GRECCIO CHRISTMAS EVE

        This Christmas Eve we will celebrate the 800th anniversary of St. Francis establishing the living Christmas crib in Greccio.

        Why was Francis in Greccio that Christmas Eve 1223? Was it because after a long struggle the Holy Father Honorious III signed the definitive rile of the Order of Friars Minor? Most probably yes, possibly no. Had he been in Rome for the event? There is no question that he was in Greccio.

        As he pondered what he would do that Christmas Eve, did Francis speak with Brother Leo his personal secretary, confessor, companion and friend about his days in the recent past with Brother Illuminato and his visit to Bethlehem? Absolutely yes. Did he recount all the places they walked with the consent of Sultan Malik al Kamil? Surely. Following Jesus's footprints and His poverty was a personal mantra of Francis.

        Among the many ailments which he endured, Francis was losing his vision. Yet, as he progressed home to Assisi, his inner vision and insight were gaining significant acuity.

        Francis asked the former knight, Lord John of Velita, to send to him an ox and ass with some hay to help in this celebration. Inviting the brothers and neighbors, Francis, a deacon, preached so eloquently of "the babe of Bethlehem". Having himself experienced that cold, odor and the inconveniences of that Bethlehem cave, Francis's word stirred and rekindled anew the awareness of the gift of the very Word made Flesh. Brother Thomas of Celano wrote that the people received a new consolation and then mentioned that the Lord John claimed to have seen the child awaken at the words of Francis and that He had previously been forgotten by many. (1Celano 84-86)

        But what was Francis doing that night? Was he, via the vehicle of an ox and ass, challenging the Manichean belief that Jesus was not truly a human but only an angel? Would an angel need to be kept warm by the body and the breath of an ox and an ass? Was Francis challenging the Cathar belief that matter material was evil by having the Eucharist celebrated in that place?

        Darleen Pryds, Ph.D, of the Franciscan School of Theology, adds to this our awareness of the other people in this fresco (below). I admit that I have hardly paid much attention to them as I still find the breast feeding of the child by his mother shocking for that time and place and offer my own personal praise to the friars for allowing this fresco to remain as a model and lesson for all these years. Darleen offers the name of the knight, John, and that of his wife, Alticama.

        Last June, I was there with Fr. Steve McMichael, OFM Conv leading a pilgrimage. We both arrived at the cave at the same time for a bit of private time and prayer. He asked me if I had ever noticed that Mary Magdalene was also in the fresco which I had not. (Mary Magdalene was a favorite saint of Francis.) Then I did also take note of the TAU cross on Brother Leo's vestment, yet another reminder that the Tau was the sign under which P. Innocent III inaugurated the IV Lateran Council, one in which transubstantiation was defined for the first time. (The Tau was the sign that Francis used as his personal signature.)

        In conclusion, Dr. Pryds offers us this gem: "I learned that Francis often passed through the Rieti Valley with its many hamlets and villages and found a special connection with the people of Greccio because of their faith". Yes, I said when I read this in her recent article in "St. Anthony Messenger". That is the missing ingredient, their faith. To paraphrase the Gospel, "their message goes out to all the earth" - neighbors, fiends and Franciscans bringing the message of Greccio then and now.

        Shall we conclude this reflection singing? "Joy to the world the Lord has come".

Bro. Tom Barton, OSF

Franciscan Brothers of Brooklyn