St. Francis is worth writing about for two days. When I had been a priest for about two years I was at my mom's house and when it was time to go I said, "I need to get home." I could tell by the look on her face that she was not pleased that I referred to the rectory as home and not the place where I grew up. This happens to most people. It makes me think about the meaning of home. St. Francis left his father's housein a very radical way. As much as he loved his family his true home was in heaven and his true father was our heavenly Father. For the rest of his life he was a mendicant, one who travels from place to place calling no place home. We are not all called to this form of life, but it is an excellent reminder that our true home is in heaven and we are on a journey. Francis always strove to live a life of poverty so that he would never be tied down to any earthly thing. This gave him the freedom to always be moving forward to his true home. While we all struggle against hunger and the needs of the body we should always remember that these things are passing away.
Fr. Jim