Living the Good Life...

   Thoughts on the Continuing Importance and Relevance of St. Francis of Assisi...

​Election day 2020 is not only a means of looking forward, but it can also be, an important time for a look over our shoulder into the past... If indeed, another world is possible, it likely won't come by way of the arrival of benevolent aliens. But rather, by means of our core values being "put to work" for all of us...

​Values has become a seriously mucked-up word: as often as not, it is now a word-knife used for the verbal stab, slander, or joke by folks seriously challenged by their small minds and brutally challenged hearts: so, can values be somehow resurrected into genuine meaning?

This is where that "glance" over our shoulder into the past might be helpful, indeed, it this "glance" which motivates my own thought and life... You see, I (eye) see Francis of Assisi as an axial man (person) for all time... Sure, he was nuts in his own goofy-spectacular way: eye (I) am not going to regale you with stories of his life to prove my point: you can certainly order a "Life" of Francis through a local bookstore or Barnes & Noble (I recommend Reluctant Saint by Daniel Spoto) and discover this delightful goof for yourself... Rather, I am just going to dive right in with five essential points:

​1) Francis revered creation: his attitude of reverence for every life, indeed, for everything that he came across is perhaps the foundational point of what it means to be franciscan... and nowadays, human... or at least, a human with an activated brain and conscience! We are responsible for our home! Climate change is real and a present danger: all life is @risk: this is not a subject for debate! Francis directs our attention to the necessity of reverence and regeneration for Planet Earth through lifestyle changes and public / economic policies and practices.

​2) Francis respected women: his attitude towards St. Clare was his attitude towards every female: equality! Francis was perhaps one of the first incarnational feminists... for him, every woman was, in her own specific (and spectacular) person, a revelation of the Wisdom which is the Divine Being itself: yes, he was identified as another Christ (to his dismay) even while he lived... But that identification was of a mirror into which he called everyone to look and to see their own face looking back at them as the Face of Jesus himself (herself)... Francis directs our attention to the necessity of recognizing the equality of all men and all women: and further, into the equality of races and fluid-genders: we are all worthy of unlimited reverence... in policies and practices...

​3) Francis venerated the poor: his attitude towards lepers, peasants, and workers was a revolutionary reminder to the wealthy class (the privileged and powerful) that the liberation of the poor was a primary requirement of the Gospel! As he embraced the lepers, he questioned every system of inequality, exploitation, oppression, and injustice: this questioning continues today! For any human being to be reduced by systems of oppression into objects is of fundamental opposition to the Gospel: we can't promote and live-by the "free market economy" and expect some sort of blessing from the Divine! (You are most welcomed to read Matthew 25... if you have forgotten this action-principle!) Francis directs our attention to the radical grace of a solidarity that steadily leans into genuine liberation (the full development of every person into her / his possibilities)... in policies and practices...

​4) Francis directs our attention to nonviolence: his attitude towards the shocking Christian acceptance of the ends justifying the means broke his heart time and time again: hitching a ride with a Crusading army in order to preach peace on the battlefield between Christians and Muslims, nearly killed him with abject horror at the wanton destruction, greed, cruelties towards women, and utter repudiation of the Gospel of Jesus (which continues today)... Francis diects our attention to the gifted grace of lifestyles of peaceableness, direct action for an end to war, and the Gospel requirement of building communities and nations of peace and justice... in policies and practices...

​5) Francis directs our attention to interfaith dialogue and reverence: then as now, many people of "faith" use their faith as an excuse to cause harm, continue exploitation, and deepen oppression. Hate towards differing religious views and practices is arrogantly stupid! Francis was reulsed by even the idea of hating anyone: he could never reconcile (as many Christians find easy) wealth in the midst of poverty, cruelty in the midst of human beauty, and power that condemns instead of lifting up into genuine human community... Francis directs our attention to organizations like the Parliament of the World's religions in the hope that soon (and very soon) we might learn to see differences of faith as like the different "fingers of God"... united in spirit, united in our common humanity, and united in a learned humility... in policies and practices...

In conclusion, Francis would teach us that, in fact, a new world is possible! That possibility resides in a determined wisdom to practice reverence for creation, equality for women, solidarity with the poor, nonviolent lifestyles, and interfaith dialogue and reverence... Of course, in policies and practices... There is of course, another of course... and that is the importance of personal transformation: Francis completely identified with the Cosmic Christ (never as a sword, but always as a dove)... Francis completely identified with the Suffering Christ-in-his-brothers-and-sisters... and perhaps most of all, Francis identified with the Feminine Face of the Divine, whom he called Lady Poverty (perhaps you might consider beginning to address the Holy One as Lady Poverty... let me assure you, if we all do so, everything will change... soon and very soon...) Ah, now we're talking about living the good life!