Prayer of St. Francis of Assisi

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace:
where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
where there is sadness, joy.

O divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek
to be consoled as to console,
to be understood as to understand,
to be loved as to love.

For it is in giving that we receive,
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen

 

 A Reflection on Materialism and Detachment in the Life of St Francis of Assisi  

By Rev Fr Dr Martin Edward Ohajunwa 

For the Bishops, Priests, and Religious of Owerri Ecclesiastical Province; May 7th, 2026

1. Departure: I was opportune to live in a small community called Flora in the Diocese of Belleville, Illinois, USA, as a Fidei Donum priest a few years ago. Among many things, the simplicity and serenity of this small White community are etched in my memory. Within the large compound where the church is situated are large oak trees, whistling pines, cherry blossoms, and Pride of Barbados. The large old oak trees are wonderful windbreakers; the whistling pines sing with the evening breeze and winds, and the cherry blossoms and Pride of Barbados show different colours of flowers, especially during the Spring, when trees begin to grow new foliage. Memorably, these trees afforded cool habitats for the different birds that perch there and keep chirping- an inevitable noise that, when you allow the silence of the mind to be and listen, the chirping of the birds, the whistling trees, and the colours of the flowers become a melodious symphony. And the trees speak to us from what they offer, in communion, expressing the profound mystery in the creative act of God. Everything speaks in a language unique to itself, but when connected, one can discover a symphony. With the gradual progress of mindfulness, being intent on listening, the serene nature and the simplicity of the life of this community became a unique companion that enabled most of my writings and reflections.

 

In the Church, we were just a couple of families; in fact, fewer than one hundred families. Simple, happy, and contented people. Not too rich, but lived in a community where everyone knew one another. Their different social class did not change their sense of community and fellowship. Returning to the sounds that were integral to my experience, the choir in the church was good enough for a Sunday liturgy. And we had committed members. Among the various songs we sang there, one of my favorites is a beautiful song written in 1967 by Sebastian Temple with the text based on the Prayer of St Francis, “Lord, Make me an Instrument of your Peace”

 

The title is “Make Me a Channel of Your Peace.” I want you to listen closely to the lyrics, usually sung after Holy Communion.

 

Make me a channel of Your peace

Where there is hatred let me bring Your love

Where there is injury, Your pardon, Lord

And where there’s doubt, true faith in You

 

Oh, Master, grant that I may never seek

So much to be consoled as to console

To be understood as to understand

To be loved as to love with all my soul

 

Make me a channel of Your peace

Where there’s despair in life let me bring hope

Where there is darkness, only light

And where there’s sadness, ever joy

 

Make me a channel of Your peace

It is in pardoning that we are pardoned

In giving to all men that we receive

And in dying that we’re born to eternal life.

 

 

The Church liturgy has a way it calls our attention to those things that matter most.

 

Those carefully chosen words of prayer and now, song express an in-depth desire to be used and spent for others.  The solemn, intricate melody that you have heard makes the message permeate my bone marrow.

 

I listened many times as I wrote this reflection for inspiration. I listened as I read some available materials on St Francis of Assisi, and it led me to relive this song and the nature that surrounded me in faraway Flora, Illinois. I listened in gratitude to my Archbishop, Most Rev Lucius Iwejuru Ugorji, and all the Bishops of the Province who granted me this privilege to share with our priests and religious this music and a certain aspect of the life of St Francis in this special Jubilee Year of St Francis. Thank you, Your Graces, thank you, Your Excellencies.

 

In union with the universal Church, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) has spelt out a program for the Church in Nigeria to participate in the Jubilee Year of St Francis with the theme, “Embracing Simplicity, Promoting Peace: St Francis, a Model for Nigeria.” This is the theme that will guide our journey in our different dioceses. But for today, as our terminus ad quo, we shall reflect on the theme provided by the Provincial Conference, which is, “Materialism and Detachment in the Life of Saint Francis of Assisi.”

I take it as our point of departure to enable us to make a journey back to the 13th century, some 800 years ago, in the life of the man, Francis of Assisi, and then journey forward to finding ways of embracing the life of simplicity and promotion of peace in our ministry. Our theme today forms a foundation for a learning moment, challenging our understanding and attitude to wealth in the light of St Francis of Assisi. Francis challenged the Church of his time with his radical poverty and simplicity of life. Can he still challenge us today? How relevant is his spirituality to us in our time and context?

