Matthew speaks of the Kingdom of Heaven. It is depicted in three parables concerning the treasure in the field, the precious pearl and the fishing net.

For Francis, as the Sources themselves reveal, the hidden treasure was poverty – not an end in itself, but for the sake of the Kingdom: conformity to the Poor Christ.

For him, the hidden treasure for which he was willing to sell everything was his encounter with the lepers, a tangible revelation of God, and with whom he wished to spend much time, caring for them and loving them more than himself.

For Francis, the hidden treasure was also prayer and the sufferings shared with Jesus.

The Sources attest:

“These visits to the lepers increased his goodness. Taking a companion of his, whom he had loved dearly, to a remote spot, he told him that he had discovered a great and precious treasure […]

He often took him to a cave near Assisi; he would go in alone, leaving his friend outside, eager to lay hold of the treasure” (FF 1409).

“Then, as a lover of every form of humility, he went to live amongst the lepers, staying with them and serving them all with the utmost care.

He washed their feet, bandaged their sores, removed the scabs from their sores and cleaned them of their pus.

Driven by admirable devotion, he would even kiss their gangrenous sores—he who was soon to become the Good Samaritan of the Gospel” (FF 1045).

Furthermore:

“And truly, the true religion which he embraced is God’s immaculate bride; and the Kingdom of Heaven is the hidden treasure which he sought so ardently” (FF 330) .

His biographer Celano continues, in the First Life:

“He withdraws a little from the turmoil of the world […] and seeks to keep Jesus Christ in the intimacy of his heart. Like a shrewd merchant, he hides the pearl he has found from the gaze of sceptics, and secretly sets about buying it by selling everything else” (FF 328).

«The Kingdom of Heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field, which a man, having found, hid; and in his joy he goes and sells all he has and buys that field» (Mt 13:44)

17th Sunday in Ordinary Time, year A  (Mt 13:44–52)

In today's Gospel Jesus teaches his disciples about humility and greatness in service.

He who wants to become great will be first in service. Compared to the imperial criterion, the evangelical criterion is quite different - it elevates those who make themselves last and do not dominate.

Thanks to the light received from the Spirit, Francis and Clare had learnt to incarnate the Word of God on a daily basis.

The target of their action was Christ to be recognised and served in the brothers or sisters, but also to be helped in those who knocked on the door or met along the way.

The children of the kingdom of heaven do not rule, but humbly serve their neighbour.

Jesus' disciples do not aspire to prestigious positions, but to conform to the identikit outlined in the Beatitudes.

Hence the active understanding of what the Sources propose.

"They [the brothers] occupied the day in prayer and working with their hands, so as to resolutely avoid idleness, the enemy of the soul [...].

They loved each other with a deep affection, and served and provided for each other as a mother would do with her only tenderly loved child.

Such was the affection that burned in their hearts, that they were ready to give themselves up to death without hesitation, not only for the love of Christ, but also to save the souls or bodies of their brethren" (FF 1446).

«As the Son of Man came not to be served, but to serve and to give his life, a ransom for many»  (Mt 20:28)

And Clare herself, enclosed within Damianite walls, offered in simplicity to her sisters the witness of all-round service.

"From then on she no longer refused any servile duties, to the point that she was the one who poured water over the sisters' hands, stood to assist them while they sat and served them at table while they ate.

She hardly gave any orders: but she did it herself spontaneously, preferring to carry them out herself rather than command her sisters" (FF 3180).

"She washed the seats of the infirm, she cleansed them herself, with that noble spirit of hers, without shying away from filthiness or disgusting the stench" (FF 3181).

The Minim and the Poor Woman of Saint Damian had received as a gift a pure heart, inflamed by Charity, at the service of the Kingdom.

Looking to Jesus, the Author and Perfecter of the law, they had acquired His physiognomy as fraternal servants, to redeem the multitudes.

St James the Apostle  (Mt 20:20-28)

Today's passage from Matthew highlights the importance, emphasised by Jesus, of the various types of listening to the Word.

He explains to his disciples the meaning of the parable of the Sower, so that his disciples will treasure it.

In Francis of Assisi, attentive listening to the Scriptures, then living them, was a way of life.

The Sources frequently portray him all outstretched to assimilate the Word of God, sought and offered.

In the Letter to the whole Order:

"And since he who is of God listens to the words of God, therefore we, who in a very special way are deputed to the divine offices, must not only listen to and practise what God says, but also, in order to root in us the loftiness of our Creator and our submission to him, guard the sacred vessels and liturgical books, which contain the holy words" (FF 224).

