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Francis of Assisi and His Posterity Today / 299 Conclusion It Is Time To Begin Anyone who has read Part Three of this volume might get the impression that too much attention has been paid to Francis and his spiritual family. But what is important, more than a historical and spiritual description of the former or a sweeping survey of the latter, is the dynamic presence of the Franciscan spirit in our day. In other words, the pressing question of our time is whether the Gospel message of Francis is still being proclaimed and whether it is being heard by people today. We have said that Francis' true presence is not primarily that of a historical figure, even when grasped in all its dimensions. Nor will discerning his project and presenting it accurately and profoundly suffice automatically to bring it to life. It would be of no avail, either, to mobilize dozens, or even hundreds of thousands of lay Franciscans, friars and sisters, if their life is not marked by a transforming evangelical dynamism. This is precisely the question. The positive theological presuppositions are not lacking. The project of Francis as set forth in Part One is one of extraordinary evangelical fullness and is, moreover, linked to a personality without peer, who arouses an instinctive attraction. In addition, to judge from statistics, no spiritual movement in the Church has ever drawn so many sympathizers or gathered so many "heirs." Other movements might be more elite or more austere, but Franciscanism enjoys a sympathetic welcome everywhere. Whence, then, this dullness, this lethargy, this apparent absence of Franciscanism as a living force at the heart of the Church and the world? Has there ever been such a longing, such a need, for true Gospel living, for the experience of God, for human kinship, for the spirit of service and meekness, for poverty and sharing, for liberty and joy? These should be the Franciscan contributions to the life of the world today. But for Franciscans to give these values, we must first live them. Toward the end of his life, Francis invited his brothers to new beginnings: "Let us begin . . . for up to now we have made little or no progress" (1Cel 103). The Franciscan vocation is a summons to a venture that always begins anew. It is a task which, according to Francis' majestic proclamation to the entire world (1Reg 23), consists in 300 / Thaddée Matura, O.F.M. remaining, for a long time and patiently ("persevering," the text says), in the true faith and in "penance" (conversion to the Gospel). As so often in our history, then, we must wake up, put our hands to the plow and immerse ourselves in that life which consists in proclaiming the joyful news of God's coming among human beings. To do that we must listen to what Francis has to say to us. A passage in the letter he sent to his entire Order toward the end of his life crystallizes powerfully his message: Listen, sons of the Lord and my brothers, pay attention to my words. (Acts 2:14) Incline the ear (Is. 55:3) of your heart and obey the voice of the Son of God. Observe His commands with your whole heart and fulfill His counsels with a perfect mind. Give praise to Him since He is good (Ps. 135:1) and exalt Him by your deeds (Tob. 13:6), for He has sent you into the entire world for this reason (cf. Tob. 13:4): that in word and deed you may give witness to His voice and bring everyone to know that there is no one who is all-powerful except Him (Tob. 13:4) [EpOrd 5-9]. We must first know how to listen (listen, pay attention, incline the ear, obey) not so much to the voice of Francis as to the very voice of God's Son. This listening is synonymous with obeying, with fulfilling the commandments of that same Son. Listening, thus understood and thus lived, becomes proclamation: witness in all we do, by word and by action, to the transcendence of God, to God's sovereign and unique power. This is the mission for which God sent forth Francis, his brothers and sisters, his heirs, into the entire world: to proclaim by their existence God's majesty and tenderness toward all humankind. Thus the presence of Francis and his posterity could become a great cry of joy proclaiming that God—almighty and good—begins...

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