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| Giotto, Saint Francis and Death Italian, c.1320 Assisi, Church of San Francesco, Lower Church |
When I started thinking of preparing for an article about Saint Francis of Assisi I was planning a comprehensive article dealing with his life and the impact it has had on the world in the nearly 800 years since his death. My usual procedure is to begin by accumulating images from the many visual resources I have unearthed in twelve years of researching on the internet, while simultaneously reading as much as I can about the subject. I knew he was a popular saint, but had no idea how stupendously popular, nor for how long. So, here I am, a month later, with over 500 pictures to sort through and the date of his feast day upon me!1 Thus, I am forced to modify my original plans somewhat.
The fact that I easily found more than 500 images of this
man is some indication of how popular a saint he is and has been, practically
since the day of his death. There are
numerous visualizations of how he might have looked and so many different
stories to tell about him that trying to present a comprehensive presentation
of his iconography in one go is to do serious damage to all of it. For example, I had known about the great
cycle of frescoes by Giotto and his assistants in the upper and lower churches
that were begun in Assisi immediately after his canonization, but not about the
several other series of “lives” that were painted in other places and at other
times.
Therefore, what I have decided to do is to deal in this
year’s essay only with the depictions of the events surrounding the death of
Saint Francis, what is known as the “Transitus” and which is celebrated by the
followers of Saint Francis on the evening of October 3rd, as a vigil
for the celebration of his feast day, which is October 4th.
Francis of Assisi
The story of Saint Francis’ life is fairly well known, even
to non-Catholics, whether Christian or otherwise. He has been the subject of over a dozen
films, over 20 pieces of classical music and countless books (to say nothing of
hundreds of works of art).2 This level of familiarity does not
reduce the great strangeness of the story of his life, especially for the
modern mindset. Every era has focused on
the aspect of the life of Saint Francis that appeals to the people of that era.
So, for example, the image of Saint
Francis kneeling in prayer, while contemplating a skull had its greatest
diffusion during the 17th century, a period which saw the rise of
Quietism and such movements as Jansenism and Quakerism on opposite sides of the
post-Reformation Christian divide.
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Italian, c. 1295-1300 Paris, Musée du Louvre |
In our own day it is the images of Francis as the nature lover that holds sway. We love the idea of his sermon to the birds, or his pact with the wolf of Gubbio. The Canticle of Creation is one of our oft quoted texts on the beauty of the natural world in our responses to the debates on climate change and global warming. We adore the idea of his trip to north Africa to attempt to convert or at least make peace between Muslims and Christians. We love the story of how Francis created the first living Christmas crib, leading in time to the small crèches which most Christians display in their homes and churches at Christmas time. We are enamored with the idea of a Pope making Francis the patron saint of ecology and of one of his successors taking the name of Francis and writing encyclicals on ecology that take their name from Francis' aforementioned Canticle of Creation, Laudato Si.3
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| Giotto, Legend of Saint Francis, Institution of the Crib at Greccio Italian, c. 1297-1300 Assisi, Church of San Francesco, Upper Church |
However, as a society, we are not so much in love with his well attested espousal language in speaking of being married to Lady Poverty, of his radical adherence to Gospel passages that speak of owning nothing, of his preaching of repentance to the people of the towns of Italy and France, of the severe penances he imposed upon himself, of his renunciation of power in the order he had founded and, finally, of his joyful embrace of Sister Bodily Death as he lay dying, at his own request, naked and on the floor.
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| Sassetta, The Mystical Marriage of Saint Francis of Assisi Italian, 1392 Chantilly, Musée Condé |
There is nothing whimsical or goofy about the life he actually lived. Everything he did proceeded from his love for the Crucified Christ and his deep desire to follow Him as closely as possible. This love led him to a deep state of prayer and contemplation of the mystery of the Incarnation as sacrificial offering. His longing to adhere as closely as possible to the Gospel and to the life of Christ eventually led to the Stigmata, that bearing in one’s own body of the wounds of Christ of whom he was the first recipient.
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| Sassetta, Saint Francis Kneeling Before Christ on the Cross Italian, c. 1437-1444 Cleveland, Museum of Art |
The Death of Saint Francis
The earliest records of the life of Saint Francis were
written immediately after his death on October 3, 1226 by people who had known,
worked and lived with him.4 They give us a pretty good picture of
what his death was like.
From the First Life of Saint Francis, written by Thomas of Celano at the time of Francis' canonization in 1228.
