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Story of the Centenary

Praised be to you my Lord through all your creatures

 

In the context of creation, St. Francis highlights the sovereign and admirable dignity of man.

“Totally absorbed in the love of God, Francis discerned perfectly the goodness of God not only in the soul already resplendent with every perfection of virtue, but also in every creature. And for this reason, he turned with singular warmth and affection to creatures, particularly those in which he saw the trace of a quality of God or of something that is pertinent to religious life” (FF 1813).

 

Francis establishes a new relationship with creation. He does not seek creatures to possess or dominate them, but calls them by name, inviting them to give praise to God, who has clothed them with beauty and goodness. He freely puts himself at their service, out of love for the Lord who created them and reveals himself in them.

 

In this religious perspective, nature becomes transparent to the divine, enabling the reconciled man to attain in it the vision of the Lord. Its reality is not exhausted in its earthly dimension, but rather in its being a “sign,” “image,” “revelation” of the most wise Creator, who by creating it in the service of man, ordained it to be fulfilled in him, who is God's “image and likeness.”

 

From his youth, Francis was a keen observer of nature, that is, of all the beings that exist in the world and are subject to man and ordered to him, according to the admirable design of the Creator. But since his conversion his gaze became sharper and more penetrating, capable of overcoming the barriers of appearance to immerse himself in the mystery of God's creation, like a pilgrim on his way to the full discovery of God's love.

 

Creatures recall and proclaim the Creator. They are regarded and considered in an attitude of dependence and at the same time of gratitude to the One from whom they received life and beauty. The manifold variety of created beings bears witness to the supreme wisdom and infinite goodness of God, Creator and Lord of all things, inviting man, capable of knowing and loving, to rise to him and to be grateful to him for these gifts.

 

In the context of Creation, St. Francis highlights the sovereign and admirable dignity of man, who has been configured to the image of the Son of God, Jesus Christ.

 

The discovery of the Creator not only as supreme good, but as Father, opens Francis' heart to this song about creatures and together with creatures. He becomes the singer of the Most High, recognizing God's transcendence, but at the same time giving thanks to him because he created all, humanity and all other creatures. All creatures, no longer looked upon with greed or a spirit of possession and domination but recognizing them in their dignity as “God's creatures,” are transformed into vibrant notes to compose the “Canticle of the Creatures.” The Canticle becomes the typical way to encounter all the elements of nature, to value them, to activate a new relationship of respect and harmony. St. Francis composed it a year before his death, beginning it at St. Damian's, at a time of great suffering. Connected to the praise for creatures, there is also a look at the the face of —indeed a song of— difficult human situations: forgiveness and death. The Canticle speaks not only of the beauty of nature, but also of the difficulties of man's life: if there is a stanza of praise for forgiveness, it means that there is a fault to be forgiven, as well as infirmities and tribulations.

 

We find here that synthesis Pope Francis calls “integral ecology,” which knows how to connect the cry of nature to the cry of the poor (cf. LS 49). Finally, Francis teaches that infirmity can be sustained in peace, even in situations where forgiveness is needed. The Canticle teaches each person who hears it, each person who whispers or prays to it, the secret to building peace, beginning where there is infirmity and tribulation.

 

(The text is freely taken from the entry “Creation,” edited by CORNELIO BASILIO DEL ZOTTO, in Franciscan Dictionary, 1983, Assisi - and from the texts of the celebration for the opening of the centenary of the Canticle of the Creatures - Assisi, Jan. 11, 2025).

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