Saint Francis and the Birds

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Saint Francis called creatures, “no matter how small, by the name of brother or sister because he knew they had the same source as himself” (VII, 6). In Bonaventure’s Life of St Francis there is a chapter about “how irrational creatures were affectionate toward him.” Stories of a hare, lambs, a rabbit, fish, a cricket, a pheasant and a falcon all told of the desire of the animals to be with St. Francis or to be obedient to his wishes. Bonaventure wrote: “With a feeling of unprecedented devotion he savored in each and every creature — as in so many rivulets — that Goodness which is their fountain-source.” (IX, 1)