These first few days have been 'foundation days'. We missed the day at St. Peter's. Francis had stopped here & exchanged clothes with a beggar -- he wanted to get a better understanding of what it meant to be at the bottom of the pile and at the mercy of others. Of course, the buildings weren't the same back then, but the 'spirit of place' certainly had to be here. Wherever you go, there are sounds of people, of families, of life! Francis must have reveled in it.

The next day -- a visit to St. John Lateran and remembering Francis's first visit to Innocent III. Again he came as a 'beggar', but this time asking for the Church's verbal blessings on his proposed way of life. Years later he returned to receive the official approval for his written rule -- a very different Francis now. He was just as passionate but he carried a few more 'battle scars'. He had spent years walking that fine balance in life of being true to the vision and the dream while trying to live it WITH others (who of course had their own visions and dreams!). He could have gone charging off on his own, but then we probably would not be remembering him today.

Saturday, July 05, 2008 7:10:05 AM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)    Comments [0] |