HOMILY WEEK 26 05 – Year II
Discipleship as Humble, Repentant Faith:
Memorial of St. Francis of Assisi
(Job 38:12-40:5; Ps 139; Lk 10:13-16)
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Have you ever thought of what it must have been like for Jesus to have seventy disciples following him? Who did all the cooking? Where did they stay?
As disciples of Jesus today, we are being invited by the readings and this memorial of St. Francis, into a humble, repentant faith and intimate relationship with Jesus.
There is a dynamic link of all three readings today, all pointing towards a faith acceptance that leads to humble repentance.
In the first reading, God interacts with Job out of love, who is like a child struggling with a challenge too big for him or her. Job is trying to make sense of his world that is falling apart by justifying himself, arguing with his friends, and shaking his fist at God for treating him so unfairly.
God, however, is confident in Job’s integrity and faithfulness, so God allows Job’s outrage to storm against God. Finally, God responds to Job by gently leading him into an inner journey of greater awareness of his smallness and God’s greatness, reducing him to silence. God knows Job inside out, as God knows us, and loves him too much to leave him in his bitterness.
Through it all, God does not condemn, but rather gently admonishes Job for complaining about his lot in life, helps him see how he has spoken out of turn, and invites him to repentance, to metanoia. Job comes to understand that, as the psalmist says, no matter where he flees, no matter how low he sinks, “even there your hand shall guide me, and your right hand hold me fast (Ps 139:10). Job responds by humbly repenting, doing metanoia, and accepting God’s will. Job’s heart is changed.
In the gospel, Jesus mirrors the first reading, admonishing the towns in Galilee for their lack of faith and failure to repent and accept the will of God in their lives. Then, in a way very similar to the psalm, Jesus adds a delicate note that truly affirms his disciples, those who do respond to him, which hopefully includes all of us, that we are in an intimate relationship with him and the Father. It is a striking statement – those who listen to us, listen to him, and through him, they also listen to the Father.
A disciple, or mathetes in Greek, is a life-long learner, called to become a carbon copy of the master, and here, called into an intimate, personal, heart-to-heart relationship with Jesus and the Father. And because like Job, we are very human and certainly not God, a disciple is called into a process of constant metanoia, putting on our highest mind, being the very best version of ourselves that we can be, and that means repentance, growth, change and healing. Finally, a disciple is one who listens attentively to the master, who tries to hear not just with one’s ears, but also with one’s heart, to the Word of God.
Today the Church honours someone who lived these values and today’s gospel fully. Francesco Bernadone was born in Assisi, Italy, in 1811 or 1812. The son of a wealthy silk merchant, he grew up with all the material comforts and status the wealth and standing of his family could provide. As a young solider and prisoner of war, he survived severe illness and gave up the idea of being a knight. His life changed one day when he met a beggar, with whom he shared his cloak, and followed an impulse to kiss the leper. That led him to try to follow Christ more closely. Believing his call was to serve God and the poor, he chose the way of poverty. He began to pray more, and in 1206, received a message from the Lord that seemed to say, “Rebuild my Church.” He took it literally and started rebuilding an abandoned Church nearby. His father was upset with the course his life had taken and confronted him, pressuring him to follow him in the dry goods business. Then the famous incident took place where Francis made his choice to follow his heart, took off all his clothes, gave it to his father who disinherited him, and walked away naked.
In 1209, he understood his work was to build up the Church by preaching repentance. Francis tried to live as simply as possible, following Lady Poverty. He preached the love of God to anyone who would listen – even the birds seemed to listen to him. His zeal attracted others and thus began the religious order of the Franciscans. In 1210 a rule was approved, with the pope giving Francis and his companions commission to preach. By 1219, they numbered 5,000.
The women who gathered around his example and ideals were led by his close friend and soul mate, St. Clare. An example of the practical piety and faith of Francis is the creation of the very first crèche in 1223 to mark the birth of Christ, which led to the nativity scene we have today. He used this as an evangelizing tool to spark the imagination of his hearers. That same year, Francis was blessed with the stigmata resembling the wounds of the crucified Christ, a sign of extraordinary holiness and his radical participation in the very life of Jesus.
Such practical knowing of his value and identity allowed Francis to let go of status, privilege, and wealth. Francis knew he was part of God’s plan, connected to creation and other beings, inherently in communion and in love. He taught his followers to own nothing so they would not be owned by their possessions. Francis is also recognized as being the first to teach the earth itself is holy.
A deacon all his life, Francis’ visionary leadership inspired thousands to lead lives of poverty, simplicity and humble service, delighting in creation and consumed with love for Christ. He died a poor, humble and holy death at Assisi on October 3, 1226, and was canonized two years later. He is a popular saint who was loved by all, and to this day is revered as a universal saint and patron of Italy and ecologists. The prayer/hymn “Make Me a Channel of Your Peace” is attributed to him.
The Eucharist we celebrate sums it all up – we listen to Jesus, who then shares himself with us and empowers us to change our ways, follow him more closely, and do his will in our lives, as did St. Francis.
