Word In Life Study Bible
A PRAYER OF THE LAITY
Matt.10:7-10
But young Fancis’s live took a dramatic turn when serious illness interrupted his plans. While convalescing, he took a new and profound interest in religion. Once on his feet, he made a pilgrimage to Rome, a common discipline for the spiritually devoted.
But he was shocked at what he found there. Lepers and beggars languished in cathedrals fallen into disrepair. Moved to compassion and inspired by his newfound faith, he exercised one of the few options available to concerned laity at the time: he sold his horse and some of his father’s cloth supplies and gave the money to a local priest, assuming that the cleric would restore the buildings. But to his surprise, the priest rejected the gift when he learned it had come from the Bernadone family’s commercial ventures. To make matters worse, Francis’s father disowned him upon learning of his actions.
Penniless, he managed to find refuge with a bishop. But he continued his mission to the poor, begging enough money over a two-year span to repair four church buildings. It was during that period that he heard a sermon on Matthew 10:7–10. The text galvanized his thinking, and he made a decision to live the rest of his life as a beggar, serving the poor through preaching and healing.
His example motivated others to follow. A wealthy woman from Assisi began a sister movement, as well as one for married laity. Those who joined were reacting against widespread corruption in the church and a general confusion about the meaning and practice of spirituality for laypeople. Not all of the newcomers were sincere. Some tried to introduce changes away from a single-minded focus on the poor and unbelievers. And, as the movement became fasionable, Francis had to constantly resist the clergy’s attempts to bring the work under their auspices and “upgrade” the status of the lay workers to agents of the church.
The spirit of Francis’s vision was captured in a prayer that he penned, “Make me an instrument of Thy peace.” Today, it has become quite well known. Perhaps its popularity springs from its simple yet eloquent statement of the aspirations of a very concerned and committed layperson who determined to make a difference for God in the world as he found it.
Study notes from the Word In Life Study Bible, copyright 1993,1996, by Thomas Nelson, Inc. All rights reserved. Used by permission. The study notes from the Word In Life Study Bible appearing at this web site are for personal use only.
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