 

To examine this theme, this reflection employs a methodology that is historical, narrative, analytical, and phenomenological to call our attention to the relevance of St Francis in our ministry today. In our conclusion, it calls our attention to individually answer the questions this paper pose for us which inadvertently introduces us to the national theme as a practical response to the invitation of the Holy Father Pope Leo XIV, whose primary vision in this Jubilee Year of St Francis of Assisi, is a world of peace and reconciliation where each of us is a “witness of the peace that comes from Christ.”

2. The Man, Francis: Beginnings: The rich father of Francis, Signor Pietro Bernadone, had worked so hard to be a successful merchant. He could be said to be a man of means, as one who was considered above middle-class status. His trade took him far and wide. He provided enough for his family and had established a business that he looked forward to sustaining its success beyond his time. Francis was his son, whom he had hoped would carry on with the family business. But Francis would turn out to be someone different.

Francis was a fun-loving youth. He was well known in the community as the son of Bernadone, the rich merchant. Francis had little education. And managing his father’s shops from time to time, he had enough flexible time to spend with his peers. So, he had his peers with whom he had all the imaginable fun. Francis admired the French troubadours and was influenced by them. These medieval “mostly French entertainers” exalted romantic love to great heights; personified love, comparing it to a knight, a crusader, a treasure-seeker; and they wrote of chivalry and fidelity in verse that was often put to song.” Francis took after them and, with his friends, loved to entertain and had fun. He was the life of the party. He sang, he danced, and he enjoyed his youth.

It was as if the euphoria did not satisfy Francis. The search for meaning and relevance took him in different directions. At some point, he wanted to be a soldier. He got the support of his father. When they were defeated at the Battle of Perugia, it led to his incarceration for almost one year. It was his optimistic spirit while being in prison that helped his colleagues in prison with him to get along with hope. He was a vessel of hope. Though Francis was strong in spirit, the experience in the prison broke his physical strength over time. He came back sick. For a long time, he lived like a shut-in. An experience he never liked because he loved the outdoors. It was after this experience that he made up his mind not to go back to his former way of living – singing and dancing with his peers and being an entertainer. He wanted something different. At this time, the once lively Francis had started becoming quiet and withdrawn. His father’s curiosity about what he intended to do with his life led to a new decision. He made a new attempt at being a knight. His wealthy father bought him the best of armor and a horse. On the day he left Assisi, the entire town came to celebrate him and bid him farewell. His father was proud of his son. And he boasted his son would be an exceptional kind of knight.

As Francis excitedly rode his way through the village, he met a certain knight who had lost everything in the war. Out of pity for him, Francis unsheathed his shiny sword as well as his expensive, embroidered cloak and gave them to the man. It was like generosity posing a crisis of purpose. The astonished knight accepted them in gratitude. After a long, tiring journey, Francis spent the night in the small town of Spoleto. It was during this night, exhausted and while asleep, that Francis had a dream. Some voice spoke to him, asking, “Francis, is it better to serve the master or the servant?” His answer was unambiguous: “The Master.” And the voice questioned, “Then, why do you make the servant a master?”  “My Lord,” asked Francis, “what should I do?” And the voice responded to him, “Return to Assisi and you will be told.”

All through that night, Francis spent the hours in prayer and believed that it was God calling him to serve him. He concluded that it was God who was “the only real Master,” and only him should he serve. So, he made the decision to return to Assisi. On his way riding back, Francis sold the remainder of his armor. Francis disappointed his family and peers.

Pietro Bernadone, his father, did not find his return funny. He was embarrassed by his decision, but even got more enraged by Francis’ decision to give out all the expensive amour he provided him. To say the least, Francis was seen as a disappointment by his father, who had boasted in the community about his son becoming a knight. For his friends, they saw it as one of his whims, and they were excited to have their friend back in their company. They actually threw a party to welcome him back. It was in that excitement of noise and entertainment, merry-making through the streets, that Francis felt something strange within him, a sudden touch of consciousness that made him pause, and gradually withdrew from that crowd without speaking to anyone. The pull was strong. It is said that he withdrew and fell into a trance, where he was found praying alone, unaware of anything around him. While in that trance, his friends found him. They poked him. Francis retorted to his friends that he was done serving fun and money. Henceforth, he was going to serve and love God alone.

