefactor of
men, Francis took from him the weighty wallet, which was full of bits
of bread, placed it on his own shoulders, kissed the shoulders of him
who had carried it, and came and said publicly: "So it is that I wish
my brethren to go always on the quest, and return from it: ever gay,
and glorifying God for all the good which He does in our favor."
The blessed founder employed himself day and night unceasingly in
inspiring them with the love and practice of the most sublime virtues;
he warned and exhorted each one of them in particular, and he made
discourses to them when collected, on the most essential heads; and
this again he enforced by his own good example; knowing that they were
called by God to train up those who would embrace his rule in the
different parts of the earth, and that on the instruction of the one
depended that of the others.
Under such a master, with the powerful assistance which they received
from Heaven, they made in a short time such considerable progress,
that the latest comers were not less competent for the exercise of the
Evangelical ministry than the first. Altogether animated with the same
spirit, watching, fasting, praying, penetrated with the fear of God,
full of holy desires, they resembled in a great degree the primitive
Church confined in the supper-room. Francis, who was perfectly
acquainted with their most inward feelings, and with the intentions
of Divine Providence, thought that he ought not to delay sending them
forth on missions according to the idea of St. Chrysostom, who says
that the Apostles, who were commissioned to labor in the conversion
of the world, were necessarily separated, and that it would have been
very prejudicial to the interests of the universe had they kept together
longer.
But, as he had not yet heard them preach, he desired prudently to judge
by his own experience of their respective talents. Having assembled
them together, he desired Bernard de Quintavalle to speak on the
mysteries of religion. He immediately obeyed, and spoke beautifully
on the several points. Peter of Catania was directed to set forth the
greatness of God, which he did with as much facility and learning as
if he had been long perfect in the art of preaching. A third was called
upon to give an exhortation on avoiding sin, and practising virtue,
which he complied with in powerful language. In short, they all handled
the subjects which were allotted to them, so as plainly to show that
wisdom was given to them from on high.
After they had made this essay in preaching, or rather this masterpiece
of eloquence, Jesus Christ, who had inspired their thoughts and words,
appeared in the midst of them in the form of a very beautiful young
man, and gave His blessing to each of them successively, with wonderful
benignity. This astonishing vision threw them into a rapturous
transport; after which, Francis addressed them as follows:
"My brethren, and dear children, give abundant thanks to God most
powerful, and to His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, for having deigned
to have communicated celestial treasures through the speeches of the
most simple of men; for it is God who causes infants to speak, who
opens the mouths of little children, and makes the tongues of the most
ignorant eloquent: His goodness renders Him compassionate to the world,
which is loaded with crime. He has resolved to warn men of the woes
into which they are plunging themselves; and in order to root out from
amongst them the works of the devil, which are sins, He has chosen
vile and despicable preachers, so that no one shall have reason to
glorify himself before Him, and that every one shall acknowledge that
all the good which is done comes from Him. Although there are few among
you of whom it can be said that they have worldly wisdom, or are
powerful or noble, yet it is you whom the Lord hath chosen for this
important work. It is His will that you should go into all parts to
honor Him by your actions and by your words, bringing to His fear and
to His love such as have strayed into evil ways."
"Prepare yourselves therefore to set forth; gird your loins according
to the commands of Jesus Christ; be courageous; put on the armor of
faith; be devoted to the service of the Gospel; always prepared to let
yourselves be carried away as clouds, whithersoever the Spirit of God
may direct you, by the guidance of obedience, to shed the dew of the
divine word on the dry and arid soil of hardened hearts. For our Lord
has not called you into this Institute to think of nothing but saving
your own souls quietly, without any fatigue, in the hearts of your
country, and in the bosom of your families; His intention is, that you
carry His name and His faith into the nations, and before the kings
of the earth. Now, lest we should appear to be slow in carrying His
will into execution, we will divide Italy amongst us; and soon after,
we will make other missions into more distant countries."
To this discourse the disciples replied, that they were prepared for
everything; that, having renounced their own will, they only waited
the order to commence the journey; and that the distrust they had of
themselves in consequence of their simplicity, was counterbalanced by
the confidence they had in the assistance of the Almighty, which
animated them.
The next morning Francis divided Italy among them, taking Tuscany for
himself with Sylvester, who was the first priest in his Order, so that
he might, by this arrangement, be at the shortest distance from St.
Mary of the Angels, where he left some of the brethren to guide the
novices whom he should send there.
Two reasons induced him to make his beginning in Italy. The first was,
that it appeared to him to be just that the Divine Word should be first
spread in that country, of which the preachers were natives, as the
Apostles had done in regard to the Jews. The second was, that he might
judge from what they should effect among the Italians, what they were
capable of effecting elsewhere: in which his judgment is to be admired.
He could not doubt but that the vocation of his children came from
God; nevertheless, he used all the precautions which prudence dictated,
because he knew that the Lord, who acts according to His good pleasure
by secret and supernatural means, chooses that men on their part should
pursue the ordinary course in all that depends on them. This is a sure
ground-work, which is not only a rule in all that relates to salvation,
but also is applicable to the affairs of this life.
The man of God, having commenced his route towards Tuscany, passed
through Perugia, where he preached in the great square, as is customary
in Italy. Some young gentlemen, of the first families of the place,
came also there for the exercises of the tournament, and made so much
noise that the preacher could be no longer heard. As they continued
their lance exercises, notwithstanding the remonstrance of the people,
the Saint, turning to the side in which they were, addressed them in
the following words with great animation:--
"Pay attention, and learn what the Lord declares to you through me,
who am His servant, and do not imagine to satisfy yourselves by saying,
This is only a man from Assisi who speaks to you." (A precaution he
took because Perugia and Assisi, neighboring towns, were always opposed
to each other.) "What I tell you, I do not tell you as man. God has
raised you above all the adjacent countries; in gratitude for which
you should humble yourselves, not merely in His eyes, but before all
the world. But, on the contrary, your strength and your glory have so
inflamed your pride, that you have pillaged and laid waste all that
surrounds you, and you have killed no inconsiderable number. For which
reason I declare to you that, unless you be speedily converted, and
repair the damage you have done, the Lord, who suffers no evil to be
committed with impunity, will take revenge on your sins. In order to
create in you the greater dismay, He will suffer you to rise up one
against the other, to excite a popular commotion, and to do yourselves
much greater injury than any of your neighbors could do to you."
He remained some time at Perugia, where they soon saw the effect of
his threats. The nobles were irritated against the plebeians, the
clergy joined the party of the nobles, and they came to blows; the
people, who were the strongest, drove the others out of the town. The
discomfited party, in order to be revenged, laid waste everything in
the country which belonged to the people; who, by way of reprisals,
pillaged the houses of the nobles, and massacred their servants and
even their children. Indeed the disaster was so great, that, according
to the prediction, armed neighbors could not have caused any greater.
The Perugians having thus, at their cost, discovered the holiness of
the preacher, wished to retain him in their city, and entreated him
to choose what place he pleased for his abode. Many young persons of
pure morals joined his Order; one among others, whose vocation was
very singular. As he was walking one day out of the town, his mind
intent upon his wish to consecrate himself to God, Jesus Christ appeared
to him, and said: "Man of desires, if you hope to be in the enjoyment
of what you wish for, and to effect your salvation, take a religious
habit and follow Me." He immediately asked into what order he should
enter. Our Lord answered him: "Join the new Order of Francis of Assisi."
He then made this further inquiry: "Lord, when I shall have joined
that Order, what mode of life shall I follow, to be more agreeable to
Thee?" and this is the answer he received: "Lead the usual life; enter
into no particular intimacies with your brethren; take no notice of
the defects of others, and form no opinion to their disadvantage."
These are admirable means for living holily and peaceably in a
community. The young man came and offered himself to Francis, who knew
that Jesus Christ had sent him, and he admitted him immediately, giving
him the name of Brother Humble, on account of the humility he found
in his heart.
At Crotona, to which place he next took the word of God, there was
another young man named Guy, who, moved by his preaching, had invited
him to dinner: "This young man," said Francis, "will enter our militia
to-day, and will sanctify himself in this town." He was the oldest
of his family, brought up in study and in virtue, and the excellence
of his conduct exceeded even that of his education. He frequented the
churches and the sacraments, he gave great alms, and visited the sick
to assist them; he wore a hair-shirt, and chastised his body severely,
to enable him to preserve his virginal purity. He had made a vow to
do this. After the dinner, he knelt down and petitioned for the habit
of a Friar Minor, which he received in the principal church of the
town, in the presence of a numerous concourse of people, after having
first fulfilled two conditions which the father had prescribed for
him: The first was, to give to the poor all that he had inherited by
his right of primogeniture; the second was, to renounce all the rest
of his fortune. It was in the same town that he lived a most holy life,
as had been foretold, honored by many miracles; now by permission of
the Holy See, he is publicly invoked.
The love of prayer and retirement made Francis wish to find in the
neighborhood of Crotona a fit place for building a house suitable for
the education of his novices. Guy pointed one out to him in the valley,
near a place called Celles. This location greatly pleased him, because
it was solitary; and by the aid of some pious persons, he built a very
poor dwelling, which he soon filled with novices, and where he received
the celebrated Brother Elias, of whom we shall have much to say
hereafter.
Having spent nearly two months in preaching at Crotona, and in forming
his novices at the Convent of Celles, he was inspired to pass over to
a desert island in the middle of the Lake of Perugia. Lent was drawing
near. He recommended the care of the house to Sylvester, without letting
him know what his own intention was; and on Ash-Wednesday he caused
himself to be taken to the island by a boatman, having with him only
two loaves of bread. The boatman was a worthy man and his friend. He
begged him not to tell any one where he was, and only to come to him
on the Wednesday of Holy-Week, to take him back to the shore.
Having made himself there a sort of hut in one of the thickets, to
preserve himself from the cold, he had his intercourse with God alone
during two and forty days; and his fast was so rigorous, that of the
two loaves he brought with him he only ate half a one.--In
ecclesiastical history we meet with examples of these miraculous fasts,
of which the Holy Fathers have had an assured knowledge, and which the
weakness of human nature was enabled to sustain by virtue of the Spirit
of God, which supported them. The fruit which they were to derive from
it, was to animate the faithful to keep, with as much exactness as was
in their power, the fasts prescribed by the Church, and particularly
the fast of Lent, which many principal motives of religion render so
venerable.
On Wednesday in Holy-Week, the boatman went to fetch Francis and bring
him back to Crotona. On the passage the Saint stilled a storm, by
making the sign of the cross on the waves; and as soon as he had landed
he went to the Convent at Celles, where he passed the remainder of the
Holy-Week with his brethren. His confidant did not think it necessary
to keep the secret of the marvellous fast. The rumor spread, and many
persons went to the island to see and venerate the hut in which he had
lived. The miracles which were wrought there by the merits of the
Saint, induced some persons to build there; and gradually a small town
arose, where later a church was built, with a convent of his Order,
near a spring at which he had drunk; sick were afterwards cured there.
After the Easter solemnities, he placed a superior in the convent;
then having tenderly embraced the religious, he made the sign of the
cross on them, and separated himself from them to go to Arezzo.
This town was at that time greatly agitated by internal dissensions,
which were likely to bring on its entire ruin. Francis being lodged
in the suburbs, where he had been hospitably received, saw over the
town, with the penetrating sight which the Almighty had given him,
devils who excited the citizens to massacre each other, and who appeared
to be transported with joy. To put these evil spirits to flight, he
sent Sylvester, as his herald, and gave him this command: "Go to the
gate of the town, and standing before it, order the devils, in the
name of the Almighty God, and in virtue of obedience, instantly to
retire." Sylvester, who was a man of extraordinary simplicity, praising
God beforehand for what was about to happen, went as fast as possible,
and cried out with all his might: "All you devils who are here, begone,
go far from hence. It is in the name of God and of His servant, Francis,
that I call upon you to go." At this very moment the citizens, who
were on the point of flying to arms, came to an understanding on the
points which were in dispute, and peace was restored to the town. On
which St. Bonaventure remarks, that the obedience and humility of
Francis had obtained for him that absolute power over the proud spirits
who fear and fly from the sublime virtue of the humble.
It became known in Arezzo who the author was of so sudden a
reconciliation, because the words which had been spoken by Sylvester
had been heard. Francis was sought for and brought into the town in
a sort of triumph, notwithstanding the efforts he made to escape from
this honor. He preached in the great square on the love of peace, and
on the means of preserving it; pointing out to them that dissensions
and quarrels came from, and are promoted by, the evil spirit. The
magistrates entertained him at the town-house, and had a convent built
for his Order according to his wishes, that is to say, according to
holy poverty; in which he placed some worthy subjects who had presented
themselves to him. A child was brought to him who was quite distorted;
he took it into his arms, and it forthwith became straight. This
miracle, and several others which he performed during his stay, proved
that God had given him as much power over bodily complaints as over
the evil spirits.
From Arrezo he bent his steps to Florence, preaching with great success
throughout the route. The lords of Ganghereto received him with great
respect, and were so pleased with the holiness of his life, that they
begged his acceptance of a field and a small wood for the service of
his religious. He set up a hut there, where his infirmities compelled
him to remain some time. After preaching and prayer, to which he daily
gave some time, one after the other, he employed himself in building
a small wall round a spring of water which he got miraculously, and
which still flows, the water of which God was pleased to render
salutary.
As soon as his health was in some degree restored, he continued his
way towards Florence, where he went to lodge in the hospital. The
following day he preached in the town, and was listened to as a saint.
They gave him a small dwelling near the church of St. Gall, about five
hundred paces from the city, in which he received several novices, who
rendered themselves illustrious by their exalted virtues; among whom
John Parent is particularly noticed, who was a native of Carmignano,
near Pistoria.
His conversion was attributable to a very peculiar circumstance. As
he was walking one evening in the environs of the town, he saw a
swineherd who was endeavoring to drive his pigs into a stable, and
who, being in a great passion because, instead of going in, they
dispersed themselves in all directions, called out to them in his
anger: "Swine, get into this stable as judges get into hell." He had
scarcely said the words, when these animals went quietly in. That which
might have appeared to this magistrate nothing but an impertinence,
struck him, and made so strong an impression upon him, that, having
seriously reflected on the dangers incurred by a judge (which are
indeed very great) as to salvation, he threw up his magistracy, and
retired to Florence. There he saw Francis, examined his conduct, admired
his virtues, and felt himself called by God to imitate him. An only
son of his had a similar vocation. The father and the son divided their
all among the poor, and became disciples of the Saint, whose prophecy
began thus to be fulfilled: that the wise and learned of the world
would enter into his Order.
Such a conversion sets before us this important truth: that the Spirit
breatheth where He will; that the Lord gives His grace sometimes to
what is most common, most simple, and even most base, according to the
notions of the world; that it is necessary to be attentive, that we
may not receive the grace of God in vain; and that, little as it may
seem at first, by being carefully attended to, it may have the most
beneficial results. Not to be thankful for it, to neglect it, to resist
it, is a heavy loss.
While Francis was at St. Gall, he foretold a thing which the event
justified a few years afterwards. Three men at Florence brought each
a child to receive his blessing. As soon as he was apprised of it, he
went into the garden and gathered five figs, then he came in, and gave
one to the first of the children, one to the second, and three to the
third, to whom he addressed the following words: "You will be my dear
child." That one, when he had attained the proper age, took the habit
of the Friars Minor, and was called Brother Angel, which he deserved
by his angelic life, which was the fruit of his great devotion to the
Blessed Virgin, from whom he received very marked favors.