In the Sources there is a particularly plastic episode that denotes the Little Poor's attitude of faith and attentive inner ear, which proves to be fertile ground.

"While one day he was devoutly listening to the Apostles' Mass, he heard the passage from the Gospel in which Christ, sending the disciples to preach, gives them the Gospel way of life, saying:

«Keep neither gold nor silver nor money in your belts; have no travelling bag, nor two tunics, nor shoes, nor staff».

This he heard, understood, and committed to memory the friend of apostolic poverty, and immediately, filled with unspeakable joy, he exclaimed:

«This is what I desire, this is what I long for with all my heart!».

He took off his shoes from his feet; he left his staff; he cursed his saddlebag and money and, content with only one cassock, he threw away his belt and replaced it with a rope and put all his concern into discovering how to fully realise the words he had heard and adapt himself in everything to the rule of holiness, dictated by the apostles" (FF 1051).

Francis was that good soil that listened and understood the Word, bearing fruit in abundance.

He understood that the quality of listening is the authoritative place of harvest.

«The one sown on good ground is the one who listens to the Word and understands it; he bears fruit and produces a hundred, sixty, thirty times one» (Mt 13:23)

Friday, 16th wk. in O.T.  (Mt 13:18-23)

On the feast of St Bridget, patron saint of Europe, the liturgy offers us a passage from the Johannine Gospel.

In it Jesus reminds us that He is the true vine and His Father the farmer. Only those who remain united to Jesus will bear much fruit.

Francis, ever since he had met the Lord, had been convinced that only by abiding in his love would he go far, together with his own.

In the Sources there is a passage that illustrates this.

"Francis, shepherd of the little flock, inspired by divine Grace, led his twelve friars to St Mary of the Portiuncula, because he wanted the Order of Minors to grow and develop, under the protection of the Mother of God, there where, by her merits, it had begun.

There, moreover, he became a herald of the Gospel. He began to travel through towns and villages and to proclaim the kingdom of God there, not relying on persuasive speeches of human wisdom, but on the demonstration of spirit and power.

To those who saw him, he looked like a man from another world: one who, his mind and face always turned to heaven, strove to draw all upwards.

From then on, the vineyard of Christ began to produce fragrant shoots of the good odour of the Lord, and abundant fruit with sweet flowers of grace and holiness" (FF 1072).

Francis strove to ensure that his fraternity would remain well united with Jesus, the true Vine, so that in Saint Mary of the Portiuncula the sap of the Spirit would permanently echo and the Trinity would dwell in them and among them.

She knew well that without God's help it would not be possible to do anything, not even to persevere in the call-mission she had received.

Throughout her life, she strove to ensure that the extended vineyard of the Friars Minor would bear fruitful fruit for God and never stray from the Gospel, Divine Custody.

Clare also was a prudent Mother, consummate so that her daughters and sisters would commit themselves to remain in the Word of God and in communion.

The austerity of life embraced was tempered by the deep love with which they were both tenaciously attached to the Vine of Christ.

«I am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever remains in me and I in him bears much fruit, for without me you can do nothing» (Jn 15:5)

St Bridget of Sweden  (Jn 15:1-8)

On the feast of St. Mary Magdalene, the Liturgy proposes to us the passage from John that concerns her most closely, as it challenges every soul in its search for the Master.

«Woman, why are you weeping? Whom do you seek?» (Jn 20:15).

All’esterno il pianto; all’interno la gioia! of Magdala wept for her Lord, near the tomb. Lost and grieving, she grieved not knowing where he was, until Jesus made himself present.

Clare too, in the enclosure of San Damiano, wept while praying for her Christ, uniting herself to his Passion, while awaiting the Resurrection.

In the Legend we read:

"She had now fixed her burning gaze of interior desire in the Light and, having transcended the sphere of human vicissitudes, she opened the field of her spirit wide to the rain of Grace.

[...]

Very often, prostrate in prayer with her face to the ground, she bathed the ground with tears and brushed it with kisses: so that she seems always to have her Jesus in her arms, whose feet she bathes with tears, on whom she imprints kisses" (FF 3197).

Clare sought the Lord interiorly, even for those who did not desire Him.

She was careful not to hold back Christ who ascended to the Father, living the proclamation of the Resurrection with a face of light, testifying to the present vision of Him to the brothers and sisters who approached her.

He lived the perennial earthly Exodus in view of the Promised Land, which he already savoured in small doses.

Francis, for his part, jester of the Resurrection, mourned the Passion of Love, corroborated by existential rebirth.

