Who knows how many times Francis, the Herald of the Great King, in reading this passage from Matthew must have thought that in order to announce the Kingdom of God he would travel the whole earth to bring souls to Christ and to reach the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

"Would you do that?"

Francis must surely have asked himself this disarming question, to which his whole eloquent existence was answered: "Yes, without a doubt!".

For a single sheep of his flock he would certainly have left the others safe in search of the lost one.

"Let us look closely, brothers all, at the good Shepherd who, in order to save his sheep, endured the passion of the cross" (FF 155 - Admonitions).

He, who used to call Brother Leo "God's sheep", would have faced any adversity to find it, and for this he sought martyrdom even before the Sultan of Egypt, to win it for Christ.

The Sources, through the Major Legend, report:

"Francis, the servant of God, with an intrepid heart answered [the Sultan] that he had been sent not by men, but by God most high, to show him and his people the way to salvation and to proclaim the Gospel of truth.

And he preached to the Sultan the triune God and the Saviour of all, Jesus Christ, with so much courage, with so much strength and so much fervour of spirit, as to make it clearly evident that the promise of the Gospel was being fulfilled with full truth: I will give you a language and a wisdom which none of your adversaries will be able to resist or contradict" (FF 1173).

Rich in tenderness and mercy, it is an episode that highlights the shepherd heart of the Poor Man and his concern for the Kingdom of God.

We find in the Sources:

"Once crossing the March of Ancona, after preaching in the same city, and heading towards Osimo, in the company of Brother Paul, whom he had elected minister to all the brothers of that province, he met a shepherd in the countryside, who was grazing his flock of rams and goats.

In the midst of the flock was a single sheep, quietly and humbly grazing on the grass.

As soon as he saw it, Francis stopped, and as if he had had a grip on his heart, full of compassion he said to his brother:

"Do you see that lonely and meek sheep among the goats? Our Lord Jesus Christ, surrounded and hunted down by the Pharisees and Sanhedrites, must have looked just like that humble creature.

Therefore I beseech thee, my son, for love of Him, be thou also full of compassion, let us buy her and take her away from these goats and goatherds" (FF 456).

«Depart, preach, saying that the kingdom of heaven has come near» (Mt 10:7)

Wednesday of the 14th wk. in O.T.  (Mt 10,1-7)

In today's Gospel we see Jesus going through towns and villages proclaiming the Kingdom of God and healing the sick.

Assiduous contemplation and purity of life had made Francis powerful, by grace, even over the power of evil, making him a credible witness to the Lord through numerous healings.

The Sources eloquently illuminate in this regard:

"People of all ages [...] ran to see and hear that new man.

He pilgrimaged through the various regions, fervently proclaiming the Gospel; and the Lord cooperated, confirming the Word with the miracles that accompanied it.

Indeed, in the name of the Lord, Francis, preacher of the truth, cast out demons, healed the sick" (FF 1212).

Once "I do not know how to qualify the horrible illness from which a brother suffered, some attributed it to the presence of an evil devil.

The poor man would often throw himself to the ground and, squinting his eyes in a horrible way, he would foam at the mouth; his limbs would now contract, now stretch, now stiff, now bent and twisted...

The saint Francis had immense compassion for him, went to him, blessed him, humbly praying to God, and the sick man obtained prompt and complete health and never suffered such an evil again" (FF 440).

"In Città di Castello a woman was possessed by an evil and furious spirit: as soon as the Saint [...] had obediently ordered [him to come out of her], the demon fled full of indignation, leaving the poor obsessed woman free in body and soul" (FF 1219)

Francis had married the Light, obscuring the power of evil.

The Minim had compassion on the tired and exhausted crowds that followed him and, in prayer, his constant refuge, he asked God for labourers for the abundant harvest.

He also asked his brothers to pray much for this cause.

Like Jesus, the Saint travelled through all the towns and villages, preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom and healing every sickness and every infirmity (cf. Mt 9:35).

