9.3.10 THOMAS OF CELANO'S LIFE OF ST. FRANCIS (cont)

since yesterday i have finished thomas of celano's first and second lives of st. francis and have read half way through st. bonaventure's major life of st. francis. bonaventure, who was not a contemporary of francis was nevertheless called upon to write a new life for various reasons.

first, 'the person and ideal of francis emerged with great difficulty from a mounting flood of writings..in which duly attested facts ran the risk of being lost while puerile imaginings or borrowings from a doubtful source survived'. also 'the quarrel between the 'spirituals' and the 'friars of the community' needed to be cleared up. the only rule that the first friars had was the teachings of the gospel and they felt no need of anything else: 'there were few of them; they were saints of exceptional quality; they were an elite. humanly speaking, it was impossible for the thousands of friars who had become members of the franciscan family to maintain themselves at such a peak" '...and other reasons are given..

as murky and over spiritualized as i found thomas of celano's lives to be, bonaventure's account is not only crisp and readily followed but his writing, whether or not truth, i find very strengthening spiritually. so obviously i am biased in favor of the latter. but as much as i hate to do it i will attempt to here continue quotations from the former where i left off in the 9.1.10 post.

..'francis before the lord pope and the ..cardinals..standing before such great princes, after receiving their permission and blessing, he began to speak fearlessly. indeed, he spoke with such great fervor of spirit, that, not being able to contain himself for joy, when he spoke the words with his mouth, he moved his feet as though he were dancing, not indeed lustfully, but as one burning with the fire of divine love...drawing forth tears of grief..

..francis..was grieved when he saw someone poorer than himself..from a feeling of compassion. and, though he was content with a tunic that was quite poor and rough, he very frequently longed to divide it with some poor person...he would ask the rich..when the weather was cold, to give him a mantle or some furs. and when..they willingly did what he..asked..he would say..'i will accept this from you with the understanding that you do not expect ever to have it back again'. and when he met the first poor man, he would clothe him with what he had received with joy..he was accustomed to say, 'who curses a poor man does an injury to Christ, whose noble image he wears, the image of Him who made Himself poor for us in this world'.

when he found an abundance of flowers, he preached to them and invited them to praise the Lord as though they were endowed with reason. in the same way he exhorted with the sincerest purity cornfields and vineyards, stones and forests and all the beautiful things of the fields, fountains of water and the green things of the gardens, earth and fire, air and wind, to love God and serve him willingly. finally, he called all creatures brother, and in a most extraordinary manner, ..he discerned the hidden things of nature with his sensitive heart, as one who had already escaped into the freedom of the glory of the sons of God.

oh how beautiful, how splendid, how glorious did he appear in the innocence of his life, in the simplicity of his words, in the purity of his heart, in his love for God, in his fraternal charity, in his ardent obedience, in his peaceful submission, in his angelic countenance! he was charming in his manners, serene by nature, affable in his conversation, most opportune in his exhortations, most faithful in what was entrusted to him, cautious in counsel, effective in business, gracious in all things. he was serene of mind, sweet of disposition, sober in spirit, raised up in contemplation, zealous in prayer and in all things fervent. he was constant in purpose, stable in virtue, persevering in grace and unchanging in all things. he was quick to pardon, slow to become angry, ready of wit, tenacious of memory, subtle in discussion, circumspect in choosing and in all things simple. he was unbending with himself, understanding toward others , and discreet in all things.

he was a most eloquent man, a man of cheerful countenance, of kindly aspect; he was immune to cowardice, free of insolence. he was of medium height, closer to shortness; his head was moderate in size and round, his face a bit long and prominent, his forehead smooth and low; his eyes were of moderate size, black and sound; his hair was black, his eyebrows straight, his nose symmetrical, thin and straight; his ears were upright, but small; his temples smooth. his speech was peaceable, fiery and sharp; his voice was strong, sweet, clear and sonorous. his teeth were set close together, even and white; his lips were small and thin; his beard black, but not bushy. his neck was slender, his shoulders straight, his arms short, his hands slender, his fingers long, his nails extended; his legs were thin, his feet small. his skin was delicate, his flesh very spare. he wore rough garments, he slept but very briefly, he gave most generously. and because he was very humble, he showed all mildness to all men, adapting himself usefully to the behavior of all. the more holy amongst the holy, among sinners he was as one of them. (note: this reminds one of solomon and his bride describing one another in the song of songs. would that i would be this intimate, knowing, accurate and complete in my understanding of You Lord.)

