The life of Francis shows us that right relationship in creation is not easy. He heard the words spoken by the crucified Christ—“go rebuild my house”—and took them literally. He began to rebuild the church of San Damiano stone by stone. But as he reflected on these words, he came to understand a deeper meaning of them in his life. His devotion to Mary, the mother of God, led him to realize that the “house of God” is, first, the human person. The Word dwells in human flesh, not in stone buildings. As the Word dwells in the human person, so too the same Word dwells in creation.
The Word who is made flesh in the person of Jesus is the same Word through whom all things are made. Fish, water, trees, birds, air, wind, fire—all are created through the Word of God. What Francis heard originally, “go, rebuild my house” became much larger for him; it became the entire oikos. “Go, rebuild my oikos; as you see, it is all being destroyed.” The Incarnation of God opened up the eyes of Francis to the inner truth of creation as the very place where God is revealed—or concealed when humans fail to see God humbly present in the magnificent diversity of creation.
—from the book Care for Creation: A Franciscan Spirituality of the Earth
by Keith Douglass Warner, OFM, Ilia Delio, OSF, and Pamela Wood
