
“The man of God (Francis) stood before the manger, full of devotion and piety, bathed in tears and radiant with joy.” St. Bonaventure (contemporary of St. Francis and biographer)
His face was wet with his own tears as Francis of Assisi stood before the people of the little town of Greccio one Christmas Eve long ago. With great tenderness and humility, he told them the story of the first Christmas. Behind him was a cave with two of the village people dressed as Mary and Joseph, and a wax baby representing Jesus. An Ox and donkey stood beside them. Mary was bending over the baby lying on a bed of straw. Francis turned to behold the love of his life, the Babe of Bethlehem, and he fell down in weeping adoration.
“The brethren were summoned, the people ran together, the forest resounded with their voices, and that venerable night was made glorious by many with brilliant lights and sonorous psalms of praise.”
Greccio, a little town in Umbria, had experienced the extraordinary that Christmas eve in 1226. St. Francis of Assisi had assembled a live nativity scene in a cave on the outskirts of town to show the humble birth of Christ. The townspeople gathered around, full of wonder and expectation.

Prior to this, mass on Christmas eve was spoken in Latin, which the people could not understand.
“the Holy Gospel was chanted by Francis…. Then he preached to the people around the nativity of the poor king; and being unable to utter His name for the tenderness of His love, He called Him the Babe of Bethlehem.”

As the hay was gathered up later and fed to the animals, a miracle occurred. The cattle were cured of their diseases. The people believed that God had honored his servant Francis.
Francis encouraged the people to reject hatred and embrace love, with the help of God.Whether you remain a sceptic or not, the message of St. Francis resounds with hope for our individual worlds as well as the one we all share.
May his words echo down through the centuries once more and minister to our hurting hearts the true meaning of the love that entered our dark world two thousand years ago.
Merry Christmas!
Beautiful post.
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Thank you Christine!
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YES! “reject hatred and embrace love”
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Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you and yours also, Susan. I am so glad we ‘met’ and look forward to more of your Italophilic travelogues in 2016. Grace & Peace, Ken
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Merry Christmas to you and your family, Ken. I am glad we met as well and thank you for your kind words.
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I’m putting my presepio out today-my favourite part of Christmas decorations. Buon Natale, Cristina
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Thank you for so beautifully sharing this story with us, Susan. I’ve always liked quotes by St. Francis of Assisi.
Christmas Blessings ~ Wendy
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Thank you for taking the time to read my post, Wendy:) Buon Natale!
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🙂
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Ah, Assisi, such a special place. And even more special to me since having Buddy in my life. It is a town that I could never tire of. Buon Natale Susan.
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Thanks Lyn! Buon Natale:)
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I have spent many wonderful moments in Assisi–as it holds a special place in my heart–as does its native son—
I’ve written many a post on Francis…as well as his sister in Christ, Clare—Santo Francesco has much to offer to us all today…just as much if not more so from those humble teachings of so very long ago–
Thank you reminding us of the wonderful gift offered by one so gentle of spirit —it would behoove us all to revisit the life and teachings of Francis
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I completely agree! He was always a strong presence in my growing up years….his humbleness and simplicity had a great impact on me. Buon Natale:)
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Amen!
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