..he would recall Christ's words through persistent meditation and bring to mind His deeds through the most penetrating consideration. the humility of the incarnation and the charity of the passion occupied his memory particularly, to the extent that he wanted to think of hardly anything else..
..he sang the..Gospel in a sonorous voice. and his voice was a strong voice, a sweet voice, a clear voice..
..at a certain time..francis left behind the crowds of the world that were coming together daily..to hear and see him and he sought out a quiet and secret place of solitude, desiring to spend his time there with God and to cleanse himself of any dust that may have clung to him from his association with men. it was his custom to divide up the time given him to merit grace and, as seemed necessary to him, to give part of it to working for the good of his neighbors and the rest to the blessed retirement of contemplation. he therefore took with him just the very few companions to whom his holy life was better known than it was to the rest, so that they might protect him from the invasion and disturbance of men and respect and preserve his quiet in all things..
..francis toward the end of his life had a vision of a man standing above him, like a seraph with 6 wings, his hands extended and his feet joined together and fixed to a cross. 2 wings were extended above his head, 2 were extended as if for flight and 2 were wrapped around the whole body..solicitously he thot what this vision could mean and his soul was in great anxiety to find its meaning. and while he was thus unable to come to any understanding of it..the marks of the nails began to appear in his hands and feet, just as he had seen them a little before in the crucified man above him.
his hands and feet seemed to be pierced thru the middle by nails, with the heads of the nails appearing in the inner side of the hands and on the upper sides of the feet and their pointed ends the opposite sides. the marks in the hands were round on the inner side, but on the outer side they were elongated; and some small pieces of flesh took on the appearance of the ends of the nails, bent and driven back and rising above the rest of the flesh. in the same way the marks of the nails were impressed upon the upon the feet and raised in a similar way above the rest of the flesh. furthermore, his right side was as though it had been pierced by a lance and had a wound in it that frequently bled so that his tunic and trousers were very often covered with..blood.

it was francis' custom to reveal his great secret but rarely or to no one at all, for he feared that his revealing it to anyone might have the appearance of a special affection for him, in the way in which special friends act and that he would thereby suffer some loss in the grace that was given him. he therefore carried about in his heart and frequently had on his lips..'Thy words have i hidden in my heart, that i may not sin against Thee'..he had given a sign to his brothers ..who lived with him, that whenever any lay people would come to him and he wanted to refrain from speaking with them, he would recite the aforementioned verse and immediately they were to dismiss with courtesy those who had come..for he had experienced that it is a great evil to make known all things to every one and that he cannot be a spiritual man whose secrets are not more perfect and more numerous than the things that can be read on his face and completely understood by men. for he had found some who outwardly agreed with him but inwardly disagreed with him, who applauded him to his face, but ridiculed him behind his back,who acquired credit for themselves, but made the upright suspect to him. for wickedness often tries to blacken purity, and because of a lie that is familiar to many, the truth spoken by a few is not believed.
during the course of this ..period of time francis' body began to be burdened with various and more serious sicknesses than before. for he suffered frequent infirmities in as much as he had chastised his body and brought it unto subjection during the many years. for during the space of 18 years..his body had had little or no rest while he traveled thru various very large regions so that that willing spirit..that dwelt within him might scatter everywhere tht seeds of the word of God. he filled the whole earth with the Gospel of Christ, so that often in one day he made a circuit of 4 or 5 villages or even cities, preaching the kingdom of God to every one..

..though he found it necessary to moderate his early rigor because of his infirmity, he would still say: 'let us begin, brothers, to serve the Lord God, for up to now we have made little of no progress'. he did not consider that he had laid hold of the goal as yet..he wished to go back again to serving lepers, to be held in contempt, as he once had been..

in the 6th month before..his death, while he was at siena for treatment of the infirmity of his eyes, he began to be gravely ill in all the rest of his body; and, with his stomach racked by a long-standing illness and his liver infected, he vomited much blood, so that he appeared to be approaching death..he went ..to le celle near cortona. arriving there.. his abdomen began to swell and his legs and feet too and the ailment of his stomach began to grow worse..so that he could take hardly any food.