From the month of October, 1211, to the beginning of 1212, the man of
God visited the Towns of Pescia, Pisa, San Miniato, Sarthiano, Cetona,
and other places in Tuscany, where he made many wonderful conversions,
and left some of his brethren to continue the work of God. We shall
relate, at the end of his life, the great honors which were publicly
shown him,--honors which he received with the greatest humility, and
yet with the most generous sentiments.
The brethren whom he had dispersed in the other provinces of Italy,
and who partook of his apostolic spirit, labored on their part with
great zeal and success. They founded many establishments, and formed
many disciples, whom they sent to the holy Founder in order to receive
the habit of the Order from him.
They mention particularly what happened at Bologna to Bernard de
Quintavalle. As soon as he made his appearance, his extraordinary and
very poor habit made him looked upon as a person not worthy of notice.
He went to the great square in order to preach the truth of salvation,
and he went there several times without having collected an audience.
Children and idle people surrounded him; some pulled him by the hood,
others threw mud and stones at him; and he was daily assailed with
fresh outrages, which he bore with exemplary patience.
A lawyer, having noticed this, made his reflections on it, and it
occurred to him that his conduct might be attributed to virtue rather
than insensibility. One day, then, he came up to Bernard and asked him
who he was, and what he had come to do at Bologna. "You will know who
I am," replied Bernard, "if you will take the trouble to read what I
now offer you." It was the Rule of Francis, of which he had a copy,
and which he placed in his hand. The lawyer having read it with
astonishment, said to those who accompanied him: "I own I have never
seen anything so perfect or so heroic as this mode of life. Those who
ill-use this man are very criminal; he ought, on the contrary, to be
loaded with honors, as a special friend of God." Then, addressing
himself to Bernard, he said: "If you will follow me, I will give you
a place in which you may serve the Lord." Bernard, having accepted the
offer, was taken to the house of his benefactor, who received him with
affection, and gave him a house, which he furnished with everything
necessary, and promised to protect him and his companions. After this,
Bernard was so highly respected in Bologna, that people considered
themselves fortunate if they could get near him, touch him, or even
see him. This truly humble man, mortified at the honor which was shown
him, went to Francis, and said, "My Father, all is in good order at
Bologna. But send any other religious thither rather than me, for I
have no longer any hopes of being useful there: it is even to be feared
that I may lose many graces on account of the great honors I receive."
This prudent mistrust of himself was as pleasing to the holy Father
as the affection of the Bolognese, to which he responded by sending
them several of his disciples, who subsequently spread the Order
throughout all Romagna.
The holy Patriarch returned some time before Lent to St. Mary of the
Angels, where his first care was to examine rigidly whether in his
Evangelical progress some worldly dust might not have adhered to him
in consequence of his communications with seculars; and in those
instances in which the extreme delicacy of his conscience gave him
room for self-reproach, he purified himself by very severe penitential
observances. He then applied himself carefully to the formation of the
novices, whom he had collected from various places, and he preached
during the Lent at Assisi.
His discourses, backed by his example, and his prayers and exhortations,
animated by an ardent zeal, were so efficacious, that in the town and
county of Assisi a very great number of persons was converted, and the
fire of divine love was kindled in every heart. "Then," says St.
Bonaventure, using the words of the Holy Scriptures, "the vine of the
Lord spread its branches and bore flowers of a most agreeable odor,
and produced fruits of glory in abundance." There were many young girls
who made vows of perpetual virginity; amongst whom, says the same holy
doctor, the Blessed Clare appeared as the most beautiful plant in the
garden of the Celestial Spouse, and as a star more brilliant than all
the others.
This illustrious maiden was the daughter of a rich and noble family
of Assisi. The Cavaliere Favorine, or Favarone, her father, was
descended from the ancient and powerful houses of Scifi and Fiumi. Her
mother, of equal high birth and exalted piety, was called Hortulana.
She had the talent of joining the care of her household to the practice
of good works, and to regulate her time so well, that she found enough
in which to visit, with the consent of her husband, many holy places:
she even made a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. If this practice is no
longer usual in these days, particularly as regards distant countries,
it arises from the circumstances of the times being very different,
and from there having been a great change in manners. But Christian
piety does not permit us altogether to condemn (independently of abuses)
voyages or journeys of devotion, since they are sanctioned by the
examples of the saints, have been approved by the Fathers of the Church,
and since at one time they were directed as sacramental penances for
certain sinners.
Hortulana had three daughters, Clare, Agnes, Beatrix. Being about to
be confined of the first, and praying to God before a crucifix in a
church for a safe delivery, she heard a voice, which said to her:
"Woman, fear not, thou wilt bring forth, without danger, a light which
will illuminate a vast space." This was the reason she gave the name
of Clare to the daughter to whom she gave birth, in the hopes of seeing
the accomplishment of what it might signify.
Indeed, from her earliest years, her virtue shone as an aurora, the
prognostication of a fine day. She received with docility the
instructions of her mother, and her whole conduct was the fruit thereof;
the exercise of prayer became familiar to her; she every day recited
the Lord's Prayer a number of times, which she marked with small stones,
in order to be exact in the daily number she had assigned for herself.
In that she resembled the solitary of the Desert of Seethe, who kept
an account of the number of his prayers, offering them to God three
hundred times each day. Naturally tender and compassionate to the poor,
she aided them voluntarily, and the opulence of her family enabled her
to assist them abundantly. But, in order to render her charities more
agreeable to God, she sent to the poor, by confidential persons, the
nicest eatables which were served to herself. The love of God, with
which these holy practices inflamed her heart, inspired her with a
hatred of her own body, and showed her the vanity of all the things
of this world. Under her own costly dresses, which her situation in
society obliged her to wear, she constantly had a hair-shirt; and she
cleverly refused a proposal of marriage which her parents wished her
to accept, recommending to God her virginity, which she intended to
preserve in entire purity. Although she was at that time confined in
the bosom of her family, and solely intent on sanctifying herself in
secret before the eyes of God, her virtue became the subject of
admiration, without her being conscious of it, and drew down upon her
the esteem and praise of the whole town.
The great celebrity which the sanctity of Francis gained in the world,
could not be unknown to young Clare.--Aware that this wonderful man
renewed a perfection on the earth which was almost forgotten, she
wished much to see him and to have conversations with him. Francis
also, having heard the reputation of Clare's virtues, had an equal
desire to communicate with her, that he might tear her from the world
and present her to Jesus Christ. They saw and visited each other several
times. Clare went to St. Mary of the Angels with a virtuous lady, a
relation of hers, whose name was Bona Guelfucci; Francis also came to
see her, but always taking the necessary precautions to have the pious
secret kept. She placed herself entirely under his guidance, and he
soon persuaded her to consecrate herself to God. An interior view of
eternal happiness inspired her with such contempt for the vanities of
the world, and filled her heart with such divine love, that she had
a complete loathing for finery, which it was not as yet permitted her
to throw aside; and from that time she entered into engagements to
live in a state of perpetual virginity.
The holy director did not choose that so pure a soul should continue
longer exposed to the contagion of the world. She had herself come to
him some days before Palm-Sunday to hasten the execution of her
intention; he told her to assist at the ceremony of the delivery of
palms dressed in her usual ornaments, to leave Assisi the following
night, as our Blessed Saviour had left Jerusalem to suffer on Mount
Calvary, and to come to the church of St. Mary of the Angels, where
she would exchange her worldly ornaments for a penitential habit, and
the vain joys of the world for holy lamentations over the Passion of
Jesus Christ.
On the 18th of March, being Palm-Sunday, Clare, magnificently dressed,
went with other ladies to the Cathedral Church, and as she remained
in her place out of bashfulness while the others crowded forward to
receive the palms, the bishop came down from the altar, and carried
a palm branch to her, as a symbol of the victory she was about to gain
over the world.
The following night, accompanied as propriety required, she arranged
her flight as her spiritual Father had directed, and according to the
earnest wish of her soul. Not being able to get out by the front door,
of which she had not the key, she had the courage and strength to break
open a small door which had been blocked up with stones and wood, and
she repaired to the church, where Francis and his brethren, who were
saying their matins, received her with great solemnity, bearing lighted
tapers in their hands. They cut off her hair before the altar, and
after she had taken off her ornaments with the help of the females who
accompanied her, she received the penitential habit, consecrating her
virginity to Jesus Christ, under the protection of the Queen of Virgins,
while the religious chanted hymns and canticles.
It was a touching scene to see a young noble lady, only eighteen years
of age, in solitude, in the middle of the night, renounce all the
advantages and allurements of the world, put on sackcloth and a cord,
and devote herself to a rigorous system of penitential exercises,
solely for the love of God. Similar sacrifices can only be made by a
supernatural virtue; they prove that the religion which inspires them
is divine; and justly does St. Ambrose consider them to be far above
the most heroical pagan virtues.
It must be remarked, moreover, that the Church of St. Mary of the
Angels, which was the cradle of the Order of the Poor Evangelical
Brethren which Francis had just established, was also the place where
Clare made profession of the same poverty, that she subsequently
prescribed to the Order of Women, which she instituted together with
the holy Patriarch. This gives to the two orders the pleasing
consolation of knowing that they belong to the Mother of God from their
origin, and that she is specially their mother.
As soon as the ceremony was over, Francis, who was always guided by
the spirit of wisdom, took the new bride of Jesus Christ, followed by
her companions, to the monastery of Benedictines of St. Paul, there
to remain until Divine Providence should provide a dwelling for her.
When morning dawned, and her parents learnt what had occurred during
the night, they were overwhelmed with grief. They equally disapproved
of what Clare had done, and of the manner in which she had carried her
intention into execution; and they went in great numbers to the
monastery of St. Paul, to compel her to leave it. At first they spoke
to her in mild and friendly terms; they represented to her that she
was choosing a vile and contemptible state of life, which was
disgraceful to her family, and that there was no precedent in the whole
country of such an occurrence. After which they attempted by violence
to force her from the monastery; which they might easily have done,
because in those times the religious females did not keep strict
enclosure, beside which her relations were all military men, accustomed
to acts of violence.
Clare uncovered her head to show them that she was shorn; and she
protested, clinging to the altar, that nothing in the world should
tear her from Jesus Christ. Either because they had too much respect
for religion to venture to violate so holy an asylum, or that God
restrained them by His power, they molested her no farther. She had
only to resist the fresh efforts they made to induce her to return to
her father. But the love of God gave her courage to resist with such
determined firmness, that, giving up all hopes of conquering her, they
left her in peace.
A short time after, Francis removed her from the Monastery of St. Paul
to that of St. Angelo de Panso, of the same Order of St. Benedict,
near Assisi, to which she drew her sister Agnes. The conformity of
their inclinations and manners, which rendered them tenderly united,
had made them sensibly feel their separation. Clare was greatly grieved
that Agnes, at so tender an age, should be exposed to the dangers of
the world. She prayed fervently to the Almighty to cause her sister
to feel the sweets of His grace, so that she might grow disgusted with
the world, and become her companion in the service of Jesus Christ.
Her prayer was soon favorably heard, for, a fortnight after her
consecration, Agnes came to her, and declared that she was decided to
give herself wholly to God. "I return Him thanks," replied Clare, "for
that He has thus relieved me from the uneasiness I was in on your
account."
The indignation of the family was extreme, when it became known that
one sister had followed the other. On the morrow, twelve of its
principal members hastened to the Monastery of St. Angelo. At first
they feigned to have come in a peaceful mood; but, having been admitted,
they turned to Agnes, for they had no longer any hopes of Clare, and
said: "What business have you here? Come immediately home with us."
She replied that she did not choose to leave her sister, when one of
the knights, forgetting himself altogether, attacked her furiously,
struck her with his fist, kicked her, pulled her down by the hair, and
the others carried her off in their arms. All that this innocent lamb
could do, thus torn by the wolves, was to cry out: "My dear sister,
come to my aid; do not let them separate me from Jesus Christ." Clare
could give her no assistance, but by praying to God to render her
steadfast, and to check the violence of her ravishers. This prayer was
followed by a miraculous effect, similar to what the Church records
in the life of the illustrious virgin and martyr, St. Lucia.
As the relations of Agnes dragged her down the mountain, tearing her
clothes, and scattering her hair along the road, because she continued
violently to resist, she became suddenly so heavy, that they were
unable to raise her from the ground, even with the help of persons who
flocked from the fields and the vineyards. They were blind to the
finger of God in so extraordinary an event, and they even made a jest
of it; for ill-disposed persons, like the Pharisees of the Gospel,
do not submit to the evidence of miracles, but carry their impiety to
the length of turning all miracles into ridicule. The one which God
was pleased to perform in the person of Agnes, threw her uncle, whose
name was Monaldi, into such a rage, that he raised his arm to strike
her in such a manner as would have killed her, if the Divine power had
not arrested the blow by bringing such an excessive pain into the limb
as to disable it; this pain lasted a considerable time. This is a grand
lesson for those parents who prevent their children from consecrating
themselves to God in a religious state. If they do not experience in
this world the effects of His anger, they ought to fear the consequences
of the anathema in the next with which the Council of Trent menaces,
not only them, but those also who compel their children to embrace a
religious state.
Clare came to the field of battle, where she found her sister half
dead. She entreated the relations to retire and to leave her in her
care, which they regrettingly did. Agnes then rose with great ease,
glad to have had a share in the cross of Jesus Christ. She returned
to the monastery with her sister, to consecrate herself to God under
the direction of Francis, who cut off her hair with his own hands, and
instructed her in the duties of the state she was about to enter.
Clare, not having her mind quite at ease in the Monastery of St. Angelo,
removed to the house which adjoined the Church of St. Damian, the first
of the three which he had repaired, and where he had foretold that
there would be one day a monastery of poor females, who should lead
a sanctified life, and whose reputation would cause our Heavenly Father
to be glorified.
Clare had scarcely fixed herself there, when the fame of her sanctity
spread all around, and produced wonderful effects. The influence of
grace was so great, that there were many persons of all sexes and all
ages, of all states of life, nobles and rich, who took to a religious
life. They mutually incited each other in families, as St. Jerome tells
us that it occurred in all Africa, when the illustrious virgin,
Demetrias, moved by the exhortation of St. Augustine, took the holy
veil. It was even seen that married persons separated by mutual consent,
and entered separate convents: and those who could not do this, strove
to sanctify themselves in the world. The virtues of the holy spouse
of Jesus Christ, as a precious perfume, attracted pure and innocent
souls, who made the house of St. Damian a numerous community, and the
cradle of the Order of the Poor Clares, or Poor Ladies, the second of
the three orders which were established by St. Francis. He appointed
Clare Abbess of St. Damian, although her humility made her wish to be
the servant of the others, and he only overcame her repugnance by
enforcing that obedience which she had promised him.
It was there that this holy abbess was enclosed during a period of
forty-two years in the practice of the most eminent perfection, and
which we shall have an opportunity of referring to, when we come to
speak of her rule.
