A Reflection for the Feast of Our Seraphic Father St.
Francis of Assisi
October 4&5, 2014
By Rev. Bob Johnnene OFD
Mission Sts. Sergius &
Bacchus
This Friday
and Saturday all Franciscan Communities around the globe honor the
feast of the passing or Transitus of St Francis of Assisi (1181 – 1226) for
this earth to his heavenly abode. St. Francis is the Seraphic Father of the
Franciscans of Divine Mercy just as he is to all Franciscan Communities.
The following is a brief reflection about the life of
St. Francis and why our order tries to live up to the principals St. Francis had when he founded the lesser
Brothers, as he called what has become one of the largest religious communities
of men and woman in the world now known as The Franciscan
order.
It is very
fitting that in the Gospel for this Sunday Jesus asks the chief Priests and the
elders of the people “The stone that the
builders rejected has become the cornerstone; by the Lord has this been done,
and it is wonderful to behold” since the stones St. Francis started to use
to rebuild that small broken down chapel, have turned into a powerful religious
community of dedicated men and woman who have furthered the Good News of
Salvation preached by Jesus Christ.
St. Francis
was the son of a prosperous cloth merchant in Assisi. One day while Francis was
praying before an ancient crucifix in the forsaken wayside chapel of St.
Damian's below the town, he heard a voice coming from the crucifix saying: "Go,
Francis, and repair my house which as you see is falling into ruin."
Today, in
this day and age, another Francis is attempting to carry out that direction
given to St. Francis, I refer of course to Pope Francis who chose the name
Francis because of the dedication to the poor, outcasts of society and the
Gospel that St. Francis of Assisi had.
Pope Francis
has taken on the task of rebuilding the One Holy Catholic Apostolic Church and
he has asked his Bishops and Priests to live simple lives as the apostles and
St. Francis did, giving up fancy clothes and residences and to get out among the
people God has sent them to serve, just as Jesus served and healed all he
encountered. Pope Francis has chosen to live in a simple studio apartment in a
hotel rather than the palatial Palace of the Vatican, he wears a simple Iron
cross and simple garments rather than the ermine and gold of previous popes just
as St Francis discarded his fancy clothes.
When his
father objected to having his goods sold without his consent to pay for the
restoration of the chapel Francis heard the voice speaking from the cross which
Francis believed to mean that he should rebuild the chapel, his father begged
the bishop to commanded Francis to repay the money he had used to buy stones to
rebuild the small chapel to him.
Francis not
only returned the money but stripped himself of all his clothing which his
father had paid for and tossed them at the feet of the father. He also renounced his father. The Bishop
quickly placed his cope on Francis to cover his
nakedness.
He even later
gave the few garments the people of the town clothed him with to a beggar and
instead clothed himself in the coarse woolen rustic material of brown somewhat
like that used for flour sacks making, as he named it, a tunic of "beast
color".
It was the kind of clothing then worn by the
poorest of the Umbrian peasants, and tied it round him with a knotted rope,
Francis went forth at once exhorting the people of the country-side to have
penance for their sins, to have
brotherly love towards all, and find ways to achieve peace among the warring
factions of the various towns of Italy.
Ten years
later 5,000 men were wearing the simple clothing; a hundred years later Dante
was buried in it because “it was more glorious than cloth of gold”.
This simple
peasant garment is worn to this day by all Franciscan communities all over the
globe and found in many different Christian Denominations. There are Franciscans
not only in the Roman Church, but in the Anglican, Lutheran, Old Catholic like
our Franciscans of Divine mercy, and there are Lay or third order communities as
well.
Each year, on
the Feast of St. Francis, all Franciscans renew their commitment to live our lives for others
rather than ourselves as Francis did, especially when performing official duties
as a brother or priest.
We also wear
the image of the Cross St. Francis heard talking to him, often called the San
Damiano Crucifix, as a reminder that it is our mission to rebuild and strengthen
the Universal church by preaching God’s infinite love for ALL His children since
that was what Francis came to understand was the message he received. Francis
often spoke out against the excesses practiced by the hierarchy and their
failure to live the teachings of Christ, just as Pope Francis has on many
occasions.
Francis began
a life of perfect evangelical poverty, living by begging and even then only
accepting the worst food that people had to give. Franciscans, even today, rely
on donations to fulfill their missions work and often perform secular labor to
supply their daily needs.
