October 4 -- Feast of St. Francis of Assisi, Confessor

[DemBones DemBones]

Francis was born at Assisi in Umbria, in 1181 or 1182. As a young man, he had been a soldier and was one of those from Assisi captured and held inprison in Perugia for about a year. He began to think more of spiritual matters while in prison. Later he went on a pilgrimage to Rome. When he returned he was praying before the crucific in the small ruined chapl of San Damiano and heard a voice telling him to "Restore My Church," which he set out to do.

He was the son of a rich merchant who decided to give his life to God. He gave all his fine clothes and possessions to the poor and began wearing a brown robe made of coarse cloth. He attracted followers who became known as the Order of Friars Minor (O.F.M. after a friar's name) and, more commonly, the Franciscans. They set out to embrace "Lady Poverty" and humility, and to preach the Gospel, and they did much to reChristianize medieval society.

Francis once said "Preach always. If necessary, use words."

It has been said that "all the threads of civilization in the subsequent centuries seem to hark back to Francis", and that since his day "the character of the whole Roman Catholic Church is visibly Umbrian".

In August and September of others Francis and others were keeping a 40 days vigil at La Verna before Michaelmas, On September 14, 1224, the Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross, Francis was praying on the mountain when he had a vision of a seraph and received the stigmata. Francis is aso known for his preaching to birds and other animals, his writings, and his establishment of the first recreation of the Nativity of Christ.

It was during Christmastide of this year (1223) that the saint conceived the idea of celebrating the Nativity "in a new manner", by reproducing in a church at Greccio the praesepio of Bethlehem, and he has thus come to be regarded as having inaugurated the popular devotion of the Crib. Christmas appears indeed to have been the favourite feast of Francis, and he wished to persuade the emperor to make a special law that men should then provide well for the birds and the beasts, as well as for the poor, so that all might have occasion to rejoice in the Lord.

Francis traveled a good bit, spending time in Venice, Cortona, and Siena, and tried twice to go to Syria to convert Muslims but illness presented him from doing so.

St. Francis died in the Franciscan monastery at Assisi on 3 October, 1226.