Month: Jun 2023

Franciscan life is not just about spirituality or theology. It is, above all, a way of life that touches the core of human existence and relations. Francis of Assisi envisaged a fraternity of brothers who live in constant inter-communication among themselves and with other persons. This kind of commercium is based upon the concept of sharing and stewardship in the poor and simple use of the necessities of life. Thus we can speak about a Franciscan economy. Francis was a son of his times, when the merchant class was emerging as a new way of life in the Italian communes, bringing new wealth but also a richness of new information and intermingling of people and cultures. This issue of our review will deal about the phenomenon of the Franciscan style of economy that forms part and parcel of our Gospel calling and which needs to be re-addressed in the face of today’s challenges, including the issue of creation and demographic unbalance. A second paper will feature the first part of a study on the event of the Nativity scene of Greccio, on the occasion of the 800 years since Francis celebrated Christmas in this tiny hermitage that has gained world fame as a new Bethlehem.