Again, in St Bonaventure's Major Legend:

"To those who saw him, he seemed a man from another world: one who, his mind and face always turned to heaven, strove to draw all upwards" (FF 1072).

Just as Mary of Magdala made the transition from the outside [near the tomb] to the inside of her own soul and vicissitude - to recognise the Risen Jesus.

So Francis, after living on the outside, among cheerful Assisian brigands, had encountered the «Rabbuni» within his heart. Recognising and deciphering the Master of his life, in prayer before the Crucifix at saint Damian.

There he found God, he found himself again; in the midst of weeping and perfect joy.

Jesus also asked him the question: «Why are you weeping? Whom do you seek?» (Jn 20:15).

The Damianite Crucified became the place of his resurrection, where the weeping of a missed life, spent in solace, gave way to the Calling by name, in view of personal and community regeneration.

At saint Damian, when a divine Voice came to him from the Crucifix inviting him to change his life, the Poor Man uttered this prayer

«May conquer, I pray thee, O Lord,

the burning and sweet power of your love

my mind from all things that are under heaven,

that I may die for love of thy love,

as thou hast deigned to die

for love of my love» (FF 277).

St Mary Magdalene  (Jn 20:1-2.11-18)

Jesus emphasises that those who do the Father’s will are his mother and his brothers.

In this way, he highlights the kinship created by living out the Word every day.

Brother Francis loved to do God’s will so deeply that he embraced it as his consolation.

He was happy when he saw, even amongst his brothers, full adherence to the divine will or, at the very least, repentance where an act had been somewhat reluctant.

The Sources, clear accounts of authentic experience, inform us and provide material for careful reflection.

“And they, receiving the precept of holy obedience with great joy and gladness, prostrated themselves before the blessed Father, who, embracing them with tenderness and devotion, said to each one:

«Place your trust in the Lord and He will take care of you».

He repeated this phrase every time he sent a friar to carry out an act of obedience” (FF 367).

The Poor Man of Assisi, even in the face of a great accumulation of evils and trials, bore witness to his incomparable adherence to the divine will, like another Job.

We read with deep emotion:

“But however excruciating his pains might be, he did not call his anguish ‘suffering’, but ‘sisters’.

(…) and although exhausted by his long and severe illness, he threw himself to the ground, his weakened bones jarring in the harsh fall.

Then he kissed the earth, saying:

«I thank you, Lord God, for all these pains of mine, and I beg you, O my Lord, to give me a hundred times more, if it pleases you.

I shall be most content if you afflict me and do not spare me pain, for to fulfil your will is, for me, a consolation beyond measure»” (FF 1239).

And when the time came for him to depart:

“Lying on the ground, having taken off his sackcloth, he raised his face to heaven, as was his custom, wholly absorbed in that heavenly glory, whilst with his left hand he covered the wound on his right side, so that it might not be seen.

And he said to the friars: «I have done my part; may Christ teach you yours»” (FF 1239).

Thus Francis, a true lover and imitator of Him, sees in his own life and in that of his friars the outgrowths of the Kingdom of God that is drawing near, in the face of events that speak the language of the Creator Himself.

In the Sources we find passages that point to the signs of the believer’s maturation:

«We are spouses when the faithful soul is united to our Lord Jesus Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit.

We are his brothers when we do the will of the Father who is in heaven.

We are mothers when we carry him in our hearts and bodies through divine love and a pure and sincere conscience; we bring him forth through holy works, which must shine forth to others as an example» (FF 168/2. Letter to the Faithful).

«For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother» (Mt 12:50)

Tuesday of the 16th wk. in Ordinary Time  (Mt 12:46–50)

In today's Gospel, the scribes and Pharisees demand a sign from Jesus, even though Christ had already given them many.

But the only saving sign given to the people of believers by the Father is Christ who died and rose again.

After his conversion, Francis understood this well and became himself a sign for all those who met him.

The Sources, in fact, speak of the servant of God in this way:

"He received from Heaven the mission to call men to weep, to lament, to shave their heads and to gird themselves with sackcloth, and to imprint, with the sign of the penitential cross and with a garment made in the form of a cross, the Tau, on the foreheads of those who mourn and weep. But he confirms this to us with his indisputable truth, the testimony of that seal which made him like the living God, that is, Christ Crucified. This seal was imprinted on his body not by the work of nature or the skill of a craftsman, but rather by the marvellous power of the Spirit of the living God" (FF 1022).

Indeed, Francis, transformed into «Alter Christus», becomes the sign of Jonah for all those he meets. Even for the brigands of Monte Casale who convert to God through his testimony.