After Francis had regulated the spiritual exercises of these nuns,
provided for the enclosure, and placed the house in good order, he
turned in his mind things personal to himself, as to what should be
his future way of life. In order to come to a decision, he consulted
those of his brethren with whom he was in the habit of having familiar
intercourse, and proposed to them his difficulties as follows:
"My brethren, what do you advise me? Which of the two do you think
best: that I shall give myself to prayer, or that I shall go forth to
preach? To me it seems that prayer is what is most advantageous to me,
for I am a simple person, who am not a good speaker, and I have received
the gift of prayer, rather than that of speech: moreover, we gain much
by prayer; it is the source of graces; but, in preaching, we only
distribute to others what God has communicated. Prayer purifies the
heart and the affections; it unites us to the sole true and sovereign
good, and strengthens us in virtue. Preaching renders the feet of the
spiritual man dusty; it is an employment which dissipates and distracts,
and which causes regular discipline to be relaxed. In fine, in prayer
we speak to God, and we listen to Him; we converse with the angels,
as if we lived an Evangelic life. In preaching we must have much
condescension towards men, and, living with them, we must hear and
see, speak and think, in some measure as they do, in a human way. But
there is one thing which seems to prevail over all this before God,
which is, that the Only Son, who is in the bosom of His Father, and
is the Sovereign Wisdom, came down from heaven to save souls, to
instruct mankind by His example and by His word, to redeem them by His
blood, and to make of this precious blood a bath and a celestial
beverage: all that He had He gave up liberally and without reserve for
our salvation. Now, having bound ourselves to do all things according
to the model given us in His person, it seems more in conformity to
the will of God, that I should give up my own repose in order to labor
for the benefit of others."
After all these reflections, he continued in an anxious state of
uncertainty as to the course he ought to take; and this man, who had
wonderful knowledge through the spirit of prophecy, had no light thrown
on his doubts by prayer: God permitting at that time that he should
not be sensible to the evident proofs he had, that he was called to
the apostolic life.
We have already seen that powerful attractions to a contemplative life
had given rise to similar difficulties arising in his mind. As he
wished in all things to act faithfully and perfectly, his principal
care was to apply himself to the virtues which he knew, by the
inspiration of the Holy Spirit, to be most agreeable to God.
St. Bonaventure says that this was the ground of his doubt, and he
gives two reasons why God permitted that the Saint should not have
been able to solve the difficulty, the solution of which appeared so
easy. The first is, in order that the heavenly oracles which had
announced that Francis was destined to preach the Gospel, should give
a more exalted idea of the merits of that ministry; to this may be
added, that it was of consequence that it should be known with certainty
that the holy Founder and his disciples were destined by Heaven to
labor for the salvation of souls, since in after times it has been
found that some of their adversaries have contested it. Secondly, the
doubt of the servant of God was useful in preserving his humility and
rendering it still greater. In the capacity of a Friar Minor, he was
not ashamed of seeking the advice of the least of his brethren, he who
had been taught such elevated things from the Sovereign Master. It was
likewise one of his maxims throughout his whole life, and of the
principles of the sacred philosophy, of which he made profession, to
address himself to the simple as well as to the learned, to the
imperfect as well as to the perfect, to the young as to the old, with
the ardent desire to find from intercourse with them in what way and
by what means he could best serve God according to His good pleasure,
and raise himself to the greatest perfection.
Finally, we must not be surprised that he entreated God to grant him
additional proofs of his vocation, after having received such convincing
ones by revelations, by miracles, and from the mouth of the Vicar of
Jesus Christ; when we see in the Sacred Scriptures, that Gideon, having
been chosen by God to fight the enemies of His people, and this choice
having been manifested by the apparition of an angel, by a miracle and
by a revelation, he nevertheless begged the Lord to give other
miraculous signs, in order to be still further assured of it, and his
prayer was granted. Would to God, that, without asking for miracles
and without expecting them, all vocations, particularly those for the
holy ministries, and other affairs of conscience, were examined on
such sound principles, and weighed by means as likely to deserve the
light of Heaven.
In order to know how finally to decide, Francis sent two of his
religious, Philip and Masse, to Brother Sylvester the priest, who was
then on the mountain near Assisi, continually intent on prayer, begging
him to consult the Lord on the subject of his doubt, and to let him
know the result. He made a similar application to Clare, recommending
her to put the same question to her sisters, and particularly to the
one who should appear to her to be the most pure and most single-minded.
The venerable priest and the consecrated virgin gave similar answers,
and pronounced that it was the will of God that Francis should go forth
to preach.
When the two religious returned, Francis received them with great
respect and affection; he washed their feet, embraced them, and gave
them their meal. He then took them into the wood, where he knelt
bareheaded and inclined, with his hands crossed upon his breast, and
said to them: "Now tell me what my Lord Jesus Christ commands me to
do?" "My very dear brother, and my Father," replied Masse, "Sylvester
and Clare received precisely the same answer from our Lord Jesus Christ,
which is, that you set out to preach; because it is not for your
salvation alone that He called you, but for the salvation of others
also; and for them He will put His words into your mouth."
Then Francis, moved by the Spirit of God, as the prophets had been,
and inflamed by the fire of charity, rose up, saying: "Let us then go
in the name of the Lord;" and he set out with two of his companions,
Masse of Marignan, and Angelo of Rieti. He walked so fast to obey the
words of Heaven, that it was easy to see that the Lord acted upon him,
and that he had received fresh strength from above for the ministry
of preaching. His companions were the more convinced of this by the
very extraordinary wonders which were worked by him on the route.
The apostolical preacher went first to Bevagna, where he pronounced
an excellent discourse on the love of God; after which, in presence
of the whole audience, he restored the sight of a blind girl by putting
spittle three times on her eyes in the name of the Blessed Trinity.
This miracle had a salutary effect on a number of sinners, who were
converted; and many of them joined him who was the instrument of the
Divine Power.
So many souls gained to Jesus Christ in one place, stimulated him to
carry the faith into the Levant. The triumph of martyrs, whose charity
could not be extinguished by the violence of persecutions, excited in
him a holy jealousy. Burning with similar fire, he wished to offer
himself, as they had done, a sacrifice, in order to mark his gratitude
in some measure, by the effusion of his blood, for the goodness of
Jesus Christ, who vouchsafed to die for our salvation, thus the better
to excite others to love Him. But he desired to have the sanction of
the Sovereign Pontiff for this undertaking, and therefore bent his
steps to Rome, preaching as he went the truths of salvation, which God
confirmed by miracles.
Arrived at Rome, he sought an audience with the Pope. Innocent III
still filled the Papal throne; he first communicated to him the
wonderful extension of his Order, the holy lives of his brethren, and
the design which God had to bring about a reformation of morals in the
world, which was growing old, and was visibly in a state of decay.
Then he disclosed the project he had of transporting himself to the
lands of the Mahometans and Tartars, to endeavor to give them some
knowledge of the Gospel. It must be remarked, that the Saint attributed
to the world that decay which is the effect of old age, but he did not
extend this to the Church, because he well knew that, although old,
she was not infirm. St. Augustine says, that her old age is always
young, fresh, vigorous, and that she bears fruit in abundance. The
Pope, who was very religious, was highly gratified at the fortunate
success which he now learnt had attended the Saint's labors; he
willingly granted the servant of God leave to preach to the infidels,
and he affectionately gave him his blessing.
Two sermons which Francis preached at Rome procured him two disciples,
Zachary and William; the one was a Roman, the other was an Englishman.
John de Capella, of whom we have before spoken, having left the Order
about this time, and having had a similar end to that of Judas, William
was substituted for him, as St. Mathias had filled the place of the
traitor in the Apostolate, and William was afterwards always considered
as the twelfth of the first companions of the Patriarch.
A Roman widow, very noble and very rich, called Jacqueline de Settesoli,
having heard the Saint preach, was very anxious to have an interview
with him. He agreed to it, although reluctantly, and he gave her such
salutary instructions, that she committed the care of all her affairs
to her two sons, who were afterwards senators, in order that she might
apply herself to the sanctification of her soul, employing the gift
of tears which God had given her, to weep incessantly the neglects of
her past life. This lady and St. Clare were the only two persons of
the female sex with whom the servant of Jesus Christ had any intimate
relations on the subject of their salvation; which ought to serve as
a caution for this sort of direction lest it be too greatly
multiplied,--and be unholy.
As there is no affection more solid or more effective than that which
is grounded on charity, the pious widow rendered to Francis and his
brethren all the good offices in her power. When they came to Rome she
provided them with lodgings, she fed them, clothed them, and assisted
them in their sicknesses with the tenderness of a mother. It was she
who procured for them from the Benedictines of the Abbey of St. Cosmas
beyond the Tiber, a refuge in the Hospital of St. Blaise; and this
hospital with its church was entirely ceded to them by the same
religious order in the year 1229, at the request of Pope Gregory IX;
it is to this day the Convent of St. Francis of Ripa. Thus the Friars
Minor are indebted to the children of St. Benedict for the first
establishment they had in Rome, as well as for that of St. Mary of the
Angels, or Portiuncula, the first of the whole Order.
Francis, having terminated his business at Rome, returned to St. Mary
of the Angels, where he communicated to his brethren his intention of
proceeding to the Levant. He exhorted them in the strongest terms to
perfect themselves in the exercises of a religious life; he left them
Peter of Catania as superior during his absence, and set out with one
companion for Ascoli. At that place they were extremely anxious to see
and hear this admirable man, who was everywhere looked upon as a saint:
he had scarcely arrived in the town when all flocked to him; whichever
way he went, a crowd followed him; every one was anxious to get near
him, and they pressed upon each other in order only to be able to touch
his miserable habit. His presence and preaching in this town procured
him thirty disciples, some priests, and some laymen, whom he placed
in different houses of the Order.
The desire of martyrdom which he aspired to from the infidels, did not
admit of a longer stay at Ascoli; he therefore made for the sea-side,
and embarked on board a vessel which was bound for Syria. But on the
passage the winds became adverse, and they were obliged to come to
anchor off Sclavonia, where he remained some days in hopes of finding
some other vessel bound to the Levant. Not finding any, and perceiving
that his intention had been foiled, he applied to some seamen who were
about to sail to Ancona, to take him on board their vessel for the
love of God. They refused obstinately to do so, because he had no money
wherewith to pay his passage; notwithstanding this, the holy man
contrived to slip secretly on board with his companion.
An unknown person came on board the vessel and brought provisions with
him, saying to one of the passengers: "Worthy man, I confide these
provisions to you, for the use of two poor religious who are secreted
in the vessel; take care of them, and give food to them when required."
Who could this charitable purveyor be? There is reason to think, with
St. Bonaventure, that he was sent by God to the assistance of these
two poor religious, who were only poor for love of Him. Stormy weather
rendered the passage disastrous; they could neither carry sail, nor
return to land. All the sailors' provisions were expended: there was
nothing left but the provisions put on board for the two religious.
Divine Providence was pleased to multiply these, inasmuch that they
sufficed for all who were in the vessel for several days, during which
they were still at sea, before they reached Ancona. The sailors,
astonished at this miracle, were convinced that the poor man whom they
had refused to receive on board, had, by his merits, saved their lives,
and they returned thanks to God for His mercy.
After having landed, Francis went to several places, spreading the
word of God as a precious seed, which produced an ample harvest. Many
came to see him from afar, so greatly had his reputation been
disseminated. A celebrated poet came amongst others, having heard his
entire contempt for the things of this world spoken of. He was of the
class of persons who were called in Provence _Troubadours_, who
invented fables, and composed different pieces of poetry, which were
sung in the houses of the nobles. The art of versifying in the vulgar
tongue was uncommon in those times, and was only practised by the
nobility. The Italians imitated the people of Provence, and translated
into their language the best compositions of the _Troubadours_.
The poet of whom we are speaking excelled in this art, and the Emperor
Frederic II had crowned him as the Prince of Poets, which caused him
to be usually called "The King of Verse."
Coming then to see Francis, he passed through the Borough Town of San
Severino, and entered the church of a monastery, where the Servant of
God was preaching on the mystery of the Cross. He listened to him at
first without knowing him; but God disclosed Francis to him in the
course of the sermon, by two shining swords pierced through the Saint
cross-wise, one from the head to the feet, and the other from one hand
to the other through the breast; from this he became aware that the
preacher was the holy man of whom so much was spoken. The first
impression which the vision made upon him was, that he ought to lead
a better life; but the words of the preacher filled him with such
compunction, that he felt as if he had been pierced by the sword of
the spirit which came out of his mouth. He went after the sermon to
renounce in Francis' hands all the vanities of the world, and to embrace
his Institute. Francis, seeing him pass so perfectly from the agitations
of the world to the peace of Jesus Christ, gave him the name of Brother
Pacificus.
St. Bonaventure adds, that he was a man of so much holiness that he
received the additional favor from God of seeing on the forehead of
his Blessed Father a great T, painted in a variety of colors, which
threw a remarkable softness on his countenance. This letter, which
represents the cross, showed the interior comeliness which the love
of the cross gave to his soul.
Watchfulness and affection inspired the Father with the wish to return
to Tuscany, to visit the establishments he had founded there the
preceding year, and to learn from his own inspection how they progressed
in the ways of God. The family of the Ubaldini, which is among the
most illustrious of Florence, gave him a convent which had been built
and founded by their ancestors for the religious of the Order of St.
Basil, in the sixth or seventh century, some leagues from the city,
in the middle of a wood, and which had been since occupied by hermits.
He put some of his companions into it, and returned towards the end
of October to St. Mary of the Angels, preaching, as was his custom,
in all the places he passed through. The repose he allowed himself
after so much fatigue, was that of applying himself to the instruction
of his disciples, and addressing discourses to them full of wisdom.
At the end of this year he had an attack of ague, which became quartan,
and reduced him to a great state of languor. The bishop of Assisi, who
was a most charitable prelate, and his particular friend, having heard
of his illness, came to see him, and, notwithstanding his resistance,
had him removed to his palace, where he attended to his recovery with
the charity of a pastor and the affection of a parent. His religious
came to him there to seek the light they required. They also brought
to him such postulants as presented themselves, and those who were
recommended to him (at times there were thirty or forty) by the
missionaries he had in various parts of Italy; for none were then
received who had not been examined by the founder himself. A young
gentleman from Lucca came with tears in his eyes, to entreat him to
give him the habit. "Unfortunate young man," said the Saint, "why do
you attempt to show by your eyes what is not in your heart? You have,
without due consideration, formed a plan which you will soon as lightly
give up." In fact, a few days after he went home with two of his
relations who had come in search of him, and he thought no more of
becoming a religious.
The servant of God, having regained some portion of strength during
his residence with the bishop, by relaxing in the severity of his
abstinences, which were extreme, became irritated with his own body,
and was inflamed with the desire of humbling himself: "It is not right,"
he said, "that people should think me austere, while I am pampered in
secret." Upon which the spirit of humility suggested to him an act,
which St. Bonaventure records, not as an example, but as a prodigy,
to be compared only with those extraordinary things which God commanded
the Prophets to perform. He rose, and accompanied by a great number
of his brethren, he went to the great Square of Assisi, assembled the
people, and led them to the cathedral. Then he caused himself to be
dragged by the vicar of his convent from the church to the place of
execution, stripped, and with a cord round his neck, as the Prophet
Isaias. There, weak as he still was, and shivering with cold, he
addressed the assembly with surprising energy, and said in a loud
voice: "I assure that I ought not to receive honor as if I were a
spiritual man. I am a carnal, sensual, and greedy man, whom you ought
thoroughly to despise." The hearers, who knew the austerity of his
life, struck with such a scene, admitted that this extraordinary
humility was more to be admired than imitated.
Nevertheless, the holy doctor, whom we have just named, finds in this
some wholesome instruction. It teaches us, he says, that, in the
practice of virtue, we must avoid with great care everything having
any tendency to hypocrisy, repress the slightest approaches of vanity,
and have a sovereign contempt for praise. The humble Francis, who
strenuously labored for his interior sanctification, did many things
with a view of rendering himself contemptible, endeavoring, above all,
to prevent men from being deceived in the idea they might have formed
of his sanctity. This is the characteristic of true devotion; it has
no borrowed exterior; it is, or it endeavors to be, all that it seems.
The religious whom Francis had sent into Lombardy, fulfilled the mission
in an admirable manner. They acquired so much esteem at Milan by their
preaching and by their good example, that the archbishop of that city,
Henry Satalas, gave them an establishment there, which became
considerable later, by the liberality of the Milanese.
