St. Francis of Assisi Saint Francis of Assisi was born at Assisi in Umbria, in 1181. He was the founder of the Franciscan Order. His father, Pietro Bernardone, was a wetly Assisan cloth merchant. His mother, Pica, is said to have belonged to a noble family of Provence. Francis was one of several children. According to a legend, he was born in a stable that dates from the fifteenth century only, and appears to have originated in the desire of certain writers to make his life resemble that of Christ. At baptism the saint received the name of Giovanni, which his dad changed to Francesco. The child was still able to learn French even though he was renamed. Francis received elementary teachings from the priests of St. George's at Assisi, even though he learned more in the school of the Troubadours. He was not very studious, and his literary education remained incomplete. Francis showed little liking for a merchant's career, and his parents seemed to have indulged him. Thomas was Francis's first biographer, who speaks very fond of him. No one loved pleasure more than Francis. Francis had a ready wit, sang merrily, enjoyed in fine clothes and showy display. He showed sympathy with the poor, and though he spent money lavishly. In 1201 he took part in an attack on Perugia, was taken hostage, and remained a captive there for a year. His mind began to turn to religion, but around 1205 he enlisted in another military expedition, to Apulia. However, he had a dream in which God called him to his service, and he returned to Assisi and began to care for the sick. In 1206, he had a vision in which Christ called him to repair his church. He resolved to become a hermit, and devoted himself to repairing the church. His father got angry at Francis' behavior, imprisoned him and brought him before the bishop as disobedient. Francis abandoned all his rights and possessions, including his clothes. Two years later he felt himself called to preach, and was soon joined by companions. When they numbered eleven he gave them a short Rule and received approval from Pope Innocent III for the brotherhood, which Francis called the Friars Minor. They traveled throughout central Italy and beyond, preaching for people to turn from the world to Christ. He relied on God's providence rather than worldly goods. The brothers worked or begged for what they needed to live, and any surplus was given to the poor. Francis turned his skills as a troubadour to the writing of prayers and hymns. In 1212 Saint Clara Sciffi, a girl from a noble family of Assisi, left her family to join Francis. She founded a sisterhood at San Damiano. One day while Francis and some friars were traveling along the road, Francis looked up and saw the trees full of birds. Francis "left his companions in the road and ran eagerly toward the birds" and "humbly begged them to listen to the word of God." One of the friars recorded the sermon, which overflows with Francis's love for creation and its Creator: "My brothers, birds, you should praise your Creator very much and always love him; he gave you feathers to clothe you, wings so that you can fly, and whatever else was necessary for you. God made you noble among his creatures, and he gave you a home in the purity of the air; though you neither sow nor reap, he nevertheless protects and governs you without any solicitude on your part." Thomas of Celano records that the birds stretched their necks and extended their wings as Francis walked among them touching and blessing them. This event was a turning point of sorts for Francis. "He began to blame himself for negligence in not having preached to the birds before" and "from that day on, he solicitously admonished the birds, all animals and reptiles, and even creatures that have no feeling, to praise and love their Creator." In time the brotherhood became more organized, when large numbers of people joined him. Eventually he wrote a more detailed Rule, which was further revised by the new leaders of the Franciscans. He gave up leadership of the Order and went to the mountains to live in secluded prayer. There he received the Stigmata, the wounds of Christ. He returned to visit the Franciscans, and Clara and her sisters, and a few of his followers remained with him. He died at the Porziuncula on October 3, 1226. Just two years before he died, St. Francis said: "I beseech all of you, by whatever charity I can, that you show reverence and all honor to the most Holy Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, because (in Him) all things, whether on earth or in heaven have been pacified and reconciled with Almighty God". Every year on the Sunday nearest his October 4 feast day, Catholic and other Christian churches around the world host services where animals are blessed. Francis is well known for the "Canticle of Brother Sun." Since Saint Francis of Assisi was born to wealth, devoted his life to poverty, concern for the poor and the sick, he is known to have affected so many people in so many different ways. The thing that made him stand out the most was how he was devoted to the poor. His father/family including himself was very wealthy. So many things that he did was all for the poor and the sick. When he had a vision he resolved to become a hermit, and devoted himself to repairing the church. His father got angry at Francis' behavior, imprisoned him and brought him before the bishop as disobedient. He then abandoned all his rights and possessions, including his clothes. Two years later he felt himself called to preach, and was soon joined by companions. He got many of his followers after doing this, who then began to preach alongside him. During the time of Francis of Assisi, the Magna Carta was signed and created. The Magna Carta is a document that King John of England was forced into signing. King John was forced into signing the charter because it reduced the power he held as the King of England and allowed for the formation of a parliament. The Magna Carta became the basis for English citizen's rights. It was a collection of 37 English laws - some copied, some recollected, some old and some new. The charter is considered to be the beginning of constitutional government in England. The Magna Carta demonstrated that the power of the king could be limited by a written grant. Another historical event that occurred was the crusades. For 200 years, Palestine was dominated by the Crusaders, who, following an appeal by Pope Urban II, came from Europe to recover the Holy Land from the infidels. In July 1099, after a five-week siege, the knights of the First Crusade and their rabble army captured Jerusalem, massacring most of the city's non-Christian inhabitants. Barricaded in their synagogues, the Jews defended their quarter, only to be burnt to death or sold into slavery. When the Crusaders opened up transportation routes from Europe, pilgrimages to the Holy Land became popular and, at the same time, increasing numbers of Jews sought to return to their homeland. After the overthrow of the Crusaders by a Muslim army under Saladin (1187), the Jews were again accorded a certain measure of freedom, including the right to live in Jerusalem. Although the Crusaders regained a foothold in the country after Saladin's death, their presence was limited to a network of fortified castles. Crusader authority in the Land ended after a final defeat in 1291 when a Muslim military class which had come to power in Egypt. There ended up being eight crusades in total, which lasted for about 90 years. Saint Francis of Assisi can relate to my own personal life in a few different ways. Kind of like how he devoted his life to the poor, I to have worked with the poor and homeless. The most recent thing I have done was went to Camp Sunshine. Even though it was not working directly with the poor and sick, I still was involved with families who needed support. I can recall last year, I participated in the Famine, which forced me to not eat and actually live how a homeless person would. However, we did not sleep out side, we just built cardboard homes in the school gym. The next day we went out to feed and donate socks to the homeless people in Boston. It was a life chaining experience for me. So just like Francis, I too, enjoy helping people out and being involved with whatever I get the chance to do.