In Thomas Celano’s biography of St. Francis of Assisi (Franciscan
Omnibus of Sources), he relates the story of the celebration of Christmas
at Greccio. Francis had just returned from the Holy Land. Having been able to
travel to the holy places of the Gospel, under the protection of the Sultan, Francis had been able to visit the site where Jesus had been born,
walked the Via Doloroso, visited the site of Jesus' tomb, and all the other places
of Galilee and Judah that Jesus had traveled and visited.
Upon arriving back to Italy, Francis sought to find a cave
similar to the one in which Jesus had been born. Upon finding the cave, Francis
asked the owner permission to celebrate Christmas Eve Mass in the cave. The owner
gave permission and Francis set out to prepare the place for Mass. In the cave
were set up the necessary items for Mass, along with a simple altar made of
crude materials with an empty manger filled with straw at its base.
The night of the Mass, all the brothers along with the folks
in the surrounding area climbed the trail up to where the cave was located.
Francis, being a Deacon, assisted at the Mass, and after proclaiming the
gospel, preached on the gospel texts. As Celano describes the scene,
Francis carefully chose his words for
the homily, and every time he said the word, “Jesus”, would lick his lips as if
he had just eaten something very sweet and delicious.
A miracle occurred in the liturgy. While Francis was
preaching there appeared in the empty manger the body of a dead infant. Francis
noticing this picked up the dead baby and cradled it in his arms. The infant's
eyes opened and the child smiled at Francis and then disappeared. Celano saw the
dead infant as a metaphor for the darkness of the world, and the general malaise of
faithlessness that had so infected the Church that it had silenced the message of Jesus. Francis
restoring life to the dead infant was a sign of God”s power working through
Francis restoring life to a Church that had died spiritually.
Whether the miracle occurred or not, the story illustrates
the power Francis received from God. His words had a power to transform lives
and restore life to those who despaired of life. Through the charism and
mission of Francis, he restored faith to an institutional Church that had grown
faithless and succumb to corruption.
Both the reading from Deuteronomy and the gospel account of
Mark illustrate the power that words have in the lives of people. We have all
experienced the constructive power of words in our lives and the destructive
power of words in our lives. The old saying, “Sticks and stone may break my
bones but words will never hurt me,” is not true. Words have the power
of building up the hopes and dreams of people and equally have the power of
crushing and destroying the lives of people. We can use our words to heal others and to hurt others. It is this truth raised to our
public awareness that has brought about changes in law and in policy on the
destructiveness of bullying.
The scripture readings point to the authority of God that
existed in the words of Jesus. People were taken aback and were amazed at how
the words of Jesus stirred something in their lives, something that the words
of their religious leaders could not do.
God has given to you and to me the power of speech. How do
we use the words that God has given us to use? Do we speak with authority,
using our words to build up our faith,
to build up life within our spiritual and civic community? Do we use our words
for destructive purposes, to destroy others and our community? For those of us
who are disciples of Jesus, these are two very pertinent questions.
Speaking for myself, I know throughout my life I have
misused and abused both the spoken and written word. So much so, that though I
sought reconciliation with those I harmed, I will bear the weight and the consequences
of my words for the rest of my life. I have also seen the power of God working
through the words I have spoken and touching lives in positive and significant
ways.
St. Paul taught his communities of faith, that as disciples
of Jesus, we are all vessels of the Holy Spirit. With this awareness, we can
allow the Holy Spirit to work through us, giving over to the Holy Spirit the
power to speak through us; giving over to the Holy Spirit the power to work
through our listening, our presence, and our actions. If we give over that
power to the Holy Spirit, we will find that God will work through us in ways
that are extraordinary. If we refuse to
give over that power, then, we will fail and our words and our actions will
become meaningless and destructive.
Francis of Assisi chose to give his life over to God in
order for God to touch and heal the world. The words of Francis brought about
healing, restoring life to the faith of the Church, and hope to all despairing
of life. As we hear in the Prayer of St. Francis:
- Lord, make me an instrument of Your peace;
- Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
- Where there is injury, pardon;
- Where there is discord, harmony;
- Where there is error, truth;
- Where there is doubt, faith;
- Where there is despair, hope;
- Where there is darkness, light;
- And where there is sadness, joy.
- O Divine Master, Grant that I may not so much seek
- To be consoled as to console;
- To be understood as to understand;
- To be loved as to love.
- For it is in giving that we receive;
- It is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
- And it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
While sticks and stones can break other’s bones, we have the power to speak words that can either hurt or heal others. May our God bless us and assist in speaking with the authority of Jesus, who brought God's hope, compassion, love and healing to a very broken world.
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