This is the fifth in a series of posts sharing information and perspectives on the lives of Saints Francis and Clare, life in Assisi and seeking to follow Franciscan values in today's world.
Gospel Quote - Matthew 5: 38-42. "You have heard that it was said: 'An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.' But I say to you: Offer no resistance to someone who is wicked. If someone strikes you on your right cheek, turn and offer him the other cheek as well. If anyone wishes to sue you to gain possession of your tunic, give him your cloak as well. If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him for a second mile.Give to anyone who begs from you, and do not turn your back on anyone who wishes to borrow from you."
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Umbrian Adventures - Each year millions visit the Basilicas of Saints Francis and Clare in Assisi. Just a little off the main road between the Basilicas, tucked away in a quiet corner of town, is the Church of Santa Margherita.
For several years there was a weekday evening Mass at Santa Margherita, with four or five senior ladies attending regularly, at times with this writer being the only other congregant present. They would unlock the door, prepare the altar and begin reciting the rosary before the priest arrived (and heaven help any guest priest who tried to start Mass on time if the rosary hadn't been completed). They would assist in the readings, including vespers, which were included in the Mass. Franciscans have been ministering to the congregation at Santa Margherita since the Thirteenth Century. Records indicate the church was already in existence in 1246, or not long after the very first Franciscan.
In recent years I've attended the Easter Vigil Mass at Santa Margherita, in front of which is a small piazza overlooking the Basilica of Saint Francis.
While thousands attend Easter Vigil services at the Basilica, Santa Margherita offers a more intimate gathering, mostly of locals and nuns from surrounding convents. Here's a glimpse of the interior early before a Vigil service, always beautiful and hope-filled.
Santa Margherita has seating for about 70 people. Although, one year there were already some 100 persons present when a scout troop of about 30 arrived. Needless to stay, it was standing room only, in very close quarters, wonderful none-the-less.
The Santa Margherita altar stone once rested over the tomb of Saint Francis. For all the beauty, art, history and splendor of the larger churches, the Church of Santa Margherita seems a place Francesco would have loved to visit.
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Reflections - Several years ago I came across a small church in the hamlet of Pieve San Nicolo, north of Assisi, in the direction of Gubbio. The following document was posted out front.
Loosely translated, the poster asks, "When will I find the time to think of God?" The frames read: (1) Too young to think of God. (2) Too confident to think of God. (3) Too tired to think of God. (4) Too happy to think of God. (5) Too busy to think of God. (6) Too late to think of God.
It's a good reminder of how easily God can slip to the edge of our thoughts as we focus on all of life's responsibilities, joys and challenges. Better to begin with prayer, keeping God at the center of our thoughts, before moving on with everything else.
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Something Franciscan - Beneath the Lower Church of the Basilica of Saint Francis is the crypt where his remains are interred. On many days thousands of visitors file down stairs, through the crowded crypt and back up other stairs. However, if one is staying in Assisi, and arrives at about 6:00 a.m., when the doors of the Basilica open, one may visit his crypt with few, if any, other visitors about. Occasionally, early morning Masses are celebrated in the close confines of the crypt, but usually those present simply engage in quiet prayer. Upstairs from the crypt, in the Lower Church, a 7:15 a.m. weekday Mass is celebrated.
Pax et bonum.
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