This was the turning point that led Francis to a new way of life. He became a regular visitor to the village church of San Damiano. Beside the church was also ‘a dingy cave’ where he spent additional hours in prayer and being alone. Silence has a way of discovering or rediscovering our purpose in life over time. Someday, he prepared a feast and invited his new friends. These were the poor, the beggars, and the outcasts of Assisi. He invited them to a sumptuous meal and party at their house. His mother, Lady Pica, was astonished to see the kind of friends her son Francis had made and now wishes to associate with. According to this historian, Mary Emmanuel Alves, “Francis had always loved everyone. Now he wanted to grow in love. He wanted to love persons regardless of whether they were rich or poor, kind or cruel, because he saw Jesus in each of them.” (Saint Francis of Assisi: Gentle Revolutionary, pp. 23,24) Francis recognized the inherent dignity of every person as God’s creature, deserving of

In a particular encounter with a poor leper by the roadside, Francis had almost thrown a coin at him, as was usually done by some people who wanted to help, – for leprosy was a contagious disease, and people often avoided such persons. Rather than throw the coin to the leper, it was told that Francis disembarked from his horse and walked straight to the leper, not minding the stench of his odor, but drawing close and handing the coins to his palms and greeting him with a brotherly kiss. He left that scene fulfilled.

Since he visited the church of San Damiano more often, Francis, someday, kneeling before the crucifix, asked God what he wanted of him. We learnt that the voice on this day spoke to him, ‘Francis,” the voice called out, “Go and rebuild my Church.” The stunning message jolted Francis, not just with excitement, but as a discovered mission. For the first time, he found a purpose to his restless quest to please God, to serve and love him alone. However, Francis understood this message in its literal sense. And he began to gather materials to renovate the church in San Damiano. Francis sold what he had and took more from his father’s store to procure what he needed to renovate the church, and came to hand over a bag of money to their local pastor.

The Pastor rejected Francis’ gift. He insisted that Francis did not have the permission of his father to do what he was doing. Francis, however, made the argument that it was his own portion and he had the right to give it to God. The priest was mindful of Signor Pietro’s reaction if he should be back from his trip to find out that Francis had disposed of his property in such a manner. The priest rejected the money. Francis dropped it by the church, hoping that the priest might change his mind. The reaction of Sir Bernadone at his return was not pleasant, as anticipated by the Priest. So, when he came ferociously looking for Francis in the church, he demanded his money back, which the priest returned to him. When Francis found out how his father reacted, he came back to the priest to apologise. Francis said, “My father has so much… and gives God so little…” Recounting this encounter, Alves writes, “The old priest rested his hand on Francis’s shoulder. ‘When you look for your treasures on this earth, that’s where your heart remains,’ he said kindly. ‘Heavenly treasures are much harder to understand, but when a man finds that single pearl of great price, he sells all that he has to buy it.’” These words changed Francis for the good.

This was the radical turning point for Francis, for he understood. “God was that pearl of great price. He would search for God. He would give up everything he had to follow him without reserve. Yes, everything.”

Calling: Francis had tasted wealth and fun. He had led a band of youngsters, the troubadours of his town, to entertain people and make them happy. He had tasted the battlefield as a soldier and suffered seriously for being one. Francis had tried to be a knight because he wanted to serve the lords of his time. Fundamentally, Francis felt called to serve others, to make people happy or happier. And he wanted to make a positive contribution that could be beneficial to others at the cost of his own comfort. This can be identified as the calling of Francis. Thus, everything that happened in his life was for a purpose destined by God. It was an evolving journey to a more purposeful life. Each step of the way, Francis drew closer to that radical moment of being a vessel of God to make a statement to a world driven by 13th-century frivolities. Can our opportunities be moments of providence, directing and asking us to turn to God with all that He offers us?

The struggle to identify the calling should be considered as part of the process. The lack of clarity to understand what God wants of him may have played a part in leading him where he found peace and meaning. The demands the newfound love asked of him were welcome as a necessary contribution to the greater God he sought. On realizing that it was meant for God and God alone, Francis drew a unique satisfaction and contentment that baffled his family, his peers, and the community at large. But would he accept discouragement? No. Francis was not the kind to be discouraged by the challenging demands of his choice. There is something about Francis that we can admire. But which challenges us as priests and religious. Francis went against the current of his time. Because he simply wanted to please God. Francis made use of every opportunity as a gift to God.

