BROTHER FIRE | Saint Francis of Assisi | EP. 19 - The protesting chapter | Christian cartoons

St. Francis of Assisi presents the Protesting Chapter. The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for His name's sake. Good morning, brothers and sisters. Good day, Brother Wolf. Of course, we'll see each other again real soon. Look, it's him! Francis is coming! He's here! At last, we've gotten together. I would love to hug you all. Francis, it is so good to see you! Come in, please. Well then, tell me what has happened that was so important. Well, are you going to speak or not? We were hoping to tell our complaint to the Potentate, but he wouldn't listen to us. Thousands of Franciscan friars are arriving from all over the world. Ah, those holy men. God bless them. Please, Bishop, I don't think you've thought this through at all. Please, if you would, we need you to understand the situation. We've come here in good faith to advise you, Bishop Guido. To advise me what? That those men are very dangerous, Your Eminence. Really? It's obvious they're all against us. They preach poverty, but not only for themselves. They propose that everyone become poor to follow the example of Jesus Christ. This is the nonsense that they teach. And besides, it seems there are more than 5,000 men. With that amount of men together, it's impossible that there won't be any problem. But gentlemen, they are obedient to the Church and follow the commandments. Bishop Guido, I don't think you completely understand. If the people listen to them, they will end up hating us. We are the ones who let them live on our land, work for us, and we even pay them. There are so many of them, it would be better for them to go and fight in the Holy Land. I suggest you send them right away. Now you are exaggerating. You should be ashamed of what you're saying and more of what you're thinking. You are some demon, stupid and vain. And you forget that Christ died on the cross, absolutely poor. He said, give what you have to the poor, and you will have a treasure in heaven. Your richness will die with you. You will be swallowed by bugs and worms, the same animals that will eat your bodies at the end of days. And that, what is it? We built it while you were away traveling. It was built by the city of Assisi to receive all your friars who come from far away. Obviously, it won't house all of them, but it's all we could do. Perhaps when your General Assembly has finished, you can keep it for any other people you wish to lodge. You can consider it a personal gift. You won't tempt the Lord your God. That is what a starving Jesus says to the devil, who in the desert offered him bread. And I say the same to you. Don't take away from my friars poverty, which is their only richness. And besides, it's written, the foxes have dens and the birds from the sky have nests, but the Son of God doesn't even have a place to rest his head. Don't you understand? We need to be like him. When the friars need to build a house, they have to make it small, the same as the poor people, and must live in them as guests, not as owners, because it can never be their own house. It only belongs to poor people. Now, my dear brother, I order you, by the holy obedience, tear this house down, for it has been built by the devil himself, because the devil's afraid of our poverty. Francis! Pull it down right away. Begin with the roof. Pull it down right now, understand? What do you think you're doing, Francis? Stop them. I can't. They're doing it by holy decree. But this building belongs to the city of Assisi. You can't destroy it. Therefore, I order you to stop them right now. If the house is yours, then we'll leave it without a roof. We don't want it. And we will go back with our poor to the Porzincula. I only had this. That will be plenty. And I brought these two gems. Just take a look how big they are. Come on, don't make so much noise. Your time will come. I will cook you with carrots and potatoes. I brought this. Thank you. You're very kind. Wonderful. Thank you so much. We are so very grateful. This small pig is tender like a sweet fig. Thanks. It has a delicious aroma. Francis is a saint. He speaks with the voice and the words of Jesus. There are so many poor people at this moment who need him. Welcome, brothers. Please join us. Thank you. We are very tired. We have been walking for a very long time, and it feels good to rest. Excuse me. I'll go see where those friars are from. Welcome, dear brothers. Where are you coming from? Are you hungry? We came from Napoli, but sadly we finished our provisions. Why don't you come with me, and perhaps I can find something for you? I'm afraid that I can't get up, brother. Come on. I'll help you. Thank you, brother. What happened? Don't you feel well? Have you got a fever? I'm merely exhausted from the journey. Look, this cross is yours. I brought it for you. What do you mean? I couldn't possibly take it. That cross belongs to you. You're agitated. I see it in your eyes. You don't know it, but this cross, I brought it here for you. You have to pray. You must have faith in him, because he won't ever abandon you. He was feeling very ill, but he wanted to come see Francis one last time. He said that it would be his final trip. Where did you say you're coming from? We came from Napoli. And where are you from? We come from Sicily, from the kingdom of Frederick II. But this friar comes from a place called Lombardland. Where are you from, friars? We come from the province of Franca. And his regent, Philip Augustus, is a friar. What are they saying? What languages are you speaking with them? They are French friars. Do you also speak French, brother Anthony? Yes, I do know French, but just now we were speaking in Latin. You