Tuesday of the 14th wk. in O.T.  (Mt 9,32-38)

Today's Gospel highlights Jesus resurrecting a dead girl and the healing of a woman who had been suffering from loss of blood for a long time.

Jesus saves both, and to the woman he says:

«Take courage, daughter, your faith has saved you» (Mt 9:22).

Like Jesus, Francis the Simple did not humiliate the needy, but went to them and saved them through faith in God.

The Sources recount:

"In the diocese of Sora, a noblewoman named Rogata had been suffering from loss of blood for twenty-three years. It should be added that she had resorted to many doctors, resulting in a great deal of ill health.

Often, as the illness worsened, she seemed to be dying. If the bleeding could be stopped, her whole body would swell.

She happened to hear a young man singing in the Roman vernacular the story of the miracles wrought by God through St Francis, and then, dissolving into tears from emotion and pain, she began to say thus:

"O blessed Father Francis, who shines through so many miracles, if you deign to free me from this illness, you will have great glory, because you have never performed such a great miracle until now".

To what so many words? She had scarcely finished speaking when she felt cured by the merits of blessed Francis.

Even a woman from Sicily, who had suffered loss of blood for seven years, was healed by the holy bishop of Christ" (FF 1314).

Faith in Jesus and his servants works wonderful things!

Monday of the 14th wk. in O.T.  (Mt 9,18-26)

The passage proposed for this Sunday is taken from the Gospel of Luke and emphasises Jesus' mandate to his disciples, highlighting how they were to be itinerant preachers of the Gospel.

«Go! Behold, I am sending you out as lambs among wolves. Carry no purse, no bag, no sandals, and greet no one on the road» (Lk 10:3-4).

The Sources document how Francis took this Word of God literally, inviting his friars to do the same.

The Poor Man of Assisi declared himself simple and foolish and taught his brothers the way of simplicity, the sister of true wisdom and meekness.

In the Major Legend we read:

"I want my brothers to be disciples of the Gospel and to progress in the knowledge of the Truth, so that they may grow at the same time in the purity of simplicity. Thus they will not separate the simplicity of the dove from the prudence of the serpent, which the unsurpassed Master has joined together with his blessed Word" (FF 1188).

Francis had the grace to become a great witness even in his encounter with the Saracen soldiers.

He took with him a companion, Brother Illuminato, and decided to proclaim Christ even among those who cut off the heads of Christians.

"So he set out, taking with him a companion named Illuminato, who was truly enlightened and virtuous.

As soon as they set out, they met two sheep.

The saint rejoiced and said to his companion:

'Have faith in the Lord, brother, for the words of the Gospel are being fulfilled in us: Behold, I send you out as lambs among wolves'.

They went on and came upon the Saracen sentries, who, rushing like wolves against the sheep, captured the servants of God, threatening them with death, cruelly and contemptuously mistreating them, covering them with insults and beatings, and chaining them.

Finally, after beating them in a thousand ways, by divine Providence they were brought to the Sultan, as the man of God had wished" (FF 1173).

And often the Poverello "redeemed the lambs that were being led to slaughter, in memory of that most meek Lamb, who willingly went to his death to redeem sinners" (FF 1145).

Moreover, wherever he went to proclaim the Gospel, he brought the greeting of peace to all:

"In every sermon, before communicating the Word of God to the people, he wished peace, saying:

'The Lord give you peace!'.

He always proclaimed this peace with great devotion to men and women, to all those he met or who came to him" (FF 359).

Francis was entirely focused on proclaiming the Kingdom of God, which had now taken possession of him; he burned with the desire to bear witness to it so that it might reach as many souls as possible.

Sunday 14th in O.T. (year C)  [Lk 10:1-12, 17-20]

Jesus answers John's disciples about fasting. Now the Bridegroom is with them and they will not fast; when he is taken from them they will fast.

