He dedicated his life to Jesus not as an extraordinary thing to do but as a natural thing to do. His dedication to Jesus was out of a profound understanding that we belong to Him. As St. Paul reminds us in the Letter to Philippians 3:8-15
"I have come to rate all as loss in light of the surpassing knowledge of my Lord Jesus Christ. For his sake I foreited everything; I have accounted all as rubbish so that Christ may be my wealth and I may be in him, not having any justice on my own based on observance of the law. The justice I possess is that which comes through faith in Christ. It has it origin in God and it is based on faith. I wish to know Christ and his power flowing from his resurrection; likewise to know how to share in his sufferings by being formed into the pattern of his death. Thus do I hope that I may arrive at resurrection from the dead. It is not that I have reached it yet, or have already finished my course; but I am racing to grasp the prize if possible since I have been grasped by Christ Jesus. Brothers, I do not think of myself as having reached the finish line. I give no thought to what lies behind but push on to what lies ahead. My entire attention is on the finish line as I run toward the prize to which God calls me-life on high in Christ Jesus. All of us who are spiritually mature must have this attitude."
The radical poverty embraced by St. Francis was a testimony to his profound understanding of Christ Jesus as the only wealth necessary. Francis certainly understood that he grasped for Christ because Christ first grasped him as he grasp all of us in the cross.
Francis received the stigmata, bearing the wounds of the crucified Christ on his flesh, formed in the pattern of Jesus' death so that he might be formed in the pattern of Jesus' life, complete fidelity and dependence which is truly life on high in Christ Jesus.
As we pray at the Mass everywhere in the world today, "Father, you helped St. Francis to reflect the image of Christ through a life of poverty and humility. May we follow your Son by walking in the footsteps of St. Francis and by imitating his joyful love. Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the holy Spirit, one god, for ever and ever." Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment