The Conscience of the Church

Saint of the Day, October 4th: Francis of Assisi

Francis lived at a time when Church and State were very much intertwined. The Pope commanded armies and declared war in the Holy Land. And as a young man, Francis dreamed of fighting for God and Country. At least for a while.

In time, Francis came to question the cultural-religious lifestyle he had been raised in. He began to take seriously - to take literally - the Gospel call to sell all his belongings, give to the poor, and to follow Christ.

Where once he had aspired to join the Crusaders in their Holy War, now he sought to meet with the Sultan to negotiate peace.

At the height of the Church’s worldly power, Francis stood humbly as its institutional conscience, constantly demonstrating what a Christian life should actually look like.

Today we might think of Francis as the patron saint of Religious Deconstruction. Though he remained resolutely within the Church, he made a point of rejecting the power and worldly influence it held. From within the Church he challenged it to be more Christ-like.

In his poverty and humility he became one of the most influential people in the Church’s history. A living demonstration of God’s power made perfect in weakness.