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Simple Samples from our Franciscan Heritage
Francis and the Word of GodSoon after Francis experienced God’s call and began to do penance he found himself with two men, Bernard of Quintavalle and Peter of Catanii, who wanted to join him. Not knowing what to do about this he brought the two to the little church of St Nicholas. Francis opened the Gospels three times, praying that in God’s word they would find directions for their way of life. When the book opened at the texts about following Christ in poverty, Francis’ new companions hurried to sell all they possessed.1 We know that discerning God’s plan for our life is not usually as simple as that! The story shows us, though, how strong was Francis’ conviction that God’s word is a living word and that God really speaks through the Scriptures. Francis’ Reverence for the Word of God The word of God in Scripture was something Francis regarded with great awe. Francis never quite got used to the idea that the Most High God, who ‘dwells in inaccessible light’2, should have spoken to the world in human language, in words written down for us to read and understand. For this reason, any pages of writing immediately reminded Francis of God and God’s word. He gathered such writings and preserved them carefully, in case they should contain the name of God or the word of God. The Word of God in Francis’ Prayer Life One way in which Francis prayed the Scriptures was through the psalms of the Divine Office. The ‘Hours’ of the Office were very dear to Francis and his companions. They recited these prayers together each day; and when a brother was absent from the fraternity he would pause on his journey at the time of the Hours and pray in union with the brothers at home. Francis begged his followers to be united in prayer, ‘not concentrating on the melody of the voice but on the harmony of the mind, so that the voice may blend with the mind, and the mind be in harmony with God’.3 In addition to the Divine Office, Francis composed an entire ‘Office of the Passion’ (by combining all his favourite passages from the psalms and other Books of the Bible!) and prayed it every day. Meditating on the Gospels formed the second great part of Francis’ prayer. In fact, the Gospels became so familiar to him that during his last illness when a brother suggested having the Gospel read to him, Francis replied:
The Source What was the source of this deep understanding of Scripture? Francis certainly did not gain it through studying or attending courses! Scholars give us a clue when they tell us that the Gospel passages Francis quotes are nearly all readings that were used in the Liturgy. Attentive listening to the liturgical texts and to explanations given by preachers, together with hours of prayerful reflection, seems to have been Francis’ principal way of coming to know the Gospel. The Word of God and Conversion of Heart This knowledge did not remain theoretical, but touched the heart of Francis in a profound way. In his early Rule, Francis urged his brothers to be good soil for the seed of the word of God.5 He saw openness to that word, allowing it to touch one’s life, as a necessary part of living the Gospel. We too listen to the Scriptures each day in our Liturgies. We pray the office together in our communities, making the words of the Psalms our own. By treasuring these opportunities and allowing our hearts to be touched by God’s living word, we too will be good soil in which God’s word will grow and bear fruit.
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© Missionary Franciscan Sisters, Australian Governance Circle |
