Saint Francis' Prison
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Saint Francis’ path of conversion was accompanied by distinct experiences or circumstances that allowed him to encounter Christ and to become an exemplar figure of holiness in the midst of opposition, worldliness, and secularism. One day, while praying in the Church of San Damiano, “he gazed upon the Lord’s Cross, he heard with his bodily ears a Voice proceeding from that Cross, saying thrice: Francis, go an repair My House, which, as thou seest, is falling utterly into ruin” (Bonaventure, Life of St. Francis, Ch. II, 1). Even though Francis was a member of the middle class in Assisi, he sold several goods, in order to restore the material church. Nevertheless, when Francis’ father was informed of this situation, he “rushed upon him and mocked with loud shouts as a fool and madman” (Bonaventure, Life of St. Francis, Ch. II, 2). As well, he confined him in a prison, which is located in Assisi at San Francesco. It is moreover situated in the lower level of the church and it is minuscule relative to the size of the entire church. The walls and the floor of the prison are made of stone, and it might suggest a sense of discomfort, loneliness, and fear, due to the very limited or confined space present inside the prison.
Saint Francis’ prison is a unique cultural artifact of the medieval period that truly embodies distinct characteristics of culture and that reveals various aspects of medieval Christian identity. Even though this specific artifact is not explicitly mentioned in The Life of St. Francis of Bonaventure, it is a later legend of the medieval period that reinforces the radical nature of Francis’ deep conversion to Christ crucified and Lady Poverty. Precisely, Saint Francis’ prison symbolizes the social differences that existed in Assisi as a result of the unequal distribution of wealth, the inequitable division of labor, and the unjust repartition of lands. The radical separation of social classes and therefore, the disunity of society as a whole gave rise to specific divergent values among the different societal classes. The Rocca Maggiore, the majores, the cathedral church, merchants and bankers, and the minores constituted distinctive social classes that were all part of the same medieval society. Hence, they positively and negatively influenced or impacted each other, giving rise to a compact, diverse, and competitive society founded on a series of complementary and opposing values, ideals, goods, and beliefs.
Furthermore, Saint Francis’ prison authentically exemplifies the pluralism of culture (Niebuhr, Christ and Culture, 38) and the ultimate guidance of this pluralism towards the good for humanity (Niebuhr, Christ and Culture, 35). When Francis sold the goods in order to “repair the Church”, he acted against the values of his family and in total contradiction of his father’s social position and labor. Although he was totally aware of the type of culture and society in which he was immersed, he denied the value of wealth and the ideal of secularism. He overcame a purely profane and worldly society, in order to follow Christ’s example and thus, revolutionize or transfigure the meaning of Christianity. When Francis was imprisoned by his father, his values, including poverty, simplicity, humility, austerity, obedience, and charity profoundly clashed with his father’s secular values and with his family’s tradition and heritage. Nonetheless, he devoted himself to a simple and humble life of perfect holiness and spirituality, with the primary objective of guiding the Christian community towards a sacrificial encounter with Jesus Christ and hence, in the direction of a perfect human self-realization in pursue of an ultimate good: God.
The ambiguity between secularism and Christianity during the medieval mendicant period gave rise to the development of a divided society, characterized by diverse values conflicting within the same state and community. Saint Francis’ prison authentically reflects this ambiguity and pluralism of values; at the same time, it constitutes a unique cultural artifact that reveals the meaning of holiness and spirituality founded on the basis of poverty, suffering, sacrifice, prayer, obedience, piety, humility, simplicity, and austerity (Bonaventure, Life of St. Francis, Ch. V, VI, VII, X). It reflects medieval Christian identity on the foundation of a renewed path of sanctity and developed throughout a personal and ecclesial spirituality directed towards the glorification of the sacrificial power of Jesus Christ throughout humble actions of emptiness and suffering.
Saint Francis’ prison is a unique cultural artifact of the medieval period that truly embodies distinct characteristics of culture and that reveals various aspects of medieval Christian identity. Even though this specific artifact is not explicitly mentioned in The Life of St. Francis of Bonaventure, it is a later legend of the medieval period that reinforces the radical nature of Francis’ deep conversion to Christ crucified and Lady Poverty. Precisely, Saint Francis’ prison symbolizes the social differences that existed in Assisi as a result of the unequal distribution of wealth, the inequitable division of labor, and the unjust repartition of lands. The radical separation of social classes and therefore, the disunity of society as a whole gave rise to specific divergent values among the different societal classes. The Rocca Maggiore, the majores, the cathedral church, merchants and bankers, and the minores constituted distinctive social classes that were all part of the same medieval society. Hence, they positively and negatively influenced or impacted each other, giving rise to a compact, diverse, and competitive society founded on a series of complementary and opposing values, ideals, goods, and beliefs.
Furthermore, Saint Francis’ prison authentically exemplifies the pluralism of culture (Niebuhr, Christ and Culture, 38) and the ultimate guidance of this pluralism towards the good for humanity (Niebuhr, Christ and Culture, 35). When Francis sold the goods in order to “repair the Church”, he acted against the values of his family and in total contradiction of his father’s social position and labor. Although he was totally aware of the type of culture and society in which he was immersed, he denied the value of wealth and the ideal of secularism. He overcame a purely profane and worldly society, in order to follow Christ’s example and thus, revolutionize or transfigure the meaning of Christianity. When Francis was imprisoned by his father, his values, including poverty, simplicity, humility, austerity, obedience, and charity profoundly clashed with his father’s secular values and with his family’s tradition and heritage. Nonetheless, he devoted himself to a simple and humble life of perfect holiness and spirituality, with the primary objective of guiding the Christian community towards a sacrificial encounter with Jesus Christ and hence, in the direction of a perfect human self-realization in pursue of an ultimate good: God.
The ambiguity between secularism and Christianity during the medieval mendicant period gave rise to the development of a divided society, characterized by diverse values conflicting within the same state and community. Saint Francis’ prison authentically reflects this ambiguity and pluralism of values; at the same time, it constitutes a unique cultural artifact that reveals the meaning of holiness and spirituality founded on the basis of poverty, suffering, sacrifice, prayer, obedience, piety, humility, simplicity, and austerity (Bonaventure, Life of St. Francis, Ch. V, VI, VII, X). It reflects medieval Christian identity on the foundation of a renewed path of sanctity and developed throughout a personal and ecclesial spirituality directed towards the glorification of the sacrificial power of Jesus Christ throughout humble actions of emptiness and suffering.