It was a night of rare beauty and brilliance. The summer air in Alvernia was fresh and warm at the same time. The world slept in eternal peace. Everything was quiet and serene.
Brother Francis, standing on the rocks, raised his arms and dove into the chasms of faith in the immensity of God. That night, new and mysterious energies of “adhesion” appeared in his soul, new forces of profound “knowledge” and love.
Francis said nothing. He ran out of words. The words were communicated as if by sonar between two beings submerged in deep waters.
Francis’ mind was paralyzed. Nothing in his mind was distinguishable or capable of being analyzed. It was an act of totality and simplicity: Francis was “in” God. It was a deep and penetrating experience, vivid and immediate, without images, nor predetermined thoughts. There was no need to formulate a representative image of God, for God was “there,” “with” Francis, and Francis “with” God.
God was (what was he?) an infinite panorama, without walls, or doors, nourished with tenderness; a forest with a multitude of warm, loving arms ready to embrace; an air dense with golden honey; an incurable dizzy spell, as if millions of arms surrounded and embraced the beloved Francis; a river overflowing its banks and flooding the countryside.
Everything vanished. The stars disappeared; the night consumed itself. Francis also disappeared. All that was left was a You which reached far and wide, within and without.
You are Holy, you are one Lord God, who works wonders.
You are strong, you are great, you are the Almighty. You are Good, all Good, Supremely Good.
Lord God, alive and true.
You are charity and love, you are wisdom.
You are humility, you are patience, you are confidence. You are quietude, you are solace, you are happiness. You are beauty, you are gentleness.
You are our protector, guardian, and defender.
You are our strength and hope.
You are our sweetness.
You are our eternal life, great and admirable Lord.”
Francis’ “I” was irresistibly drawn to and taken by the One, ma- king it “one” with the Center. This was the great Passover. However, there was no fusion. On the contrary, Francis not only maintained his own personal identity, which was more concrete than ever, but the closer he got to God, the more diverse they became to the point where the diversity became one of disturbing profiles: “Who are you and who am I?”
Francis was immersed in the immutable and absolute essence of God. It was not a matter of God having been with Francis, rather God was with Francis. God filled him entirely. And, “in” God, there was not far, near, there, here with Francis. Brother Francis transcended time and space: distances disappeared, and Francis began to feel like the child of immensity.
Taken from the book Brother Francis of Assisi Chapter 6 “The Last Song” by Father Ignacio Larrañaga