One of the fruits of their apostolic labors was the vocation of a young
man of rank, who was rich and talented, and who solicited the habit
of the Order. Upon their acquainting him that, to become a Friar Minor,
it was requisite to renounce all temporal goods, he immediately disposed
of all of which he was then master, and distributed the greater part
to the poor, reserving the remainder to pay the expenses of his journey
to Assisi, where he was told that it was necessary to present himself
to the founder, who alone had the power of receiving novices.
He induced some of his relations and friends to accompany him, and
took with him a considerable number of servants; one of the religious
was also requested to go with them, in order to introduce the postulant,
and favor his reception. When they arrived at St. Mary of the Angels,
Francis, seeing such a number of persons, and such an appearance of
vanity, asked the religious who was with them, who these lords were,
and what they wanted? He answered: "My Father, this is a young man,
learned and rich, of one of the first families of Milan, who wishes
to become your disciple." Francis replied, before them all, smiling:
"This young man does not seem to me to be fit for our Order, for, when
people come with so much pomp, which is the mark of a proud spirit,
to embrace a state of poverty, we are led to believe that they have
not yet sufficient contempt and aversion for the world, and that they
are not prepared wholly to relinquish it. But I will consult our
brethren on the subject."
He assembled them all, and asked their opinion, which was not to receive
him, because he had still a fund of pride, and because the love for
the splendor of the world was not yet eradicated from his heart.
The young man who was present burst into tears; and Francis, who was
moved with compassion, said: "My brethren, will you receive him if he
consents to serve in the kitchen? it will be the means of inducing him
to renounce the vanities of the world." They assented on this condition,
which the postulant willingly agreed to, protesting that he was prepared
to do anything that was required of him. The Father embraced him, after
having returned to those who accompanied him his money and his equipage.
He sent him to the hospital of St. Blasius of Rome, there to act as
cook; and the young novice attained to such perfection in that humble
employment, that Francis judged him worthy to be placed over others,
and made him superior of the same place.
The line adopted in respect to this young man shows evidently, that
for the religious profession neither birth, nor riches, nor talents,
are to be heeded, but that the essential qualifications principally
to be considered for this holy state, are, to be sincerely prepared
to die to the world and to self.
At the beginning of the year 1213, the fever of which Francis had been
cured at the bishop's palace of Assisi recurred; sometimes it was
tertian, sometimes quartan, but always with great severity. He bore
the suffering with great equanimity, because of the hatred he felt for
his body, and from the patience taught by Jesus Christ. The violence
of the fever which burned his body, was, in his opinion, a lesser evil
than the fire of temptations which inflame the soul; his sufferings
appeared to him a gain. All the saints have had a like way of thinking,
and the principles of Christianity admit of no other. The only
uneasiness the sickness gave to the holy man, was its having prevented
him putting in force the intentions he had in view for the salvation
of souls. But charity, which is ever active, suggested to him to exhort
the faithful in writing, as he could not do so in person; he therefore
addressed them a short letter, couched in the following terms:--
"O how happy are all those who love God, and who worthily practise all
that Jesus Christ has taught in His holy gospel. Thou shalt love the
Lord thy God with thy whole heart, and with thy whole soul, and thy
neighbor as thyself. Let us love and adore God with great purity of
mind and heart; for that is what He seeks for above all things. He has
said that the true adorers shall adore the Father in spirit and in
truth, and that they who adore Him, must adore Him in spirit and truth.
I salute you in our Lord."
This short letter was still fresh from his hand, when an infinity of
copies were made of it, so anxious were all people to see anything
that came from the hand of so holy a person. In this simple and brief
exhortation they admired the candor of his soul and the extent of his
charity, and, in reading it, they were moved by a power which penetrated
the soul; for the words of the saints have a secret unction which is
not found elsewhere.
These spiritual services, and others which Francis rendered to his
neighbor, with the continual instruction he gave to his brethren, were
his occupations during his sickness, and until such time as returning
health permitted him to do more. He was somewhat better in the spring,
as is usually the case with those who have the quartan ague; but his
extraordinary austerities had so weakened his constitution, that he
never wholly recovered his health, and the remainder of his life was
little else than a state of languor.
As soon as he could commence travelling, he committed the care of his
Order to Peter of Cantania, and set out with Bernard of Quintavalle
and some others, in order to go to Morocco, through Spain, to preach
the Gospel to the Miramolin and to his subjects, in the hopes of
attaining by this means the crown of martyrdom, which was the great
object of his wishes.
The servant of God did not reach Spain till near the end of the year,
because he had stopped in various places to preach, to visit the houses
of his Order, and to receive accounts of others. His whole route was
a succession of miracles, and other remarkable things, which contain
admirable instructions.
At Foligno, the sign of the cross which he made on the house of his
host, protected it from various accidents, and particularly from fire,
which did no damage to that dwelling, although the adjoining houses
were three or four times on fire: the flames were even seen to take
a contrary direction. At Spoleto, knowing that a rich man thought ill
of his Institute, and refused his brethren alms, he asked him only to
give him a loaf; and, having received it, he divided it among his
religious, and directed them to say the Lord's Prayer and the
Evangelical Salutation three times, for the person who had given it.
Their scanty meal was scarcely finished, when this man came to ask
forgiveness for the harshness he had shown them, and he was, after
that, the best friend of their convent, so good an idea of their
Institution had the saint impressed upon him.
At Terni, the bishop who had listened to one of Francis' sermons,
ascended the pulpit when he had done, and said to the people:--"My
brethren, the Lord, who has often enlightened His Church by men
illustrious for their science, has now sent you this Francis whom you
have just heard, a poor illiterate man, and contemptible in appearance,
in order that he may edify you by his word and his example. The less
learned he is, the more does the power of God shine in his person, who
chooses those who are foolish according to the views of the world, to
confound all worldly wisdom. The care which God takes of our salvation
obliges us to honor and glorify Him; for He has not done the like to
other nations."
Francis followed the prelate, fell on his knees, kissed his hand, and
said:--"My lord, in very truth, no one has ever done me so much honor
as I have this day received from you. Some attribute to me a sort of
sanctity, which noway belongs to me, and which ought to be referred
to God alone, the author of every perfect gift. But you, my lord, have
wisely separated what is valuable from what is vile, the worthy from
the unworthy, the saint from the sinner; giving the glory to God, and
not to me, who am but a miserable mortal. It is, indeed, only to God,
the King of Ages, immortal and invisible, that men should give honor
and glory for ever and ever." The bishop, even more pleased with this
specimen of his humility than with his preaching, embraced him
affectionately.
In the same city, by the sign of the cross he rendered some sour wine
perfectly good, and that before persons who had tasted it in its acid
state. But he performed a much greater miracle, which was universally
admired, on a young lad who had been just crushed by the fall of a
wall; having had him brought to him, he applied himself to prayer,
and, extending himself on the corpse, as the Prophet Eliseus had done
on the child of the Sunamite, he restored him to life.
In the County of Narni, he was lodged in the house of a worthy man who
was in great affliction for the death of his brother, who had been
drowned, and whose body could not be found, so that it might be buried.
After having privately prayed for some time, he showed a spot in the
river where he said that the body certainly was at the bottom; it had
been stopped there by the entanglement of the clothes. They dived at
that place and found the body, which he restored to life in the presence
of the whole family.
The fever, and a severe stomach complaint, caused him to faint in a
hermitage which had been given him near the Borough of St. Urban, and
he asked for some wine to recover from the weakness which had ensued.
As there was none to be had there, he had some water brought to him,
which he blessed, by making the sign of the cross over it, and it was
instantly changed thereby into excellent wine. The little that he took
of it renovated him so promptly, that it was a double miracle. Upon
which St. Bonaventure remarks, that this wonderful change is a type
of the change he had effected in his heart, in casting off the old man
to put on the new.
In the City of Narni, he cured a man who had lost the use of his limbs
for five months from palsy, employing no other remedy than a sign of
the cross, which he made over his whole body; this he did at the request
of the bishop of the place, and by virtue of the same sign he restored
the sight of a blind girl. Being at Orti, he straightened a child, who
was so deformed that its head touched its feet. At San Gemini, he
prayed, with three of his companions, for the wife of his host, whom
the devil had possessed for a long while, and the evil spirit left
her. Such evident miracles, publicly performed, and in great numbers,
gave a wonderful splendor to his sanctity. In the archives of the Town
of Poggibonsi, in Tuscany, the act of donation of a house given to him
is preserved, which commences thus:--"We cede to a man named Francis,
whom all the world considers as a saint," etc.
The discourses of so holy a man, of one so gifted with the power of
miracles, had the greatest effect upon the hearts of his hearers, and
made the people very anxious to have houses of his Order established
among them. He settled some of his religious at Foligno, at Trevi, at
San Gemini, at Sienna, and in several other places.
Fresh disciples joined him from all quarters, but he did not receive
any until he had strictly examined their vocation. A young gentleman,
having heard him preach at Monte Casale, a town in the Appennines,
came to acquaint him with the design he had long formed of entering
his Order. "You must think seriously of it," replied Francis; "for the
kind of life we lead must appear very hard to those who have been
tenderly brought up." The young man answered courageously: "My Father,
are not you and yours of the same nature as I am, and formed of the
same earth? I hope, with God's help, to bear without much inconvenience
what my fellow-men can bear so willingly." These ideas were very
pleasing to the Patriarch, and the postulant was received. It must be
admitted that man has resources of strength which he might make use
of to imitate the saints in many things, if he were not wanting in
exertion and confidence in God.
From Monte Casale Francis passed over the Appennines, and went through
the Valley of Marecchia to reach Monte Feltro, or St. Leo. He learnt
on the road that the lord of that town was about to be knighted at his
castle, where he was giving a grand feast, accompanied by games and
theatricals, to a numerous assembly of the nobility, among whom was
Count Orlando Catanio, lord of Chiusi Nuovo, and of all the Casentino.
Being near the castle, and hearing the sound of the trumpets, which
denoted that the revelry was about to begin, he said to his
companions:--"Let us go hither also, and let us combat the devil with
all our might, who never fails in these rejoicings to lay his snares
into which many fall; for it is our duty to labor everywhere and in
all places for the salvation of souls." He went up to the castle, and
heard the solemn mass with all those who accompanied the new knight.
As soon as it was over, he took a position on a height near the church,
in order to preach from thence, and the crowd gathered round him to
listen.
He took the following Italian words for his text:--"Tanto e il ben che
aspetto, che d'ogni pena mi diletto:" which means--"the good which I
hope for is so great, that to obtain it all suffering is pleasurable."
He proved his text by this passage from St. Paul:--"The sufferings of
this life are not worthy to be compared with the glory to come;" by
the example of the apostles, who were filled with joy for having been
found worthy to suffer for the name of Jesus; by the example of the
martyrs, who willingly exposed themselves to torments and death, that
they might obtain heaven; and, finally by such cogent reasons, so
pathetically set forth, that all the auditors admired the doctrine,
and felt what he wished to inspire them with. They found in the preacher
something divine, which commanded respect, and they fixed their looks
upon his countenance as if it had been that of an angel.
Count Orlando, more impressed with what he had heard than the rest,
went after the sermon to embrace the preacher, and he entreated him
particularly to instruct him in the affairs of his salvation. Francis,
who, in addition to his ardent zeal, had much discretion and suavity
of manner, said:--"Count, go now and do honor to your friends whom you
have invited, and we will talk of this affair at a more convenient
time." The count, complying with this advice, joined the nobility who
waited for him, and did not forget to take care of the servants of
God. The feast having ended, he returned to the prudent director, with
whom he had a lengthened conversation, with which he was so much struck,
that in order to have the comfort of seeing familiarly the religious
of the Institute, he offered Francis the Mountain of Alvernia, with
a promise, if he agreed to it, of building there a convent.
As this was a lonely place, very fit for contemplation, Francis gladly
accepted the offer, and promised to send two of his brethren to Chiusi,
before he should leave Italy. He did in fact send them, and the count
having received them as angels sent from heaven, he took them to Mount
Alvernia, where they fixed upon a spot which appeared to them an apt
location for a church. Fifty soldiers who had been brought thither
began immediately to fell timber, and a place was cleared, where hutting
was set up to lodge the religious, in which they dwelt until the church
and convent were built. These are the circumstances under which the
Friars Minor were settled on this mountain, which subsequently became
so celebrated in the Christian world by the stigmata of St. Francis.
The place was ceded to them by an authentic document which the count
gave them, and which is preserved in the original in the archives of
the convent. We shall speak further of this holy place when we come
to relate the first visit the Saint paid it on his return from Spain.
He continued his journey through Bologna, from whence, after having
visited his brethren, he came to Imola. He first went to offer his
respects to the bishop, and asked permission to preach to his people.
"I preach," replied the bishop coldly, "and that is quite enough."
Francis bowed humbly, and retired; but an hour afterwards he returned,
and the bishop, surprised and angered at seeing him again, asked him
what he could possibly want? to which he replied, in a tone of sincere
humility: "My lord, if a father drives his son out of the house by one
door, it is right that the son should return through another." The
bishop mollified by this mild address, embraced him with affection,
and said: "From henceforth you and your brethren may preach in my
diocese. I give you a general leave, it is what your humility has
merited." Is there anything which can soften minds and obtain favors
sooner than this virtue?
The humility of Francis was accompanied with great courage, which
rendered him firm and confident in the most imminent dangers, this was
owing to the great confidence he had in God. Night overtook him once
when he was in company with Leo, between Lombardy and the Trevisan
Marshes, on a road having on one side the Po, one of the most
considerable rivers in Italy, and on the other a deep morass. Leo,
much alarmed, exclaimed: "Father, pray to God to deliver us from the
danger we are in." Francis, full of faith, replied: "God can, if it
is His good pleasure, give us light to dissipate the darkness of the
night." These words were hardly spoken, when they found themselves
surrounded by a brilliant light, which not only made the way clear to
them, but enabled them to see many things on either side of the way,
although the darkness was very dense everywhere else. They pursued
their route, singing the glories of God; the celestial torch served
them as a guide till they reached the place where they were to be
lodged, which was then very far off. This miraculous light was a
notification to the Saint that it was God's pleasure that he should
have a dwelling in the place to which His goodness had led him, and
he told this to his companion. The inhabitants made no difficulty in
assigning him one, after having heard him preach, and he gave the
convent the name of The Holy Fire, as it is still called.
In Piedmont, where he was well received, his preaching, with the
reputation of his sanctity, confirmed by many miracles, converted a
considerable number of persons, and procured him several houses. From
thence he went into Spain, but the writers of his life have not recorded
by what route. Now, it is scarcely to be doubted that he went by land,
and through France; ancient documents show that he entered Spain through
Navarre, and that he arrived in the year 1213 at Logrono, a Town of
Old Castile, which had formerly belonged to Biscay.
On the road he came up with a poor and abandoned invalid, for whom he
felt so much pity that he directed Bernard de Quintavalle, one of his
companions, to stay with him and take care of him, which Bernard
willingly undertook to do. At Logrono he miraculously cured a young
gentleman who was on the point of death; then he went on to Burgos,
where Alphonso IX., (or VIII., according to some,) father of Blanche
Queen of France and mother of St. Louis, then was. Francis presented
himself before the king, he showed him the rules of his Institute, and
entreated him to receive the Friars Minor into his states. This monarch,
who, in addition to his political and military talents, had a great
fund of goodness and piety, received the holy man very favorably; he
condescended to read the rules, and after having conversed with him
for some time, gave him leave to build houses in Spain.
