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Animal Rights History Timeline » [c485-1450] Medieval Ages » Saint Francis Assisi

Saint Francis Assisi

Jacqued de Vitry, Sermon to the Lessor Brothers

[1229-1240] Jacques de Vitry, Sermon I to the Lesser Brothers, reprinted in Francis of Assisi, Early Documents: The Saint (New York, New City Press: 1999; Google Books: Online Library of Free eBooks: Online Preview).

Our theme today is taken from Proverbs: Four thing on earth are exceedingly little, yet they are wiser than the wise: the ants ar a people without strength, yet they provide food for the harvest; the rabbits are a weak people, yet they make their bed in the rock; the locusts have no king, yet all of them march in rank; the lizard supports itself on hands, yet swells in king's houses.

Since the dignity and richness and splendor of clothing usually generate pride, just as disdain, poverty, and meanness of clothing generate humility, the less you keep of the goods of this world, the humbler and lesser you appear. Now I notice that you possess nothing in this world but a habit and a cord, nor do I see that you could have anything less. And thus, even though there are any little ones in this world, you are truly lesser [minores]; even though there are many who are wise, you are wiser than the wise…For they are wiser, who wish to imitate Christ more closely, that is, to draw closer to the divine wisdom in labors and abjection, in humility and poverty, and make themselves more closely conformable to Christ. It is they who strip themselves of majesty to take on the form of a slave; of life, to [prefer] death. Thus it is that the humility and wisdom of the saints is likened to these four little animals, which are the wisest of the wise ones of this world, that is, the ant, the rabbit, the locust, and the lizard.

Through these four animals, we can point out the four different types of brothers who lead a religious life in the friary. For some among you are simple lay bothers, who help the work of the others by the labor of their own hands or by collecting alms from the faithful. They are compared to ants, because the ant is a tiny animal but one that works very hard to gather and prepare its food.

Others are weak and infirm; they cannot work with their hands, or carry the burdens of others, or perform great penances. But they should not mistrust divine mercy: the less they have of their own, the more they can benefit from the labors of others. For this is exactly the purpose of the Communion of Saints, and especially of those who serve the Lord in one brotherhood, because the merits of each are the common property of all, just as all [the soldiers] share equally in the spoils—whether they marched in the first rank of battle or whether they were exhausted and had to remain behind to guard the baggage. Therefore the rabbit, a weak people, cannot fittingly represent those who fast, keep vigils, and perform other works of penance, but those [weak ones] who do not despair or lose hope, but make their bed in the rock and rest in the mercy of Christ, who did penance for all of us on the cross and thus supplied or our weaknesses

Others are able to labor much in mediating, reading, and praying, thus elevating themselves with he wings of reason and understanding to heavenly things. These are compared to the locusts because of the leap they make in contemplation and the flight of their sublime way of life.

Finally, others go out to preach and actively strive through their works for the salvation of their neighbors. These support themselves by hands in the manner of lizards, yet swell in the house of the heavenly king, for they have their hearts in their heavenly dwellings and yet labour for the reward of eternal life. (Saint, 586-7)