The Joy of St. Francis of Assisi (StVdP)

The Joy of St. Francis of Assisi
Reflection for St. Vincent de Paul meeting, Monday, October 5, 2015
By Dcn Bob Bonomi

Last Sunday was the feast day for St. Francis of Assisi, and although many places didn’t celebrate the feast as it was a Sunday, it is worthwhile to think a little bit about Francis’ life and the insight he can give us into the ministry of St. Vincent de Paul.

Most of you know the story of St. Francis:  how his father was a wealthy cloth merchant who wanted his son to be a businessman like him, how in his early years Francis lived the good life but he wanted more than to be rich – he wanted a life of glory and dreamed of being a noble warrior – a knight!  And we know that eventually he felt God call to him and slowly he underwent a conversion of spirit.

His spiritual journey led him into a confrontation with his father, resulting in the famed stripping off of all his clothes, donning only a hair shirt as he walked through the town.  He renounced everything, becoming a beggar.  And this is where most of us will find it difficult to understand or identify with Francis:  in giving up everything that he owned so that he had to beg for even the rags on his back or the scraps of food that he ate and turning to God, he claimed a rare and most precious gift – the gift of true happiness, the gift of joy from God.

So what does that have to do with our ministry at St. Vincent de Paul?  I think it is important that we recognize that no matter how much we help those we serve, how much we give to them, they will never be truly happy until they open their hearts to the gift of joy which can come only from God.  That is why it is SO important that, as we minister to the physical and financial needs of our clients, we also always maintain a focus in OUR minds and hearts on the need for God in their lives, and pray that GOD touches them with love and mercy.  We do not force God upon them, but rather open ourselves to let the Holy Spirit work through us.

Pope Francis’ words during Sunday’s Angelus address to the participants of the upcoming synod on the family are important to us in our ministry, too: we must keep our “eyes fixed on Jesus, in order to identify the best ways to respond to the needs and challenges of families today.”  Keep your hearts open and your eyes fixed on Jesus, and He will show you how to best respond to the needs of your clients.  And bring a smile and God’s joy with you as you serve His people.  As those who encountered St. Francis discovered, God’s joy IS contagious.