Francis now fixed his thoughts only on advancing towards the sea-side
in order to embark for Morocco, there to suffer martyrdom, for this
was the great object of his wishes. If we only formed our opinion of
things by the ordinary rules of prudence, we should be surprised, that
a man, visibly sent by God for the institution of a new order of
religious, should leave it so short a time after its birth, to seek
for death among the infidels. But the saints only thought of following
the impulses which the Spirit of God suggested to them, with reference
to the works which they had commenced by God's order. St. Anthony,
father of a great number of Cenobites, left his monastery, and followed
at Alexandria certain confessors of the faith; he attended upon them
in prison, and exhorted them under torment to procure for himself the
palm of martyrdom. St. Dominic, animated by a similar spirit, had
formed the intention of going among the Saracens, only two years after
the institution of his order. Francis, thus inspired from above, desired
to meet death for Jesus Christ, and left to God the care of his rising
family.
This disposition, which was the fruit of ardent charity, was very
pleasing to God; it entered into the economy of His providence for the
salvation of souls and for the aggrandizement of the new Order, for
the Saint did not cease his labors when he took the route which was
to lead to martyrdom. Nevertheless, God did not choose that his design
should be carried into execution; and His will was made known to His
Servant by a violent illness, which put it out of his power to embark
for Morocco. Francis gave up his wishes, obeying what was thus signified
to him. and came to the resolution to return to Italy for the guidance
of his flock, however, he did not set out till the close of the year.
The authors of the Order are agreed in saying that he went to visit
the tomb of the Apostle St. James, at Compostella, the capital of
Galicia, to which place devotion has attracted, for many centuries
past, crowds of pilgrims, and that an angel appeared to him there, and
assured him that it was God's will that he should return to Italy,
after having founded some establishments in Spain. They also say that
he went into Portugal, where he raised to life the daughter of his
host at Guimaraens, a town of the diocese of Braganza, which caused
him to be spoken of as a saint throughout the whole country; and that
he went through nearly the whole of the Kingdom of Arragon and the
adjacent provinces; and, finally, they relate the following most
extraordinary circumstance:
Francis being one evening on the banks of the River Orbego, with his
companions, where there was no food, a young man of the Town of Novia
overtook them, and carried them over on some horses he had with him,
and received them hospitably. The gratitude the Saint had was shown
by saying: "May the Lord reward you for the kindness you have shown
us, when He rewards the just." Some short time after this, the young
man, having gone to Rome out of devotion, and having endeavored to put
his conscience in a good state, prayed fervently to God, to take him
out of this world before he should commit a mortal sin. His prayer was
heard; he died. His father desired to have a funeral service said for
him, and thirty Friars Minor attended to it without having been asked;
none knew from whence they came, nor whither they afterwards went,
which made it thought that the assistance was miraculous; and as it
was known what the holy man Francis had said to the deceased, it was
understood that he had, by this means, procured the reward of the just
for him whose hospitality he had received.
Gonzagues, Bishop of Mantua, who had been General of the Order of St.
Francis, says, that it is held as certain that St. Francis commenced
the establishments of Gasta, Arevalo, Avila, Madrid, Tudela, and caused
several other convents to be built. It is easily understood that in
the eight or nine months in which he remained in Spain after his
illness, he arranged much by himself and by his companions; the old
inscriptions which are still seen on the tombs of many Minors are an
additional proof. Moreover, it is certain that his holy life and his
preaching were of the greatest benefit to souls, and that his Order
was received in Spain with an affection which has passed from age to
age, from fathers to sons; so that Spain is one of the countries of
the world in which we find the greatest veneration for St. Francis,
and the greatest consideration for the Order of Friars Minor.
The same bishop tells us, on the testimony of universal and unvaried
tradition, of many miracles performed by the Almighty, through the
ministry of the holy man. We shall satisfy ourselves by relating one
of them, which is warranted by manuscripts and documents.
Francis was lodged at Compostella, at the house of a poor dealer in
charcoal, whose name was Cotolai, and he often went to pass the night
in contemplation on a neighboring mountain. God made known to him,
that it was His will that he should build a convent between two valleys,
the one of which was commonly called the Valley of God, and the other
the Valley of Hell. He knew that this ground belonged to the
Benedictines of Compostella, of the Abbey of St. Pay, or Pelagius,
since transferred to that of St. Martin; and, bearing in mind the
favors which the religious of this holy order had done him in the gifts
of St. Mary of the Angels, and at Rome, he called upon the Abbot and
asked unhesitatingly for permission to build a convent between the two
valleys. "What will you give me in payment?" said the abbot. Francis
replied: "As I am very poor, I have neither money, nor anything else
to give you, if you grant me what I ask. Yet what will be most precious
to me, I will give you in quit rent yearly--a small basket of fish if
they can be caught in the river." The abbot who was a very pious man,
admiring his simplicity and his confidence, granted him his request
on the condition proposed, and an act to that effect was prepared and
signed by both.
The holy man came to Cotolai and told him what had passed between the
Abbot of St. Pay and himself, and added: "My dear host, it is God's
will that you should build this convent; therefore prepare yourself
for the work." "Oh, how shall I be able to do that," answered Cotolai,
"I who am so poor, and who live by my daily labor?" "Take courage,"
said Francis, "take a pickaxe, and go to the spring which is close by;
make a hole a little in front of it, and you will find a treasure which
will enable you to execute the order of Heaven." Cotolai, relying on
the Saint's word, searched as he was bidden, found the treasure, and
built the convent, which is known by the name of St. Francis to this
day. This fact is narrated in an authentic manuscript in the archives
of the Abbey of St. Martin, from whence this is copied; and in two
very old inscriptions, one of which is on the tomb of Cotolai and his
wife, whose name was Mary de Bicos, and the other over the gate of the
church of the convent in which their tomb is. The deed which was
executed by Francis and the Abbot of St. Pay, is preserved in the
original in the archives of the Abbey of St. Martin of Compostella.
The Prince of Spain, Philip the Second, saw it in the year 1554, when
he was about to embark at Corunna, to espouse the Queen of England.
However, the marvel has nothing in it which should be the cause of
much surprise: our Saviour, who made St. Peter find in the mouth of
a fish wherewithal to pay the tribute for his Master and himself, could
easily cause a treasure of money to be found sufficient to build a
house for his faithful Servant Francis.
When the Apostolical man had terminated his mission in Spain, he went
to rejoin Bernard de Quintavalle, whom he had left on entering it, in
charge of the poor sick man, who was perfectly cured. Francis came
through Aragon into Catalonia. The magistrates of Barcelona, where he
stopped for a short time, were so pleased with his poverty, his
humility, and his other virtues, that, for the sake of having some
religious of his Order, they converted the hospital where he was lodged
into a convent, the church and cloister of which are still extant, and
are venerable from the remembrance of the Saint.
At San Saloni, a small town between Barcelona and Gerona, an adventure
occurred to him which seemed purely accidental, but which God turned
to good. As he walked by the side of a vineyard, his companion gathered
a bunch or two of grapes to refresh himself. He who had charge of the
vineyard, perceiving it, came violently upon the religious, beat him
and abused him in no measured terms, and took from him his poor cloak.
Francis asked to have the cloak back, alleging mildly, that what had
been taken had done no injury to the vineyard; and that good feeling
required that this assistance should be given to a passer-by who needed
it. But, not having succeeded in procuring its restoration, he went
to the proprietor of the vineyard, from whom he had no difficulty in
getting it back, after having told him what had happened. He then
conversed with him on heavenly things with such effect, that the man,
devoting himself from that moment to his service, promised to receive
hospitably all the Friars Minor who should pass through San Saloni,
and furnish them with whatsoever they might require, as far as his
means would allow; which he never failed to do as long as he lived.
Francis, in return, granted him participation in all the spiritual
merits of his Order, and gave him the name of Father of the Friars
Minor.
It is from this precedent that the superiors of the Order give letters
of filiation, as they are called, in virtue of which the holders
participate in the merits of all the practices of the community. This
is grounded on the communion of saints, one of the articles of the
apostolic symbol by which each member of the faithful who is not
excommunicated, and principally if he be in a state of grace,
participates in the good works of others. Besides this general
communication, the faithful may assist each other by their prayers,
and their own merits, as is done in confraternities and all pious
associations. This is the way in which the Order of St. Francis, and
all other religious orders, manifest their gratitude to their
benefactors; in this they do that which St. Augustine says of the
ministers of Jesus Christ in regard to the faithful who support them;
"They give spiritual things, and only receive temporal ones; they give
gold, and only receive brass." Those who know what the communion of
saints is, and who neglect nothing which can contribute to their
salvation, have great esteem (as, indeed, they ought) for letters of
filiation, and strive to live in a Christian-like manner in order to
profit by them.
From Catalonia, Francis continued his route through Roussillon, and
it is believed that he placed some of his religious at Perpignan, the
capital. He then entered Languedoc, which the errors and arms of the
Albigenses had alike tended to desolate. The Catholics at that time
enjoyed some calm by the valor of the illustrious Simon, Count of
Montfort, who had just overthrown the heretics, principally by the
celebrated victory obtained, at Muret, over Peter, King of Aragon,
whom ill-understood interests had made protector of the Albigenses,
to the detriment of religion, and who was killed in that battle. The
saintly traveller did not make any stay in Languedoc; perhaps because
it was the field destined by Providence to be cultivated by St. Dominic,
whose preaching and miracles had made an infinity of conversions, and
who was then at Carcassonne, where he gave the nuptial benediction to
the marriage of Amaury de Montfort, the son of Simon, with the Princess
Beatrice, the daughter of the Dauphin, Count of Viennois. Francis
arrived at Montpellier at the time when they were about to open the
council, at which Simon of Montfort was loaded with praises, and chosen
to be possessor of the City of Toulouse, and the other conquests of
the Crusaders; he preached there, and foretold that a convent would
be built soon for his brethren at the hospital where he lodged; a
prophecy which was fulfilled in the year 1220.
His bad health, the fatigues of his journey, and the rigor of the
season, had brought him into a state of great languor, and compelled
him to stop one day. His malady gave him a disgust for all sorts of
food, and he thought that he could only relish some wild fowl. As he
was speaking of it to his companion Bernard, a well-appointed cavalier
brought him one ready dressed, saying, "Servant of God, take what the
Lord sends thee," after which he disappeared. Francis, admiring the
goodness of God, who fulfils the desires of those who fear Him, ate
willingly of this celestial food, and was so strengthened by it, that
he rose up immediately and continued his journey through Dauphiny and
Piedmont; from whence he went to St. Mary of the Angels, continuing
to perform the functions of an Apostle and Patriarch of the Order on
his way, but not without having to endure the honors which his miracles
and the reputation of his sanctity procured him from all parts.
His return was the subject of great rejoicing to his children, to Clare
in particular, and to a number of young men, among whom were many
nobles and many learned persons who were waiting to be received into
the Order.
He was surprised to find a building which Peter of Catania, his own
vicar had constructed during his absence; he inquired the reason of
it, and Peter having replied, "that it was for the accommodation of
their guests, where they might say the divine office more commodiously,"
He said:--"Brother Peter, this place is the rule and the model of the
Order; I choose that those who come to it shall suffer the
inconveniences of poverty as well as those who live in it, in order
that they may tell others how poorly we live at St. Mary's of the
Portiuncula; for if the guests see that they are provided with
everything they can wish for, they will expect the same thing in their
provinces, and will say, that they only do as they do at Portiuncula,
which is the original place of the Institution." He was desirous that
the building should be pulled down, and he even directed it to be done;
but, upon the representations of the need they had of it, he consented
to let it stand. They could not do without room to lodge the number
of people who were drawn thither by the rumor of his great virtues,
and the multitudes of his religious who came from various parts to
consult him.
Those whom he had destined for Mount Alvernia, having come with several
others to congratulate him on his return, informed him that Count
Orlando had loaded them with favors; that they were settled on the
mountain, and that it was the place, of all others, proper for
contemplation. This gave him a wish to go thither, and he set out with
three companions, Leo, Masse, and Angelo of Rieti. It was his custom
in travelling to name one of those who accompanied him as guardian and
leader, and he obeyed him humbly in all things. On this occasion, he
gave this commission to Masse, desiring him not to disquiet himself
about their food, and giving no other instructions, except that the
divine office should be punctually and piously recited, that silence
should be rigidly observed, and that their deportment should be
reserved. He preached, as usual, wherever he went, and performed many
miracles.
One night he went into a church which was deserted, in order to pass
the night in prayer, knowing from experience that the Spirit of God
was communicated more freely to the soul in quiet solitary places. At
the beginning of the night, the devils used every sort of artifice to
interrupt his prayers and to disturb him. Then they attacked him in
person, as St. Athanasius relates that they did St. Anthony, so that
they seemed to come to blows with him. The more they annoyed him, the
more fervently he prayed, and the more strenuously he invoked Jesus
Christ with confidence, in the words of the prophet:--"Protect me under
the shadow of thy wings from these wicked ones who pursue me;" and he
said to the devils:--"Spiteful and deceitful spirits, do all you can
against me, for you can do nothing but what God permits, and here I
am, ready to suffer with pleasure all the afflictions it is His pleasure
to send me." Then the devils cast themselves upon him with still greater
violence; they pushed him about on all sides, they dragged him along
the ground and beat him severely. In the midst of his sufferings, he
exclaimed:--"My Lord Jesus Christ, I give Thee thanks for all Thy
benefits; this is not one of the least; it is an assured mark of the
goodness Thou hast for me. Thou punishest my sins in this world to
spare me in the next. My heart is ready, O my God, my heart is ready
to suffer still more if such be Thy holy will." St. Bonaventure says,
that he was often tormented in this manner by demons; but that these
proud spirits, not being able either to overcome him, or to bear his
constancy, retired in confusion. Such a resistance would repress all
the efforts of the tempter when he attacks us invisibly.
In the morning, he could not disguise from his companions what had
happened to him, and the extreme weakness which it had brought on
obliged him to desire his companions to go to the neighboring village,
to procure for him, in God's name, some means of riding on with them.
The farmer to whom they applied, having learnt that it was for Francis
of Assisi, of whom he had heard so much good spoken, went to fetch his
own ass to carry him on, during the journey.
On the way, Francis bethought himself of stopping for a short time at
this farmer's to recruit his strength by some poultry and other
delicacies of the country; but, wishing to punish himself for having
merely listened to such a suggestion, he took up a half-rotten fowl
from a dunghill, and smelt at it, saying to himself:--"Here, glutton!
here is the flesh of the poultry that you so anxiously wished for;
satisfy your longing, and eat as much as you like." To support himself,
he ate nothing but bread, on which he sprinkled ashes, and he drank
nothing but water. He blessed the house of his host, and promised him
very long lineage, who should be neither poor nor very rich. The
remembrance of this prediction has been carefully preserved in this
place, and the house still exists, bearing the name of St. Francis,
where the religious of his Order are always charitably received. This
lesson is taught by the apostle:--"That God, by His blessing, gives
to charitable persons the means of continuing and multiplying their
good works."
The invalid was replaced on the ass, and they took the road to Chiusi
which they reached by noon. Count Orlando was greatly pleased to see
them, and would have been but too glad to detain them, if only for
that day; but Francis would go as soon as dinner was done to Mount
Alvernia, whither the count accompanied him.
"The Mountain Alvernia is on the confines of Tuscany, not far from
Camaldoli and Val Ombrosa; it is part of the Apennines, and it rises
higher than the adjacent mountains from which it is separated: two
rivers flow at its foot, the Tiber and the Arno. On their sides it has
rocks so perpendicular and so smooth that they might be mistaken for
walls; and on the side on which the top may be reached, no one would
dare to attempt the ascent but for the number of beech trees and
underwood which hide the precipices. These trees, which are very lofty,
hide some extensive and beautiful pasturages. There also an abundance
of plants is found called carline or Caroline which is a cure for the
plague."
