What St. Francis Taught Me About Reforming the Church

Photo by Jim Linwood

St. Francis has been an inspiration for me since my conversion 14 years ago. Reading one of his biographies was an instrumental piece of my conversion to Christ. I recently read another biography of him, and his life is once again full inspiration and deep insights for me.

In my recent reading of his life, however, I was able to appreciate more his efforts of reforming the Church. St. Francis, in my opinion, is one of the great reformers of the Church, and those called to the business of reforming the Church should do well in studying his life.

Speak No Evil

Before I start sharing what St. Francis taught me about reforming the Church, I want to share an experience that I had last night while praying with my wife, and how this experience changed radically the direction of this blog post.

My original idea for writing this blog was to pit St. Francis' way of reformation vs. Martin Luther's. I wanted to show how much I preferred St. Francis' way over Luther's, but I do not wish to do that anymore.

As my wife and I were praying, she asked the Holy Spirit to highlight anything to me for tomorrow. Immediately I heard the words Speak no evil. As I heard those words I felt God was telling me not to pit St. Francis against Martin Luther in my blog. I was, at that moment, filled with great compassion for Martin Luther, and I desired no longer to speak evil against the man.

Pitting St, Francis against Martin Luther after all, as I shall explain later, would contradict the spirit of St. Francis.

The Way of St. Francis

St. Francis didn't set out to reform the Catholic Church. When he heard Christ's call to repair His church at San Damiano, Francis undertook this calling quite literally and started repairing the crumbling small chapel.

Photo by Michael 1952.

St. Francis started restoring other crumbling small churches around the area as well. Slowly, other people, moved by his radical simplicity and humility, joined him in his efforts. The little brothers, as they were called, not only joined him in restoring these little churches, but also in imitating the way of St. Francis. They forsook material possessions, they practiced humility and obedience.

St. Francis' call to obedience is an essential part of his way of life. We can romanticize St. Francis as a humble lover of nature and poverty and ignore other characteristics that were integral part of him: his call to obedience to the Church.

He spoke no evil of the Church in a time where evil abounded in the Church. He remained obedient to the Church until his death. In an age where aversion to authority is common, this is indeed a hard pill to swallow.

The Way of Holiness

Ultimately, St. Francis' call to obedience is linked with his call to humility, and ultimately, his call to holiness. His love for the Church restrained him from speaking evil to a Church that probably deserved it, and instead he chose to give his life in service for the Church. St. Francis did not come to condemn the Church, but to give his life for her.

This way of holiness is deeply connected with the way of Christ, who, in like manner, didn't come to condemn the world but to save it. This is not to say that St. Francis (or Jesus, for that matter) didn't speak against evil. The way he did so, however, was from his personal example and his persistent call to penance. It is interesting to note that the word "penance" meant more a call to conversion or metanoia, which is a radical new way of thinking, than simple medieval self-flagellation. 

St. Francis, instead of condemning the Church, became a great example for the Church. He denounced greed in his preaching, while at the same time showing the way by being the way. Criticizing evil is easy. Becoming holy not so much.

St. Francis is Still Reforming the Church

The spirit of St. Francis is still reforming the Church. 

It is amazing to witness the incredible patience of God. When we want change, we want it now. There is nothing wrong with desiring change now. The problem is our propensity to force immediate change with violence, condemnation and divisions.

I believe God desires change now, but the way He chooses to deal with it is not always immediate. Sometimes we cannot make changes and reforms immediately without creating violence, hurt and divisions.

I have no doubts that God chose St. Francis to reform the Church. This reform, however, was not and it is not immediate. It is still happening, and God is still using St. Francis to reform the Church. 

Pope Francis, in choosing St. Francis as his namesake, is calling the Church to reform. You can clearly see how the example of St. Francis is still reforming the church, 800 years later.

And we have a part to play. During this season of Lent, we are called to reform ourselves, and by doing so, reform the Church. What the Church needs more of is not people who are condemning and pointing constantly to the need of reform verbally. Of those we have abundantly. What the Church needs more are examples of holy living and for us to lead the way of Christ, by not coming to the Church to condemn it, but to save it.

The Way to Holiness

Our call to holiness is easy to ignore. The impossibility of it all seems daunting, and  we may feel like procrastinating the journey. Or maybe we rest too heavily on Grace, knowing that our Father is loving and forgiving, and He accepts us as we are.

And yet the call persists.

Christians, it seems to me, interpret holiness quite differently from each other. Some can interpret it as a strict adherence to moral codes and an intimidating long lists of "don'ts". Don't drink, don't have sex before marriage, don't listen to rock music.

For others, holiness is a matter of justice. Help the poor, do justice and care for the environment. Moral codes can be seen as restricting, and more emphasis is paid to the "do's" than the "don'ts".

What is holiness?

Holiness, in the Holy Bible, simply means to be "set apart". An object or person is holy because it, he or she is "set apart" for the work of God.

This is a very simple definition, and we can see how we can derive different interpretations from it.

From this definition we can see the importance of what I like to call "Internal Righteousness". We can see that in order to say yes to our call to holiness, we have to say no to many things.

