Keep a clear eye toward life’s end. Do not forget your purpose and destiny as God’s creature. What you are in his sight is what you are and nothing more. Remember that when you leave this earth, you can take nothing that you have received…but only what you have given; a full heart enriched by honest service, love, sacrifice, and courage.
-St. Francis of Assisi (Letter to the Rulers of the People)
Call to Worship
Praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord from the heavens;
praise the Lord in the heights!
Praise the Lord, all you angels;
praise the Lord, you armies of the Lord!
Praise the Lord, sun and moon;
praise the Lord, all you shining stars!
Praise the Lord, you highest heavens,
and you waters above the heavens!
Let them praise the name of the Lord,
for the Lord commanded and they were created.
The Lord established them forever and ever;
the Lord fixed their bounds,
which cannot be passed.
Praise the Lord from the earth,
you sea monsters and all deeps,
fire and hail, snow and frost,
stormy wind fulfilling his command!
Mountains and all hills,
fruit trees and all cedars!
Wild animals and all cattle,
creeping things and flying birds!
Kings of the earth and all peoples,
princes and all rulers of the earth!
Young men and women alike,
old and young together!
Let them praise the name of the Lord,
for his name alone is exalted;
his glory is above earth and heaven.
Prayer
Saint Francis’ “The Canticle of Brother Sun”
Most High, all-powerful, good Lord,
Yours are the praises, the glory,
and the honor, and all blessing,
To You alone, Most High, do they belong,
and no human is worthy to mention Your name.
Praised be You, my Lord, with all Your creatures,
especially Sir Brother Sun,
Who is the day and through whom You give us light.
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And he is beautiful and radiant with great splendor;
and bears a likeness of You, Most High One.
Praised be You, my Lord, through Sister Moon and the stars,
in heaven You formed them clear and precious and beautiful.
Praised be You, my Lord, through Brother Wind,
and through the air, cloudy and serene,
and every kind of weather,
through whom You give sustenance to Your creatures.
Praised be You, my Lord, through Sister Water,
who is very useful and humble and precious and chaste.
Praised be You, my Lord, through Brother Fire,
through whom You light the night,
and he is beautiful and playful and robust and strong.
Praised be You, my Lord, through our Sister Mother Earth,
who sustains and governs us,
and who produces various fruit with colored flowers and herbs.
Praised be You, my Lord, through those who give pardon for Your love,
and bear infirmity and tribulation.
Blessed are those who endure in peace
for by You, Most High, shall they be crowned.
Praised be You, my Lord, through our Sister Bodily Death,
from whom no one living can escape.
Blessed are those whom death will find in Your most holy will,
for the second death shall do them no harm.
Praise and bless my Lord and give Him thanks
and serve Him with great humility.
Poem
“The Sacraments” by Saint Francis
I once spoke to my friend, an old squirrel, about the Sacraments—
he got so excited
and ran into a hollow in his tree and came
back holding some acorns, an owl feather,
and a ribbon he had found.
And I just smiled and said, “Yes, dear,
you understand:
Everything imparts His grace.”
Blessing the Animals
Blessed are You, Lord God
Maker of all living creatures.
On the fifth and sixth days of creation,
You called forth fish from the sea,
birds in the air, and animals on the land
You inspired St. Francis to call all animals
his brothers and sisters.
We join our voices to his,
and ask You to bless this animal.
By the power of Your love,
enable him/her to live according to Your plan.
May we always praise You
for all Your beauty in creation.
Blessed are You, Lord our God,
in all Your creatures. Amen.
All Creatures of Our God and King
All creatures of our God and king
lift up your voice and with us sing
o praise him, alleluia
thou burning sun with golden beam
thou silver moon with softer gleam
o praise him, o praise him
alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
thou rushing wind that art so strong
ye clouds that sail in heaven along
o praise him, alleluia
thou rising moon in praise rejoice
ye lights of evening find their voice
o praise him, o praise him
alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
let all things their creator bless
and worship him in humbleness
o praise him, alleluia
praise, praise the father, praise the son
and praise the spirit, three in one
o praise him, o praise him
alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
A Reading about St. Francis
(From the Franciscan Order of Divine Compassion)
Few Saints are more immediately recognizable than St. Francis of Assisi. He is recognized, loved, and claimed by Christians of all denominations, and even embraced by non-Christians. Francis seized the imaginations of his contemporaries, as well as that of modern men, by his unique simplicity, a pure grace of spirit, his overwhelming love for God, and his mode of life in which he actively sought to live according to the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Unfortunately, given the extent with which he's loved, few Saints are less understood than Francis is. To the modern mind, Francis is a caricature. He is the simple, loveable, man who preached to birds, tamed wolves, talked to fish, and was so gentle that wild hare leapt into his arms.