Logic that breaks down the legalistic mentality.

In the Sources we have various passages that highlight the Poor Man of Assisi's way of acting on this subject.

The Minim forbade excesses.

Francis knew well how to discern between the importance of fasting and exaggeration in practising it.

In his life, never did form take the place of substance. The Franciscan Sources illustrate:

"Francis reproached his brothers who were too hard on themselves and who were exhausted by vigils, fasts, prayers and corporal penances [...].

The man of God forbade such excesses, admonishing those brothers lovingly and calling them to common sense, healing their wounds with the medicine of wise instructions [...].

He spoke with them, identifying himself with their situation, not as a judge then, but as an understanding father with his children and as a compassionate doctor with his own sick.

He knew how to be sick with the sick, afflicted with the afflicted" (FF 1470).

All this while being "a new man, [who] with new virtues renewed the way of perfection that had disappeared from the world" (FF 3162).

As a mature and profoundly human person, he knew how to help his brothers, evaluating the different situations he had before him.

In the Legend of the Three Companions: "However, when it was appropriate, he chastised those who committed offences" (FF 1470).

Francis had received, by Grace, the immeasurable gift of true discernment.

The Little One did not betray substance for form: he kept both in a sensible human and spiritual balance.

«But the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them, and then they will fast» (Mt 9:15)

Saturday of the 13th wk. in O.T.  (Mt 9:14-17)

Jesus makes us contemplate Matthew's strong and particular call, displacing everyone, precisely because it begins with sinners and not with the perfect according to the mentality of the time.

«For I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners» (Mt 9:13).

Francis and Clare saw in the stimuli of their vocation and the brothers and sisters who followed them a fundamental attractive appointment. An opportunity for existence in Grace, which had looked upon them and redeemed them.

Through the Call, God was realising a secret gift in them, far beyond the expectations of a small life.

Regarding Francis, we read in the Sources:

"As he was passing near the church of San Damiano, he was inspired to enter it. He went there, and began to pray fervently before the image of the Crucifix, who spoke to him with moving goodness

«Francis, do you not see that my house is falling down? Go then and restore it».

Trembling and astonished, the young man replied:

"I will do it gladly, Lord".

However, he had misunderstood; he thought it was about that church which, because of its antiquity, threatened imminent ruin.

At those words of Christ he became immensely happy and radiant; he felt in his soul that it was really the Crucified One who had given him the message.

As he came out of the church, he found a priest sitting nearby, and putting his hand in his purse, he offered him money saying:

"Sir, I beg you to buy oil to make a lamp burn before that Crucifix. When I have finished this money, I will bring you more, according to need' " (FF 1411).

During his life, the Poverello continued to consider minority as a specific vocation of the friar.

Thus, observing the behaviour of the religious, he sometimes seemed preoccupied....

At times he "saw that some were ardently desirous of the offices of the Order, of which they made themselves unworthy, apart from anything else, by the mere ambition to govern. And he said that these 'were not Friars Minor, but had forgotten their vocation and had fallen from glory'" (FF 729).

Clare, regarding the vocation of the sisters residing at San Damiano, also expressed herself in her Testament as follows:

"The Lord himself has placed us as a model, as an example and mirror not only for other men, but also for our sisters, those whom the Lord himself has called to follow our vocation, so that they too may shine as a mirror and example for all those who live in the world" (FF 2829).

Friday of the 13th wk. in O.T.  (Mt 9,9-13)

On the first day of the week, Jesus came to the disciples while they were gathered behind closed doors.

He entrusted them with the mission of proclaiming the Good News, 'breathing' on them so that they might receive the Holy Spirit.

Thomas, who was absent, found it hard to believe and was rebuked by Jesus for demanding to see and touch, without accepting the testimony of the other disciples.

Yet Thomas sought a first-hand experience of the Risen One.

The Poor Man of Assisi and his brothers grew in faith through their active encounter with the Lord in the poverty they lived, in the solitude and prayer they experienced in their daily lives.

