Finding Francis, Following Christ

by Michael H. Crosby

Overview

In a world afflicted by violence, in a society marked by a growing gulf between rich and poor, in a church polarized around issues of power and authority, the example of St. Francis of Assisi remains fresh and relevant, a powerful model of the gospel in action. As award-winning author Michael Crosby points out, the memory of Francis does not simply challenge the violence and materialism of our culture. He embodies a positive, joy-filled example of humanity at its best. His mission to "repair the church" speaks directly to the crises facing the church today. His example of a nonviolent, justice-seeking, creation-centered spirituality speaks to the needs of our world and the deepest hungers of our hearts. Francis of Assisi is indeed a saint for all times.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781608331642
Publisher:	Orbis
Publication date:	05/17/2013
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
File size:	799 KB

Table of Contents

Preface     xi
Chronology: The Life of Francis of Assisi in the Context of the Violence of His Times     xv
Abbreviations     xxi
Introduction: The Necessity of Having the Gospel Fulfilled in Our Lives     1
The Journey Pattern of the Mythic Hero     1
The Pattern of Violence/Withdrawal/Scriptural Fulfillment in Jesus     2
The Pattern of Violence/Withdrawal/Scriptural Fulfillment in Francis     4
Assisi's Violence Writ Large in the "American Way"     8
Embracing the Quest of the Hero     13
Francis of Assisi: A Saint for All, a Saint for All Times     19
A Society of Hero-Worshipers     19
Moving beyond Past Notions of "Saints"     22
Who Defines What It Means to Be Holy?     23
Why the Appeal of Saints Today?     25
The Universal Appeal of a Threshold Figure Like St. Francis     27
Our Stories and Other Stories     28
Assisi and Francis: Faith-Stances in Contrast     33
The Crisis of Faith as Traditional Stories Are Challenged     33
The Context of Francis' Story     37
The Sapping of Faith in Assisi's Culture of Violence     40
Francis' Story: An Alternative Faith     41
From ReligiouslySanctioned Violence to Gospel-Based Faith     44
Can Francis' Story Impact Our Culture's Story and Religion's Story Today?     47
Francis' Approach to Change: Point Out the Ruin or Repair It?     50
The Experience of Francis at the Cross of San Damiano     50
What Is the "House" in Ruins That Needs Repair?     52
Repairing the House by Building a New Kind of Homemaking     54
Moving to a Fuller Understanding of the "House" in Ruins That Needs Repair     56
Finding a Father to Believe In     70
Francis' Early Years     70
Francis' Break with Pietro, His Father     73
How Francis Understood God to Be His Heavenly Father     75
The Heavenly, Trinitarian Father Who Is "Our" Father     77
The Heavenly Father Who Is to Be "Our" Father on Earth     80
Other Images of God Used by Francis     83
How Francis Made Conversion Compelling     86
The Context That Brought Francis to a Crisis on His Mythic Journey     86
A New Way to Do Penance and to Flee the World     87
The Story of Francis' Embrace of the Leper     89
Francis' Embrace of the Leper: The Archetypal Dynamic of "Surrender and Catch"     93
Francis' Embrace of the Leper: A Model of Focusing      97
The Characteristics of Evangelical Conversion Embodied in Francis     99
The Contagious Character of a Joy-Defined Conversion Experience     102
Becoming the Christ     104
The Centrality of Jesus Christ and His Self-Emptying in Francis' Life     104
The Incarnation Revealing God's Self-Surrender in Jesus Christ     108
The Incarnation Revealing "the Catch"     110
The Centrality of the Crucified One in Francis' Spirituality     112
Taking Up the Cross Imposed by the World     117
The Eucharist as Sign and Summit of the "Surrender and Catch" of Jesus Christ     119
The Eucharist Celebrated in the Church and Celebrating the Church     121
The Gospel as Francis' Life-Project     125
Francis' Understanding and Embrace of the Gospel as His Way of Life     125
Rome's Acceptance of Francis' Way of Life     128
How Francis Grounded the Fraternity in the Gospel of the Reign of God     131
The Gospel of the Trinitarian Regin of God Proclaimed by Jesus     132
The Gospel of Jesus Proclaimed by the Early Church     136
The Church's Proclamation of the Gospel at the Time of Francis     138
Repairing the Church for the Christ of the Gospels     140
The Contagious Character That Created a Classless Community     142
The Structured Classism of Unequal Relationships     142
Francis' Choice of a Classless Society under God the Father in Heaven     143
Creating an Evangelical Fraternity of Equal Power Relations     146
An Authentically and Evangelically "Franciscan" Fraternity     150
A Creation Community Constituting All as Brothers and Sisters     157
Francis' Kind of Fraternity as an Antidote to the "American Way"     158
Nonpossessiveness     162
How Francis Recognized the Violence Inherent in Conflicts over Property     162
Francis' Response to the Tendency to Be Possessive: Nonappropriation     164
Francis' Alternative to Possessiveness: Nonacceptance of Coin or Money     165
Francis and the Grace of Working     166
Francis' Response to Materialism: Nonappropriation     169
A Fraternal Economy Based on the Brothers' Needs     171
Resisting the Ways of Entitlement     172
Solidarity with People Who Are Poor     174
Poverty as Personal: The Way of Simplicity     177
Enduring in Peace     181
Francis' Call for Peace in the Midst of Violence     181
The Need for a Franciscan Approach to Peace in Our Times     182
Peace Prayer of St. Francis     184
Francis' Way of Proclaiming the Gospel of Peace     185
The Franciscan Way to Personal Peace     188
The Franciscan Way to Communal Peace: Reconciliation     190
The Franciscan Way to Peace in the Midst of the World's Violence     193
The Franciscan Way of Ensuring We Will Live in Peace with Our Planet     197
Joy: The Reason for the Compelling Appeal of Francis     201
The Perverse Joy Coming from Witnessing Others' Pain     201
What Scientists Are Discovering about Joy     202
Joy: The Meeting of Surrender and Catch     207
Hope and Resistance, Praise and Gratitude     209
Authentic Joy: The "Catch" from a Life of Surrender     212
Joy at the Approach of Sister Death     216
Qualities of Franciscan Holiness and Sanctity     219
Saintliness     219
Francis' Highest Intention, His Chief Desire, His Uppermost Purpose     220
Embracing a Gospel Way of Life with Passion and Enthusiasm     225
Contemporary Chivalry     227
Notes     233
Index     257