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| Image credit: https://aleteia.org/ |
The following reflection is taken from the Franciscan Spirit Blog: Lent with St. Francis.
“If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask him!” —Matthew 7:11
With passages such as we find in today’s Gospel, it’s not hard to see how Francis decided that relying on other people to provide for the brothers’ needs was a way of living out their total reliance on God.
Once when St. Francis visited Cardinal Hugolino, and the hour of dinner was at hand, he went out for alms, and returning, placed some of the scraps of black bread on the bishop’s table.…When the dinner was finished, the bishop arose and taking the man of God to an inner room, he raised his arms and embraced him. “My Brother,” he said, “why did you bring shame on me in the house that is yours and your brothers by going out for alms?”
To find out how Saint Francis responded to the bishop, read the rest of the reflection here: Lent with St. Francis: The Gift of Alms