Some have wrongly interpreted this to be a condemnation of wealth and success.  It is not.  It is rather a cautionary tale, asking us to look deeply at our motivations and values.  Are we attaining stuff just to have it or are we using the gifts given us to strive to live the best Christian life that we can?  Do we give credit where credit is due and in the words of St. Ignatius of Loyola “return it all to God.”  

We can contrast the story of Mark’s “Rich  Young Man” with another rich young man who did choose to give it all away and follow what he believe was the path for his life, St. Francis of Assisi.  If our rich young man chose the crown of gold, we can say that St. Francis, eventually, after an encounter with the Lord, chose the crown of thorns.  

In our time and context, what does it mean to choose God, rather than gold?  Are we really supposed to give all of our hard won possessions away, dress in brown sack cloth and with nothing but sandals and a staff, set out to spread the Gospel?  No, we are all products of our time and St. Francis was reacting to what he saw as excesses in and out of The Church.  Rather, we should take the words of prayer of St. Francis to heart.

In his “Simple Prayer,” St. Francis challenges us to be the Lord’s instruments in the world.  To bring compassion, peace, understanding, truth, faith, love and justice to the world.  We don’t need to give up our worldly possessions to do so, but rather put the gifts the Lord gave us to work for His glory.

I was told to “be me” in sharing these devotions, so I wouldn’t be me without music, the link below is to a version of the Prayer of St. Francis that I hope you enjoy.  It is not a professional recording, but the best I could find.