Christ the Cornerstone

What do we need to be happy? Look to St. Francis

Today is the memorial of St. Francis of Assisi. Saints are women and men who inspire us by their holiness and their humanity. They are “icons” of Christ, living images that present to us different aspects of the face of Jesus, who is God incarnate.

Some saints are great teachers. Some give themselves entirely to caring for the poor and the sick, as Jesus did. Some sacrifice their lives and die a martyr’s death, as Jesus did.

All surrender their personal desires to do the will of God, as Jesus did when he prayed, “Not my will be done, Father, but yours” (Lk 22:42). Saints are mirror images of our Savior, Jesus Christ. They reflect particular features of our Lord’s human and divine nature.

Our current Holy Father chose to take the name Francis in honor of today’s great saint. When asked why he decided to honor this particular saint, Pope Francis points out the saint from Assisi’s humility, his emphasis on God’s mercy, his concern for the poor, his commitment to interreligious dialogue and his passionate concern for all God’s creation.

Many people—including followers of different religions or people with no religion at all—say that Francis of Assisi is their favorite saint. Why? What is it about this 13th-century Italian man that inspires people of all ages, nationalities and philosophical or religious points of view? What do we see in Francis that so stirs our minds and hearts that we recognize in him the image of God?

Perhaps it is his simplicity and his joy. Especially for people who are burdened by the complexity of life and the profound anxiety that goes with living in our contemporary culture, these characteristics give outstanding witness to the person of Christ.

In Francis of Assisi, we recognize a happy man who knows how to live simply.

It’s true that Francis experienced great suffering—including the “stigmata” that allowed him to experience the wounds of the crucified Christ. Anyone who knows the many obstacles that Francis had to overcome as he sought to carry out Christ’s command to “rebuild my Church” knows that his life was not an easy one. And yet, through it all, Francis emerges as a man who loved life and who celebrated the beauty and wonder of all God’s creation.

We long to be like him. We wish we could cast off our dependence on material things. We wish we could find happiness—and peace—in the simple beauty and in the joyful celebration of all God’s gifts. St. Francis inspires us because he carries his burdens lightly—in sharp contrast to our heavy hearts—and because he can laugh and sing and dance in circumstances that cause us much sadness and despair.

Francis maintained an intimate, personal relationship with Jesus Christ. He loved the Eucharist, and he sought nourishment for his soul in the body and blood of Christ. He was a passionate man, and his reverence for this great sacrament filled him with a powerful sense of awe and wonder.

He once wrote, “Let everyone be struck with fear, let the whole world tremble, and let the heavens exult, when Christ the Son of the living God is present in the hands of the priest. O stupendous dignity! O humble sublimity, that the Lord of the universe, God and the Son of God, so humbles himself that for our salvation he hides himself under an ordinary piece of bread!”

We like to think of St. Francis as a free spirit, but Francis was also a man of the Church. He knew that the Church is the sacrament of Christ’s presence among us and that at the center of the Church is the Eucharist.

When the Lord asked Francis to “rebuild my Church,” he responded by giving away his material possessions, by serving others, by dedicating his life to prayer and the proclamation of God’s word, and by challenging all of us (clergy, religious and lay people) to be worthy of the gifts we have received from God—in the holy Eucharist and in wonder of all creation.

Francis was a great saint and a joyful man. His simplicity, his humility, his faith, his love for Christ and his goodness toward every man and every woman brought him gladness in every circumstance. St. Francis of Assisi shows us that there is an intimate connection between suffering, selflessness, holiness and joy.

What do we need to do to be happy? We should look to St. Francis of Assisi and follow his example. We should strive to become eucharistic saints—men and women who truly are close to God! †