To please God, as derived from his unsophisticated religious imagination, sounds like an elementary attempt. Francis did not attend any great school of theology, nor was he taught by any popular theologian of his time. It is supposed that he was never exposed to such. His father was content to teach him the economics of buying and selling. So, neither popular nor prestigious education was part of the plan. But Francis understood, albeit literally, what God desired of him. And he felt challenged to do it. So when his father demanded everything he had received from him, and was going to disown him, Francis stripped himself of the things he got from his father and accepted being disowned. He walked away with nothing and never looked back. His life was a detachment from his father’s wealth to a life of the gospel. He turned to the gospel as a major resource that influenced his mission.

3. The Franciscan Model: The gospel words, “Blessed are the poor ….” – were understood by Francis as the poverty of destitution that paves the way for the cultivation of the essential virtue of humility.

“Blessed are the pure in spirit … the meek… the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” (Matt 5:3-8) This meant that for Francis, there are other ways of being poor. So he believed that a friar and any true follower of Christ “was to be insignificant in all of the ways in which the world measures success.” (Sweeney, 77)

Thus, the word “poverty” also meant ‘low’ or ‘small’ for Francis. Francis did not call his followers Franciscans. He addressed them as “Fraticelli” meaning “Little Brothers”. The reason being that he wanted his fellow friars to be quite literally ‘small’ and be humble in the example of the humble Christ. Thus, the name of the Order is “Ordo Fratrum Minorum” (Order of Friars Minor).

His poverty was activist in nature. He made use of and consumed only what he needed, and what was not needed was given out.

Francis owned nothing and did not want his friars to own anything.

As an individual person joins the movement, the individual sells all he had, and they give to the poor.

They depended on the goodwill of people to feed and to have a place of rest.

Francis trusted in the teachings of the gospel that God would surely provide for them.

He wanted his friars to devote their time to prayer and preaching.

Francis was not interested in the friars furthering their theological education.

Francis did not like the money economy. He did not want his friars to handle money, to own, to buy or to sell, or to work for wages. Total renunciation. (“If you own things, then you will have to protect them. And if you have to protect them, you may even be tempted to use violence against someone.”)

Possessions must not come between them and God.

Francis did not aspire to change his status to become a priest.

This kind of spirituality towards earthly possessions was what Francis of Assisi lived and taught his friars to live.

During his time, there were a few pushbacks, like the young friar who wanted to have his own Divine Office so that he could pray anytime he desired. Francis did not consent to his request. Francis was strict on the spirit of poverty. It was a continuous challenge for his friars. It was said of him, in following the example of Christ, Francis “refused to plan for even the most immediate future needs of his community men.” (When Francis Saved the Church, Sweeney, 74) It was also a serious concern for the Church in Rome when Francis and a few of his friars came to visit the Pope to seek his approval for their movement. The Church authorities were worried about how Francis could sustain such a movement. However, Francis persevered till the end of his life.

Francis wanted to be a mendicant and not a monk. “A mendicant was a voluntarily poor Christian who relied on the goodness of others or on God’s grace, for daily needs.” (Sweeney, 72). Unlike the other two mendicant orders, at the time, the Dominicans and the Carmelites, Franciscans were strict in trying to be “poor the way Christ was poor.” (Sweeney, 75)

The Franciscan model of voluntary poverty may be characterized by these three keys:

***Not taking from the labour of others, to keep as possession, but to be content with what one only needs.

***Recognizing everything received as from God.

***Seeking a change of inner vision, based on the gospel teachings, and not simply external circumstances, or status or possessions.

It was Francis’ personal approach to poverty that gave his movement its popularity. And since then, 800 years later, his virtue and spirituality continue to challenge the Church. And why would it be so? It is because of his core mission.

3.2 The Core Mission of Saint Francis of Assisi

Foundational to the mission of Francis of Assisi was the instruction, “Go and rebuild my Church.” He responded to these words as a mission imperative. But in responding to this mission, we found out what Francis ended up doing:

Three aspects can be considered as the core mission of Francis:

**His radical conformity to the gospel in imitating Christ

**His evangelical poverty

**His concept of universal fraternity

3.2.1 Radical Conformity to the Gospel and Imitation of Christ (Imitatio Christi)

Matthew’s gospel, chapters five and six, formed the scriptural foundation of the spirituality of his mission. Matthew 6:11-13 – Give us this day, our daily bread. Matthew 5:3-12 the beatitudes (Blessed are the peacemakers…vs.9) Matthew 6:19-21 “… for where your treasure is, there will your heart be…” Matthew 6:24-34 On the birds of the air who neither sew or reap, yet are being taken care of by the providence of God.