But, he's so much more than that.
Of Francis' early life, one of his biographers, Thomas of Celano, in the First Life of St. Francis, would later write, "almost up to his twenty-fifth year, he squandered and wasted his time…He was…very rich, not greedy but prodigal, not a hoarder of money, but a squanderer of possessions, a cautious businessman but an unreliable steward. On the other hand, he was a kind person, easy and friendly…Overwhelmed by a host of evil companions, proud and high-minded, he walked about the streets of Babylon until the Lord looked down from heaven and for His own name's sake…and for His praise bridled Francis lest he should perish. The hand of the Lord came onto Francis and a change was worked by the right hand of God, that through Francis an assurance might be granted to sinners that they had been restored to grace and that Francis might become an example to all of conversion to God."
Conversion, or rather living in a state of constantly being converted, is what Francis' life was about. Drawn by the love of God, drawn away from worldly ambitions for glory, Francis instead found his treasure in the total surrender of self to God.
For those of us who follow Jesus in the footsteps of St. Francis, the example of conversion to God, of living each day in a deeper state of conversion, to die to self a little more each day that we might live entirely for God, this is the important thing to see in Francis.
A Reading From Matthew
“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life? And why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these.
But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’ For it is the Gentiles who strive for all these things; and indeed your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
This is the Word of the Lord.
Silent Reflection
Prayer (St. Francis’ Our Father)
OUR FATHER MOST HOLY,
our creator and redeemer, our Savior and Consoler.
WHO ARE IN HEAVEN,
in the angels and saints
enlightening them that they may know you, for you, Lord,
are love, dwelling in them and filling
them with your divinity, that bliss may be theirs, for you, Lord, are the highest Good, the eternal Good,
from whom all goodness flows, without whom nothing is good.
YOUR NAME BE HELD HOLY:
may our knowledge of you shine ever more clearly within us,
that we may perceive the breadth of your blessings, the extent of your promises, the height of your majesty, the depth of your judgments.
YOUR KINGDOM COME:
rule us now, through grace, and bring us at last to your kingdom of light where we shall see you as you are,
and our love for you
will be made perfect, our union blissful, our joy unending, in you.
YOUR WILL BE DONE ON EARTH AS IN HEAVEN
may we love you with all our heart, ever thinking of you; with all our soul, ever longing for you; with all our mind, directing all our aims to you
and seeking nothing but your glory; with all our strength, spending all our energies and all our senses of soul and body
to serve only your love and nothing else.
May we love our neighbors as ourselves; drawing them all to your love in so far as we can, sharing their good fortune as if it were our own, helping them to bear their trials and doing them no wrong.
GIVE US THIS DAY OUR DAILY BREAD:
your beloved Son our Lord Jesus Christ, that we may remember,
understand and revere the love he showed for us,
and all he said and did
and suffered for our sake.
FORGIVE US OUR SINS
through your mercy beyond words,
through the power of the passion of your beloved Son.
AS WE FORGIVE THOSE WHO SIN AGAINST US
and that which we ourselves
cannot fully forgive,
make us fully forgive;
make us love our enemies,
truly, for your sake; teach us how to pray sincerely
to you on their behalf; and not to render harm for harm to anyone, but rather try to do good to all, in you!
AND LEAD US NOT INTO TEMPTATION
whether veiled or visible, sudden or searing and prolonged.
BUT DELIVER US FROM EVIL
past, present and to come.
Amen
A Franciscan Benediction
May God bless us with discomfort at easy answers,
half-truths, and superficial relationships,
so that we will live deeply in our hearts.
May God bless us with anger
at injustice, oppression, and exploitation
of people and the earth,
so that we will work for justice, equity, and peace.
May God bless us with tears to shed
for those who suffer,
so that we will reach out our hands
to comfort them and change their pain to joy.
And may God bless us with the foolishness to think
that we can make a difference in the world,
so that we will do the things which others say
cannot be done.
Amen.