In fact, in the Sources we read:

"In a hermitage located above Borgo San Sepolcro, certain thieves came from time to time to ask for bread [...] And behold, Francis arrived at that hermitage. The friars explained their dilemma to him: should they or should they not give bread to those criminals?

The Saint replied: «If you do as I suggest, I trust in the Lord that you will succeed in winning those souls»" (FF 1646).

So Francis advised his friars to buy good bread and wine, go into the woods and set the table for them.

«They will come happily to eat. Treat them with respect and at the end speak to them about the Word of God, and ask them to promise not to treat people badly anymore».

The friars did as Francis had told them, and "the thieves, through the mercy and grace that God poured out upon them, listened and carried out point by point the requests made to them by the friars [...] Finally, through God's goodness and the kindness and friendship of the friars, some of those brigands entered the Order, while others converted to penance, promising [...] that from then on they would no longer commit such evil deeds and would live by the work of their hands" (FF 1646).

True witnesses of the Gospel are always an eloquent sign for everyone.

«A wicked and adulterous generation seeks a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah the prophet» (Mt 12:39)

Monday of the 16th wk. in Ordinary Time  (Mt 12:38-42)

In this Sunday’s Gospel, Jesus calls on his followers to be good seed, as children of the Kingdom. The weeds are the children of the Evil One, who will be cut down at the end of the world.

Francis was a son of the Word, of the good Seed, committed to living according to God’s will and bearing fruit.

Born and raised within a humble religious order, the Little One of God often instructed his friars not to be servants of the tares sown in the world by the Evil One, nor to follow his perverse and anti-Gospel ways.

He urged them to live out the Word sown by Christ.

Indeed, we find in his writings:

“All those men and women who […] follow evil desires […] and do not keep the promises they have made to the Lord, but serve […] the cares of the world and the concerns of this life: these are captives of the devil, of whom they are children and whose works they do; they are blind, for they do not see the true light, our Lord Jesus Christ. They lack spiritual wisdom, for they do not possess the Son of God, who is the true wisdom of the Father” (FF 178/4).

Furthermore, as he explained to the Supreme Pontiff, whom he visited to seek approval of the Rule, the children of God have nothing to fear:

«There is no need to fear that the children and heirs of the Eternal King will die of hunger; for they, in the likeness of Christ, were born of a poor mother by the power of the Holy Spirit and were brought forth, by the spirit of poverty, into a poor religious order.

For if the King of Heaven promises his followers the Eternal Kingdom, how much more will he provide for them those things which he bestows without distinction upon the good and the wicked» (FF 1064).

«The good field is the world; the good seed—these are the children of the Kingdom. The weeds, however, are the children of the evil one» (Mt 13:38).

16th Sunday in Ordinary Time, year A  (Mt 13:24–43)

Mt sets before us the malice of the leaders who want to eliminate Jesus, set against the holiness of the Servant of God, who heals every sickness.

The Spirit of God is present in the Son, Power through which even his intimates will proclaim righteousness to the nations.

Francis of Assisi was truly the son upon whom the Spirit of the Lord had descended, the Father's favourite, who by his humility and hiddenness shone in the eyes of the brothers and the world.

The brothers, who had seen him pray, had no doubt that on Francis rested "the Spirit of the Lord [...] in all its fullness [...] therefore the surest thing for them was to follow his doctrine and his life" (FF 1071).

"The Spirit of the Lord, who had anointed and sent him assisted his servant Francis, wherever he went, Christ himself assisted him [...].

It was his word, like a burning fire, that penetrated the depths of the heart [...] It had the perfume and the breath of divine revelation".

(FF 1210).

And the Sources relate an episode that exudes Spirit and service from all sides; a Poor Man willing to be truly the Servant of God, as Jesus had taught him.

"While he was staying in a cell in Siena, one night he called his sleeping companions to him:

«I invoked the Lord - he explained to them - that he might deign to show me when I am his servant and when I am not. For I would like to be no other than his servant. And the Lord, in his immense kindness and deigning, answered me now:

«Acknowledge yourself my servant truly, when you think, say, act holy».

«For this reason I have called you, brothers, because I want to blush before you if at times I have failed in these three things»" (FF 743).

For this reason Francis, in the footsteps of Christ in whom the Father was pleased, was also the servant and witness sent to heal and proclaim the Kingdom.

The Minim too, informed by love and not by Pharisaic legalism, was able to work wonders in the service of salvation.

«Behold my servant, whom I have chosen, my beloved» (Mt 12:18)

Saturday of the 15th wk. in O.T.  (Mt 12,14-21)