Slocum’s
explanation of the foundation of the Franciscan Order
Kay Slocum
follows the life of Francis Belardorne of Assisi. He was a young man who
involved himself in the conflicts between Assisi and neighbouring towns in
which he was taken captive and placed in prison where he became violently ill.
In seeking out religious consolation Francis heard a voice from the altar at
the Church of St. Damian saying, “Francis, go build my church.” After this he
began, using the materials from his father’s shop, to repair his church. His
father, enraged, imprisoned Francis however Francis managed to escape and
sought refuge with a local bishop. Shortly after Francis dramatically stripped
himself of clothing and proclaimed his allegiance to God and renounced his
father. Such was the beginning of his life as a holy man.
Francis proceeded to repair churches, however, did
not understand fully what his role was in the service of God. This was until a
priest’s sermon allowed Francis to realise that he should live and preach the
apostolic life, a life in which one was completely unburdened by the possession
of personal property or money. Francis, having attracted some followers, drew
up a rule detailing this lifestyle. In contrast to the cloistered monks of the
Cistercian Order Francis advocated a life residing amongst the people surviving
on work and alms. This was inspirational to those, particularly the literate,
who sought to imitate the life of Jesus according to the gospels due to
dissatisfaction with the “moral laxity” of the clergy and tedium of monastic
spirituality. Moreover Francis’ appreciation for the beauty of the natural
world allowed him to create an emotional connection with the populous including
heretics. As Slocum illustrates, however, Francis avoided serious accusations
of heresy himself due to his respect for the priesthood and sacraments. Though
initially reluctant, this allowed Pope Innocent to approve the Franciscan Rule
in 1210.
The Franciscan
Order, now official, began to expand and engage in missionary activity
throughout Europe. Though the order was conceived initially without governance
the increased size required Francis to write the second rule which reinforced
the commitment to authority and established an administrational hierarchy. From
there on the Franciscan Order had its own mature identity which began to
influence further religious orders of holy poverty such as the “Poor Clares.”
Also
Slocum’s explanation of the foundation of the Dominican Order
The Dominican order was different to that of the
Franciscans, although in some ways the two mirrored each other closely. The Dominicans “emphasized learning and education” (p.361) and it “closely resembled the traditional monastic
establishments” (p.361). It was
started as an attempt to control Cathar heresy. Dominic de Guzmán, a Spanish
priest, and his bishop Diego of Osma, began “itinerant
preaching” (p. 361) and eventually became known as the ‘order of
preachers’.
Like the Franciscans, the Dominicans adopted the
apostolic life of poverty, which suggests that this way of life was becoming
more of an ideal sought throughout Europe as it gained wealth.
The Dominicans were unable to create a new rule for
themselves, however the Pope Honorius III gave papal confirmation for the order
to become a branch of the Rule of St Augustine, as it was very close to the
desires of the Dominicans. Unlike St Francis, Dominic readily accepted the need
for administration and organisation and created a “representative form of government of the Order of Preachers” (p.365)
which was unique to it.
In Celano’s
account of Francis’ life, with what values does he imbue the figure of Francis?
Tomas of Celano, in his account of Francis’ life,
portrays him as a pious and devoted man who despises the burdens of material
possession in favour of spiritual wisdom, appreciation of God’s creation and
the apostolic life. Francis is bold yet gentle which serves to create an
enigmatic and almost Christ-like persona. These qualities are illustrated as
Francis, on receiving payment for the sale of his clothes and horse, offers it
almost immediately to a church in disrepair both in order to rebuild the church
and free him of the monetary burden. On the priests refusal of the donation
Francis throws the money out of the window “treating it as if it were dust.” He
does this, according to Celano, because “he wanted to possess wisdom, which is
better than gold, and prudence, which is more precious than silver.” This
contempt for worldly possessions is illustrated further when Francis, on
hearing the priest’s explanation of the gospel, discards all that he owns in
favour of a crude tunic. Even in poverty Francis reinforces his humility
through mortification of the flesh and his devotion to the service to god as he
strips himself of his clothes and hands them to his father, standing before him
completely naked unashamed. This is further established in his capture by the
Saracens in which he remains composed in the face of death and torture. His
dramatic actions are, however, always laced with a selflessness and respect for
all of God’s creation. His generosity is matched with his affection for nature.
Celano’s Francis possessed a powerful emanating grace which earned him much
exultation as a preacher. It in is this romantic balance between confidence and
compassion that Celano achieves the portrayal of Francis as almost a Christ
like figure.
From
Celano’s stories how do you understand Francis’ relationship with the natural
world?
Francis, in Celano’s stories, is profoundly and
connected to the natural world. He believes it crucial that all of creation
should know the word of God and became famous not only for his preaching to the
animals but the command he seemed to have of them.
“…He
exorted all birds, all animals, all reptiles, and even nonexistant creatures to
praise and love the creator for every day, when the name of the saviour was
announced, he himself saw their obedience”
Celano tells us about Francis’ travels as he
returns fish to the water, preaches to the birds and commands wildlife. Perhaps
most notable, however, is the way in which Celano shows Francis’ holiness and
compassion seems to miraculously emanate as if he were a Christ-like conduit of
the grace of God. This can be seen in the story of the woman made able to give
birth safely by touching the reigns of a horse ridden by Francis. His way with
the animals, was so great, that the animals themselves became holy.
Le Goff
places Francis life in the context of increased urbanisation. What argument
does Le Goff make about the impact of urban life upon Francis’ religious life?
In the years preceding Francis’ birth, the
population of Europe increased dramatically, and “people had to be fed, materially and spiritually” (p.1). People began to live closer together and so
more urban societies began to form as built-up areas formed around castles and
churches. Le Goff states that “holiness
related more directly to towns” (p.2), in order to maintain influence over
the population, the Church had to embrace towns and adapt to them.
The importance of possessions and property grew,
creating a more materialistic society. In response to that “the Church was the first to change” (p.3). The Gregorian reforms
were introduced which created strong distinctions between the Church and laity,
it also “involved an aspiration … to
achieve the true apostolic life” (p.4) New Orders appeared which preached a
return to poverty, these Orders were successful because they were able to
connect with the people in urban life who were becoming “increasingly active in religious life” (p.5).
Le Goff suggests that the rise of urbanisation
created a society where religion was more accessible to the people but the
world was becoming “one of exclusion” (p.11),
Francis, in contrast, proclaimed the “divine
presence in all creatures” (p.11). Thus it could be argued that Francis saw
the world as becoming increasingly focused on individuals and their property
and problems. As a result he tried to create a life of equality amongst all,
where the divine was the centre of all life. Throughout his life, St Francis
was often compared to Jesus, many believing that he was a new incarnation of
the Son of God.
--Bobbie & Jeremy
