At the root of St. Francis’ understanding of poverty was his overwhelming realization of the Poverty of God. He understood that God first stripped Himself of His divinity by becoming a man. In other words, God made Himself poor for us. He poured Himself out in Christ. Further, Francis understood that, on the Cross, Christ also became poor for us by giving up His life.
This notion of God’s total self-emptying was what drove Francis to his view of poverty. For him, poverty was not a lack of things or a lack of possessions. It was his realization that just as God had poured Himself out for us, his response had to be the same. He knew that to imitate Christ, he also needed to pour himself out for everyone. He realized that the perfect love present in complete self-surrender was the only way to holiness.
When he looked at the Cross, he did not so much see a suffering and dying man, but saw there in Christ’s outstretched arms the perfect expression of love in action. He saw that in Christ’s complete gift of love that he was embracing the whole of creation and lifting it up to new life with him.
This understanding of poverty, of complete self giving, must be also behind our every thought and action. By becoming poor in this way, we continue the work of salvation.
