BROTHER FIRE | Saint Francis of Assisi | EP. 24 - Christmas in Greccio | Christian cartoons

St. Francis of Assisi presents Christmas in Grecio. The canons are arriving! Where is Friar Francis? Did he get lost in Rome? At least somebody has looked for him. Do you know where he is? No, Eminence. I looked through the whole palace, but I didn't find him. Hasn't he heard the bell? It's time to eat. So, have you found him? He went out, Eminence. What do you mean? When did he leave? I think he went out at dawn. And may I know why? He just said he was going to ask for alms. Incredible. Go out and bring him right back here. He is our guest of honor. Have you seen Friar Francis? Of course I saw him. I even gave him a couple of pears for his poor. Good. Where did he go? He went that way. Friar Francis. Ah, brother. What do you want? Do you need anything? The Cardinal Ugolino sent me to look for you, Francis. It's time for lunch, and he has been searching for you for a long time. He's worried about you. Very worried. I hope the Cardinal Ugolino will understand, and will be happy to know that I was helping this man, because Jesus was thirsty. Do you know that he is Jesus? All the poor are Jesus, brother. You must understand that. I'll be back later. Take this. Now I have to go, because there's a Cardinal who needs charity. But I'll be back. God bless you. I have waited for you a long time, Francis. My guests came here to see you, but we couldn't find you anywhere. They are important people, and I hope it will give you pleasure to listen to them. I'm very grateful, but I was busy. I had to honor a decree that could not wait. They came because tomorrow you are going to speak with the Pope, to present to him the obligations for your friars. They came to give you advice about how to confront the issue with the Holy Father. Ah, thank you from the bottom of my heart, and thank them as well. I carefully read your rule, Francis, and I have to tell you that I consider it too rigid, and to some extent a bit senseless. You should permit your friars to own the places where they live. I'm sure they would be happy for some money, controlled by their superiors, of course. Tell us then, if you want to help the poor, how can you do it if you have nothing? Francis, listen to me. If we could tell the Pope that you agreed to change your rule, permitting the friars to have a more peaceful life, he would give his approval. When Jesus was guided to the desert and felt hungry, he was tempted by the devil. If you are the Son of God, tell this stone to become bread, the devil told him. And Jesus answered, Man does not live by bread alone. And then he yelled to the devil, You won't tempt the Lord your God. What do you say to that, friar? I want to say that I won't give up to any demon that comes to tempt me, and I won't change a word of what I wrote in the rule of poverty. Poverty will always be my companion, and the companion of my dear friars. I thought about it and prayed, Holiness. I will obey your wish, but the sacred rule will confirm that whoever wishes to become a minor friar must leave behind everything he has. He won't have anything for his own, only a tunic to tie up his waist and a pair of pants. Come here, let me hug you. It will be as though I've hugged Jesus himself. I don't understand. You want him to talk to the people? Why? When I was in Rome, I saw him hug the Pope. Cardinal Ugolino knew him very well, as did His Holiness. And the Pope told Ugolino that the experience of hugging Francis was like hugging Jesus. He is a man of God. Those who listen to him turn to God. If you really love your people and want them to become Christians, you have to allow him to talk to them. You still haven't completely convinced me. I think it's a very dangerous situation, but always give the people what they want. And what the people want most is guidance to be put on the right path. Well then, what have you decided? I can only tell you that I'll let you know later. In a few days, we will celebrate the birth of the Lord. It was in Bethlehem. Like here, it was cold, terribly cold. Joseph and Mary, poor like many of us, suffered in that cold with Jesus. They wrapped the Son of God in their clothes and raised Him as best they could. Thirty years passed, and that child who had become a man confronted death on the cross to redeem us from the sin of Adam and the sins of each one of us. Who of you hasn't sinned? Is there any here who hasn't sinned? If there is any, please come forward. Say it. The Lord knows your sins. He could yell them from the heavens, but He will have mercy for those who go on their knees now and ask in this way for His forgiveness. Look at the face of the crucified Christ. Look at it and cry, brothers. Don't be afraid. Look at the face of the crucified Christ. Look at it and cry. The Shepherd of your soul, your true Bishop, now will bless you and promise to confess your sins. It is the only way we can receive the grace of Jesus. We must look to the cross, acknowledge how He suffered and sacrificed Himself for us, and then repent of your sins. Accept this gift that He wants to give each and every one of you. Kneel down in humility and offer your soul to the One who can give mercy forever. This man is right. Let us all shout together our sins. It is the best way to announce our Lord Jesus. I bless all of you, brothers, in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Where are you