Despite their differences, Francis and Bonaventure shared a deep love of God and a common vision of Christ as the center of creation and goal of spiritual maturity. Both saw the message of Christ as a call to simplicity, in which body, mind, and spirit join with all creation in praising the Creator. Both gave up comfortable lives and financial privilege to serve God. For both, God was found in the interplay of two contrasting but interdependent poles of spiritual formation: withdrawal from the world for times of prayer and contemplation, and immersion in that same world by taking delight in creation as an expression of God’s wise and loving care.
For Bonaventure, God loves the world in all its diversity and, in return, all creation at its depths praises its Creator. Inspired by contemplative prayer and mystical experience, both Francis and Bonaventure believed that we must claim our birthright as God’s companions in healing the earth and its creatures, regardless of our vocations.
—from the book Head, Heart, and Hands: An Introduction to Saint Bonaventure
by Bruce Epperly
