Feast of St. Francis of Assisi
Church of the Gesù, Rome
October 4, 2025
How “ecumenical” of us to celebrate the feast day of St. Francis of Assisi in a Jesuit church, and not just any Jesuit church, but the Gesù. Lest you think, however, that I spent hours searching for common ground between the Franciscans and the Jesuits, let me assure you that there is much in common between the feast we celebrate and the place wherein we celebrate.
For one thing, the chapel of the Sacred Heart here in the Gesù is decorated with images depicting the life of St. Francis, thanks to the decision of St. Francis Borgia, the 3rd Jesuit Father General. The Franciscan – Jesuit nexus, however, is even more profound, for it is the Lord himself who ties together all the gifts of the Holy Spirit so as to advance the mission of his Church. The charisms of St. Francis of Assisi and St. Ignatius of Loyola differ greatly, but both of these saints consecrated themselves completely to the following of Christ in the grace of the Holy Spirit. It was their common passion that Christ be known and loved, and that the Gospel be spread to the ends of the earth.
Francis was drawn to the image of the Crucified. At the foot of the Cross, the Holy Spirit emblazoned on his spirit poverty, humility, chastity, love of the poor and closeness to creation, all combined with the evangelical mandate, “Rebuild my Church!” Through the person of Francis of Assisi, the Holy Spirit unleased into the world a fresh impetus to bear witness to Christ by living as he did, to endure sufferings willingly, as Christ did, and to leave everything behind for the sake of spreading the Gospel. There are various branches of the Franciscan family but all of them draw their life and vitality from their founder, Francis. As pilgrims of hope, let us be caught up in his perfect joy.
As was true for Francis, Ignatius of Loyola’s encounter with Christ was life-changing. St. Ignatius’ charism, one might say, was born of a cannonball. Flat on his back due to injuries from a battle, St. Ignatius was drawn to the Lord by an inward journey of discovery, an internal pilgrimage of hope, engaging all the faculties of his soul. His self-reflection was not self-absorption but a door that led him to Christ, to intimate dialog with Christ and the saints, and through this dialog to intimacy with each of the Divine Persons. Out of this kind of prayer came freedom in the Holy Spirit to embrace God’s will, a freedom that was attractive to great figures such as St. Francis Xavier and Matteo Ricci who brought the Gospel to the ends of the earth. Both Francis & Ignatius, in differing but genuine ways, encountered the Lord. Both reinvigorated the Church. Both changed the world.
What ties together these two saints for us concretely is the image of the Sacred Heart which we, the Knights of Columbus, restored. As we gaze upon the open heart of the Savior, the abyss of charity, we see abundant room for a Francis of Assisi, for an Ignatius of Loyola, for a Blessed Michael McGivney, and yes, for you and even me. Isn’t this the joy that we lay hold of today on our pilgrimage of hope? Isn’t this what gets us up in the morning, focuses our eyes on the God who loves us more than we can image, and sends us forth, each in our own way, to accomplish the mission of the Crucified?
It is that love beyond all telling into which we are immersed as we celebrate this Eucharistic liturgy, in a Jesuit church, on the feast of St. Francis of Assisi, drawn as we are to the Sacred Heart of Jesus under the constant and loving gaze of Blessed Michael McGivney. What a blessing to make this pilgrimage with you! Vivat Jesus!