going, Friars? Haven't you noticed it's snowing? And it's so very cold. Would you please take us to the other side of the lake? I would love to take you there, but you're going to have to pay me, or I'm afraid I can't help you, Friars. I would never allow your boat to stay here by itself. Could you imagine how sad it would become? All right, then. Let's go. Oh, get out of here! Get away, you ugly bird! May I ask what the bird has done to you, son of God? You mean besides being hideous? Well, you're not exactly beautiful, but he doesn't come to scare you away. Isn't that true? Come, brother raven. Land on my hand. Come on. Excuse me, Friar. You can speak with the animals? We arrived. Would you pay me, please? We'll give what we have in our bags, but we don't have anything else. Unfortunately, this is it. You don't have any money, do you? No, we don't. Here you go. Goodbye, my brother. It's not that bad. I thought there was nothing in this bag, but at least I have something to eat. It will be fine here. Now let's go. Our destination is just over there. Who's out there? Don't you recognize me? It's Francis the Friar. He's here. Peace and love, brothers. Thank you for coming. I'm so happy to see you, Francis. Please, come inside. It's very hot in here. Are you trying to roast me? Not at all. I just want to keep you from freezing. I'm very glad that you're here, but I still don't understand why you came to Grecio. Look, Giovanni. Everyone. Look at this beautiful night. Everything is as it was in Bethlehem. It must have been like this when he was born. A cold and bright night. I see that night. I see the shepherds. I see the manger. I'm sorry, Francis, but I don't see those things. It's necessary that you see it, that everyone sees it. We need to properly adore the miraculous birth of our Savior. The child Jesus. I'm sorry. I swear I don't see anything, Francis. Perhaps it's my fault. Everybody is like you, Giovanni. They don't see Bethlehem. They don't adore the child. And we can't let that happen. And we can't forget that soon it will be Christmas, and it seems like the earth is filled with blind people. It's like nobody would see the extraordinary grace, the miracle which we remember year after year, Giovanni. These hens lay golden eggs. Who wants to buy them? In my opinion, that is a total fake. Oh, really? Why is that? If your hens can lay golden eggs, then why on earth would you have to sell them? That was the reason I said to leave it like that, because now there's absolutely nothing to do. Pay attention, brothers! Listen! Listen! What's going on? What's happening? Did I miss something? Tonight, for the sacred Christmas, you're all invited to Grecio. And what are we going to do there? It's very cold. Francis will be over there. He says that tonight he's going to the caverns where the baby Jesus will be born. But what do you mean a child will be born? I assume all of this is just a joke. No, it's not a joke. In this sacred night, everybody has to go to the caverns of Grecio. Francis will be there, and the baby Jesus will be born. Listen to me, brothers! Listen! Tonight, in celebration of the sacred Christmas, you're all invited to Grecio, where the baby Jesus will come, and everyone can see him and adore him. What child do you suppose he's talking about? It's about the baby Jesus. If Francis said that, it must be true. I walk slowly, but I'm certainly going. Cheer up, brothers! Tonight you go to Grecio! Francis will be waiting for you! Cheer up, brothers! Go to Grecio! God be with you, brothers! God be with you! Marvelous holy creature, you were sent here by the Lord your Father to absolve our sins. Here is the child, the king newly born, poor and divine. He came to us as a gift. He was sent to us by the Lord his Holy Father. He is our Lord, the Messiah. This little baby will save us. This is Bethlehem. This is the holy night. We are here, like that night in Bethlehem, like the shepherds who saw him for the first time and adored him. This is the night in which the Son of God became man. Born from the Blessed Virgin Mary, he will guide our lives to salvation. Let's give to the child who is born our heart and our love. Yes, brothers, you must feel you're in Bethlehem and feel this great moment. The child is a sign from God who grants us the forgiveness of our sins. That is his gift to us. Brother Wolf, don't scare the people. They need to cross through here. There's nothing to be afraid of. Well then, show us the way to the monastery and we'll follow you. Thank you very much, Brother Wolf. Francis, what a beautiful surprise! Peace and love, Brother. What's going on? It's Francis! What news? Come quickly! Francis, we are all impatient. Did you see the Pope? What did he tell you? Did he scold you? Yes, I spoke with him. I shared my heart with him, Brother. And the Lord was there listening. Yes, but exactly what did you tell him, Francis? What, Brother? Brothers, I told him, and I spoke for all of you, that I will never renounce the rule of poverty. I told him that he who has the desire to become a minor friar has to renounce everything he possesses. I was very clear. I told him that a friar must have nothing of his own, no more than a tunic tied up to the waist with a rope, as it was established since the beginning. And what did he answer? Didn't he tell you to leave, Brother Francis? No, he did not. He hugged me, Brothers. Ah, thanks, Francis. We will remain poor as the Lord Jesus was.