CHAPTER ONE
THE LIFE OF ST. FRANCIS
together the accounts of his virtues, his actions and his words— like so many fragments , partly forgotten and partly scattered— although I cannot accomplish this fully, so that they may not be lost (John 6:12) when those who lived with this servant of God die.
In order to have a clearer and more certain grasp of the authentic facts of his life, which I was to transmit to posterity,
I visited the sites of the birth, life and death of this holy man.
I had careful interviews with his companions who were still alive, especially those who had intimate knowledge of his holiness and were its principal followers. Because of their acknowledged truthfulness and their proven virtue, they can be trusted beyond any doubt. In describing what God graciously accomplished through his servant,
I decided that I should avoid a cultivated literary style, since the reader's devotion profits more from simple rather than ornate expression. To avoid confusion
I did not always weave the story together in chronological order. Rather, I strove to maintain a more thematic order, relating to the same theme events that happened at different times, and to different themes events that happened at the same time, as seemed appropriate.
5. The life of Francis— in its beginning, progress and end— is described in the following fifteen chapters:
CHAPTER ONE
On his manner of life while in secular attire
CHAPTER TWO
On his perfect conversion to God and his restoration of three churches
CHAPTER THREE
On the foundation of the Order and the approval of the Rule
CHAPTER FOUR
On the progress of the Order under his hand and the confirmation of the Rule
ST. BONAVENTURE
CHAPTER FIVE
On the austerity of his life and how creatures provided him comfort
CHAPTER SIX
On his humility and obedience and God's condescension to his slightest wish
CHAPTER SEVEN
On his love of poverty and the miraculous fulfillment of his needs
CHAPTER EIGHT
On his affectionate piety and how irrational creatures were affectionate toward him
CHAPTER NINE
On the fervor of his charity and his desire for martyrdom
CHAPTER TEN
On his zeal for prayer and the power of his prayer
CHAPTER ELEVEN
On his understanding of Scripture and his spirit of prophecy
CHAPTER TWELVE
On the efficacy of his preaching and his grace of healing
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
On his sacred stigmata
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
On his patience and his passing in death
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
On his canonization and the solemn transferal of his body Finally, there is appended an account of miracles which took place after his happy death . 32
Here Ends the Prologue 32. This account of miracles is not included in the present volume.
Here Begins the Life of Blessed Francis
CHAPTER ONE
SAINT FRANCIS'S
MANNER OF LIFE
WHILE IN SECULAR ATTIRE
There was a man in the town of Assisi,
Francis by name, whose memory is held in benediction 2 because God in his generosity foreordained goodly blessings for him, 3 mercifully snatching him from the dangers of the present life and richly filling him with gifts of heavenly grace.
As a young boy, he lived among worldly sons of men 4 and was brought up in worldly ways.
After acquiring a little knowledge of reading and writing, he was assigned to work in a lucrative merchant's business.
Yet with God's protection, even among wanton youths, he did not give himself over to the drives of the flesh, although he indulged himself in pleasures;
1. Job.
1:1.
Ecclus. 45:1.
Ps.
20:4.
Ibid. 61:10.
ST. BONAVENTURE
nor even among greedy merchants did he place his hope in money or treasures 5 although he was intent on making a profit. 6
God implanted in the heart of the youthful Francis a certain openhanded compassion for the poor. Growing from his infancy (Job 31:18), this compassion had so filled his heart with generosity that even at that time he determined not to be deaf to the Gospel but to give to everyone who begged (Luke 6:30), especially if he asked u for the love of God." On one occasion when Francis was distracted by the press of business, contrary to his custom, he sent away empty-handed a certain poor man who had begged alms for the love of God. As soon as he came to his senses, he ran after the man and gave him a generous alms, promising God that from that moment onward, while he had the means, he would never refuse those who begged from him for the love of God. He kept this promise with untiring fidelity until his death and merited an abundant increase of grace and love for God. Afterwards, when he had perfectly/^ on Christ (Gal.
