Stigmata of St Francis 2024

Living with pain and uncertainty 

We gathered on a beach in the early morning.
Dover beach, with the sun breaking through the clouds and the sea of English Channel sparkling beautifully in the background.

We had come to celebrate 800 years since the first Franciscan friars set foot in England, bringing  the message of joy, peace and reconciliation: the  Gospel of Christ though the lens of the simplicity of St Francis.  

With joy and hope  Anglican and Catholics, the diverse family of Franciscans, met on that beach to encounter and be fed by Christ through the Bread of the Eucharist.  Yet despite the joy and anticipation of this special time we were all deeply  aware that in  the background the waters of  English Channel  had claimed so many lives.  

Human beings, just like the early friars were trying to get to the Uk in search of a different lives. 39 people having lost their lives this year.

One port chaplain shared with us the pain and trauma of rescue crews who have been traumatised by what they have witnessed in our complicated and complex world. 

800th Anniversary

Now a  few weeks later as a Franciscan family we continue our season of remembering. This time we remember the 800th anniversary of the stigmata of St Francis.

The stigmata of St. Francis symbolises the deep spiritual union between Francis and Christ, especially in sharing the sufferings of the crucifixion.

For Francis, the stigmata was a profound expression of his compassion for the world’s pain, as he sought to live in complete solidarity with the poor, the outcast, and those who suffer.

I wonder what he would have felt if he had been present on that Dover beach with us? 

In 2024, this symbolism of the stigmata remains deeply relevant for us as Franciscans. Our world faces significant challenges, poverty, conflict, environmental destruction, inequality, and widespread physical and emotional suffering. And of course the whole issue so many people across the world on the move,  migrants and refugees looking for a safe and better place to live.

The stigmata reminds us that to follow Christ is to engage deeply with the wounds of the world, to stand in solidarity with those who suffer, and to bear their burdens as our own.

Just as Francis bore the marks of Christ’s suffering in his body, we are called to bear witness to the pains of humanity today.  We are tasked with also drawing people’s attention to the pains of our world.

The stigmata serves as a call to action: to respond with compassion, to work toward justice, and to heal the wounds of our time—whether those of the earth, those inflicted by war and violence, or those of spiritual and emotional distress.

In this way, the stigmata challenges us to embrace a spirituality that is not distant from suffering but engaged with it, actively seeking the transformation of the world through love, service, and sacrifice.

The traditional story of the Stigmata of St. Francis.

According to the account given by his companion, Brother Leo, and written down in the “Fioretti” (The Little Flowers of St. Francis), Francis went on a retreat to Mount La Verna in the Apennine Mountains to prepare for the Feast of St. Michael the Archangel in September.

Seeking solitude, Francis devoted himself to intense prayer and fasting. His meditation was especially focused on the Passion of Christ and his desire to be conformed entirely to Christ’s suffering and love.

One day, while deep in prayer, Francis had a mystical vision of a seraph, a six-winged angel, descending from heaven. The seraph was crucified like Christ, and as Francis gazed upon it, he was filled with both awe and anguish.

According to the accounts, the vision communicated to Francis both the profound love of Christ’s sacrifice and the suffering it entailed. As the vision ended, Francis found that he had received the stigmata, the marks of Christ’s wounds, on his hands, feet, and side.

For the remaining two years of his life, Francis bore these wounds, which caused him both physical pain and spiritual joy. His stigmata became a powerful sign of his total identification with Christ, especially in his humility, suffering, and love for all creation.

Questions to ponder

• I wonder what your experience is of embracing with or living with the pain of others? 
• How do you sit with the pain of others? 

An image to reflect upon 

A number of years ago in a local parish an artist painted this picture in response to the crossing of migrants across the English Channel.

I invite you now to spend a time reflecting on the image.  

On the surface it looks like a simple cross. But as you look closer you will see, contained within the body of the cross, a number of outlines of small boats.

If you look even closer you will see that each boat is filled with the outlines of people. People huddled together in cramped conditions, knees bent and heads bowed. Desperate people. People at the mercy of the elements and traffickers. Some of the outlines of people have been coloured in…looking like jewels.
People.
Jewels of God.  
All special in the eyes and heart of God. 

If we spend enough time with this picture we might just begin to link the 800 years of Franciscans landing on that Dover beach with the 800 years of the Stigmata…holding the pain of people crossing that English Channel.  

We look at that cross, holding silence with God , holding before God the pain and confusion of our complicated world.  

Like Francis, we  feel and are shaped by the pain of others and ourselves.

We begin to see God in that  brokenness….allowing the hope of God’s love to shine through and transform our actions and our prayers . 

Stigmata Today 

The stigmata of St. Francis is more than a miraculous sign; it represents the depth of his love and commitment to living out the Gospel message of compassion and solidarity with those who suffer. In today’s world, marked by pain, division, and suffering, the story of Francis’ stigmata serves as a powerful reminder of the call to be close to the marginalised and those in need.

The stigmata can inspire us to bear witness to the wounds of the world—whether they are physical, emotional, or spiritual—and to act with compassion, humility, and love. 

Question to ponder

As Francis’ wounds were a visible sign of his commitment to those on the margins I wonder how the signs of pain of our world will show themselves in our lives in both prayer and action? 

I wonder what images we would draw or put on the cross? What are we asking God to heal? 

Prayers

Traditional Prayer in Honour of the Stigmata of St. Francis