![]() Today is the birthday of one of my most beloved dudes, St. Francis of Assisi. In honor of this special day, I would like to draw your attention to the image on the right, which appears among the many frescoes in the Basilica of St. Francis. Here, you can see that the great saint has three hands! I first came across this unusual image while visiting Assisi in 2003. As I contemplated it, I heard the following words, as if St. Francis himself were speaking directly to me, "If you offer your two hands in service to the Lord, He will provide you with a third." The significance of this statement is that giving away your gifts to others in the spirit of selfless service causes these gifts to multiply. In his 2011 book, Flourish, psychologist Martin Seligman observes, "We scientists have found that doing a kindness produces the single most reliable momentary increase in well-being of any exercise we have tested." He recounts the tale of a childhood friend whose mother would tell him, whenever he was in a bad mood, to go out and help someone. If there is a single incontrovertible fact in spiritual life, it is that those who act for the benefit of others reap the greatest benefit for themselves. When we give away something of value, we open ourselves to the flow of even greater gifts. It is as if we transform oursleves into a conduit through which these gifts flow freely into the world. In the words of St. Francis, we become an "instrument of peace." The famous Prayer of St. Francis concludes with the following words: For it is in giving that we receive. It is in pardoning that we are pardoned, and it is in dying that we are born to Eternal Life. Amen. To honor this wise teacher, let's give away something of ourselves, beginning with a simple act of kindness or forgiveness. In doing so, we follow his simple prescription for turning hate into love, doubt into faith, despair into hope, darkness into light, and sadness into joy. Happy Birthday, Saint Francis!
6 Comments
Daisy
1/19/2019 01:45:20 pm
I love St Francis and this early painting of the good saint.....but why did the artist paint St Francis with three hands ? ...does anyone know why ? Is there a story passed down through word of mouth about this ?
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Martin E Flum
2/9/2021 08:26:58 pm
The tear in St. Francis' habit is revealing the wound of the stigmata in his side..... just as Christ was pierced thru.
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Daisy
2/10/2021 03:31:25 am
Thankyou for your thoughts on this . That is interesting , a possibility and I am considering it , :) , but I am still not convinced . It really does look like another hand going around his waist and over the top of his habit .
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Brother Joshua
1/19/2024 03:21:48 pm
Hello there, brothers and sisters in Christ! Franciscan here. To answer the question above about the "third hand", I assure you that it was painted and intentionally depicted as a tear in the habit, thus revealing the side wound of the stigmata. However, also note that most modern Franciscan theologians accept that the myth of St. Francis's stigmata was a later addition symbolizing his unity to Christ, as he likely died of tuberculoid leprosy as a direct result of caring for the lepers that resided in community outside of the walls of Assisi. This doesn't negate or discredit the life and teachings of St. Francis, obviously, just as the wounds of Jesus are not necessary to prove the legitimacy of his teachings and divinity.
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Frank
12/27/2024 07:54:00 am
What is he holding? Is it a Bible ?
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