Saint Francis of Assisi had a miraculous ability to speak to birds!
Saint Francis of Assisi really did have the gift of being able to communicate with birds.🐦
An excerpt from “Saint Francis of Assisi: The Reluctant Saint”, by Donald Spoto.
Saint Francis really did talk to birds and they listened to him❗💜💛💙Pp- 100-101 in the Donald Spoto biography.
This experience was observed by the men who were with Francis while they were walking back to Assisi from their visit in Rome with Pope Innocent III.
Francis topped on the road between Bevagna and Connara, about six miles south of Assisi. Annoyed at the indifference of so many people and dejected at the apparent failure of all their efforts, Francis announced that he would probably have a more respectful hearing from the birds- which is exactly what happened. The event, one of the oldest documented in his life and perhaps the most often represented in art, has been sentimentalized out of all proportion t his deeper truth. But, once the veil of romance has been lifted, it revels an important motif in the life of Francis:
There was a great multitude of birds of different types gathered including doves, crows and other commonly called manaclae (Jackdaws or magpies). When Francis saw them he ran swiftly toward them, leaving his companions on the road. He was a man of great fervor, feeling much sweetness and tenderness even toward lesser irrational creatures. When he was already very close, seeing that they awaited him, he greeted them in his usual way, “The Lord Give You Peace”. He was quite surprised, however, because the birds did not take flight as they usually do. Filled with great joy, he humbly requested that they listen to the word of God.
“My brother birds (he said) you should greatly praise your Creator and love Him always. He gave you feathers to wear, wings to fly and whatever you need. God made you noble among His creatures and gave you a home in the purity of the air, so that thought you neither sow nor reap, He nevertheless protects and governs you without your least care”
The birds stretched their necks, spread their wings, openedd their beaks and looked at him. He passed through their midst, coming and going, touching their heads and bodies with his tunic. Then he blessed them and having made the sign of the cross gave them permission to go off to another place….And, from that day on, he carefully exhorted all birds all animals, all reptiles and also insensible creatures to praise and love the Creation
On another occasion at a village called Alviano, Francis was about to preach to a crowd.
But a large number of swallows nesting there were shrieking and chirping. Since the people could not hear Francis, he said to the noisy birds, “My sister swallows, now is the time for me to speak, since you have already said enough. Listen to the word of the Lord and stay quiet and calm…” Immediately those little birds fell silent, to the amazement and surprise of all present, and they did not move from that place until the sermon was over.
Birds were not the only beneficiaries of Francis’s extraordinary attention. The wild beasts harmed by others used to flee to him and they found in his presence solace and their trials….He often freed lambs and sheep from the threat of slaughter because of the graciousness he felt towards the simplicity of thir nature. All creatures tried to return the saint’s love and to respond to his kindness with their gratitude. They smiled when he petted them, they granted his requests and they obeyed when he commanded them….He called animals by the name of brother and sister, although he preferred the gentle kind of animals above all others. The accounts of Francis’s life are all filled with such moments.
In the footnotes, (page 231) the author Spoto writes: (Another) version by the English chronicler Roger Wendover, was written very soon after Francis of Assisi’s death, His version describes how Francis left Rome and on the outskirts found birds of prey and at his holy presence, they listened to him. This occurred consecutively for three days and when they heard of it, the Romans bought him back to the city and listened to him again, “and their hearts were softminded and changed.”
An excerpt from “Saint Francis of Assisi: The Reluctant Saint”, by Donald Spoto.
Saint Francis really did talk to birds and they listened to him❗💜💛💙Pp- 100-101 in the Donald Spoto biography.
This experience was observed by the men who were with Francis while they were walking back to Assisi from their visit in Rome with Pope Innocent III.
Francis topped on the road between Bevagna and Connara, about six miles south of Assisi. Annoyed at the indifference of so many people and dejected at the apparent failure of all their efforts, Francis announced that he would probably have a more respectful hearing from the birds- which is exactly what happened. The event, one of the oldest documented in his life and perhaps the most often represented in art, has been sentimentalized out of all proportion t his deeper truth. But, once the veil of romance has been lifted, it revels an important motif in the life of Francis:
There was a great multitude of birds of different types gathered including doves, crows and other commonly called manaclae (Jackdaws or magpies). When Francis saw them he ran swiftly toward them, leaving his companions on the road. He was a man of great fervor, feeling much sweetness and tenderness even toward lesser irrational creatures. When he was already very close, seeing that they awaited him, he greeted them in his usual way, “The Lord Give You Peace”. He was quite surprised, however, because the birds did not take flight as they usually do. Filled with great joy, he humbly requested that they listen to the word of God.
“My brother birds (he said) you should greatly praise your Creator and love Him always. He gave you feathers to wear, wings to fly and whatever you need. God made you noble among His creatures and gave you a home in the purity of the air, so that thought you neither sow nor reap, He nevertheless protects and governs you without your least care”
The birds stretched their necks, spread their wings, openedd their beaks and looked at him. He passed through their midst, coming and going, touching their heads and bodies with his tunic. Then he blessed them and having made the sign of the cross gave them permission to go off to another place….And, from that day on, he carefully exhorted all birds all animals, all reptiles and also insensible creatures to praise and love the Creation
On another occasion at a village called Alviano, Francis was about to preach to a crowd.
But a large number of swallows nesting there were shrieking and chirping. Since the people could not hear Francis, he said to the noisy birds, “My sister swallows, now is the time for me to speak, since you have already said enough. Listen to the word of the Lord and stay quiet and calm…” Immediately those little birds fell silent, to the amazement and surprise of all present, and they did not move from that place until the sermon was over.
Birds were not the only beneficiaries of Francis’s extraordinary attention. The wild beasts harmed by others used to flee to him and they found in his presence solace and their trials….He often freed lambs and sheep from the threat of slaughter because of the graciousness he felt towards the simplicity of thir nature. All creatures tried to return the saint’s love and to respond to his kindness with their gratitude. They smiled when he petted them, they granted his requests and they obeyed when he commanded them….He called animals by the name of brother and sister, although he preferred the gentle kind of animals above all others. The accounts of Francis’s life are all filled with such moments.
In the footnotes, (page 231) the author Spoto writes: (Another) version by the English chronicler Roger Wendover, was written very soon after Francis of Assisi’s death, His version describes how Francis left Rome and on the outskirts found birds of prey and at his holy presence, they listened to him. This occurred consecutively for three days and when they heard of it, the Romans bought him back to the city and listened to him again, “and their hearts were softminded and changed.”
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