3:27), he used to say that even while he was in secular attire, he could scarcely ever hear any mention of the love of God without being deeply moved in his heart. 7
His gentleness, his refined manners, his patience, his superhuman affability, his generosity beyond his means, marked him as a young man of flourishing natural disposition.
This seemed to be a prelude to the even greater abundance of God's blessings that would be showered on him in the future.
Indeed a certain man of Assisi, an exceptionally simple fellow 5.
Ecclus.
31:8.
6. The major source of this paragraph is the Vita prima S. Francisci of Thomas of Celano,
1, with phrases taken also from 3 and Celano 's Vita secunda S. Francisci , 7. Throughout we will indicate the major and minor sources of Bonaventure's text with the abbreviations:
I C, II C, III C and Jul. for respectively Celano's Vita prima , Vita secunda and Tractatus de miraculis , and the Vita S. Francisci ofJulian of Speyer. Related sources from which Bonaventure did not draw verbatim are indicated by cf.
; for example, cf. here I C 23;
II C 102.
Major sources:
I C 17; II C 196; minor sources:
I C 22; II C 5.
THE LIFE OF ST. FRANCIS
who, it is believed, was inspired by God, whenever he chanced to meet Francis going through the town, used to take off his cloak and spread it under his feet saying that Francis deserved every sign of respect since he was destined to do great things in the near future and would be magnificently honored by the entire body of the faithful. 8
2. Up to this time, however, Francis was ignorant of God's plan for him. He was distracted by the external affairs of his father's business and drawn down toward earthly things by the corruption of human nature. As a result, he had not yet learned how to contemplate the things of heaven nor had he acquired a taste for the things of God.
Since affliction can enlighten our spiritual awareness (Isa. 28:19), the hand of the Lord came upon him (Ezech.
1:3), and the right hand of God effected a change in him (Ps.
76:11). God afflicted his body with a prolonged illness in order to prepare his soul for the anointing of the Holy Spirit. After his strength was restored, when he had dressed as usual in his fine clothes, he met a certain knight who was of noble birth, but poor and badly clothed. Moved to compassion for his poverty, Francis took off his own garments and clothed the man on the spot. At one and the same time he fulfilled the two-fold duty of covering over the embarrassment of a noble knight and relieving the poverty of a poor man. 9
3. The following night, when he had fallen asleep, God in his goodness showed him a large and splendid palace full of military weapons emblazoned with the insignia of Christ's cross. Thus God vividly indicated that the compassion he had exhibited toward the poor knight for love of the supreme King would be repaid with an incomparable reward. And so when
Francis asked to whom these belonged, he received an answer from heaven that all these things were for him and his knights.
When he awoke in the morning, he judged the strange vision to be an indication that he would have great prosperity; for he had
This incident is not found in Celano or Julian.
Major source:
II C 5; minor sources:
II C 4; I C 2; Jul.
2; I C 3.
ST. BONAVENTURE
no experience in interpreting divine mysteries nor did he know how to pass through visible images to grasp the invisible truth beyond. Therefore, still ignorant of God's plan, he decided to join a certain count in Apulia, hoping in his service to obtain the glory of knighthood, as his vision seemed to foretell.
He set out on his journey shortly afterwards; but when he had gone as far as the next town, he heard during the night the Lord address him in a familiar way, saying: "Francis, who can do more for you, a lord or a servant, a rich man or a poor man?"
When Francis replied that a lord and a rich man could do more, he was at once asked: "Why, then, are you abandoning the Lord for a servant and the rich God for a poor man?" And Francis replied: "Lord, what willyou have me do?" (Acts 9:6). And the Lord answered him:
"Return to your own land (Gen.
32:9), because the vision which you have seen foretells a spiritual outcome which will be accomplished in you not by human but by divine planning." In the morning (John 21:4), then, he returned in haste to Assisi, joyous and free of care; already a model of obedience, he awaited the Lord's will. 10
4. From that time on he withdrew from the bustle of public business and devoutly begged God in his goodness to show him what he should do. The flame of heavenly desire was fanned in him by his frequent prayer, and his desire for his heavenly home led him to despise as nothing (Cant. 8:7) all earthly things. He realized that he had found a hidden treasure , and like the wise merchant he planned to sell all he had and to buy thepearl he had found (Matt.