“After he had rested
for a few days in the place he had so greatly longed for, and knew that the
time of death was imminent, he called to him two brethren, and his specially
loved sons and bade them in exultation of spirit sing, with a loud voice
praises to the Lord concerning death which was near… while himself, as he was
able, broke into that Psalm of David, "I cried unto the Lord with my
voice, with my voice unto the Lord I made supplication." [Ps. 142:1] But a
certain brother among the company whom the Saint loved with very great
affection and who was in great anxiety on behalf of all the brethren said to
him when he saw these things and knew that his end was approaching, "Ah,
kind father! your children remain fatherless now, and are being bereft of the
true light of their eyes! Remember then the orphans you are leaving, forgive
them all their faults and rejoice them all both present and absent with your
holy blessing!" "See, my son," answered the Saint, "God is
calling me, I remit all the offences and faults of my brethren as well absent
as present, and so far as I may, I absolve them. Proclaim this to them and
bless them all for me."
Finally, he ordered
the codex of the Gospels to be brought and asked to have the passage from the
Gospel according to John read to him beginning at the words "Six days
(sic) before the Passover, Jesus, knowing that His hour was come, that He
should pass out of this world unto the Father." Now the attendant had purposed to read this
Gospel to him before he was bidden to do so, and furthermore the book opened
first at that place, though the volume out of which that Gospel had to be read
was filled throughout with writing.
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| José Nin y Tudo, Corpse of Saint Francis of Assisi Spanish, 1897 Logono, Museo de La Rioja |
From the Legenda Major, written by Saint Bonaventure, one of Francis' early successors as leader of the Franciscans, in 1263.
Then, for that he was
about to become dust and ashes, he bade that he should be laid on sackcloth and
sprinkled with ashes. All the brethren (whose father and leader he was) came
together, and, as they stood reverently by and awaited his blessed departure
and happy consummation, his most holy soul was released from the flesh and
absorbed into the abyss of light, and his body fell asleep in the Lord. “5
“When, therefore,
during the two years after the impression of the sacred stigmata, that is, in
the twentieth year from his conversion, he had been shaped by many trials and
blows of painful sicknesses, like a stone fit to be set in the building of the
heavenly Jerusalem, …, he asked to be taken to the church of the Portiuncula,
that he might yield up the breath of life there, where he had received the
breath of grace. When he had been brought there, that he might give an example
of the truth that he had naught in common with the world, in that most severe
weakness that followed after all his sickness, he prostrated himself in fervor
of spirit all naked on the naked earth, that in that last hour, should the foe still
rise up against him, he might wrestle in his nakedness with that naked spirit.
As he lay thus on the ground, his habit of haircloth laid aside, he lifted his
face, as was his wont, toward heaven, and, wholly absorbed in that glory,
covered with his left hand the wound in his right side, that it might not be
seen, and said unto the Brethren: “I have done what was mine to do, may Christ
teach you what is yours.”
While the companions
of the Saint were weeping, stricken with keen pangs of pity, one of them, …knowing
by divine inspiration his wish, rose in haste, and taking a habit, with the
cord and breeches, brought it unto the little poor one of Christ, saying;
“These I lend you, as to a beggar, and tell you to receive them in holy
obedience.” At this the holy man rejoiced, and exulted in gladness of heart,
for he saw that he had kept faith with the Lady Poverty even to the end. Raising his hands to heaven, he glorified Christ
for, freed from all burdens, he was going unhindered to Him. For all this he
had done in his zeal for poverty, being minded to possess not even a habit,
unless it was one lent him by another. He was truly minded to be made like Christ
Crucified, Who had hung on the Cross in poverty, and grief, and nakedness. Therefore,
as at the beginning of his conversion he had stood naked before the Bishop, so
in the ending of his life he intended to quit the world naked. He charged the
Brethren that stood around him, on their loving obedience, that when they saw
that he was dead, they should leave him lying naked on the ground for so long
time as it would take a man to leisurely walk the distance of a thousand paces.
…
Then, as the hour of
his departure was fast approaching, he made all the Brethren that were in that
place be called to him and, consoling them for his death with words of comfort,
exhorted them with fatherly tenderness unto the love of God. He spoke long of
observing patience, and poverty, and fidelity to the Holy Roman Church, placing
the Holy Gospel before all other ordinances. Then as all the Brethren sat
around him, he stretched his hands over them, crossing his arms in the likeness
of the Cross, for that he did ever love that sign, and he blessed all the
Brethren, present and absent alike, in the might and in the Name of the
Crucified. He added moreover: “Be strong, all you my sons, in the fear of the
Lord, and abide in it forever. And, since temptation will come, and trials draw
nigh, blessed are they who shall continue in the works that they have begun. I
for my part make haste to go unto God, unto Whose grace I commend you all.”
