St. Francis of Assisi (1182-1226).
So precious is a person’s faith in God, so precious; never should we harm that. Because he gave birth to all religions. P.31.
(…) When I returned from Rome, all said, “Tell us the great news,’ and with great excitement I did: “A flower in a field whistled, and at night the sky untied her hair and I fell asleep clutching a sacred tress…” P.32.
God came to my house and asked for charity. And I fell on my knees and cried, “Beloved, what may I give?” “Just love,’ He said. “Just love.” P.33.
Joy is the greatest cleanser, and it is the greatest testimony to our faith. “Toil with happiness,” my Lord once said to me. (…) “A kind face is a precious gift.” P.34.
No one lives outside the walls of this sacred place, existence. (…) You cannot wander anywhere that will not aid you. Anything you can touch – God brought it into the classroom of your mind. Differences exist, but not in the city of love. Thus my vows and yours, I know they are the same. (…) So magnificently sovereign is our Lover; never say, “on the other side of this river a different king rules.” For how could that be true – for nothing can oppose Infinite strength. No one lives outside the walls of this sacred place, existence. The holy water my soul’s brow needs is unity. Love opened my eye and I was cleansed by the purity of each form. P.36.
(…) I have come to learn: God adores His creation. P.41
(…) In His sublime sanity – every moment God offers that to us: anything that might comfort. P.43.
In our ever present need for thee, Beloved, let us know your peace. (…) And give us our inheritance of divine love so that we can forgive like you. (…) And what sadness in this world could endure if it looked into your eyes? God is like a honeybee, He doesn’t mind me calling Him that; for when you are kind – sweet – he nears, and can draw you into Himself. What is there to understand of each other: (…). We are all in mourning for the experience of our essence we knew and now miss. (…) Yes, I will console any creature before me that is not laughing or full of passion for their art or life; for laughing and passion – beauty and joy – is our heart’s truth, all else is labor and foreign to the soul. (…) P.45.
A tool in your hand I am, dear God, the sweetest instrument you have shaped my being into. What makes me now complete – feeling the soul of every creature against my heart. Does every creature have a soul? Surely they do; for anything God has touched will have life forever, and all creatures He has held. P.46.
Such love does the sky now pour, that whenever I stand in a field, I have to wring out the light when I get home. P.48.
God’s admiration for us is infinitely greater than anything we can conjure up for Him. P.49.
We bless the earth with each step we take. And the firmament too needs our touch: someday your tenderness will reach it. (…) The seas waited too long to sing. Not until we leaped out laughing was their birth of us complete. “Tell me about your heart,” my every word says. Speak to me as if we both lay wounded in a field and are gazing in wonder as our spirits rise. P.51.
It was easy to love God in all that was beautiful. The lessons of deeper knowledge, though, instructed me to embrace God in all things. P.52.
I once spoke to my friend, an old squirrel, about the Sacraments – he got so excited and ran into a hollow in his tree and came back holding some acorns, an owl feather, and a ribbon he had found. And I just smiled and said, “Yes, dear, you understand: everything imparts His grace.” P.53.
The result of prayer is life. Prayer irrigates the earth and heart. P.54.
I asked for the most intimate experience with the Christ. No one would believe what happened in a vision more true than this world: The sacred chord pulsated light throughout the universe as I nursed my own Lord at my breast. P.55.
Dear God, please reveal to us your sublime beauty that is everywhere, everywhere, everywhere, so that we will never again feel frightened. My divine love, my love, please let us touch your face. P.56.
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Last updated: 2008/10/27.