Saint Francis of Assisi: A Beacon of Humility in a Culture of Excess

Our culture often glorifies excess as the norm. When we log onto social media, we are bombarded with images of people enjoying extravagant vacations, flaunting glamorous lifestyles with luxurious cars, expensive clothing, and seemingly flawless relationships. In this culture, the wealthy are treated like royalty, while those with less are often met with disdain and neglect. In a world obsessed with opulence and wealth, it becomes essential to seek examples of humility.

The most obvious role model for humility is our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. We can turn to the Bible and strive to follow the path He walked, continually asking ourselves, "What would Jesus do?" Additionally, we can draw inspiration from the lives of saints and holy individuals who lived and died in the way of Christ, such as Saint Francis of Assisi.

Saint Francis, born in 1182 in Assisi, Italy, into a wealthy family with the name Giovanni Francesco Bernardone, initially grew up immersed in the family trade. He was one of seven children, enjoying great affluence thanks to his wealthy merchant father.

During his youth, while working at the family market stall, Francis encountered a beggar. While his friends dismissed the beggar, Francis was deeply moved and gave away all his possessions and money. This compassionate act infuriated his father but further ignited Francis's sympathy for the less fortunate.

Later, in 1203, Francis faced a life-threatening illness that led him into a profound spiritual crisis. During this period, he sought solace in solitude, seeking enlightenment from God. However, it wasn't until 1209 that Francis's life took a transformative turn towards sainthood.

During a sermon where the Gospel of Matthew (chapter 10, verse 9) was preached – the verse where Jesus instructs His disciples not to carry gold, silver, or other luxuries – Francis was deeply moved. At that moment, he committed himself to a life of poverty.

Francis was not alone in his journey. He, along with twelve friends, formed a group called the Order of Friars Minor, also known as the Franciscans. Their fundamental rule was simple: to live in poverty. They worked diligently to meet their basic needs, donating any surplus earnings to the poor.

In addition to his love for poverty and humility, Francis had a profound connection with animals. He had an uncanny ability to communicate with them and a deep appreciation for all of God's creatures. One notable event involved him taming a fierce wolf that had been terrorizing a village. Through prayer and kindness, Francis befriended the wolf, bringing peace to the village.

Francis possessed a rare gift, the stigmata. In 1224, during a 40-day retreat in the Apennine Mountains, he received the same wounds that Jesus Christ suffered during His Passion – the stigmata – onto his own body.

For the remainder of his life, Francis dedicated himself to God, leading a simple life of work and poverty. His later years were marked by physical pain, and he passed away on October 3rd, 1226, at the age of 44 in Portiuncula. He was canonized two years later and has been venerated as a beloved saint ever since. We celebrate the life of Saint Francis of Assisi each year on October 4th.

Today, Saint Francis is remembered for his devotion to poverty, his humility, his love for animals, and his beautiful, poetic prayers. In our increasingly toxic culture, Saint Francis's legacy serves as a vital reminder of the importance of humility and simplicity. Below, you will find special ways to draw inspiration from his teachings and some of his most beautiful prayers.

WHAT WE CAN LEARN FROM SAINT FRANCIS OF ASSISI

. Love for poverty and respect for the less fortunate.
. Humility and the blessing that are received in being humble.
. Peace that comes from putting the needs of others before ourselves.
. Respect and love for all of Gods creatures

Relevant Prayers

Saint Francis' Prayer for Peace
Written by Saint Francis of Assisi

Lord, make me an instrument of Your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
and where there is sadness, joy.

O divine Master,
grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand;
to be loved, as to love.

For it is in giving that we receive;
it is pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.

Amen

Blessing for All Animals
A blessing for animals in honor of Saint Francis

Blessed are You, Lord God,
Maker of all living creatures.
On the 5th and 6th days of creation
You called forth fish in the sea,
birds in the air, and animals on the land.
You inspired Saint Francis to call all animals
his brothers and sisters.

We ask You to bless this animal.
By the power of Your love
enable it to live according to your plan.

May we always praise You
for all Your beauty in creation.
Blessed are You, Lord our God, in all your creatures!

Amen

Canticle of Brother Sun and Sister Moon
Written by Saint Francis of Assisi

Most High, all-powerful, all-good
Lord, all praise is Yours,
all glory, all honor and all blessings.