The farmer, who was their guide, made bold to address Francis thus:
"Brother, I hear much good spoken of you, and I understand that God
has shown you great favors, for which you are greatly indebted to Him;
strive, then, to be what it is said you are, and never to change in
order that those who have confidence in you may not be deceived; this
is a piece of advice I give you." Francis, delighted at what he had
heard, dismounted, kissed the man's feet, thanked him, acknowledging
the great mercy of God, who had been pleased to cast His eyes on the
lowliness of His servant. Although this advice came from a poor
countryman, it was nevertheless the very best that could be given to
a saint. So true it is that no one should be despised, and that the
most simple-minded persons often say more sensible and more spiritual
things than men of the greatest genius.
The same man being very thirsty at the steepest part of the mountain,
exclaimed loudly: "I shall die, if I cannot get something to drink."
Francis immediately alighted, threw himself on his knees, raised his
hands to heaven, and prayed until he knew that he had been heard. Then,
pointing out a large stone to the man, he said, "Go there quickly, and
you will find some living water: it is Jesus Christ who, out of His
great mercy, makes it spring from this rock that you may drink." The
man ran directly, found water, and drank as much as he required.
No spring had ever been known to be in that place, and no water was
ever found there afterwards. Wonderful goodness of the Almighty,
exclaims St. Bonaventure, who thus with so much benevolence grants the
prayers of His servants. The birds seeing St. Francis and his companions
approaching came in great numbers to welcome him to their home.
At length they reached the top of Mount Alvernia, where the religious
resided. The father was well pleased with their dwelling, because
everything was on a small scale and poor.
Count Orlando returned in the evening and came back next day, bringing
something for their dinner. After they had finished their meal, he
gave orders for the construction of a small chapel under a very tall
beech tree, and a cell, which Francis had asked him for, and, calling
the others aside, he said: "Since your founder has given his consent
to the donation I made you two years ago of this mountain, you may
consider it as yours, and hence both myself and mine will be always
devoted to your service whenever you shall need it. You will not be
able to please me more than by addressing yourselves to me, looking
upon me as your servant; and even, if you will do me that favor,
considering me as one of your brethren." After the departure of the
count, the holy Patriarch made them the following discourse, relative
to the count's kindness, which they took care to commit to writing:
"My dear children, it is God who thus turns the hearts of the faithful
towards His little and useless servants, in which He does us a very
great favor. On what we have hitherto received let us place our hopes
for what is to come; if that seems but little, the Lord, who is
infinitely liberal, will add to it by His goodness still greater
benefits, provided we are faithful to Him. Let us, then, leave to Him
the care of all that relates to you, and He Himself will feed you, as
He fed Elias, Paul, and Anthony in the desert. The birds of the air
neither sow, nor reap, nor gather into barns, yet your Heavenly Father
nourishes them; how much more will He do this for His servants? If He
tries you, it will be only for a time, for it is written, that He will
not suffer the just to waver forever; the eyes of the Lord are on them
that fear Him, and on them that hope in His mercy to deliver their
souls from death and feed them in famine. Trust not to the princes of
the earth, nor to the charitable offers made you by our benefactor,
Count Orlando, for cursed is the man that trusteth in man, and maketh
flesh his arm. This lord has acted nobly by us, and according to his
piety; let us do on our parts what depends on us, and fail not therein;
that is to say, let us not have recourse to his generosity, as to a
treasure of which we are the masters, and in that regard let us have
the greatest reserve that we may not in any respect trench upon holy
poverty. Be sure, my dear children, that our best resource for providing
for our wants, is to have none to provide for. If we are truly
evangelical poor, the world will have compassion upon us, and will
generously give us all that is necessary for our subsistence; but if
we swerve from holy poverty, the world will shun us; the illicit means
which we might take for avoiding indigence, would only make us feel
it the more." Is not such a discourse sufficient to show us, that St.
Francis had great talents and judgment, joined to great knowledge of
the practice of virtue?
Count Orlando had a church built on Mount Alvernia, according to the
plan which the Saint had given him, which, it was confidently said,
had been given to Francis by the Blessed Virgin, who appeared
accompanied by St. John the Baptist, and St. John the Evangelist.
While they were at work at this building and at the cells for the
brethren, Francis explored the mountain on all its sides, to discover
the sites best adapted for contemplation. He found one, where there
were some large openings in the rock, great masses overhanging them,
deep caverns, and frightful pits; and what seemed to him to be most
curious, there was a rock so split that the interior formed a room
with a smooth flooring, and a sort of ceiling which had a small opening
which admitted the light. He was anxious to know whether this was the
natural formation of the rock, or whether it was not the effect of an
earthquake; and, after having recited the seven penitential psalms,
he begged God to grant him information on this head. An angel acquainted
him, in an apparition, that this had happened at the death of Jesus
Christ, when the earth shook and the rocks were rent asunder. This
circumstance gave Mount Alvernia additional value in the eyes of the
servant of Jesus Christ crucified. He never afterwards saw these
openings without thinking of the sufferings his Divine Master endured
on the cross, and without wishing that his feelings of compassion might
break his heart. In the opinion of the holy Fathers, the rocks which
were rent when Jesus Christ expired were reproaches to the Jews for
the hardness of their hearts, and this reproach falls equally on
Christians who are insensible to His sufferings.
We can have no difficulty in thinking, with Cardinal Baronius, that
the rocks on Mount Alvernia were split at the death of our Saviour,
since the earthquake was universal, according to the opinions of
Eusebius, St. Jerome, and many others, and even according to the
testimony of pagan authors.
It is also very credible that the Son of God has manifested to His
special servants, some of the effects of this motion of the earth, in
order to impress more vividly on their minds the remembrance of His
Passion; and may we not think that the Lord, who is the beholder of
all ages, as the wise man says, and who had selected Mount Alvernia
as the place in which He would do His Servant Francis the favor of
imprinting the stigmata on him, as we shall see further on, was pleased
to give this mountain some resemblance to that of Calvary, where St.
Cyril of Jerusalem assures us, that in his time the rents caused by
the earthquake were seen?
Among the masses of rock on Mount Alvernia, there is one much more
elevated and much larger than the rest, and which is separated from
them by precipices, to which there is no access but by throwing a
bridge across. There, as in an insulated citadel, a celebrated brigand
had his stronghold, who was called the Wolf, on account of the plunder
and murders he committed in the surrounding country, either by himself,
or by the gang of which he was the chief. He often, also, by means of
a flying bridge, confined travellers in this place, whom he had
surprised on the high-roads, and whom he detained till their ransom
was paid. The establishment of Francis and his brethren displeased him
greatly: people of that sort do not like having neighbors. He gave
them several times notice to begone, and he threatened them should
they not obey. Their great poverty gave them nothing to fear from
thieves, but there was just cause for apprehending that the murderer
might massacre them all. Divine Providence, however, saved them by a
change which might well be called the work of the Most High. The villain
came one day determined upon expelling them, and used the most atrocious
language to them. Francis received him with so much mildness, listened
to him with so much patience, and induced him by degrees to hear reason,
so that his anger entirely fell, and he not only consented to their
remaining, but he begged that they would admit him into their poor
dwelling. He witnessed during several days their angelic mode of life,
and he became so changed, that he determined upon adopting a similar
plan. The Saint perceiving that from a ravenous wolf he was become a
gentle lamb, gave him the habit of the Order, and the name of Brother
Agnello, under which he expiated his crimes by religious penance, of
which he rigidly fulfilled all the duties. This fact was of such
notoriety, that the rock to which he used to retire has always been
called since, and is still known, by the name of Brother Wolf's prison.
All things being put in order at Mount Alvernia, he left it to go to
Rome. He passed through Monte Casale, Fabriano, Osimo, Ancona, Macerata,
Ascoli, Camerino, and many other places, preaching in all the truths
of salvation, gaining disciples, founding houses for his Order,
prophesying and working miracles; we shall only put on record here the
most remarkable, and those that are most edifying.
God favored him, as He had done St. Ambrose, with power of discovering
relics which were hidden. He knew by revelation that there were some
in a certain church in which he had prayed, and some business calling
him away from thence, he communicated the circumstance to his brethren,
desiring them to take them from thence and place them in a more suitable
situation; but they either through forgetfulness or neglect did not
do so. One day as they were preparing the altar for Mass, they found
under the altar-cloth some beautiful bones, from which a sweet perfumed
smell issued, and they immediately recollected that these were the
relics of which their Father had spoken. At his return he inquired
whether they had been disinterred, and the religious, having told him
exactly what had occurred, he said: "Blessed be the Lord, my God, who,
of His goodness, has done what you ought to have done out of obedience;"
but he imposed a penance upon them in expiation of their fault. At the
Monastery of Monte Maggiore, a joy and interior consolation which he
felt on entering the church, made him sensible that the high altar
contained something which had been used by the Blessed Virgin. He spoke
of it to the religious, who searched closely, and found that it was
true. In ecclesiastical history we find that God had often caused the
relics of His saints to be discovered, in order to do them honor, and
the Holy Fathers have taught the faithful to venerate them and to
preserve them with great care.
While he was preaching at Fabriano in the middle of the market-place,
some workmen who were employed at a palace made so much noise, that
it prevented his being heard. Having entreated them to be quiet for
a short time, to which they paid no attention, he said that the work
of those who were building the house would be of no use, because the
Lord did not build it, but that it would soon fall; however, that
neither man nor beast would be injured by it; and this happened but
a few days after it had been finished, as he had foretold. He assured
the people at the same town, that at a place called the Poor Valley,
his brethren, who were poor, would some day have a habitation. And,
in fact, in the year 1292, the town of Fabriano placed Friars Minor
there.
Among the most considerable establishments which he placed on his
route, was that of St. Mary of the Stony Valley, so called from its
being situated in a very rocky valley, between two mountains, four
miles distant from Fabriano. It was a church dedicated to the Blessed
Virgin, with a monastery, which the Religious of St. Benedict had
abandoned in order to take refuge in the town, on account of the wars,
and it is one of the most beautiful solitudes of all Italy. Devotion
to the Mother of God, and the love of retreat, had induced Francis to
ask for this place; and it was given him by those who were its
proprietors. The first time he went there, he lost his way, with his
companion, and asked a ploughman to take him to the valley. "What,"
says the man, "shall I leave my plough and lose my time, to serve you?"
However, he took him to the place, mollified by Francis' mildness, and
by his promising him that he should be no loser by so doing: on
returning, after receiving the Father's blessing, he found his field
quite ploughed.
Some workmen who were employed repairing a house which had been given
him, at a place called Trabe Bonata, being very tired, asked him to
give them some wine. He sent two of his brethren to procure some in
a neighboring village, from some charitable benefactor; but the workmen
being very urgent, out of compassion for them he went to a spring,
made the sign of the cross over it, and in an instant, instead of
water, wine issued from it, which flowed for a whole hour. Those who
drank of it published in all places the miraculous effect of the Saint's
charity.
In a parish called La Citta, he was very well received by the curate,
whose name was Raniero, with whom he became very intimate, so that he
was in the habit of visiting him, and going to confession to him. One
day after confession he gave him, in a very humble manner, notice,
that he, the curate, would become one of his brethren, because they
had become too closely united to live different kinds of lives: "But,"
he said, "this will not happen till after my death." The event verified
the prediction: as soon as the curate learnt that his friend Francis
shone by an infinity of miracles, and was just canonized, he entered
the Order of Friars Minor, and adhered to the rules with great
regularity.
The holy man coming to Osimo, was greeted, notwithstanding his great
humility, and brought into the town, with great honors. The next day
he preached on the vanity of the world, in so persuasive a strain,
that all his hearers, penetrated with compunction, turned their thoughts
seriously to their reformation, and thirty young men entered his
Institute.
On the same journey, he and his companions lodged at the house of a
gentleman, the greatness of whose soul equalled the antiquity of his
nobility, and whose politeness was joined to piety. The welcome he
received there was followed by this open-hearted proffer: "Man of God,"
he said, "I place my person at your disposal, and all that I possess,
all is yours, do as you please with it; if you want clothing, or a
cloak, or books, or whatever it may be, take it, and I will pay for
it. Be assured that I am wholly at your service. God has given me
wealth; I have wherewithal to assist the poor, and it is but just that
I do not fail in so doing."
Francis merely at the time contented himself with making those grateful
acknowledgments which so handsome and obliging an offer required; but
when he left him, he could not refrain from admiring the generosity
of this gentleman, and he said to his companion: "Indeed, brother, he
would be an excellent subject for our Order; he is humbly thankful for
what he has received from God; he loves his neighbor very sincerely;
he gives willingly to the poor; and he exercises hospitality from his
heart; he is extremely affable and polite; and politeness is sister
to charity; it puts down contention and promotes concord; he is
naturally benevolent; and this feeling is highly pleasing to our Father
who is in Heaven, who causes the sun to rise on the good and on the
wicked. So many excellent qualities which I see in this young man,
make me wish to have him to be one of us, and I should admit him with
pleasure. We must pay him another visit, and exhort him to devote
himself to the service of God; perhaps the Holy Ghost may incline him
to do so; meanwhile let us implore the Lord to grant our wish, if He
judges it right." In fact, they did pray for this purpose.
Some days afterwards they returned to this person's house, who had the
curiosity to watch what Francis did in the night; he saw him in prayer,
and in an ecstasy raised from the ground, and surrounded by a splendid
light, and he felt interiorly a certain celestial fire, which inspired
him with an ardent desire to imitate his mode of life. In the morning,
he communicated his feelings to the Saint, who was already made aware
of them by revelation, and who thanked the Giver of all good gifts for
them. The postulant gave all he had to the poor, took the habit of a
Friar Minor, and lived holily; preserving always the same affable and
polite manners, with which he received the guests of the convents in
which he resided. This endeared him still more to the Patriarch, who
was very zealous in the exercise of hospitality. The duties of
hospitality, lauded by the pagans, taught by the Gospel, enforced by
the Apostles, and all the Holy Fathers, are exercised in the Order of
St. Francis with so much the more care as, being totally dependent on
charity, they consider themselves bound to give all in the same manner,
and they apply to themselves these words of the Son of God to the
Apostles, on the gift of miracles: "Freely you have received, freely
give." This is what draws down the blessing of God, and which makes
so many houses subsist, without any revenue, by the charity of the
faithful.
The holy Patriarch of the Friars Minor arrived at Rome when everything
was preparing for the opening of the Twelfth Ecumenical Council, the
4th of Lateran, one of the most numerous ever held in the Church.
Innocent III had convoked it for the extinction of heresies, for the
reformation of morals, for regulating the discipline of the Church,
and for the recovery of the Holy Land by the union of the Christian
princes.
Francis came to Rome to induce the Sovereign Pontiff to give a public
approval to the Rule of his Order, which was of the highest importance
in order that the prelates might have it in their power to distinguish
the poor of Jesus Christ, true children of the Church, from certain
sectaries of those times who affected, as has been already said, to
bear the marks of Apostolic poverty.
What the Servant of God required was put in force; the Pope declared
before all the Fathers of the Council, that he approved the Order and
the Rule of St. Francis, although he had hitherto issued no bull. This
is a fact which is related by the companions of the Saint who wrote
his life, and by two authors of the Order of St. Dominic, Jordan of
Saxony, a disciple of that blessed Patriarch, and St. Antoninus.
