Fr Ben Garren

Siblings in Christ,

The legacy of Saint Francis, Saint Claire, and the Franciscan Orders they founded is so exceptionally part of Christianity that at this point it is difficult for us to understand what the church would be without them. We can find praise to Saint Francis given by those who have no other relationship to the faith and statuary calling to mind his devotion to simplicity and concern for creation. Amidst this it is important to realize that, initially, what Francis was doing was not exceptionally unique.

In the years before Francis many groups formed, and thrived for a time, calling for reform of the church, a simpler life, greater focus on the patterns of the created order and our relationship with such. The Poor Men of Lyon were one such group, whose leader was Peter Waldo. These groups, that predated Waldo and came after him, are known as Waldensians. They continued to exist, if not necessarily thrive, century after century and were eventually quietly incorporated into the Protestant Reformation. There are many good resources text on Church History that barely mention them, if at all.

While the differences between the The Poor Men of Lyon and the Franciscans are several what is understood to be the crucial difference is how both groups responded to the idea of oversight by the church. Francis worked with the Pope and Bishops to make his work part of the greater work of the Church, in obedience to it while also critical of it. Waldo and his followers refused such obedience and desired his followers to live in a state of critique without relationship, pure from the failings of the Church.'

On this Day of St Francis we are called to critique the monumental short comings of the church to live out the Gospel... just as Francis and Waldo did. Amidst this, however, we need to remember the importance of our relationship with the problematic reality of the church, understand we are not capable of being purer than it, and continue to care for it amidst its failings. It is by this relationship, Francis maintained, that we are able to bring our witness to history about the love of Christ and the constant need to reform the worldly reality of the church we love.

Pax,
—Ben