..in earlier times..a priest had begun to give francis some special food daily and francis thot..'you will not find a priest everywhere to provide these things always for you. this is not the life of a man who professes poverty. it is not proper for you to get accustomed to such things; gradually you will return to the things you have despised and you will run again after delicacies. arise now without delay beg from door to door for foods of mixed kinds. he therefore begged for prepared foods from door to door throughout assisi and when he saw his bowl full of all kinds of scraps, he was struck with horror, but mindful of God and conquering himself, he ate the food with joy of spirit.
concerning his decision to seek papal approval of his order...he had a vision of a little black hen, whose legs and feet were covered with feathers. she had innumerable chicks which pressed close around her, but they could not all get under her wings..he arose and said, 'the hen is i, small as i am in stature and naturally dark..the chicks are my brothers..whom francis' strength does not suffice to defend from the disturbances of men..therefore i will go..and ..commend them to the ..church, by the rod of whose power those of ill-will will be struck down and the children of god will enjoy full freedom everywhere unto the increase of eternal salvation'..

concerning poverty..'while he was in this valley of tears..he considered the common wealth of the sons of men as trifles and ambitious for higher things, he longed for poverty with all his heart. looking upon poverty as especially dear to the son of God, though it was spurned throughout the whole world, he sought to espouse it in perpetual charity. therefore, after he had become a lover of her beauty..he (sought) that he might cling to her more closely as his spouse and that they might be 2 in 1 spirit..there was no one so desirous of gold as he was desirous of poverty..he was solicitous in guarding this pearl of the Gospel. in this, above all, would his sight be offended if he saw anything contrary to poverty in his brothers..his poor habit showed where he was laying up his riches. with this he went his way happy, secure and confident; he rejoiced to exchange a perishable treasure for the hundredfold.
..he taught his brothers to make poor dwellings, of wood, not of stone and to erect small places according to a humble plan..'the foxes have dens and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head..
when the spirit becomes tepid and gradually grows cold toward grace, flesh and blood necessarily seek their own interests. for what remains if the soul does not find its delight, but that the flesh should turn to its delights/and then the animal appetite satisfies the craving of necessity, then carnal feeling forms the conscience..suppose a real necessity comes..or some want takes hold of him; if he is quick to satisfy it and thereby to put it a long way away from him what reward will he receive? (note: is it a lost reward or is it a lost opportunity to be freed to do God's will?)

in as far as the brothers depart from poverty, in so much will the world depart from them and they will seek and not find. but if they embrace my lady poverty, the world will provide for them, because they have been given to the world unto its salvation..there is a contract between the world and the brothers: the brothers must give the world a good example, the world must provide for their needs. when they break faith and withdraw their good example, the world will withdraw its hand in a just censure'.
francis made use of alms begged from door to door much more willingly than those offered spontaneously. he would say that shame in begging is the enemy of salvation and he affirmed that that kind of shame in begging which does not withdraw the foot is holy.

if he was invited by lords and was to be honored with a more lavish table, he would first beg some scraps of bread from the housed of neighbors and thus enriched by want, he would hasten to the table. asked..why he did this, he would say that he would not give up a permanent inheritance for a fief loaned to him for an hour. it is poverty that makes us heirs and kings of the kingdom of heaven, not..false riches.
he always sought a hidden place where he could adapt not only his soul but also all his members to God. when he suddenly felt himself visited by the Lord in public, lest he be without a cell he made a cell of his mantle. at times, when he did not have a mantle, he would cover his face with his sleeve so that he would not disclose the hidden..always he put something between himself and the bystanders, lest they should become aware of ..thus he could pray unseen even among many people in the narrow confines..

although francis preached to the unlearned people thru visible and simple things, in as much as he knew that virtue is more necessary than words, nevertheless among spiritual men and men of greater capacity he spoke enlivening and profound words. he would suggest in a few words what was beyond expression and using fervent gestures and nods, he would transport his hearers wholly to heavenly things. he did not make use of the keys of philosophical distinctions; he did not put order to his sermons, for he did not compose them ahead of time. Christ, the true power and wisdom, gave to his voice the voice of power. a certain doctor, a learned and eloquent man, once said: "while i can retain the preaching of others word for word, only the things that francis speaks elude me. if i commit any of them to memory, they do not seem to be the same that dropped from his lips before".

that honeyed poison, namely, familiarities with women, which led astray even holy men, francis commanded should be entirely avoided. fro he feared that from such things the weak spirit would be quickly broken and the strong spirit often weakened. avoiding contagion from association with them..was as easy as walking in a fire without having the soles or one's feet burned. ..a woman was so unwelcome to him that you would think that his caution was not a warning or an example but rather a dread or a horror. when their importunate(ness) caused him difficulty in speaking with them, he would ask for silence with a humble and speedy word and with his face cast down. sometimes, though, he looked up to heaven and seemed to draw from there the answers he gave to those who were speaking.

