The Feast of St. Francis was just ending the day I arrive in Assisi. Candlelight processions and merrymaking brought many pilgrims from far and near to take part in the celebration of their most beloved saint. Francis’ basilica flowed with heavenly music as choirs and orchestras let lose their poetic melodies. Souvenir booths lined the streets selling mementos while costumed revelers stroll the piazza in medieval attire. The Feast of St. Francis commemorated the saint’s transition from this life to the afterlife. It is Assisi’s biggest day of the year. Read more
Tag: Assisi
A Dark and Stormy Morning in Assisi
I woke up at 4:30 am to dress and pack my bags. Lightning lit up my little room as I prepared to leave. With a hesitant spirit, I left the medieval hotel into a torrential downpour as I made my way, alone, through those ancient streets. Would I encounter the ghosts of St. Francis and his little band of tattered monks….?
A Christmas Eve of Love, Joy and Tears
“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!
Calendimaggio–Assisi’s May Day Revelry
Imagine two rival families in the same village fighting for supremacy, leading to a period of enmity for over two centuries. Not unlike the Capulet’s and Montague’s of Romeo and Juliet, the Fiumi and Nepsis families from 1300 Assisi did just that. Today it is re-enacted, although in a much more neighborly way, which culminates toward the end of the Calendimaggio.
A most worthy event, the Calendimaggio was originally an ancient celebration of Spring May Day. Today it is a three-day festival held the first Thursday, Friday and Saturday of May. Traditionally, the festival is dedicated to St. Francis, since he was known to be a poet, troubadour and dancer in his youth. Locals carry on by dressing up in lively and colorful medieval costumes while putting on three days of festivities and competitions with love songs, games and events. Groups of revelers serenade throughout the streets of town, bringing a spirit of romance and chivalry.
The long-standing rivalry between the warring families is a more recent historical addition to the festival. Deep divisions were created and hatred continued until the mid 1600’s, when the Papal Governor, Giovanni Andrea Cruciani, organized the town into three districts. As a result, the hatred slowly gave way to harmless rivalry, making the Springtime ritual develop into a playful contest between the two rival sides. Peace and Friendship celebrated the annual Return of Spring.
A Festival Queen is chosen through an animated contest of medieval games, held in the Piazza del Commune, the main piazza of Assisi. Flag throwers show off their expertise as Minstrels sing troubadours songs to the new Queen. Illuminated by torchlight, the games and contests continue.
Parades, floats, and animated dancing flow throughout the flower-strewn cobbled streets of Assisi.
The festival leads to the famous Palio, a contest between the two neighboring districts of Assisi. They are the Magnifica Parte de Sotta and the Nobilissima Parte de Sopra. This event mirrors the centuries old feud between the Fiumi and the Nepsis families.
Archery, Crossbow and Chivalrous contests thunder throughout the Piazza del Commune. The two opposing sides perform amidst a spectacle of color and flurries of banners. A sporadic drumroll keeps the tension high. The grand award is called the Palio, a banner the prevailing “Parte” will keep for a year. Calendimaggio is Assisi’s only secular celebration even though the banners, at the beginning of the festivities, are blessed in the churches.
On the final eve a panel of judges, composed of historians, directors and musicologists, award the team that displays the best interpretation of celebrating the return of Spring. All done in good jest, the festivities are capped off with feasting and well-wishing. Until next May, the winning team reigns as supreme.
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A Saint and a Pope–Humility Then and Now
“Start by doing what is necessary, then what is possible, and suddenly you are doing the impossible.” St. Francis of Assisi
The new Pope Francis is giving the Vatican police and Swiss Guards a headache. He won’t ride in the Popemobile, but insists on riding around in an open-air white Mercedes jeep that he gets out of to intermingle with the crowds. He insists on walking when his security want him to go by car. On Holy Thursday he washed the feet of inmates at a detention center outside Rome instead of cleaning priests feet, or even delegating the washing. He won’t move into the papal chambers but lives in his own small apartment. Pope Francis is very determined to stay humble and makes no bones about it. It appears to be the beginning of a new wave of Pope.
When 76 year old Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio selected the name Francis I as new Pope, it was a first for the church to honor St. Francis of Assisi. So who was this famous saint, chosen as the patron saint of Italy?
Born in Umbria to a wealthy cloth merchant in 1182, Francis lived a lavish lifestyle. He was constantly surrounded by many friends and always made himself the life of the party. Wanting to be a knight and accomplish outstanding deeds, he joined with Assisi and fought against neighboring Perugia.
When Francis left on the Fourth Crusade, he had an encounter with God that turned him back toward home. From that point on he devoted himself to the church. While at San Damiano, a small church close to Assisi, Jesus spoke to Francis through the cross above the altar to “go and repair my church.”
Upon hearing God, Francis renounced all his possessions, began preaching and built a following that became the Franciscan Order. He did rebuild San Damiano, but understood later that God had meant for him to rebuild His church body of believers.
Francis of Assisi embraced poverty, living with the poor and the lowest. He ministered to lepers and personally cleansed their wounds. He loved God and all His creation.
Why did the new Pope pick Francis for his name? Cardinals, as in the Bible, choose a name when they get a new job from God. They need a name that will support them and inspire them to accomplish the task God has for them to do.
“Right away, with regard to the poor, I thought of St. Francis of Assisi, then I thought of war. Francis loved peace and that is how the name came to me,” replied Pope Francis to the press. He spoke of St. Francis as a poor and humble man, concerned with the natural environment.
Pope Francis has already shown indications that he is much humbler than previous Popes of the church. In Argentina, he lived in a small apartment and cooked his own meals. He has shown no intention of moving out of his modest two room apartment at the Vatican hotel, the Casa Santa Marta, and into the elegant 12-plus-room papal apartment on the top floor of the Apostolic Palace. He will use the papal apartment as his work space, to receive official guests and handle papal business. But he will return to his humble dwellings each night, eating in the communal dining room, and celebrating mass in the hotel chapel with Vatican groundskeepers, domestic staff, and other low-level workers. Francis keeps no personal aides.
So what do the Pope and the Saint have in common? I see the shadow of St. Francis on the Pope. Humble, simple, compassionate, companion to the lowly, eats with sinners, servant to others, concerned with the natural environment. Strong parallels exist between the two. This world desperately needs a St. Francis. Is it too much to hope that our new Pope just might be an answer to that prayer?
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