Of course, we say no with gladness, keeping the end in sight of our purposes, and knowing the freedom that boundaries can bring us. We should not do so with a sour face, however, or with a simple and strict adherence to Pharisaical ideals.

We can also see the importance of what I call "External Righteousness". We do not live in a secluded Christian bubble. We are called to see Christ in the poor. We are called to do justice and to implement the victories of the resurrection to the world around us.

Both go hand in hand. If one lacks the other they are both not only incomplete, but a counterfeit version of holiness. 

We are both a people of Mathew 25 and Exodus 20.

The Way to Holiness

One night, as I was praying, I asked God to show me the way to holiness.

I was expecting Him to respond with something like this,"OK, here is your 12 step plan to holiness, first you..."

Instead He just said "walk...". Then I saw an image of me going through an strenuous hike.

My response was, "Really God? Is there something else you would like to add?" I thought the answer too simple that I started questioning whether I was hearing from God or not.

Then I heard something along these lines: "Holiness is about walking slowly. Do not try to run. Sometimes it is just putting one foot in front of the other. It doesn't take much, only that you walk".

When we try to run in the hike to holiness, we turn into self-righteous pharisees. We all seen these kind of spiritual snobs. They are no fun to be around. They manage to heroically deny themselves, making quick changes, only to succumb in a few months to an uncontrollable binge of delicious sins. Some are good at hiding their sins while showing a slap-able, saintly, hypocritical face to the world. Tripping when you are running is almost always dramatic and painful.

If you walk slowly in this hike of holiness, you will make slow but noticeable progress. There is nothing heroic about it. In fact, to outsiders this walk may seem boring and borderline fruitless.

The years go by, however, and you are nowhere near from where you started. After a million small, seemingly insignificant steps, your journey can take you farther than the runner who is recovering from running carelessly in the woods.

If you fall while walking slowly, chances are that you won't trip as dramatically as the maniac runner who tripped on a stone and face planted on the mud. You will get up knowing that you have countless small steps under your belt, and that after so many hours of walking, this forest is very familiar to you.

Start the journey and walk slowly. Don't underestimate the small steps. That's the way to holiness.

What to Do When You Feel Like a Failure?

As I'm starting to write this blog, I am aware of the sulkish or self-pity-poor-me feelings it might elicit in some readers. While sulking and throwing childish tantrums of self pity are certainly not recommended, the fact remains that from time to time, we all have felt like failures.

To be human is to fail. It is no wonder that we feel like failures from time to time!

So instead of feeling guilty and immature about this, I think the healthier response is to ask the question, "what to do when you feel like a failure?"

Recent events in my life and ministry left me feeling like a failure. I have been wrestling with the question of my vocation, my gifts, and how to better utilize them. All this wrestling has left in me a bitter aftertaste, a feeling of being a misfit, a feeling of failure.

In the midst of this grieving confusion, my only peace comes with God. He is the only one I can turn to in these times, the only one where I feel comfortable being completely open and vulnerable, and still have not a single part of me rejected, but accepted and loved. I have felt my calling and my gifts reaffirmed.

So What Can We do When We feel Like This?
I believe there are two things we can do whenever we feel like failures.

The first is to turn to God and be as open and vulnerable as you can be. Cry out to Him. Share every single one of your feelings, however unholy they may seem. Confess all your failings and feelings of unworthiness. After you empty yourself in this way, don't be surprised if you find grace, love and acceptance.

We know this, but experiencing radical acceptance and love by the most Perfect, Holy of holies is nothing short of transformative. You find much more than just acceptance however. You find your identity. And with identity comes confidence.

When you are able to find your confidence in Him then, what else can shake you? Accomplishments come and go. They are praised today and forgotten tomorrow. Your identity with Christ is eternal and unshakable, and nothing can or will separate you from His love.

When one is in Christ, failure is not even in the equation.

The second is to shift your attention from accomplishments to faithfulness. In our western society, productivity and goals are king and queen. We carry accomplishments after our names. We are so and so followed by "PhD" or Doctor or Rev. whatever. When we are asked who we are we respond with a job title.

We are writers. We are authors. We are painters. We are ministers. We are organizers. We are directors. We are leaders. We are janitors. We are workers. We are students. Whatever it is, our accomplishments are attached to our names.

It is not surprising that we feel like failures in moments when we lack accomplishments!

What I am trying to focus during this time of my life is in being faithful in the little things. When I'm focused on the big picture goal of accomplishing great things for God my attention is diverted from the small things He has trusted me with.

The tiniest of things, the day to day life things, these are ignored because they seem insignificant when you look at the big picture. Great paintings, however, are not painted in one, huge, single and masterful brushstroke. They are accompanied by tiny, and sometimes invisible little strokes of the brush.

One of my favorite quotes from Mother Theresa is her assertion that "God calls us not to be successful but to be faithful"

Whenever we feel like failures, pay attention to whatever God has entrusted you right now, however insignificant, however small.

Focus on that, and do it with great love. Do it with love not because you love it. Do it with love because it is what God has entrusted you with.

Here lies the secret of holiness: be faithful in the small things God has entrusted you with. Every action is a calling. Every small act an offering. Do the small things with great love, and the rest will follow.