St. Francis of Assisi and Anger

Leave it to me to jump on the first 'anger' quote I connect with while reading about St. Francis of Assisi for the first time.

I'm nearly halfway through Reluctant Saint: The Life of Francis of Assisi by Donald Spoto, and I have to say, I'm finishing it reluctantly. Spoto writes like a historian and biographer, which means the style is dry, dull, and laden with 4-syllable words where a more colloquial term would suffice.

Needless to say, I'm grateful I slogged through what I have so far because a direct quote of St. Francis stuck with me. My anger has caused tremendous strife in my life, but so far, few of the saints I've read about have suffered from it. Fortunately, St. Francis did not exclude teachings on it, telling his followers to "be careful not to be angry or disturbed at the sin of another, for anger and disturbance impede charity in [ourselves] and others" (69).

Anger impedes charity. Anger impedes love. It's because of obvious slaps in the face about my problem that I so eagerly consume texts about the saints.

Anger doesn't just stop us from forgiveness; it also prevents us from helping those in need, those that God may have put in front of only us. How can we treat all human beings as Jesus when we view them as bad or faulty? Their sin is no greater than mine, and yet I withhold love and acceptance because of the evil in my heart.

God is pushing me toward the path of forgiveness, and I am, as Spoto described Francis, reluctantly following along. I don't want to go down this path because I am only focused on being hurt again when God is trying to teach me that He has me now and always will. If I am hurt again, it is for His glory and teaching, and not because He led me astray.

My Lord, protect those with heavy hearts. Lead them to You with gentle hands and compassionate words. May all who suffer come clean and whole at the feet of You, my Lord. In Jesus' name, we praise and glorify You. Amen.