I’ve always wondered why one of Italy’s favorite saints sounds like he is from France. There are many stories that surround his early life but Francis was born with the name Giovanni or John. He was born while his father, a textile importer, was away in France. When his father came home he named the little son Francesco, which means “the Frenchman,” because he was so pleased with all the money he had made in France. So the child from that day was always called Francesco and he was canonized under that name. Assisi is a medieval city built on a hill as a means to protect itself from it waring neighbor, Perugia. By following the narrow steep streets and alleyways, one will always find their way to a piazza or a church. Upon arrival, we offered Holy Mass in the Lower Basilica of San Francesco - a mean 50 feet from the tomb of the Saint it is named after. Many other pilgrims ambulated around us to pray at the tomb and many of the other altars.
Our hotel, Hotel Subasio, was at the edge of Piazza San Francesco. After a huge pranzo, under a tree canopy and overlooking the valley, we set out to visit the many other churches in and outside the city. First, I travelled to Santa Chiara (St. Clare) to pray in front of the Cross of San Damiano. This was the cross that spoke to San Francesco - “Go Francis, and repair my house; as you see it is falling into ruin.” This cross was originally in the Church of San Damiano, about one km outside the city walls in the valley. I made a stop at this location as a few more churches before calling it a day. The next day we hiked up the mountain to the Franciscan Hermitage. The walk took over an hour and felt like a real pilgrimage. There was beauty in the nature as well as the people. Youth groups would gather at the altars outside for Mass. People young and old would walk through the paths with their rosaries in hand. The atmosphere at both the hermitage and in the town was very special. The spirit of Francesco is still very much alive in Assisi and in Italy. One last note: while we were in Assisi being in awe of the power Francesco had on the world and the church, we were praying for the people of Florida who were in awe of the destruction that Frances created in their worlds. The juxtaposition was to strong not to point out.