13:44-46). Nevertheless, how he should do this, he did not yet know; but it was being suggested to him inwardly that to be a spiritual merchant one must begin with contempt for the world and to be a knight of Christ one must begin with victory over one's self. 11
5. One day while he was riding on horseback through the plain that lies below the town of Assisi, he came upon a leper.
10.
Major sources:
I C 5; II C 6; minor sources:
I C 17; Jul.
11.
Major source:
I C 6; minor source: Jul.
THE LIFE OF ST. FRANCIS
This unforeseen encounter struck him with horror.
But he recalled his resolution to be perfect and remembered that he must first conquer himself if he wanted to become a knight of Christ. 12 He slipped off his horse and ran to kiss the man.
When the leper put out his hand as if to receive some alms, Francis gave him money and a kiss. Immediately mounting his horse, Francis looked all around; but although the open plain stretched clear in all directions, he could not see the leper anywhere.
Filled with wonder and joy, he began devoutly to sing God's praises, resolving from this always to strive to do greater things in the future. 13
After that he began to seek out solitary places, well suited for sorrow; and there he prayed incessantly with unutterable groanings (Rom. 8:26). After long and urgent prayer, he merited to be heard by the Lord. One day while he was praying in such a secluded spot and became totally absorbed in God through his extreme fervor, Jesus Christ appeared to him fastened to the cross. Francis's .row/ melted (Cant.
5:6) at the sight, and the memory of Christ's passion was so impressed on the innermost recesses of his heart that from that hour, whenever Christ's crucifixion came to his mind, he could scarcely contain his tears and sighs, as he later revealed to his companions when he was approaching the end of his life. Through this the man of God understood as addressed to himself the Gospel text: Ifyou wish to come after me , deny yourself and take up your cross andfollow me (Matt.
16:24). 14
6. From that time on he clothed himself with a spirit of poverty, a sense of humility and a feeling of intimate devotion.
Formerly he used to be horrified not only by close dealing with lepers but by their very sight, even from a distance; but now he
12.
Cf.
2 Tim.
2:3.
13.
Major source:
II C 9; minor source:
I C 16.
14.
Major source II C 10-11; minor sources:
II C 9; III C 2.
In the present account Bonaventure uses phrases from Celano's version of the vision at San Damiano,
II C 10-11, although this is a different incident. Cf.
II, 1, p.
191.
ST. BONAVENTURE
rendered humble service to the lepers with human concern and devoted kindness in order that he might completely despise himself, because of Christ crucified, who according to the text of the prophet was despised as a leper (Isa.
53:3). He visited their houses frequently, generously distributed alms to them and with great compassion kissed their hands and their mouths. 15
To beggars he wished to give not only his possessions but his very self. At times he took off his clothes, at times unstitched them, at times ripped them in pieces, in order to give them to beggars, when he had nothing else at hand. He came to the assistance of poor priests, reverently and devoutly, especially in adorning the altar.
In this way he became a participator in the divine worship, while supplying the needs of its celebrants. During this period of time he made a pilgrimage to the shrine of St.
Peter, where he saw a large number of the poor before the entrance of the church. Led partly by the sweetness of his devotion, partly by the love of poverty, he gave his own clothes to one of the neediest among them. Then he dressed in the poor man's rags and spent that day in the midst of the poor with an unaccustomed joy of spirit. This he did in order to spurn worldly glory and, by ascending in stages, to arrive at the perfection of the Gospel. 16
He paid great attention to the mortification of the flesh so that he might carry externally in his body the cross of Christ which he carried internally in his heart.
Francis, the man of God, did all these things when he was not yet withdrawn from the dress and life of the world.
15.
Major sources:
I C 17; II C 9; minor source: Jul.
12.
16.
Major source:
II C 8; minor source:
I C 16.