To You alone, Most High,
do they belong,
and no mortal lips are worthy to pronounce Your name.

Praised be You my Lord and with all Your creatures,
especially Sir Brother Sun,
Who is the day through whom You give us light.
And He is beautiful and radiant with great splendor,
Of You Most High, he bears the likeness.

Praised be You, my Lord through Brothers Wind and Air,
And fair and stormy, all weather's moods,
by which You cherish all that You have made.
Praised be You my Lord through Sister Water,
So useful, humble, precious, and pure.

Praised be You my Lord through Brother Fire,
through whom You light the night
and he is beautiful and playful and robust and strong.

Praised be You my Lord through our sister,
Mother Earth, who sustains and governs us,
producing varied fruits with colored flowers and herbs.

Praised be You my Lord through those who grant pardon for
love of You and bear sickness and trial.

Blessed are those who endure in peace,
By You Most High, they will be crowned.

Praised be You, my Lord through Sister Death,
from whom no one living can escape.

Woe to those who die in mortal sin!
Blessed are they she finds doing Your will.

No second death can do them harm.

Praise and bless my Lord and give Him thanks,
and serve Him with great humility.

Novena to Saint Francis of Assisi
To be prayed for 9 consecutive days

Glorious Saint Francis, who voluntarily renounced all the comforts and riches of your home to follow more perfectly the life of poverty and self-denial of Jesus Christ:

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.
Amen
Obtain for us, we pray, a generous contempt of all things in this world, that we may secure the true and eternal things of heaven.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.
Amen.

O glorious Saint Francis, who during the whole course of your life continually wept over the passion of the Redeemer, and labored most zealously for the salvations of souls:
Obtain for us, we pray, the grace of weeping continually over those sins by which we hace crucified afresh out Lord Jesus Christ, that we may attain to be of the number of those shall eternally bless His supreme mercy.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.
Amen.

O glorious Saint Francis who,
loving above all things suffering and the cross, merited to bear in
your body the miraculous stigmata,
by which you became a living image of Jesus Christ
crucified:
Obtain for us, we pray, the grace
to bear in our bodies the mortification of Christ,
that we may merit one day to receive the consolations which are infallibly promised to all those who now weep.

"If we be dead with Jesus Christ, we shall live also with him," says the apostle;
"if we suffer, we shall also reign with him."
(2 Timothy 2:11-12)

Pray for us, Saint Francis, that we may obtain the graces and favors we ask in this novena;
pray for us, especially that we may obtain the graces of perserverance;
of a holy death and a happy eternity.

Our Father... (5 times)
Hail Mary... (5 times)
Glory Be... (5 times)

Prayer for the Feast of Saint Francis of Assisi
Prayer for October 5

O God who, through the merits of blessed Francis, magnifies Your church,
enriching it anew with spiritual offering: make us,
like him, to disdain the goods of earth, not at any time the comforting gifts of heaven.

Saint Francis of Assisi, help us. By your example may we learn that life does not consist in the pursuit of wealth not in the abundance of our possessions.

Saint Francis of Assisi, come to our aid. Because we live at a time when people glorify ease and seek after luxuries, and when many wish only the gratification of fleshly desires. we stand in special need of your single-minded dedication to Christ in the narrow way that leads to life.

Saint Francis of Assisi, assist us now. May we appreciate as you did the beauties of God's wonderful creation, and the glory of the world he made for us. Help us to enjoy and appreciate God's bounty without spoiling or defacing His gifts by our heedlessness and greed.

Teach us seraphic Father Francis, to value all things as Christ did and to be imitators of Him as you were. May we thus enjoy the good things of life, but always prefer the blessings of the endless life to come.

Amen.

Saint Francis, the little poor man of Assisi, we invoke you as the admirable mirror you were of our divine Master.

You imitated Christ the Lord in your humility and obedience. You faithfully followed Him in poverty and weakness. With joy you accepted suffering, contempt, and trials for the sake of His name.

In your goodness help us then, to imitate your example. By your power with God obtain for us the special favor we now seek through your intercession.

Please pray for us, gentle and happy saint of the poor, that we may always be loyal followers of our Savior, Jesus Christ, and filled always with the divine riches.

Amen