St. Francis of Assisi and my late uncle

A Reflection for the Memorial of St. Francis of Assisi

Find today’s readings here.

I never met my Uncle Jamie. He died in 1963, well before I was born. He was my father’s eldest brother. Growing up, my aunts and uncles would, on occasion, tell stories about Jamie. Pretty much all of the stories were good, so he’s always seemed like some kind of saint. 

I’ve collected details here and there about him. My father told me last year, for example, that Jamie loved James Baldwin. And I’ve always associated St. Francis of Assisi with my late uncle. They had cards with the Prayer of St. Francis of Assisi on them at his funeral, I’m told. And he had a sticker of the prayer on one of his dresser drawers. 

Turns out, St. Francis did not write that prayer. And he may not have said, “Preach the Gospel at all times. If necessary, use words.” But both the prayer and the quote reflect the spirituality of the medieval saint. We have so many ways to remember St. Francis. His death is memorialized every year during Transitus services, his beautiful “Canticle of the Creatures” is still sung—and of course there’s the annual pet blessings and the St. Francis statues that populate gardens everywhere. Not to mention the thousands of Franciscans throughout the world who carry on his legacy, and the prominence of Nativity scenes, which he developed. The list goes on.

Less known, perhaps, are the stories of St. Francis casting out demons. He was a stigmatist. He chose to live a life of poverty to be more like Jesus. In so many ways, St. Francis emulated Jesus, and to this day inspires others to do so as well. His earthly life may have ended centuries ago, but we can still ask him and other saints to intercede for us today. 

These rituals, I think, point to a reality that’s hard to comprehend. Our relationship with our brothers and sisters certainly changes when they die. But the relationship does not have to end.

I grew up seeing black and white photographs of my Uncle Jamie. More recently, I saw an image of him printed in 1958 in the Chicago Tribune. Jamie was dancing with his steady girlfriend at the time. Reading the comments about him in the email thread, everyone spoke so well of him. 

I’m pretty sure Jamie wasn’t quite as perfect as he seems in the stories. But I get the feeling he’s probably in heaven—with St. Francis and the other saints (and James Baldwin). Holy men and women challenge us to follow Jesus as they did. 

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