A Saint for all Seasons: Saint Francis Lives!
Approaching the 800th anniversary of St. Francis’ passing on October 4th, A Saint for All Seasons examines the enduring relevance of Franciscan spirituality. Authored by former First Order friar and current TSSF member John-Francis Friendship, this volume draws on early Franciscan writings to translate the saint's ancient wisdom into actionable reflections for contemporary readers.
John-Francis shares some reflections on what we can learn from St Francis’ teaching and an excerpt from his book below.
We also have two upcoming events to support this anniversary and deepen our learning from St. Francis:
Radical Attentiveness: Franciscan Spirituality and Spiritual Practices with Dr Michael Hahn on Friday 2 October 2026.
LCSD Book Club: The Way of the Desert Elders with David Towns & Fiona Koefoed-Jespersen on Monday 19 October, 2 November, 16 November
“Why you? Why does the world run after you?”
That, according to The Little Flowers of Saint Francis, was the question Friar Masseo asked St. Francis—and it is a question we might still ask today.
From Popes like Francis (an Ignatian) and Leo (an Augustinian) to English artists like Stanley Spencer and martyrs like John Bradburne SFO, this counter-cultural saint continues to fascinate across every boundary, appealing equally, of course, to modern writers like the Franciscan friar Richard Rohr OFM.
In a world where powerful men feed on greed and wars consume lives, Francis’ prayerful mantra, Deus, meus et omnia (“My God and All”), echoes in people’s hearts. Though, he was initially unsure whether he was called to a life of preaching or a life of prayer, he adopted the former after seeking the wisdom of St. Clare and Br. Sylvester. However, this didn’t prevent him continuing to develop a profound life of prayer both cataphatic and apophatic.
Francis’s ability to see God in all created things led to him writing his great Canticle of the Creatures, which is often sung in the words of ‘All creatures of our God and King’. But he didn’t just see the Creator in creation, he venerated the Creator in creation – his view of life was profoundly sacramental, something often forgotten when people talk about Francis’s “love of animals”.
There is no specific Franciscan way to pray but there are a variety of foci, the earliest being his commitment to poverty. He was about 24 when he encountered “Lady Poverty”, and it was his love for her – and love generally – which energised his life and his relationship with God-in-Christ. We know he reflected on what he experienced as he wandered the countryside and became more conscious of his interior life and the wider world – especially in its brokenness. But it took time for what he observed with his bodily eye to become visible to his heart’s gaze, and it was this shift – from seeing to contemplating – that led him to respond and led him to being hailed as the Patron of the Ecological movement.
‘Conversio morum’
Shortly afterwards Francis heard Jesus speaking to him from the crucifix of San Damiano, followed closely by meeting a leper, both encounters mark important ‘transitions’ in his life of prayer. The Legend of the Three Companions records how, consequently, he ‘did violence’ to himself which indicates this desire to overcome his unconverted ‘self’ – a phrase reflecting his fierce desire to overcome his unconverted self and become a humble, "lesser" brother. This mirrors the wisdom of the Desert Elders and monastic way of conversio morum : the transition from self-pride to humility. Realising the necessity of frequent retreats to meditate on Christ’s presence, he wrestled with a core question: was he called to a purely contemplative life, or an active apostolic one?
While we don’t know every detail of how his prayer practice evolved, by the time he was 27 and wrote his First Rule, the Divine Office was central. That Francis adopted this monastic practice shows how he realised the value of praying in this way and led him to develop his own Office of the Passion.
Widening perspectives
Overt time, Francis came to recognise his at-oneness with nature leading him to see its sacramentality – it expressed Christ’s hidden presence. His writings are saturated with references to the Blessed Sacrament, showing an increasing love for Christ’s hidden presence in material things and the full effects of the Incarnation (Colossians 1:15-20). He sang of this in his Canticle of Creation, completed just before his Transitus, making his final transition from secular troubadour to one who sings God’s praises, from a transformed and enlightened heart.
‘O wonderful loftiness and stupendous dignity! O sublime humility! O humble sublimity! The Lord of the universe, God and the Son of God, so humbles Himself that for our salvation He hides Himself under an ordinary piece of bread! Brothers, look at the humility of God, and pour out your hearts before Him! Humble yourselves that you may be exalted by Him! Hold back nothing of yourselves for yourselves, that He Who gives Himself totally to you may receive you totally! ‘
(St. Francis, Letter to the Entire Order, c.1225-26)
Suffering, death, and glory
This Octocentenary reminds us of how deeply Francis’s spirituality was shaped by the suffering and death of Christ. Receiving the Stigmata two years before his death marked his transition from desiring Love to understanding the true cost of Love. St. Bonaventure later declared that Francis had become a "living icon" of the crucified Lord (Legenda Maior, Ch. 13, Sec. 3)—a final transition into the likeness of the One he loved. He had moved from being an active servant to a humble mystic, transformed from self-centeredness to being utterly God-centered. From active servant he had become the humble mystic.
The Octocentenary
The official logo takes the form of the Tau because it reminds us of the daily passage from death to Life and the way in which we have been redeemed…
In Assisi and across the globe, the 800th anniversary of his Transitus (celebrated on October 3rd, 2026) will be marked by celebrations, lectures, and pilgrimages. Francis's appeal remains as vital as ever, especially in light of Pope Francis’s encyclical, Laudato Si’.
To mark this milestone, Third Order of the Society of St Francis commissioned a new book, A Saint for All Seasons, exploring what Francis might be saying to us today. It’s addressed to a wider ecumenical audience and contains a brief biography for any who may not know much about him. But it mostly concerns the major themes of his life together with his words and exhortations as recorded in various original texts. Francis’ attitude to Poverty and Penance, Creation and Contemplation, Evangelism, the Eucharist and the Virtues together with Hope for a New World and Perfect Joy are all addressed – and each include the question – what is Francis saying to us (and to me) today?
John-Francis Friendship
John-Francis Friendship TSSF (a former tutor on the Encounter Course), was a member of the Society of St. Francis – First Order (i.e. he wore the brown habit) – for twenty-five years during which time he gained an immense respect for and delight in the ‘Little Poor Man’. After being released from his vows he joined the Third Order because “you can take the man out of the Franciscans but you can’t take Francis out of the man.”
His book, “A Saint For All Seasons” is available to order now.