Summary
Title: Francis of Assisi: A Revolutionary Life
Author: Adrian House
Publisher: Hidden Spring
ISBN: 1587680270
Pro:
• More than just a biography - also says a lot about European society
• Francis' conflicts mirrored those in medieval Europe generally
• Potentially very useful in discussions about Bible or Jesus
Con:
• None
Description:
• Engaging biography of St. Francis of Assisi
• Provides extensive information about medieval European politics and society
• Explains how European society was changing, economically, from feudalism towards capitalism
Book Review
Who was St. Francis? Put very simply, he was the son of a wealthy merchant who abandoned his entire inheritance to become a pauper, devoted to relieving all the misery he saw around him. He was one of very few people who appear to have tried to consistently and genuinely follow the gospel teachings of poverty and selflessness, even to their extremes.
But House's biography is about much more than that, because Francis' work did not take place in a vacuum. What Francis did and why he did it were closely related to the social and political events going on around him, events which House takes time to explain in some detail. Thus, his work is not just a biography but also a historical exploration of medieval Europe.
The first and one of the most important issues was the changing economic structure of Europe. For a long time, feudalism reigned supreme with little to challenge it. The population was divided up between the powerful lords and the poor peasants they were supposed to take care of.
Gradually, however, a new group of people began to emerge: the rich. Feudal lords were powerful because of the land they controlled and the titles they had inherited, but they were rarely also wealthy in terms of money or material possessions. As the merchant class expanded, however, their actual money allowed them to start buying up that land and, over time, displacing the inherited power of the old feudal system.
This, in turn, was giving the serfs a reason and purpose for leaving behind their agricultural work on lands owned by the feudal nobility. For one thing, the shrinking power and lands of the lords meant that serfs had less and less security in terms of food and protection. More than that, they saw a chance at making money and a better living in the cities with the merchants. This had two effects, the first of which was obviously to make life even more difficult for the lords as they lost the manpower needed to maintain their estates.
St. Francis; Fresco by Simone Martini
The second was to create a new underclass of poor peasants. Previously these peasants would often be able to produce enough to live on and eat while working their lord's estate, but in the city, this was no longer the case. If they didn't find work, they couldn't necessarily rely upon family or neighbors — at best, they had to rely upon the charity of the church and the merchants. As a result, obvious poverty and economic dislocation exacerbated social problems all around.
Francis' father, Pietro, was a merchant who bought a great deal of land from cash-starved feudal lords in the area around Assisi. Because of this, he gained in respect and power within the city, and so did his son Francis. But despite his many dalliances with having fun and his attempts to become a knight, Francis was growing increasingly aware of and distressed by the poverty and disease which surrounded him.