When he had made an end of gentle exhortations after this wise, this man most
beloved of God asked them to bring him the book of the Gospels, and to read
unto him from the Gospel according to John, beginning at that place: “Before
the feast of the Passover.” Then he himself, as best he could, broke forth into
the words of that Psalm: “I cried unto the Lord with my voice, with my voice
unto the Lord did I make my supplication,” and went through it to the end,
saying: “The righteous shall compass me about, for Thou shalt deal bountifully
with me.”
At length, when all the mysteries had been fulfilled in him, and his most holy spirit was freed from the flesh, and absorbed into the boundless depths of the divine glory, the blessed man fell on sleep in the Lord.
…
At the hour of the
passing of the holy man, the larks, birds that love the light and dread the
shades of twilight, flocked in great numbers to the roof of the house, even
though the shades of night were then falling, and, wheeled around it for a long
while with songs even gladder than their usual, offered their witness, alike
gracious and manifest, to the glory of the Saint, who had often called them to
the divine praises.”6
Nevertheless, the images depicting his death make up a
sizeable group and they tend to focus on definite moments in the story. Among those moments are:
Saint Francis Announcing that His Death is Approaching
This is a rather unusual subject. It represents the point at which he makes his
requests: for his brothers to read to
him, for his body to be laid on the ground and striped. It is also the moment at which he proclaims
Psalm 142.
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| Saint Francis Announces His Coming Death Flemish, Late 16th Century Private Collection This painter has, surprisingly, given Saint Francis many more possessions than I suspect he actually had. But the grief of the kneeling friar and the astonishment of the friar in the doorway seem genuine. The painter has also filled the room with animals and birds all in peaceful coexistence. |
The Last Communion of Saint Francis
Also an unusual subject, as it is not mentioned in the early lives. However, it is a reasonable assumption that one of the priests of the Order or one of the clergy of Assisi would have given Francis his last Communion before death. This is the Viaticum, the food for the last journey, the last physical meeting between the recipient and Christ present in the Eucharist. Once death has occurred the person is no longer in this physical world, but is (hopefully) united with Christ in a new and tremendously superior way.
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| Agostino Carracci, The Last Communion of Saint Francis Italian, c. 1590-1596 London, Dulwich Picture Gallery |
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| Workshop of Annibale Carracci, Last Communion of Saint Francis of Assisi Italian, c. 1600 Rome, Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Antica, Palazzo Corsini |
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| Peter Paul Rubens, Last Communion of Saint Francis Flemish, c. 1619 Antwerp, Musées royaux des Beaux-Arts de Belgique |
The Moment of Death
These images show the gathering of friars around their dying or recently deceased founder. Almost every image, even the earliest, has tended to tidy the scene up. Francis does not usually lie directly on the ground as he very evidently did (from the written accounts), rather he is lying on a low bench or bed and wearing a very tidy habit. The real scene was probably a good deal messier. But the distress of the friars and others gathered at the bedside is very real.
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| Manuscript Leaf with Scenes from the life of Saint Francis of Assisi Italian, c. 1320-1342 New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art The death scene is in the upper right quadrant. |
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| Death of Saint Francis From Vie de S. Francois North French, c. 14th-15th Century Paris, Bibliotheque nationale de France MS Francais 2093, fol. 81v |
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| Casto Plasencia y Maestro, The Death of Saint Francis Mexican, c. 1885 Madrid, Museo Nacional del Prado This late 19th century depiction of the death of Saint Francis turns the moment of the saint's death into something quite operatic. |
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| José Garnelo y Alda, An Angel Attends the Corpse of Saint Francis of Assisi Spanish, c. 1906-1916 Location Unknown |
The Proving of the Stigmata
It is interesting to note that several depictions of the funeral of Saint Francis focus on the subject of proving the Stigmata. Astonishing as it may seem to us, rumor of this special gift to Saint Francis was questioned at the time. We tend to assume that people in the 13th century were not as smart or as skeptical as we are. However, the early appearance of the examination of Francis' body by what appear to be magistrates of the town should remind us that our own assumptions may not be true.
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| Giotto, Legend of Saint Francis, Verification of the Stigmata Italian, 1300 Assisi, Church of San Francesco, Upper Church |
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| Fra Angelico, The Proving of the Stigmata Italian, 1429 Berlin, Gemäldegalerie der Staatlichen Museen zu Berlin |
.jpg) |
| Sassetta, The Proving of the Stigmata From the San Sepolcro Altarpiece Italian, c. 1437-1444 London, National Gallery |
The Funeral Procession
There was a procession through the Assisi from the tiny church of the Portiuncula where Francis died, to the location of his interment.