mean you speak both Latin and French? Yes, but I assure you that they are easy languages. Can I help you, brother? I would like to speak with Francis. Is he here? No, I'm sorry. Frequently he takes away to the forest to speak alone with our lord. Well, then maybe I should go look for him. It isn't very easy to find him. The forest is very big, and we don't know exactly where he goes. But tell us, what is your name, brother? My name is Anthony. I'm a Portuguese priest. Anthony was in Morocco, but unfortunately he got sick and was forced to return. How did you know all of that? You know who I am? More or less. I'm Friar Graziano da Bagnacaballo. The master of the friars of Romagna. It's a pleasure to meet you, but if you'll excuse me, I must look for Francis. What happened, brother Wolf? What do you want to tell me? I'm sorry, brothers, but at this moment you can't pass. But friar, I have to take my little girl to Francis. Let me pass. You have to wait. At this moment the Cardinal Ugolino is crossing. Here he is now. It takes so little to make them happy. Excuse me, Cardinal. In this letter I've been asked to convince Francis to change the rules he has given you, which have already been blessed by the Holy Pope. We only want to live in accordance with the rest of the religious orders. In other words, you'd like the poverty restrictions to be less severe? Is that what you're saying? Yes. This is what we're requesting. For the good of our friars, for the strength of our order. But Francis refuses to listen. On this subject he seems possessed by the devil. It pains me to tell you this, brothers, but you are gravely mistaken. When this man you call possessed speaks, I hear the voice of Jesus. I see, as if it were a dream. I see the demons among the friars, dear sisters. What are you saying, Clara? The demons? Which ones? As you already know, nearly 5,000 friars came from all over the world. But the demons have followed them, and their numbers are more. The friars are holy men, and the demons are very afraid. That is why they are trying to seduce them with temptation. They want to transform them all into sinners and destroy their faith in the Lord. If it's true what you're saying, we have to pray and fast for them. Prayer and penance, that's what we must do. Yes, of course. But it's better if we fast tomorrow, sisters, because we have already fasted today. And we have to eat very well if we want to have enough strength to pray for our brothers. Well then, have you thought about this, Francis? Have you spoken with the Lord about this matter? Yes, Cardinal, I did. Then now you must speak of this to your children. Let's hope that the Cardinal spoke to him. The crusaders go to war with swords, shields, spears. These are their weapons, but they are weapons of death. Instead, our only weapon is the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, His Word. The life we conduct, poor and simple, working without material wealth, just observing poverty, chastity, and humility, avoiding worldly knowledge, just being full of the wisdom which comes from love and contemplation of God in prayer. We are praising God and asking Him to take pity on all men. They are His people. In this way, we are servants in His name, for every human creature, Christian and the poor. Brothers, this is our rule. And I don't want to hear about other rules. The Lord didn't want another life for me. This is the life He called me to. Instead of asking for new rules, look inside yourself for love and humility. You must beg for the Holy Spirit to descend on you. Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Francis! What a joy! Thomas de Solano, my dear brother, this is a surprise. How many have come with you? In total, we are 25 brothers, Francis. The truth is, there were supposed to be more than 90, but we couldn't receive them all. So, you're returning to Germany, to the black forest where our brothers were killed. I'm very sorry that I can't go with you. But remember, only poverty and love, my brothers. Please continue with your travels. God is with you. I bless you and your journey, my dear brothers. In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, amen. So long, Anthony. I hope we can see each other again. And don't worry, because in your heart you know you're truly loved by our Lord Jesus Christ. Eugene, I'll see you soon. Thanks, my brother. God bless you. I can't thank you enough for everything you've done for me. Goodbye, brother. If you ever get to be close to our convent, come and visit us. We'll pray together. God be with you. Anthony? Well, it looks like from now on you'll be staying here with us. I'm staying here because I still hope that there's a chance I can meet with Francis. Of course, but now you must go and fulfill the decree. It's your holy obligation. What are you saying, Graziano? What decree? It has been decreed that you join these brothers on their journey. And how will this fulfill my holy obligation, brother? They're going to Monte Paolo in Romagna. The aged brothers over there need a priest. And they also need to be relieved from their jobs by younger brothers. That's all right. But I would like, after the obligation is fulfilled, to be able to go to Morocco, Graziano. It is not only through one's death that he is martyred. A long life can also fulfill one's holy obligation. Yes, I know that. But it's the demon of pride that still makes me ask. It's as though all I wish for is to wear the crown of the martyr. I hope the Lord can forgive this sin in me. Brother... Take this! Hey, what are you doing? He's walking! I'm going to get you! Francis caused that. The man is a saint. Thank you. Don't worry. This too shall pass, brother. May the Lord's peace be with you. Wait for me!