Faith in Jesus, who died on the cross as a criminal to assure us of eternal life, overflowed in the bare existence of Francis and his brothers.

It was certainly a divine gift, but also the fruit of a non-formal relationship that developed along the path they had taken.

It is worth remembering what the Sources attest:

"[Francis] taught them to praise God in all creatures; to honour priests with special veneration; to believe firmly and confess openly the truth of the faith [...]

They observed in everything the teachings of their holy father, and as soon as they saw a church or a cross from afar, they turned towards it, prostrated themselves humbly on the ground and prayed in the manner they had been taught" (FF 1069).

Chiara herself, in her Letter to Ermentrude of Bruges, regarding the life of Fede, suggests:

"Remain, therefore, my dearest, faithful until death to Him to whom you have bound yourself forever. And you will certainly be crowned by Him with the crown of life.

The time of toil here below is short, but the reward is eternal.

Do not be dazzled by the splendours of the world that pass like a shadow.

Do not be surprised by the empty images of this deceitful world; close your ears to the whispers of hell and strongly resist its temptations.

Bear adversity willingly, and do not let pride swell your heart in prosperous times; the former call you back to your faith, the latter demand it (FF 2914).

The experience of God in their lives had been so strong, incisive and merciful that they could speak as no one had ever done before.

‘Thomas answered him and said, «The Lord of mine and the God of mine!»’ (Jn 20:28)

3 July, St Thomas the Apostle  (Jn 20:24-29)

The passage from Matthew presents Jesus grappling with demons who fear being cast out.

The unclean spirits unite against the true servants of God. Francis knew something about this.

The Sources recount what happened to him once when he was staying in Rome with Cardinal Leo of Santa Croce, who had wanted him to stay with him for a while.

"Proud demons flee before the exalted virtue of the humble, except in some cases where divine mercy allows the humble to be slapped, precisely to keep them humble, as the Apostle Paul writes of himself and as Francis experienced first-hand [...]".

The saint, having accepted the invitation out of veneration and love for the cardinal, experienced a veritable assault by demons on his first night after prayer. They beat him long and cruelly, leaving him half dead.

When they had gone, he called his companion and told him what had happened.

"Brother, demons have no power except within the limits set by Providence.

Therefore, I believe that they attacked me so fiercely because my stay in the curia of the magnates does not make a good impression.

My brothers who live in poor places, hearing that I am with the cardinals, will perhaps suspect that I am entangled in worldly things, being surrounded by honours and comforts.

I therefore judge that it is better for those who are set as an example to stay away from curias and spend their lives humbly among the humble, in humble places.

In this way, living in the same conditions as those who live in poverty, he will be a comfort to them.

So they went in the morning and, with humble excuses, took their leave of the cardinal (FF 1115).

In the face of Grace, evil calls for reinforcements; but what defeats it, says Francis, is humility.

Therefore, even the «very furious» spirits (v. 28) can do nothing before the humility of the Son of God and his servants.

As it is written in the Sources [Sacrum Commercium]:

"For he (satan) is very proud, and his pride and arrogance are even greater than his strength.

He is filled with great fury against you and will turn all the weapons of his cunning against you, seeking to spatter you with the poison of his malice, because after he has ended the war by defeating and throwing down the others, he cannot bear to see you standing above him" (FF 2026).

Count on us that, after being saved, we will proclaim the mercy God has shown us. This devastates the deceiver!

Francis did this, attesting to the poverty of the Son of God, which, transferred to the folds of daily life, drags impure spirits down from the cliff into the sea of their contradictions, destroying them.

The holy life of Francis and his brotherhood in the early days made them heralds of Mercy, singers of the Almighty.

"The demons begged him, saying, «If you drive us out, send us into the herd of pigs»" (Mt 8:31)

Wednesday 13th wk. in Ordinary Time  (Mt 8:28-34)