On the way
13. Oktober 2008
Three simple words, but they can describe the whole life of St. Francis, who started to go his way to God in his younger days. The "Transitus ceremony", which remembers the death of St. Francis and which is traditionally celebrated in the evening of October 3rd, the day and the hours when St. Francis died in 1226, should the participants remember, that they also are on the way and invited to follow the steps of the poor saint. » to picture gallery
The "Transitus ceremony" of our community took place at our site at Maria Lanzendorf, where the styrian group from our site at Trössing / Gnas and the participants of Maria Lanzendorf came together and spent, more or less, the whole day together. After lunch, the participants listened to a lecture about St. Francis way to God, given by P. Ignaz Domej. After God had opened the heart of the saint, he has decided to go his way - a way of love. He left honour and reputation, he left opulence and richness, he lived in poorness, but in love. And he saw Gods love - everywhere and in all of His creatures!
The lord lead him to lepers, and in the sick people the saint saw the "leprous Christ", who needed him - and in that moment the real world became his way to God. At the cross of San Damiano, St. Francis came to know how great Gods love to man is, and there he realized, that his way was to live in the faith of Gods love, to follow His mission: Renew my church.
In the presence of the bishop, he gave back all his clothes to his own father and put himself, naked as he was, into the arms of his celestial father. This was his birth to a new life.
At the Chapel of Portiuncula, the "speach of mission" (see Mat., Chap. 10) inspired him to say: "That is, what I want to do, with all my power". And from now on, he lived as itinerant preacher to tell the people about Gods love. Because he truly lived what he said, and because God was with him, the people opened their hearts to him, and soon, a great number of brothers followed him.
The Holy bible lead him to a closer and closer relation to God. St. Francis put his way into the arms of Christ, and on his way he even came to the Sultan of Egypt.
Towards the end of his life, St. Francis lived hidden in the love of God at La Verna and at San Damiano, in a small thatched cottage, and there, he became more and more similar the "leprous Christ". And Christ transformed him more and more to his own image (1224: stigmatisation at La Verna). After he had given back all his belongings, and these belongings consisted only of his habit, St. Francis died in absolut poorness in the evening of October 3rd, 1226 at San Damiano near Assisi at the age of about 45 years. He died in poorness, but full of love and in peace with all creatures. He blessed and still blesses the whole world.
After having prayed the rosary and after the celebration of the holy mass, the ceremony ended with the benediction with a relic of St. Francis, given individually to each person.