The Early Franciscan “Fools for Christ”
St. Francis.
Many of us forget that St. Francis and his first followers were so fervent and on fire with the love of God, they at times appeared to be insane to their worldly minded contemporaries. Francis’ father was among the first to insist his son lost his mind, giving away his clothing and money. Bernardone imprisoned his son for a time, beat him severely, and finally brought him before the diocesan court, in the hope of dissuading him from throwing his life away.
It was there, in front of the bishop and all the townsfolk, that St. Francis divested himself completely of his father’s goods, removing all of his clothing and laying them at his father’s feet. After that, St. Francis lived in the utmost radical poverty; barefoot, clothed in ragged pilgrim’s clothing, in season and out of season. He dedicated himself to prayer, living on alms and assisting the lepers, rebuilding dilapidated churches, and speaking of the Gospel to anyone who would listen.
He never said, “Preach the Gospel, and if necessary use words.”
People like to make things up about St. Francis when in effect there is absolutely no need to romanticise his life, or embellish it with tall tales. That particular quote regarding preaching may have been said by someone describing the manner of life of the early Franciscans. Their way of life and example conveyed the essence of the Gospel, although the friars would never have neglected actual preaching with words - since that was their mission.
The Fioretti.
The little book called “The Little Flowers of St. Francis” is a collection of anecdotes and sayings concerning the lives of St. Francis and his first followers. The book contains treasures much like the sayings of the desert fathers, with whom the earliest Franciscans are sometimes compared. Both groups were extremely simple, and each group appeared to be “foolish” in the eyes of the world.
Countercultural = foolishness.
I’ll be posting more on the subject as time goes on. Especially since in many of his talks in Australia for WYD, our Holy Father’s core message seemed to be for the Christian to reject the materialism of the age, saying:
“In so many of our societies, side by side with material prosperity, a spiritual desert is spreading: an interior emptiness, an unnamed fear, a quiet sense of despair.” The 81-year-old pope said it was up to a new generation of Christians to build a world in “which God’s gift of life is welcomed, respected and cherished — not rejected, feared as a threat and destroyed.” The aim was “a new age in which hope liberates us from the shallowness, apathy and self-absorption which deadens our souls and poisons our relationships,” he said. - Source
Animated by the Holy Spirit.
The saints who were known as “fools for Christ” became an example, not necessarily to imitate, but rather to inspire and direct the Christian’s attention to what is above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of the Father. The holy fool, inebriated with the love of God, embraces humility and poverty to such a degree as to atone for the pride of the age and to arouse humble compassion, meekness, and charity in the souls of others. As OrthodoxWiki states:
One form of the ascetic Christian life is called foolishness for the sake of Christ. The fool-for-Christ set for himself the task of battling within himself the root of all sin, pride. In order to accomplish this he took on an unusual style of life, appearing as someone bereft of his mental faculties, thus bringing upon himself the ridicule of others. In addition he exposed the evil in the world through metaphorical and symbolic words and actions. He took this ascetic endeavor upon himself in order to humble himself and to also more effectively influence others, since most people respond to the usual ordinary sermon with indifference. The spiritual feat of foolishness for Christ was especially widespread in Russia. –(Excerpted from The Law of God, Holy Trinity Monastery, Jordanville, NY: 1993) - Source
(To be continued.)