So, Francis was determined to live like the gospel prescribed. In that way, he had an ardent desire to “live as Christ lived.” When Christ began his mission, he had nothing – no home to call his own, no possessions.  In like manner, Francis embraced the spirit of the gospel; its simplicity of life, humility, holiness, obedience, providence and sacrificial love.

In imitating Christ, Francis sought to respond to Christ’s invitation and instruction. It was a personal vocation, as it were. Could it be because he so desired to configure himself to the life of Christ that he received the stigmata towards the end of his life?  Hence, for Francis, “the Gospel was not to be interpreted away but incarnated in daily life.”

3.2.2 Evangelical Poverty (Sine Proprio)

Francis’ mission was further marked by a radical commitment to ‘poverty without compromise’ (sine proprio, “without anything of one’s own”). Inspired by the words of the gospel in Mathew 5 and 6, Francis lived out the sense of poverty, – without anything of one’s own.

**One who renounced wealth, status, and inheritance to live among the poor. 

**Poverty that was not to be seen as deprivation but “freedom from attachment and freedom to be totally dependent on divine providence.”  

**And he taught his followers to possess nothing, individually or corporately. Thereby, forming a community of “itinerant mendicants.”

Francis lived what he taught his brothers, the little friars, as he called them. In this way, Francis challenged both the attachment people had towards the “material excesses of society and the growing institutional wealth of the medieval Church.”

3.2.3 Fraternity and Universal Brotherhood

Francis developed an ecological spirituality that makes him look like the man of the future. He “expanded the notion of fraternity beyond human society to include all creation.”

**In addressing birds, animals, and other creatures as “brother” and “sister,” Francis reflected “a theology of cosmic kinship.” (thinking of Flora) 

**His verses in the Canticle of the Creatures express a profound ecological spirituality. 

**He worked hard for peace and “promoted peace and reconciliation, even crossing battle lines during the Crusades to engage the Sultan in dialogue.” 

Thus, his mission embodied a “theology of communion”—with God, humanity, and nature; he expressed a cosmic network of relationship among creatures of the one God that must not be neglected, but acknowledged.

From the spirituality of St Francis, we can now draw on his influence and legacy during his time and beyond.

3.3 The Legacy of St Francis of Assisi

Francis sustained his reform with consistency and perseverance. Since the virtues he lived and taught were not popular, his approach to Christianity was considered radical at the time. I want us to look at the major areas in which his radical approach attracted both attention and concern.

3.3.1 In Preaching Repentance and Peace

Francis saw himself as a herald of conversion (metanoia).

• His preaching was “simple, direct, and rooted in Scripture” without theological sophistication. 

• His living (emphasis) was on hospitality to all, a life of “penance, humility, and the urgency of turning back to God.” 

• His popular greeting, “Pax et Bonum” (Peace and Good), captured his evangelical message vividly. 

He employed an approach of INVITATION rather than condemnatory or judgmental postulation — “calling people to joyful repentance.”

3.3.2 In Renewal of the Church through Witness

Francis renewed the Church through personal holiness and a life of example. The structural reform was not through power and authority, but witness. His prayer, “Lord, make me an instrument of your Peace,” speaks loudly of his intent and vision.

• Though radical, he did not want to be in confrontation with the Church. He sought the approval of the Pope and remained obedient to the Church. 

• His followers, the Order of Friars Minor, became a movement whose way of life turned out to be a practical “critique of clerical excess and moral laxity.” 

• Francis demonstrated that authentic reform must come from a personal conversion rather than institutional control. 

3.3.3 In Missionary Simplicity and Presence

Francis’ missionary method has been attributed to be “profoundly incarnational”:

• These words, “Preach the Gospel at all times; when necessary, use words,” have been attributed to him. 

• His witness emphasized a spirituality of presence, simplicity, charity, and humility. No rhetoric. No ambiguities. 

