No, St. Francis Did Not Say That One Quote

(St. Francis of Assisi - October 4)

I chose St. Francis of Assisi as my Confirmation Saint when I was in High School. I knew nothing about him except that he was a lover of animals. I also liked animals. So, I thought it was fitting. My elementary school was also run, for a long time, by Franciscan brothers. So, there was that connection too. By God’s providence, I ended up studying for my Master’s Degree at Franciscan University of Steubenville. The San Damiano Crucifix is still one of my absolute favorites because it brings me back mentally to my home Parish where I grew up in Greenville, North Carolina.

As a friend of St. Francis and a student of History, I studied his life. It is fascinating! He once went to the sultan to preach the Gospel in hopes that he might be martyred. He was a deacon of the Church. He took a vow of poverty and founded a mendicant order even though he was from a wealthy merchant family. He also had a great devotion to the Incarnation of our Lord and even popularized the making of a yearly nativity season at Christmas time.

There is one saying attributed to St. Francis that goes like this: “Preach the Gospel at all times and, when necessary, use words.” I used to think that this quote was clever and profound.

Here is the problem though: St. Francis NEVER SAID IT. Not only did he never say it; he absolutely would never say it. And if he did say it, he would later think it through and then repent!

The quote sets up this false dichotomy between living the faith and explicitly proclaiming the faith. St. Francis, to the contrary, would sometimes preach in five villages a day. He would climb up on a bale of hay or in the doorway of a building. He would go on the steps in a public area or find a box to stand on. He was even referred to by his biographer, Thomas of Celeno, as the “fiery little preacher from Assisi.”

We MUST live out the Gospel with our actions. But we must also preach the Gospel with our words! As St. Paul said to the Church in Rome:

“How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching?”

St. Francis, fiery little preacher of Assisi, pray for us.