Moreover, in order to avoid too great a variety of religious orders,
the council prohibited the formation of any new ones, and directed
that the existing ones should be considered sufficient. Yet it is clear
that the Pope could not, in this instance, avoid making known the
approbation he had given to an Order so new and peculiar as was that
of the Friars Minor, which in the last five years, had spread over
Italy, and was established in Rome.
The holy friendship which was subsequently formed between St. Dominic
and St. Francis, renders it proper that we should here record that St.
Dominic came also to this Lateran Council, together with Fulke, Bishop
of Toulouse, in order to propose to the pope an intention he had of
instituting an order of preachers, and that the Pope had seen in a
dream St. Dominic supporting the Lateran Church, which was falling,
in the same way as he had seen Francis supporting it five years before.
He praised his undertaking, but told him, according to the decree of
the council, to return with his brethren, and prepare a rule for the
guidance of the order, and then come back to have the order confirmed,
which the holy patriarch complied with.
The Council of Lateran having terminated its labors, Francis left Rome
at the beginning of December to return to St. Mary of the Angels.
When he had reached his convent, Clare, who, being very humble, had
accepted only through obedience the quality of Abbess of St. Damian,
wished to lay it down into his hands, to which he would by no means
assent, because he knew that by the disposition of Divine Providence,
she was to form the disciples who were to establish his Order in various
places, from whence it was to spread throughout the Church.
Clare had admitted many virgins during the three years she had presided
over St. Damian, among whom were some of her own relatives. Beatrice,
the youngest of her sisters, came a short time afterwards; and
Hortolona, her mother, as soon as she became a widow, decided upon
consecrating herself to God, with her three daughters, in the same
monastery, where miracles testified to the holiness of her life.
Finally, the virtues of Clare were so resplendent, and the miracles
which it pleased the Almighty to work by her means, threw so much
splendor around her, that, according to the remark of Pope Alexander
IV, in the bull of her canonization, the truth of the prediction which
was made to her mother, was clearly seen:--"That she would give to the
world a light which would even enlighten the world." The sequel of the
life of the Father will afford further opportunity for speaking of the
daughter.
The Benedictines of Mount Soubazo, in this year, gave the holy Patriarch
a convent on this very mountain, two miles from Assisi. It has been
called the prison of St. Francis, because he often shut himself up
there in contemplation after his Apostolical labors. His oratory is
still there, also: his cell, the stone and the wood which served him
for bed and pillow, and a copious spring which, by his intercession,
he obtained from God.
From the beginning of the following year, 1216, to the 30th of May,
the Festival of Whitsuntide, the day on which the general chapter was
held, which was the first of the Order, he had as much leisure as he
could desire for conversing with God, for giving instruction to his
brethren at St. Mary of the Angels, and to the Town of Assisi and its
environs. In the assembly, provincial ministers were appointed, to
whom power was given for admitting postulants into the Order; which
the Founder had previously reserved to himself. One whose name does
not appear, was sent into Apulia, and John de Strachia was sent into
Lombardy; Benedict of Arezzo, into the Marches of Ancona; Daniel the
Tuscan, into Calabria; Augustin of Assisi, into the Terra di Lavoro;
Elias of Cortona, into Tuscany. Evangelical laborers were chosen for
different nations. Bernard de Quintavalle, for Spain; John Bonella,
a Florentine, with thirty companions, for Provence; John de Penna, and
sixty of his brethren, for Upper and Lower Germany; Francis took for
his share Paris and what is properly called France and the Low
Countries.
The Apostolic laborers being all assembled at the feet of their Father,
to receive his orders, he addressed them with paternal tenderness, in
the following discourse:--
"In the name of the Lord, go forth modestly, two and two, observing
strict silence from the morning till after the hour of Tierce, praying
to God from your hearts. Let no idle or useless words be heard among
you; although you are travelling, your deportment should be as humble
and as decorous as if you were in a hermitage, or in your cells. For
wherever we are, and, whithersoever we may be going, we have always
our vocation with us; our brother, the body, is our cell, and the soul
is the hermit, who dwells in it to think of God and to pray to Him.
If a religious soul does not dwell quietly in the cell of the body,
the external cells will be of little use to him. Behave, then, in such
manner in the world, that whosoever may see or hear you, may be moved
to devotion, and praise our Heavenly Father to whom alone all glory
belongs. Proclaim peace to all men, but have it in your hearts, as
well as in your mouths. Give to no one cause for anger, nor for scandal;
on the contrary, by your own mildness, induce every one to feel
benignly, and draw them to union and to concord. We are called to heal
the wounded, console the afflicted, and to bring back those who err;
many may seem to you to be members of the devil, who will one day be
disciples of Jesus Christ." What Francis said of the inutility of
exterior cells, where the soul is not at ease in the cell of the body,
is in conformity to these words of St. Bernard:--"You may be alone
when you are in the midst of the world, as it may so happen that you
may be in the midst of the world when you are alone."
The children of the holy Patriarch received his blessing; and having
recommended themselves to the prayers of their companions, they set
out for those places to which obedience sent them. The success of the
several labors will be adverted to further on. The missionaries for
Provence remained some days after the breaking up of the chapter, to
receive further instructions relative to their mission. The day of
their departure, there were only three loaves of bread in the convent,
two of which had been sent there by Clare; these were found sufficient
for more than thirty who were present, and there was a great deal to
spare, a circumstance which was considered to be a good omen.
Francis, having animated all the others by his zeal, prepared himself
for setting out for Paris. Besides the natural affection he had for
France, of which he liked the language, as it was familiar to him, he
chose this city preferably to many others, because he knew that their
devotion was great towards the blessed sacrament, and this was a great
attraction for his piety.
May the Parisians ever entertain and transmit to their posterity this
fervent devotion of their ancestors, which Pope Urban IV., who was a
native of France, stirred up in the hearts of the faithful forty-six
years afterwards, by the institution of the Feast of the Most Holy
Sacrament, which is celebrated throughout the Church, with so much
solemnity. The bull which he issued on this occasion, enters into the
strongest and most moving arguments calculated to inspire veneration,
love, and the zeal which the precious memorial of the goodness of the
Son of God calls for, and to invite to a frequent and worthy
participation in the divine mystery, which the Council of Trent has
since expressed its anxiety to see reestablished.
Before his departure, Francis undertook to reconcile the members of
the illustrious family of the Baselennesi, a long time disunited by
unhappy family dissensions, and he succeeded to the satisfaction of
all parties. Out of gratitude they had built for him, on one of their
estates on a spot near the Tiber, surrounded with very beautiful trees,
a convent called St. Angel of Pantanellis.
He chose to go once more to Rome to recommend to the holy Apostles his
journey to France. On the road, having seated himself close to a spring
to take his meal, he put some pieces of bread, which had been given
to him on his quest, and which were very hard and mouldy, on a stone
near him; he expressed much satisfaction, and he pressed his companion
Masse to give thanks to God for so great a treasure; and he repeated
several times the same thing, elevating his voice more and more. "But
of what treasure are you talking" said Masse, "at a time when we are
in want of many things?" "The great treasure is," replied Francis,
"that, being in want of so much, God has had the goodness to furnish
us by His providence with that bread and this spring, and to find us
this stone to serve as a table."
He went shortly after into a church, where he prayed to God to give
him and his children the love of holy poverty; and his prayer was so
fervent that fire seemed to issue from his countenance. Full of this
celestial ardor, he went towards Masse with open arms, calling him by
name with a loud voice; Masse, in great astonishment, going to throw
himself into the arms of his Father, was raised into the air several
cubits high, and felt such sweetness in his soul, that he frequently
afterwards declared that he had never experienced anything like it.
After this ecstasy, Francis spoke to him on the subject of poverty in
an admirable strain.
When at Rome, in a chapel of the Church of St. Peter, while he was
praying with tears that the holy Apostles would give him instructions
on the subject of holy poverty and of an Apostolic life, they appeared
to him surrounded by lights, and, after tenderly embracing him, said:
"Brother Francis, our Lord Jesus Christ has sent us to tell you that
He has favorably heard your prayers and tears on the subject of holy
poverty, which He Himself had followed, as well as His Blessed Mother,
and we, who are His Apostles, after his example. This treasure is
granted to you for yourself and for your children; those who shall
carefully adhere to it, will have the kingdom of heaven for their
reward." The Servant of God, filled with consolation, went to his
companion Masse, to whom he communicated what had passed, and they
went together to give thanks at the place which is called the Confession
of St. Peter, which is his tomb.
While Francis was at Rome, Pope Innocent III died at Perugia. He was
of the illustrious house of the Counts of Segni, which has given five
popes to the Church, the last of whom was Innocent XIII, of blessed
memory. It was at the University of Paris that his merit was first
noticed; he shone there above the many who were its honor and its
ornament. It was his rare and transcendent qualities which induced the
cardinals unanimously to elect him to the pontificate; and these
qualities shone with additional splendor when his humility urged his
resistance to the election, from which he prayed with unaffected tears
to be released. His government and the works he has left to posterity,
show, that he had great genius, great science, prudence, and probity,
with solid piety, and ardent zeal. "He was," says a French contemporary
writer "a man of great courage and great wisdom, who had no equal in
his day, and who did marvellous things." He was indeed one of the most
eminent men who have filled the chair of St. Peter. The affection he
bore to Francis, and the favors he conferred on his Order, have
compelled us to do this justice here to his memory.
On the 18th of July, they elected for his successor Cardinal Savelli,
who took the name of Honorius III. He was a learned and worthy man.
He generally followed the designs of his predecessor, and had a similar
affection for the religious orders, of which he gave substantial proofs
in the favors he bestowed on that of St. Francis.
Some months after his election, he gave his approval of the Order of
St. Dominic. This holy patriarch having returned to his companions to
fix upon a rule, as had been recommended to him by Pope Innocent at
the Lateran Council, and having adopted the rule of St. Augustine, to
which he had added some more austere regulations, came back to Rome
to procure the approval of the Holy See. While he solicited it from
Honorius, who had arrived from Perugia, he made acquaintance and
contracted an intimacy with Francis, in consequence of a miraculous
vision which he had in the Church of St. Peter, where he prayed
unceasingly with great fervor for the success of his enterprise.
He saw the Son of God seated on the right hand of His Father, who rose
up greatly irritated against sinners, holding three darts in His hand,
for the extirpation of the proud, the avaricious, and the voluptuous.
His holy Mother threw herself at His feet, and prayed for mercy, saying
that she had persons who would remedy the evil; and she at the same
time introduced to Him Dominic and Francis, as being proper persons
for reforming the world, and reestablishing piety; this pacified Jesus
Christ.
Dominic, who had never seen Francis, met him next day, recognized him,
ran to him and embraced him, saying: "You are my companion; we will
work in concert with each other; let us be strictly united, and no one
will be able to master us." Francis himself communicated this favor
of Heaven to the children of Dominic: and St. Vincent Ferrer, and some
other authors quoted by Wading, say that Francis had received a similar
favor from Heaven. The event proved the truth of the Vision. Dominic
alone, without any human aid, having nothing to command success but
poverty, humility, and prayer, obtained the approbation of his order,
which was an affair of great difficulty, particularly at the
commencement of a Pontificate, when the Pope is occupied by most
important affairs.
We may here notice the groundwork of the ardent zeal of the Friars
Preachers and the Friars Minor for the glory of the Mother of God.
Persuaded that their orders were established under her protection, and
that she is especially the mother of their holy patriarchs, they strive
by every means in their power to restore the devout veneration due to
her. It is the common interest of all the faithful who see that she
is, according to the expression of the Holy Fathers, their advocate
and their mediatrix; that she prays and solicits for them; that she
interposes between them and the wrath of her Son, and appeases Him:
this affords great room for confidence in her, and should induce them
to invoke her for their conversion and sanctification.
Dominic and Francis, confident of the protection of the Blessed Virgin,
entered into a strict friendship and resolved to spare no pains in
their exertions for the glory of God, and concerted together as to the
best means for attaining their object. Upon which an author quoted by
Wading, makes a most appropriate reflection: "It was," he says,
"something admirable to see two men, who were poor, badly clad, without
power or interest despicable in the eyes of the world, divide between
them the world itself, and undertake to conquer it. Who would not have
turned their plans into ridicule hearing them seriously consult together
on such an undertaking, since they seemed to have so little means of
carrying them into execution? Nevertheless, they succeeded; because
God selected by their means to confound what is strong." They resembled
St. Peter and St. Paul, proposing to themselves, in the same City of
Rome, to convert the universe by the preaching of the Gospel; this
shows that God made use of means for reanimating the faith, similar
to those which He had employed to establish it.
It is reported, that while Dominic and Francis were still at Rome,
Angelus, of the Order of the Carmelites, who was afterwards martyred
in Sicily, was also there; that, preaching in the Church of St. John
Lateran, where the two others were among the hearers, he foretold that
they would become two great pillars of the Church; that when the sermon
was finished, they foretold to one another what would happen to each
of them, and even that Francis would receive the stigmata; then the
three together cured a man afflicted with leprosy, and passed a day
and a night together in prayer and conversing on holy subjects.
Francis left Rome at the end of the year, intending to continue his
journey into France. He passed through Sienna and by Mount Alvernia
and arrived at Florence in the month of January, 1217, to pay his
dutiful respects to Cardinal Ugolino, who was Papal Legate there. This
cardinal, who had declared himself his protector and his friend, when
he went to request the approbation of his rule from Pope Innocent III.,
in 1210, received him with great kindness, detained him some days,
inquired into the affairs of his Order, and said to him on the subject
of his journey: "Francis, your Order is still in its infancy. You know
the opposition it met with in Rome, and you have still there some
secret enemies; if there is not some one there to watch over your
interests, it will be an easy matter to cause all you have obtained
to be revoked. Your presence will go a great way in upholding your
work, and those who are attached to you will have a greater stimulus
for giving you their support. As to myself, I am from this moment
wholly yours."
The holy man, after having thanked the cardinal, replied: "I have sent
many of my brethren into far distant countries. If I remain quietly
in our convent, without taking any share in their labors, it will be
a great shame for me; and these poor religious, who are suffering
hunger and thirst, will have great reason to murmur and complain; but
instead of that, if they find that I work as much as they do, they
will bear their fatigues more willingly, and I shall more easily
persuade them to undertake similar missions."
The cardinal, feeling for the sufferings of these missionaries, said:
"But why, brother, have you the harshness to expose your disciples to
such arduous journeying and to so much suffering?" "My Lord," replied
Francis, who was urged by a prophetic spirit, "you think that God has
sanctioned the Institute for this country only; but I tell you that
He has formed it for the good of the universe, and for the salvation
of all men, without excluding the infidels: for religious of this Order
will go into their territories; and provided they live in conformity
to the Gospel, God will provide amply for all their wants, even among
the enemies of His name."
These words made a great impression on the cardinal, who was a very
holy man, and increased his affection for Francis, whom he again
exhorted in stronger language than before, to remain in Italy to
consolidate an Institute which was to have such beneficial results.
The Saint having yielded to the reasoning of the cardinal, entreated
him to be the protector of the Friars Minor, according to his promise,
and to be so good as to be present at the next general chapter; after
which he took the road to the Valley of Spoleto.
There he learnt that some of his brethren had been seriously ill-treated
by several prelates, and that at the court of Rome there were persons
who spoke against his Order. This news confirmed him in the resolution
he had taken to remain in Italy; and he named three of his disciples
for the French mission, to wit: Pacificus of the Marches of Ancona,
the celebrated poet, whose conversion we have related; Angelus, and
Albert, both of Pisa.
