In the end, despite our unworthiness, Francis recognizes that we, like all the other creatures he mentions, must praise and bless the Lord – but we humans must go further. We need to give thanks, and we need to serve Him humbly.
Franciscans have a long-established custom of referring to “Sister Death.” Yet Francis did not speak of Sister Death in the Canticle. Writing in his Umbrian vernacular, he was quite intentional in naming this sister he was soon to meet: “Laudato si, mi Signore, per sora nostra Morte corporale.” He speaks of Sister Bodily Death.
The first time I heard about Father Louis Vitale, OFM, was when he joined the protests at Fort Benning’s infamous School of the Americas.
What do St. Francis of Assisi and Viktor Frankl, famous psychologist and survivor of four World War II concentration camps, have in common? They both realized that suffering could provide purpose and meaning in our lives. As Francis said in the Canticle and Frankl said in his book Man’s Search for Meaning, when we approach suffering with a meaningful response, we affirm our humanity and our capacity for spiritual growth.
The Zoom recording of the Canticle of the Creatures presentation is now available to view.
Song of Reconciliation is a letter from the 4 Franciscan Ministers General to the whole Franciscan Family for instruction & reflection on the Canticle of Creatures. “The Canticle of Creatures is a song of praise & Reconciliation.” “It summarizes Francis’ view of God and the world; creatures and human beings; himself and the Most High God.” In the “Conclusion” of this letter the Ministers General provide us with numerous “Admonitions” or “Challenges”; refer to the following list.
Francis never praises God’s works of creation; rather, he praises God the Creator per, or through, his works. When Francis looked at creation, he saw the Creator. Thomas of Celano emphasized this point: “In art he praises the Artist; whatever he discovers in creatures he guides to the Creator. He rejoices in all the works of the Lord's hands, and through their delightful display he gazes on their life-giving reason and cause.” (Second Life, Chapter 124, 165).
Francis used to say “At dawn, when the sun rises, everyone should praise God, who created it, because through it the eyes are lighted by day. And in the evening, when it becomes night, everyone should praise God for another creature, Brother Fire, because through it the eyes are lighted at night.” (Assisi Compilation #83)
You may be familiar with and donate to the H2O Project, the international project that helps promote Christian solidarity, advocacy and financial support for poor communities who have no access to clean drinking water.
We live in Hawaii, so the stanza on Brother Wind is particularly meaningful for us here. We are blessed to have the trade winds, which Hawaii is well-known for and which we experience very often in profound and beautiful ways.