• With humility and respect, but emboldened by pastoral courage, Francis engaged people across religious and cultural boundaries (his visit to the Sultan Al- Kamil during the crusades), which lends example to a non-violent approach to troubling issues. 

 

3.3. 4 In a Theology of Creation and Ecological Consciousness

Francis expressed creation as “a family of brothers and sisters” and through that laid the “groundwork for modern ecological ethics.” This is further expressed in his Canticle of the Creatures, a poem he wrote.

• The Canticle of the Creatures articulates a sacramental view of nature. 

• Francis is rightly regarded as the patron saint of ecology. 

• This vision has profoundly influenced contemporary Church teaching, notably in Laudato Si’ by Pope Francis, which echoes Franciscan themes of care for the earth as our common home. 

Francis continues to challenge the Church and the world to embrace responsible stewardship of our earth and reverence for creation.

From the above, it can be arguably said that the legacy of St Francis of Assisi is both ecclesial, socio-cultural, and ecological.   He transcended his time and brought into the Christian life some renewed insights to the teachings of Christ, a new attitude to the socio-cultural contexts, a paradigm of inter-religious dialogue, human solidarity, and ecological spirituality and consciousness. These things are not to be buried in the history of medieval life, but should challenge us in a renewed commitment with regard to our contemporary ministry as priests and religious.

3.4 Franciscan Spirituality in Time Perspective: Faith and Courage

Two words, Faith and Courage, resonate strongly if we should distil what we have read and learnt about the spirituality of Francis. In light of its challenge to materialism and detachment as it affects us and our ministry, it lends some deeper insights.

What did Francis do with the wealth that was at his disposal?

While in his father’s shop, after realizing he had snubbed a poor beggar, Francis was generous to the poor man. He not only gave the poor beggar some pieces of clothing, but Francis also emptied his pockets to offer the beggar the coins he had for his welfare.

Francis gave out his armour to the knight he met on the way.

Francis invited the poor and the infirm to his father’s house and lavished a party on them.

Francis gave the poor leper he met on the way some money with dignity.

Francis sold all that he had and brought the proceeds to the local pastor to help in the church of San Damiano.

Francis did not hesitate to give back to his father all that he demanded of him, to the point of giving him his garments as well.

Francis did not stop at sharing and giving up what he had, began from nothing to show the world that, with God and the gospel, in a life of detachment and poverty, he could still be rich and generous to give the world a practical way of Christian living.

Francis’ radical conformity to the gospel of Jesus Christ, especially the Gospel of Matthew, chapters five and six (Matthew 5:3-12, the beatitudes), informs us of actions and reward in line with the different virtues expected of a disciple of Christ. Francis may have read the beatitudes as Jesus’ opening words on the Mount for would-be disciples. So, he decided to live it out. The Master-Servant relationship was understood by Francis at the early stages of his conversion. It was better to serve the Master rather than the servant. Peace became his mantra and words of greeting. He sought peace even to the danger of his life.

In Matthew 6:11-13, 19-21; and 24-34, the disciple of Christ is meant to abandon himself to the providence of God with all the assurance that the detachment from the worries of this world enables intimacy with God and is considered an act of faith.

Francis was courageous to please God, to serve God alone, and would not submit to any hindrance, wealth, or family ties to stand in his way. Having tasted wealth and felt the family pressure, it could only be courage and faith that would make him take the decision of abandoning what had made him the son of his father, Signor Bernadone.

For Francis, he walked away from wealth and a life of comfort to a new life of deprivation. That deprivation was considered a necessary detachment to make the appropriate configuration to the life of Christ as espoused in the gospels.

3.5 The Critique of Francis of Assisi

Those who criticize Francis have some legitimate concerns. How can destitution be a welcome way of life? After all, Francis was born into a family of wealth. So he could not have understood what the poverty of total deprivation can be. He chose at a point in his life after having had the best of life.

He was perceived at that radical turning point as acting stupidly, especially with the drama at Piazza Vescovado in front of the Bishop. The gesture of returning everything to his father. His hometown people regarded him as an ‘idiot, a simpleton, a heretic – sometimes all three.” (Sweeney, 83) Because they think he acted stupidly.