He likewise intended to request the Pope to nominate a cardinal of the
Holy Roman Church, to protect his Order against all who should attack
it. Three of his companions, the writers of his life, say, that he was
induced to this by a celestial vision in his sleep. He saw a hen
endeavoring to gather all her chickens under her wings, to protect
them from a hawk; she could not cover them all, and many were about
to become its prey; but another large bird appeared, spread its wings
over them, and preserved them from the danger. On awaking, Francis
prayed our Lord to explain to him the meaning of this, and he learnt
that the hen represented himself, and the chickens were his disciples,
that the bird with the large wings represented the cardinal, whom they
were to solicit for their protector. He told all this to his brethren,
and addressed them as follows:--
"The Roman Church is the mother of all the churches, and the sovereign
of all religious orders. It is to her that I shall address myself to
recommend to her my brethren, in order that her authority may silence
those who are hostile to them, and that she may procure for the children
of God full and perfect liberty to advance quietly in the way of eternal
salvation; for when they shall be under her protection, there will be
no more enemies to oppose them, nor disturb them; there will not be
seen among them any son of Belial to ravage with impunity the vineyard
of the Lord. The holy Church will be zealous for the glory of our
poverty; she will not suffer that the humility which is so honorable
to her, shall be obscured by the clouds of pride. It is she who will
render indissoluble among us, the bonds of charity and peace, rigorously
punishing the authors of dissensions. Under her eyes, the holy
evangelical observance will ever flourish in its pristine purity; she
will never permit these holy practices to flag even momentarily, those
practices which shed around them a vivifying light. May the children,
then, of that holy Church be very grateful for the great favors which
they receive from their mother; let them kiss her feet with profound
veneration, and remain forever inviolably attached to her."
The first words of this discourse show that St. Francis was perfectly
cognizant of the prerogatives of the Church of Rome, and of the extent
of the authority of the Holy See. It was not in vain that he sought
her protection, since his Order was established, extended, supported,
and sometimes even renovated under this powerful authority; and the
attachment to the Holy See, which he so strongly recommended to his
brethren, has been so visibly manifested during five centuries, that
it has procured for them the esteem and love of all Catholics, as well
as the hatred of the heretics, so that they have the honor of having
some share in the eulogiums which St. Jerome passed on St. Augustine:
"The Catholics esteem and respect you, and, what enhances your glory,
all the heretics detest you. They hold me in equal hatred; and if they
durst not put both the one and the other of us to death, they have at
least the wish to do so." This wish of the heretics has not been without
effect as regards the children of St. Francis, for of a thousand martyrs
which they reckon in his Order, a very great number of them were put
to death with greater cruelty in this and latter times by the sectarians
than by idolatrous tyrants. Heresy will be ever so, the daughter of
a parent, who, according to the words of Jesus Christ, was a murderer
from the beginning.
The holy Patriarch went then to Rome, where he found Cardinal Ugolino,
who was returned from Tuscany, to whom he communicated the intention
he had of soliciting the pope for a protector. The cardinal at the
same time expressed his wish to hear him preach before the pope and
the sacred college. Francis excused himself from this as much as he
could, assigning for reasons, his ignorance, his simplicity, and his
uncultivated mind, which unfitted him for speaking in the most august
assembly in the world. But he was obliged to yield to the pressing
instances of the cardinal, who entreated him as a friend to comply,
and even ordered him to prepare himself for the task, recommending him
to compose carefully a sermon wherein there should be as much erudition
and reasoning as such an audience required.
Up to that time, the Servant of God had never prepared himself for
preaching; he only spoke from the pulpit what the Holy Ghost inspired.
Nevertheless, he, in this instance, obeyed the cardinal; he prepared
a sermon as carefully as he could, and learned it by heart. When he
came into the presence of the Pope, he forgot every part of the
discourse, and could not utter a syllable of it. But after having
humbly explained the circumstance, and implored the aid of the Holy
Ghost, words flowed copiously from his mouth, and he spoke with so
much eloquence and animation, that the Pope and cardinal were deeply
affected.
Having been admitted to an audience of the Pope in presence of Cardinal
Ugolino, he said: "Most Holy Father, I am not in fear of becoming
importunate for the interests of your lowly servants, the Friars Minor,
while you are occupied with so many important affairs which regard the
whole Church. I entreat you to give us this cardinal, to whom we may
have recourse in our wants, always under your sanction, since it is
from you, the Head of the mystical Body, that all power emanates." The
Pope granted his request with alacrity, and recommended the cardinal
to take great care of the Order. From that time, the Orders of Friars
Minor have always had a cardinal protector, whose powers are extended
as the Pope shall see fit; the terms of the Rule, which oblige the
Order by obedience to apply for one, show, that it was the intention
of Francis, that his powers should be most ample.
Cardinal Ugolino was one of the most accomplished men of the City of
Rome; his person well made, his countenance mild and majestic, his
genius quick, with great memory and eloquence, possessing in perfection
all human sciences, civil and canon-law, and particularly the Holy
Scriptures; he was very expert in all public business; a lover of
virtue and order, and of a pure and exemplary life.
His first care in undertaking the office of protector, which he did
willingly, was, to defend the Friars against all those who attacked
them, to conciliate the prelates in their favor and to spread them
into all parts for the salvation of souls; his great authority silenced
their enemies. As often as his affairs admitted of it, he assisted at
their general chapters; then he officiated pontifically. Francis acted
as his deacon, and preached. He conformed to the rule of the Institute
as much as was in his power, and was, when with them, as one of
themselves, and even endeavored to appear as the lowest among them.
A contemporary author, who was an ocular witness, expresses himself
thus: "O how often has he been seen humbly to divest himself of the
marks of his high dignity; put on the poor habit, and, with bare feet,
join the religious in the regular exercises, in order to imitate their
evangelical life!" A lively and enlightened faith, a solid and fervent
piety, and a superior mind, convinced him that since the time of the
abasement of the Son of God, humiliation is honorable, and adds to the
splendor of the highest dignities; a truth which is not understood by
persons of little faith, by the proud, the indevout, and those of
little mind.
This great cardinal respected Francis as much as he loved him; looking
upon him as a man sent down from heaven. His presence was a source of
pleasure to him, and he often admitted, as the above-quoted author
states, that from the time he had made acquaintance with this holy
man, as soon as he saw him and heard him speak, all that caused in him
uneasiness of mind, or grief at heart was dispelled; his countenance
became serene, and his soul was filled with fervor.
Francis, on his side, had great veneration for the cardinal. He insisted
on his brethren considering him as the Pastor of the Flock, and, with
an attachment as tender as that of an infant for its mother's breast,
he gave him in all things marks of the profoundest deference. One day,
hearing that he was about to receive a visit from him he ran away and
hid himself in the thickest part of the wood. The cardinal had him
sought for, and went himself in search for him. Having found him he
asked Francis as his friend to tell why he avoided him. "My Lord and
my Father," answered the humble Francis, "as soon as I knew that your
Grandeur intended to honor me with your presence, me who am the poorest
and the most despicable of men, I was covered with confusion, and I
blushed at the thought of my baseness, finding myself wholly unworthy
to receive so distinguished an honor, for I truly revere you as my
Lord and my Father." These feelings were partly owing to a vision he
had, which revealed to him that this cardinal would be Pope; he foretold
it to him,--this is recorded by St. Bonaventure; and in the private
letters which he wrote to him, he put on the heading: To my Reverend
Father and Lord Ugolino, who is one day to be the Bishop of the whole
world, and the Father of all nations.
The respectful gratitude of the Friars Minor required that we should
insert all these anecdotes in memory of Cardinal Ugolino, who honored
the holy Patriarch of his Order, as well as that of St. Clare, with
his affection, his protection, and his liberality, and who surpassed
all his former favors ten years afterwards, when he was Pope under the
name of Gregory IX.
When Francis had obtained from the Pope so powerful a protector, and
had put his various affairs in order, he set out on his return to St.
Mary of the Angels, but he spent the remainder of the year in the
Valley of Rieti, where he performed many wonderful things, of which
one of his companions has given a very ample account.
At Grecio, or Grecchia, a very dissolute town in which he first
preached, no one frequented the Sacraments; no one listened to the
Word of God, and marriages within the prohibited degrees were of
ordinary occurrence.--By word and example he urged them to repentance
and made such an impression that they entreated him to make some
brothers stay among them. He willingly agreed to do so, in the hope
of their conversion, which took place in a short time; meanwhile he
retired to a mountain, from whence he came to Grecio and other places
to preach.
On returning one day from Cotanello, a neighboring town, and not being
able to find the way to the mountain, he asked a farmer to be his
guide. This man excusing himself, saying that there were wolves in
that direction that committed great havoc, Francis promised him, and
pledged himself as his surety, that he should not be attacked by any
wolf either in going or coming back; he found that the Saint was
correct, for, in returning, two wolves which were in the way, played
with him as dogs do, and followed him to his house without doing him
any harm. The farmer reported this over all his neighborhood, and said
that, assuredly, the man to whom he had served as guide, must be a
great favorite with God, who gave him such absolute command over the
wolves. Upon this they assembled in great numbers, and came to the Man
of God, entreating him to deliver them from their calamities.
"Two sorts of calamities bore hard upon them," says St. Bonaventure,
"wolves and hail." The wolves were so ravenous in the environs of
Grecio, that they devoured both cattle and men; and the hail fell every
year in such quantity and of such large size, that their crops of corn
were destroyed, and their vineyards sorely damaged. Francis preached
on this subject, and pointed out to them that scourges of this nature
were the punishment of sin; and he ended by saying: "For the honor and
for the glory of God, I pledge my word to you, that if you choose to
give credit to what I say, and have pity on your own souls, by making
a good confession, and showing worthy fruits of repentance, God will
look upon you with a favorable eye; will deliver you from your
calamities, and render your country abundant in all sorts of good
things. But I also declare to you that if you are ungrateful for these
benefits, if, like the dog, you return to the vomit, God will be still
more irritated against you, and you will feel the effects thereof
twofold by the fresh afflictions He will then send." They believed the
preacher, and did penance; from that moment the scourges ceased; nothing
more was heard of wolves, and there was no more hail; and, what seemed
most remarkable, continues St. Bonaventure, was, that when it hailed
in the vicinity, the cloud, on nearing their lands, either stopped or
went off in another direction. This lasted as long as those people
remained faithful to God.
Four authors, in different centuries, who have written the history of
the Valley of Rieti, assure us, that when dissoluteness recommenced
in that country, the wolves returned and made great havoc. Wading, who
wrote in Italy in the 17th century, says, that the inhabitants of the
valley admitted this to be the case. It is certain by the testimony
of the Holy Scriptures, that the sins of the people call down not
unfrequently the scourges of the wrath of God, which may be averted
by repentance, or be rendered useful to salvation. But how many
afflicted sinners are there, of whom it may be said with the prophet:
"O Lord, Thou hast struck them, and they have not grieved; Thou hast
bruised them, and they have refused to receive correction; they have
made their faces harder than the rock, and they have refused to return."
A knight, whose name was John Velita, who was converted by the preaching
of Francis, became his intimate friend, and used often to go to see
him and consult him in his hut, which was made of the branches of two
large hornbeams intertwined. As he was an elderly man, and very
corpulent, whom the steepness of the road greatly fatigued, he begged
Francis to come nearer to the town: this would be agreeable to all,
and he offered to build him a convent on any spot he should select.
The Servant of God assented to the proposal, and, smiling, promised
the knight not to settle farther from the town than the distance to
which a child could throw a lighted brand. Upon this they went together
down the mountain, and when they reached the gates of Grecio, the
knight sent the first child he met to fetch a lighted brand, and desired
him to throw it as far as he could, not thinking he could throw it
very far. But the child, with a strength surpassing that of men, threw
the brand to a distance of more than a mile, and it fell on a hill
belonging to the knight, and set fire to the wood which covered it,
and lit at length on a very stony spot. This prodigy made it clear
that God desired that a convent should be built there, and it was cut
out of the rock. The oratory, the dormitory, and the refectory, which
are still extant, on the ground floor, are only thirty feet long by
six broad; precious remains, which show us the love of poverty which
planned them.
The Saint founded three other establishments in the Valley of Rieti,
at St. Mary of the Woods, at Monte Raniero, or Monte Columba, and at
Pui Buscone. These four houses, which are situated on eminences on the
four sides of the valley, formed together a cross. In each of them,
as in the Town of Rieti, and all around the lake which surrounds it,
traces are shown of several miracles which were performed by the man
of God.
He returned to St. Mary of the Angels in the Month of January, 1218,
and he determined upon convoking a general chapter, which he proclaimed
by circular letters, to be held on Whitsuntide of the year 1219, in
order that he might be made acquainted with the state of the missions
intrusted to his disciples, and that he might send missionaries into
parts where there had hitherto been none.
While he was thus occupied by his important projects for the salvation
of souls, God, in order to prevent any emotions of pride stealing into
his heart, and to maintain in him a profound humility, was pleased to
permit that he should be attacked by a violent temptation; it was an
extraordinary depression of spirits, which lasted several days. He
made every effort to surmount it by his prayers and his tears; and one
day when he was praying with more than ordinary fervor, a celestial
voice said to him: "Francis, if thou hadst the faith of a grain of
mustard-seed, and thou wert to say to this mountain, go thither from
hence, it would go." Not understanding the meaning of these words, he
asked "what is the mountain"; and he was answered: "The mountain is
the temptation." He immediately replied, weeping and humbling himself:
"Lord, Thy will be done." And from that moment the temptation ceased,
and his mind became perfectly at ease.
The year 1218 was divided between the stay he made at St. Mary of the
Angels, for the instruction of his brethren, and some excursions he
made to Mount Alvernia and to some other places, where new dwellings
were made over to him. His route was always marked by the fruits of
his preaching, and by the splendor of his miracles. Passing by Montaigu,
above the Valley of Caprese, before a Church of St. Paul, which was
being repaired, and seeing that two of the masons could not succeed
in lifting a stone, which was to be placed as a jamb for the door, his
compassion and zeal induced him to lift it and place it as required,
which he did alone, and with a strength which was not that of a mortal.
The Abbot of the Monastery of St. Justin, in the Diocese of Perugia,
met him, and alighted from his horse to compliment him, and to speak
to him on some matters of conscience. After a conversation replete
with unction, the abbot, recommended himself humbly to his prayers.
Francis replied: "I will pray with all my heart;" and they parted. At
a little distance from thence, the Saint said to his companion: "Wait
a little, brother, I will here perform my promise." He knelt to pray;
and while he was so doing, the abbot, who was riding on, felt his mind
inflamed with a suavity of devotion, such as he had never before
experienced. He stopped, and the vivid impressions with which God
favored him, threw him into an ecstasy. But when he came to himself
again, he became aware that it was entirely owing to the prayers of
Francis.
On his return from his last journey in 1218, which was much longer
than any of the others had been, Francis found that another building,
large and commodious, had been erected in his absence, close to the
Portiuncula convent. Displeased at seeing this infringement of the
rules of holy poverty, he took some of his brethren with him, and went
on the roof, to begin to break it down, which he certainly would have
carried through, had not some of the people from Assisi, who were
there, informed him that the building belonged to the town; that it
had been built by them for the foreign religious, who daily arrived
there, it being dishonorable to the town to see them compelled, in
consequence of the want of room in the convent, to sleep outside, and
even in the fields; that the town had destined this building for their
accommodation, and that they would be received there in its name. On
hearing this he came down, and said:--"If that, then, is your house,
I leave it, and shall not meddle with it; we shall have nothing to do
with it, neither myself nor my brethren; take care of it yourselves."
It was decided in consequence by a deliberation of the municipality,
that the magistrates should provide for the repairs.
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