We have been watching this dvd (it is over 3 hours long, so we will finish tonight), and I do recommend it. St. Francis is one of those saints who has unfortunately suffered from syrupy sentimentality, perhaps more than any other, and this because of his immense popularity. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of images of him talking to birds; his Canticle praising God's creation is well-known, and sweetly amusing stories of his life have been left to us, but what grips me most about him was his uncompromising obedience to the Gospel and desire to live it out in his flesh, so much so that our Lord rewarded him by sharing His wounds with Francis. Francis embraced the cross, and wanted to carry it with Jesus. He suffered immensely and did not shy away from it, but actually sought it out in order to be more like Jesus. That is not the stuff of a two-dimensional holy-card saint.
Happy Feast of St. Francis, everyone. Pax et Bonum.
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