Living strictly by what one only needed and giving out what one does not use at the immediate time was frustrating to the friars. The act of voluntary poverty was the first rule dismissed by the friars after the death of Francis. Francis’ idea of poverty is deemed too demanding to be lived in real life. Francis challenges us that the Christian ideal taught by Jesus can be lived and be real. It is not an easy thing to be a disciple of Christ. It is just that it has not been tried with faith and courage. And it is only faith with courage that can help anyone to be detached from that spirit of materialism.

4. Materialism and Ministry

Francis has challenged us with his attitude to wealth and spirit of poverty that makes materialism look even more like a demon we must confront as ministers of the gospel. This reflection invites us to examine this subject a little deeper.

4.1 The Concept: Materialism is a drive to acquire, to have, and to keep whatever makes life comfortable. It is an acquisition of wealth and riches. The Latin adage, which says, “Amor habendi habendo crescit” which is, “The love of having increases by having,” makes it difficult for many to give up the spirit of acquisition. While acquisition makes one confident, its deprivation makes one vulnerable. Francis went through such an experience with faith. The self-abnegation he had to endure was a bold statement that wealth was not everything, but a means to serve God. Wealth does not offer peace, but only when one pleases God, his Creator, can one have peace. That wealth was a burden of distraction from the path of righteousness.

Materialism is not limited to the material acquisition of wealth. Materialism can also be viewed from the perspective of a lack of care. That is, being insensitive to the needs of the other while focusing on the self only. It is a waste of our natural resources. Archbishop Lucius Ugorji speaks about “being responsible caretakers.” “Genesis 1:26 tells us that God created humankind to ‘have dominion’ over all creation. However, the use of ‘dominion’ in Genesis is not absolute and so does not imply unrestrained exploitation; rather, it is limited by the concern for the quality of life of his neighbour, including generations to come. It requires a religious respect for the integrity of creation. Therefore, we are to treat nature as the Creator would, not merely for our own selfish consumption, but for the good of all creation.” In the words of John Paul II he advocates that we need “ecological conversion”. And one of the major steps is to “have a change of attitude of endlessly amassing possessions for ourselves as well as the attitude of being wasteful in the use of material goods.” (Words from the Heart of a Shepherd, ‘Sustaining the Environment: Towards Facing the Moral Challenges of the Ecological Crisis,’ pp. 378-393) What we do not need, we do not need to acquire, keep it, or waste it. Waste also includes keeping and possessing more than we need. When we are inconsiderate of posterity. It is another aspect of consumerism – the selling of ancestral lands and the reckless felling of economic trees that help make us have a healthier living

The interconnectedness of ecology and humankind calls for ecological spirituality in respect of the earth and stewardship of all that God has given or created. As the Psalmist says, “The Lord’s is the earth and its fullness.” (Ps 24:1)

4.2 The Root Causes of our Materialism: It is interesting to observe that many of us, priests and religious, have found ourselves caught up in this web of convenience and a life of comfort. The fear of suffering or being in want is making some act strangely. We can hold to several factors enabling this appeal – family pressure, societal expectation, false sense of relevance, an attitude of self-entitlement, an erroneous sense of dignity, and a wrong perception of the priesthood and the religious life. These things deem and darken our sense of purpose.

4.3 Let us look at some of the things that can constitute materialism among Priests:

1. Obsession with wealth accumulation (constant focus on income, assets, investments, alerts).

2. Prioritizing possessions (cars, lands, properties, etc.) over spiritual duties (valuing things more than prayer, charity, worship).

3. Displaying status through luxury brands (cars, watches, clothing) to signal success and a sense of ‘arrival’ or belonging.

4. Hoarding instead of giving (refusing to share wealth with the needy or the community).

5. Defining self-worth by material success (measuring identity by job title, bank balance).

6. Choosing relationships for financial benefit (befriending for money/status).

7. Excessive pursuit of comfort and convenience (avoiding sacrifice or ascetic practices or living).

8. Using religious roles as a means to gain influence or monetary gain (proliferation of Healing centers).

9. Envy and comparison driven by others’ possessions (resentment or competition over material status).

10. Neglecting ethical or charitable teachings or derailing on liturgical rites when they conflict with personal gain.

We can be mindful of this: What an individual priest does has a way of affecting our collective image and credibility.

