St. Francis

Although today is Thursday, I had occasion early this morning to remember that Saturday will be the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi. For whatever reason my internal alert (the word alarm does quite fit, does it?) clock went off a little later than usual today, and I entered the morning Quiet about a half hour later than usual, a bit before dawn. As I sat in the morning chill, sometime near the end of Centering Prayer, a flock of Canadian geese flew across the sky, somewhere in the west, heading south. Their honking startled a bit, but as the sound of their pilgrimage lessened and eventually disappeared, I asked God to bless them on their journey, and then went back into the Quiet. Later, while making coffee (I like the strong stuff, Haitian roasted, ground the night before, steeped in very hot water in a French press), it dawned on me that two mornings from now I will be in St. Francis Day, one of my favorites.

God has given me the grace to like animals, all sorts of them: dogs, cats, turtles, horses, fish, snakes. But especially birds. And decades ago when I discovered that St. Francis was a birder, he immediately got high rankings. If like me, you're attracted to him and you want to know him a bit better, try a soft introduction like Brother Sun, Sister Moon, or better yet, C. K. Chesterton's St. Francis of Assisi, or perhaps The Biography of Saint Francis of Assisi by Omer Englebert. Another to consider is God's Fool: The Life and Times of Francis of Assisi by Julien Green and Peter Heinregg.

Recently many parishes has come to celebrate the life and witness of St. Francis with the Blessing of Animals. Here in Richmond, the Lutheran and Episcopal churches have joined hands filled with bird seed and prayers for our animal companions. Since my wife is quite allergic to cats, dogs, and such, I no longer have a roving trotter to accompany me on walks, so I've taken to blessing the birds at the feeder and the mole who's tunneling around in the back yard. If you need a blessing for a furry friend or a scaly lizard, here's one from American Catholic that should do nicely:

Blessed are you, Lord God, maker of all living creatures. You called forth fish in the sea, birds in the air and animals on the land. You inspired St. Francis to call all of them his brothers and sisters. We ask you to bless (the name of your animal friend). By the power of your love, enable it 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.

More tomorrow.