the safest remedy against the thousand snares and wiles of the enemy is spiritual joy..the devil carries dust so that he can throw it into even the tiniest chinks of conscience and soil the candor of ind and purity of life. but when spiritual joy fills hearts the serpent throws off his deadly poson in vain..
brother body should be provided for with discretion, so that a tempest of bad temper be not raise by it. so that it will not be wearied with watching and that it may persevere with reverence in prayer, take away from it every occasion for murmuring. for it might say 'i am weak with hunger, i cannot bear the burden of your exercise.'. but if after it has eaten sufficient food it should mutter such things, know that a lazy beast needs the spur and a sluggish ass must expect the goad'.
no one should flatter himself with evil praise over what a sinner can do. a sinner can fast, pry, weep, mortify his flesh. this..he cannot do, namely, be faithful to his Lord. therefore in this should we glory, that we give glory to God, that we serve Him faithfully, that we ascribe to Him whatever He has given us. the greatest enemy of man is his flesh; it does not know how to recall anything to grieve over it; it does not know how to foresee things to fear them; its only aim is to misuse the present time. ..it seeks for praise for its virtues and the external favor of men for its ...(whatever IT is doing).
..he knew that the price of fame diminishes the solitude of the conscience and that it is by far more harmful to abuse virtues than not to have them at all. he knew that it was not less a virtue to protect what was acquired than to acquire it. (when deluded by fame) we do not fix our eyes on our afflictions, we do not test the spirits, and when vainglory compels us to act, we think we have been moved by charity. moreover, if we have done even a little good, we cannot bear its weight, but ridding ourselves of it while we live, we lose it at the shore of eternity. we bear patiently our not being good. we cannot bear at all not to seem good, not to be thot good. and thus we live completely amid the praise of men, because we are nothing else but men.

humility is the guardian and the ornament of all virtues. if the spiritual building does not rest upon it, it will fall to ruin, though it seems to be growing. this virtue filled francis in a more copious abundance..in his own opinion, he was nothing but a sinner, despite the fact that he was the ornament and splendor of all sanctity..forgetting the things he had gained, he set before his eyes only his failings in the conviction that he lacked more than he had gained. there was no covetousness in him except the desire to become better, and not content with what he had, he sought to add new virtues.
he was humble in dress, more humble in conviction, most humble in reputation. this prince of God was not known as anyone's superior except by this brightest jewel alone, that among the lesser he was the least. ..all lofty speaking was absent from his mouth, all pomp from his gestures, all ostentation from his actions.
in many things he had learned his opinion from a revelation; yet, conferring about it, he would set the opinions of others ahead of his own. he considered the advice of his companions safer and the view of another seemed better than his own. he used to say that a brother had not given up all things for the lord if he kept the purse o his own opinion. he preferred to hear blame spoken of himself rather than praise, for the former would lead one to amend his life the latter to a fall.
a few years after his conversion, francis, to preserve ..holy humility, resigned the office of superior of the order..before all the brothers, saying: "from now on i am dead to you. but see, here is brother peter of catania, who i and all of you shall obey'.

i would not seem to myself to be a friar minor unless i were in the state i will describe to you. suppose i, being a prelate among the brothers, should go to the chapter and preach and admonish the brothers and at the end this should be said against me: "an unlettered and contemptible person is not suitable for us; therefore we do not want you to rule over us, because you have no eloquence, you are simple and unlettered". at length i am thrown out with repraches and despised by all. i say to you, unless i listen to these worse with the same face, with the same joy, with the same purpose of sanctity. i am in no way a friar minor.

he taught by his words and showed by his example that the brothers were to be especially humble toward clerics. for he used to say: "we have been sent to help the clergy toward the salvation of should so that what might be found insufficient in them might be supplied by us. everyone will receive his reward, not according to the authority he exercises, but according to the labor he does. know brothers the fruit of souls is most pleasing to God and it can be better obtained by peace with clerics than by disagreements with them. if they hinder the salvation of people, the revenge pertains to God and He will repay them in due time. therefore, be subject to prelates, so that, in so far as you can help it, no jealousy will spring up. if you will be sons of peace, you will win the clergy and the people for the lord and the Lord judges this more acceptable than to win the people but scandalize the clergy. hide their lapses, supply for their many defects; and when you have done this, be even more humble".

tell us, francis what is the perfect and highest obedience. and he replied, the truly obedient man under the figure of a dead body; "take a lifeless body and place it where you will. you will see that it does not resist being moved, it does not murmur about its position, it does not cry our if it is allowed to lie there. if it is placed on a chair, it will not look up but down; if it is clothed in purple, it looks twice as pale. this is a truly obedient man; he does not ask why he is moved, he cares not where he is place, he does not insist on being changed elsewhere. raised to an office, he retains his accustomed humility; the more he is honored, the more unworthy does he consider himself"...things that are granted after a request are more properly permissions; but if they are enjoined and not asked for, they are sacred obediences