Francis
preached to all the love of God and the love of the created world; because, he
celebrated everything he received, or saw, or heard, as a gift from God who
created everything for good and a purpose known only to
God.
A rich man
sold everything and joined him in living next to a leper colony; a canon from a
neighboring church gave up his position and joined them also. They looked into
the Gospel and saw the story of the rich young man whom Jesus told to sell
everything; they saw Jesus telling his disciples to take nothing with them on
their journey; they saw Jesus saying that his followers must also carry his
cross. And on that basis they founded an order.
Francis went
to Rome himself and persuaded the Pope to sanction it, though it must have
seemed at once impractical and subversive, to set thousands of holy men
wandering penniless round the towns and villages of Europe begging alms but that
is what the rule St. Francis Drew up required them to do and we still go begging
to fulfill the needs of our ministries.
There is too much to say about Francis to fit here.
There is too much to say about Francis to fit here.
Francis died in 1226, having started a
revolution. As I said in the beginning of this reflection, the Franciscans of
Divine Mercy strive to continue the traditions of St. Francis by spreading God’s
message of love to every person especially the poor, alienated and those who
society rejects just as Francis did.
This week our
ministry, Mission Saints Sergius & Bacchus will also on the 7th
of the month be celebrating the feast of our mission’s patron
Saints.
Saints
Sergius and Bacchus were two Christian Roman soldiers who were ordered to enter
the Temple of Jupiter to participate in a sacrificial ceremony to the god, they
refused.
For this act
of defiance, the friends were stripped of their arms and badges of rank, dressed
in women's clothing and led through the streets of Arabissus (near Comana in
Cappadocia) which, for a Roman soldier, was abject humiliation.
Then they
were sent to Resapha in Syria (Augusta Euphratesiae in Mesopotamia), where they
were tortured.
Bacchus was
whipped until his flesh was raw and he died October 1st AD290, confessing his
faith in Christ
Sergius's
faith faltered with the death of his best friend, but was reinforced when
Bacchus appeared to him in a vision saying, "I am still with you in the bond of
our union." Sergius kept the faith and after a great deal more of torture, he
was beheaded on October 7 AD290. He died a martyr for the love of
Christ.
The tomb of
Saint Sergius at Resapha become a famous shrine and was honored by great
gatherings of Christians because of the frequent miracles there.
Sergius and
Bacchus became the heavenly protectors of the Byzantine army, with the two
Theodores, Demetrius, Procopius and George.
Their "acts"
are preserved in Latin, Greek and Syria.
In AD431,
Bishop Alexander of Hierapolis built a magnificent church in Sergius’s honor.
In 434, the
town of Resapha was raised to the rank of an episcopal see, was named
Sergiopolis, and soon became one of the greatest pilgrimage centers of the East.
Many churches
in many towns bore the name of Sergius (sometimes with Bacchus) and in the
seventh century, a church was dedicated to them in Rome.
There have
been two popes named after Saint Sergius.
During the
middle Ages, the relationship of Sergius and Bacchus was considered an exemplar
of compassionate union, and possibly even marriage, based on agape (brotherly
love) and mutual respect.
In the East,
Sergius and Bacchus were universally honored.
Since the
seventh century they have had a celebrated church in Rome. Christian Art
represents the two saints as soldiers in military garb with branches of palm in
their hands.
I strongly
recommend that all who love Christ and believe that he is our savior and
redeemer take it upon themselves to read the many histories of the church, not
just the Roman version, but the versions preceding the establishment of Rome as
the “central” seat of the church.
What we now
call the Eastern Orthodox churches were all, except for Russia, established
before Rome and their historical records are more intact and open than those of
Rome.
This
week is a week of special feasts and a time for all who profess to love Christ,
to begin or continue to live as Christ, St. Francis, and the martyrs Sergius
& Bacchus did, giving their all for the love of God and serving all those in
need as St. Francis of Assisi did with the lepers and as Pope Francis is asking
us to care for the poor, homeless, sick, unemployed and the refugees from all
the worn torn lands. Christ, St. Francis and Sergius & Bacchus all have
shown us the way, let us follow the path of righteousness and by living in that
way, achieve everlasting life with Almighty God and all the saints.
