A Reckless Youth
Francis of Assisi was the son of a wealthy cloth merchant. His mother was French and originally had him baptized as Giovanni Di Bernadone in the hope he would follow the footsteps of Saint John the Baptist and become a recognised religious guide. However, his father rejected this path for his son and renamed him Francesco hoping he would follow his example in business accomplishments and share his love for France. Francis obliged his father a little further than he had planned and he became very fond of good living, squandering money and hanging out with wealthy friends.
The Dream
When he was about 20 years old, he joined a military service fighting against Perugia and was taken prisoner and held captive for a year. It was here that he began to contemplate life more seriously but following his release returned to his earlier relaxed lifestyle. Shortly, he became ill and experienced a religious crisis, which led him to enlist in the army, but while on expedition was halted by a dream. Much to the astonishment of his peers, he returned to Assisi becoming more eccentric and devoted his time to the poor and sick, particularly the repulsed leper victims.
A Nomadic Life
Francis claiming that Jesus Christ had asked him to repair ‘his house’ sold a large amount of his father’s cloth to rebuild a ruined church. Francis fled from his father’s anger to the hills outside Assisi and returned emaciated and dirty from living in a cave. The young carefree youth had become a laughing stock and his father disinherited him. Francis denounced all possessions, devoted his life to poverty and returned to live as a hermit in a cave. Within a few years, he had established a Franciscan order with eleven followers. They lived a simple life in a deserted house, spending their time exhorting their beliefs to any willing ear. Francis also went on to establish the ‘Poor Clares’ a Franciscan order for women.
The Stigmata
It is claimed that whilst Francis was praying on the mountain of Verna, he received the stigmata. This is the first definite account of this experience where an individual is visited by an angel who gives, as a gift, the five wounds of Christ. Following this event, his health deteriorated and he was taken to a retreat for infirm friars. Weak and exhausted he spent his last days dictating his spiritual experiences and died on October 3, he was 44 years of age.
St Francis of Assisi was a revolutionary spirit who, despite his self-indulgent beginnings, now represents the basic foundations of humanist thought. His actions are thought to have brought Christianity back to basics with a simple message - to discard the trappings of material daily life for the love of God. This is signified by his rapid canonisation following his death and the legends, which portray his love of animals and the environment.
References
Sources of reference include information obtained from the Basilica of St Francis and other informal publications. Facts have been checked with Wikepedia and other on-line reference facilities.
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