27th Sunday of Ordinary Time: Francis of Assisi- The Marvel of Human Life

This weekend we celebrate the feast day of one of the most beloved figures in our faith, Francis of Assisi (Oct 4th), one of those rare saints who transcends Catholicism and even Christianity. There are numerous reasons that he is beloved, but for many, it’s his association with animals and nature that makes him so appealing. I’ve heard it suggested that we’ve reduced the him to only that, though—merely a tree-hugging and whimsical hippie, skipping through the woods, singing, “Make me a channel of your peace….”, when in fact, there is a whole lot more to the real Francis of Assisi.

For example, although he greatly valued poverty and afforded nothing for himself, he wanted the best, most beautiful sacred vessels for use in the Eucharist.[1] We can similarly reduce our Lord Jesus in this way, giving regard only for his words and actions that give us comfort, forgetting those that would challenge us and call us to reform our lives.

On this Respect Life Sunday, I wonder: What would Francis of Assisi have to say about the cause of human life? Yes, we know he loved the creatures of the earth, the elements of creation—brother wind, sister water, brother fire, mother earth[2] adorned with varied fruits and flowers—but what about human life?

One way of answering that is to consider how he marveled at the mystery of the incarnation: that God loved us so much that He humbled Himself to take on our human flesh. We say it so often, yet how seldom we consider the implication, but Francis simply couldn’t get past it: Wow….God willed to become human!

Some people prefer to be around animals more than they do other people. On some level, I get it: People are difficult and problematic. Many of us would say that if it weren't for people, this world would be in a much better state. On the other hand, animals don’t argue with us or challenge our choices. But what I also know, is that we are called to follow the example of Jesus, and if you look throughout the Gospels, you see that Jesus did not isolate himself from the chaos of humanity to find comfort in the simpler creatures. He immersed himself in the problems of humanity and almost everyone that he made time for, had serious problems.

Again, all that—the example of Francis of Assisi, as well as the life of Jesus— what does it tell us about the dignity and worth of the human person? One way of saying it is that life is gift from God, despite its complexities and difficulties.

Let’s be honest: in our experience of it today, there tensions and even confusion about the issues surrounding human life. For one thing, these issues are often appropriated into politics, some by the right and others by the left. But way before these become political issues, they were matters of faith, because they were human life issues.

And of all these related issues surrounding life, whether appropriated by right-leaning or left-leaning politics—among them, assisted suicide, the trading of arms, death penalty, the drug war, the discarding of living embryos, immigration reform, the selling of women in human trafficking and whatever else—I’ve heard it said that we unfairly reduce Respect Life matters to the issue of abortion. To be clear, abortion is not the only crisis related to the issue of life. All of these mentioned demand our attention, our efforts, our prayer. But maybe abortion gets disproportionately more attention because of two principle reasons.

First, because of the sheer numbers involved. According to statistics compiled by Worldometers, there were over 42.3 million abortions world-wide in 2019 (115,000 per day).[3] That’s more than the population of Issaquah and Sammamish combined, each day.

But secondly, it violates our principle about life so egregiously because it’s one person in the family bringing death upon another. Regardless of how much either the father or mother may influence this fateful decision, it’s a family member bringing about death of another. And this stings so greatly because family, by God’s design, is intended to be the sacred cell that forms human society.

And despite how it’s presented to us, the vast majority of abortions are not the result of rape, incest, or the health of the baby. Most often it’s driven by fear or because the baby presents an inconvenience. Please know, the aim in desiring an end to abortion is not to diminish a woman’s personal freedoms. It’s foremost, to ensure the baby’s personal rights. If one doesn’t first have a right to live, all other rights we desire serve no purpose. I can only imagine the fears associated with an unexpected and even, unwanted pregnancy, but while the answers aren’t easy, the solution does not lie in taking a life.

Please know, I don’t stand here condemning. In my own way, I’m part of the problem. I lose sight of the principles of life and allow the issues to overwhelm and confuse me. In my own way, I’m part of what contributes to our ‘throwaway culture’, as Pope Francis termed it, in which the youngest and the oldest—the weakest among us—are too often discarded. I fail to sufficiently witness to what is good, true and beautiful about life. But despite all my failings, I promise and pledge to lovingly try to help you in any way you struggle with these issues, and further, to try to help you find healing in any way you need it.

What would Francis of Assisi have to say about the cause of human life? I believe he would remind us of the dumfounding truth that God loves us so much that he loved us into existence and even more, became one of us. Therein lies our fundamental dignity and worth. May it never be lost on us.

[1] https://catholicexchange.com/st-francis-of-assisi-lover-of-the-eucharist

[2] Francis of Assisi, Canticle of the Sun

[3] https://www.lifenews.com/2019/12/31/abortion-was-the-leading-cause-of-death-worldwide-in-2019-killing-42-million-people/