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| Giotto, Legend of Saint Francis, Death of Saint Francis Italian, 1300 Assisi, Church of San Francesco, Upper Church Although this is called the "Death of Saint Francis" it more closely resembles the beginning of the funeral procession, as the friars pay loving tribute to their founder. Other members of the community stand ready to begin the procession. |
Saint Clare and Her Nuns Mourning Saint Francis
Along the way the procession stopped at the church of San Damiano, the place where Francis had first encountered the speaking Crucifix which sparked his conversion, and which he had given to Saint Clare as a home for the second Franciscan order, of Poor Ladies, since called Poor Clares. She and her nuns were able to pay their respects to the man who was their spiritual father. This moment of mourning became a favorite one for artists through the centuries.
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| Giotto, Legend of Saint Francis, Saint Clare and Her Sisters Mourning Saint Francis Italian, 1300 Assisi, Church of San Francesco, Upper Church |
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| Funeral of Saint Francis, Saint Clare and Her Sisters in Mourning From Vie de s. Francois North French, c. 14th-15th Century Paris, Bibliotheque nationale de France MS Francais 2093, fol. 84v |
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| Leon Benouville, Saint Clare Mourning Over the Body of Saint Francis of Assisi French, 1858 Chantilly, Musée Condé |
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| Benito Mercade y Fabregas, Saint Clare Mourning Saint Francis of Assisi Spanish, 1866 Madrid, Museo Nacional del Prado |
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| Ludovico Grillotti, Saint Clare Mourning Saint Francis of Assisi Italian, 1899 Subiaco, Church of San Francesco |
Other Stops
Additional stops also seem to have been made at the time or inserted into the story later.
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| Pseudo Jacopino di Francesco, Funeral of Saint Francis Italian, c. 1325-1350 Vatican City, Pinacoteca Vaticana |
The Interment of Saint Francis
Today the body of Saint Francis rests in the lower church of the great double church basilica that was built in the immediate aftermath of his canonization by Pope Gregory IX (who, as Cardinal Ugolino, had been the cardinal in charge of Francis during the early days of the Order). However, Francis was originally laid to rest in the church of Saint George, which had been his childhood parish.
The foundation stone of the great basilica was laid at the time of the canonization by Pope Gregory and completed sufficiently to enable the body to be moved to it on May 25, 1230.7
1. I should like to point out here that this is only a fraction of the images I found. After the first few days I eliminated from consideration most of the prints and all of the drawings, most ceramics and textiles and almost any painting of which I could not find a really good reproduction. Considering that I also visited only about a quarter of the sites that are probably relevant, the actual sum is probably in the hundreds, if not the thousands.
2. These figures represent a quick check of the Wikipedia article on Saint Francis of Assisi, which lists the most important of these items. There are doubtless many more in all categories.
3. Pope Saint John Paul II declared Saint Francis to be the patron saint of ecology on November 9, 1979 ( http://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/la/apost_letters/1979/documents/hf_jp-ii_apl_19791129_inter-sanctos.html) . Jorge Mario Bergoglio was elected Pope on March 13, 2013 and took the name of Francis. He has written the encyclicals Laudato Si (whose title comes straight from the Canticle of Creation, dated May 23, 2015; http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/encyclicals/documents/papa-francesco_20150524_enciclica-laudato-si.html ) and Fratelli tutti (released, on October 3, 2020, the vigil of the feast of Saint Francis, at the tomb of Saint Francis, with a title taken again from the words of Saint Francis, and dealing with human fraternity; http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/encyclicals/documents/papa-francesco_20201003_enciclica-fratelli-tutti.html).
4. Thomas of Celano, Julian of Speyer, Saint Bonaventure, and the Fioretti or Little Flowers of Saint Francis.
5. Thomas of Celano, The First Life of Saint Francis, c. 1228-1229. See https://dmdhist.sitehost.iu.edu/francis.htm
6. Saint Bonaventure, The Life of Saint Francis of Assisi, Translated by E. Gurney Salter, New York, E. P. Dutton, 1904. Found at https://www.ecatholic2000.com/bonaventure/assisi/francis.shtml I have edited it slightly to modernize the language somewhat and have clipped some sentences that do not contribute directly to the narrative. The clipped material is indicated by ellipses (…).
7. Robinson, Paschal. "St. Francis of Assisi." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 6. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1909. (http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/06221a.htm).
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