Our journey to the hometown of St. Francis and one of our professors started the same as most of our other trips early with grey skies. Once we arrived tons of arches in the side of the hill below the Cathedral welcomed us. We walked up the stripped walkway lined with porticos to the Cathedral where St. Francis’s remains are kept in the crypt directly below the two altars in the lower and upper churches. I was confused when we first entered because directly in front of me was an altar with pews in front of it. Was that it? Once we past an artist restoring a fresco on scaffolding the body of the church and the real altar at the end appeared on the right. Kodak moment, my face was in awe of all the vaulting and frescos illuminated by dim lighting and sun through gorgeous stain glass windows. The entire surfaces of the walls and ceilings were painted with all kinds of scenes from the bible telling the story of Jesus Christ. It was interesting to learn that the original entrance of the church was on the east, symbolizing the, birth of Christ and the altar being at the end in the west, symbolizing the end, Jesus’s death. Then the exit was back in the east to symbolize that his death was not the end but the true beginning. As I sat admiring the golden stars glimmering in the ceiling a real Franciscan monk walked by in his brown robe, white ropes, and leather shoes. Later we all moved down the stone stairs with rope inspired metal hand railing to the crypt; a dark space with light only to accent the niches for the followers of St. Francis and the most light on the crypt of St. Francis. Monks, locals, and visitors on their knees in silence praying as tourists walk through the holy place. Back up to the lower church we make our way up to the altar. Smooth stone high up on a platform with an arcade along the base of it with small blue glass lanterns in each arch created the most interesting altar I have seen. The vaulted ceiling directly behind the altar had paintings showing the risen Christ, other biblical characters as well as a definite heaven and hell to pull it all together. Our professor pointed out a thought provoking painting with the Virgin Mary, baby Jesus, St. John and St. Francis. The nickname is the hitch hiking Mary because Jesus looks up at Mary with a face in question and the hitch hiker thumb pointing to St. Francis is the answer he is seeking. The artist is using this to show that St. Francis was the better follower because Mary says so as well as displaying St. Francis with the same wounds that the Crucified Christ had. This visit has been good to allow for more reflection on my faith during the Lenten season.
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