4.4 The Implications/Consequences of Materialism:

1. It creates a wrong perception of the ministry.

2. We attract people for the wrong reasons. This includes parishioners, relatives, and vocations.

3. Undue attention/focus to the self.

4. A collective mistrust and a legacy of antagonism.

5. The scandal encourages the stealing and misappropriation of the temporal goods of the Church by some dubious parish officers.

6. We sustain the suffering of the vulnerable through the abuse of our privileges.

7. A life of insincerity and false security.

8. Exposing our families to friction and crisis after death.

9. The fear to let go of positions of access should the Bishop or the Superior decide to move someone.

4.5 The Paradigm Challenge: Obviously, we are witnessing a new attitude that could be seen as outrageous in the appeal by a good number of our priests concerning materialism. The understanding of materialism that is relative, an ostentatious lifestyle that competes with worldly lay, and a strategy that questions our credibility and compromises our integrity are the major aspects of this perception.

Understanding – Some do not see anything wrong in the pursuit of wealth. It sounds relative to them depending on one’s social location. The truth is that materialism is not only determined by the quantity of wealth being pursued or acquired, but also the mindset with which one tries to grab the wealth (stupendous or not). There is also the assumption that as diocesan priests, the right to own property may not be a canonical impediment. Hence, one can go on and on.

At this point, let us look at what the Code of Canon Law (1983 Code) tells us about priests and the owning of property. The Code admits that a priest may own private property, but it places limits and duties on ownership and its use.

Key points and canonical references (Latin Code of Canon Law, 1983):

– Clerics must avoid worldly affairs and appearances of profiteering; they should live simply and not make the pursuit of temporal goods their focus (can. 285 §3; can. 286).

– Clerics retain the right to acquire, possess and administer temporal goods as private persons, but must do so in harmony with their pastoral duties and ecclesiastical discipline (see can. 284–287 generally).

– Ordinary rules on administration, acquisition and alienation of goods apply (Canon 1281–1288 and the canons on contracts and administration); in some cases significant acts of alienation/encumbrance of goods belonging to clerics or to ecclesiastical goods require permission from the competent ecclesiastical authority (see can. 1291–1292 and can. 1294–1297 for alienation of ecclesiastical goods).

– Bishops and diocesan statutes may impose further restrictions or require permissions for major financial transactions or holding certain offices/businesses (can. 127–129, and can. 391 regarding diocesan governance).

– If a cleric’s temporal dealings cause scandal, neglect of ministry, or canonical irregularity, the bishop can intervene under his pastoral authority (can. 273–277, 381).

It is believed that the different dioceses may also have particular laws guiding us on this subject. You may need to refer to what pertains to your place of incardination.

This being said, the paradoxical context must not be ignored. The fears the younger generation of priests are having as they observe some of the experiences of their retired elder brothers may be realistic. The economic situations of the different dioceses vary, and the toll it puts on the individual diocese to cater to the increasing number of retired priests continues to be heavy. Such current realities may likely be enabling this anxiety to acquire and prepare for old age. Nonetheless, we have the spirituality of St Francis to call our attention to the limits one can go.

4.6 The Choice we must make: In 1994 during the Golden Jubilee celebration of our late Emeritus bishop, Most Rev Mark Unegbu, Archbishop Obinna gave a paper eulogizing “heroic Priests”, our forbears who sacrificed a lot to make the gospel appealing to our people, and who rose to the occasion to fill the gap left by the forceful eviction of the Irish missionaries immediately after the Nigeria/Biafra civil war. With a deep sense of nostalgia, Archbishop Obinna challenged the priests at the time to take a leaf from the “heroic priests” and avoid materialism, which he felt was creeping into the system. That proposed challenge remains relevant. There is an obvious contrast between the pre-Civil War priests and the priests immediately after the war, up to about 1990. And the priests since the 90s. The display of materialism may have started in the 90s.

Those who listened to the recent interview of His Excellency Archbishop Fortunatus Nwachukwu given with Robert Duncan of the Vatican Access (“Africa and the Future of Catholicism”), in which he talked about the “Church of the Sheaves,” can appreciate the insights he expressed with theological clarity about the Pope’s visit to Africa. Please permit me to make use of some of his insights to buttress some points.

The Church of the Sheaves (Ps 126:6) speaks of the fruits of abundance from the missionary enterprise in Africa. I agree with our revered Archbishop Nwachukwu that this is a blessing to the Universal Church. The harvest of vocations and the growing number of Catholics in many parts of Africa are our blessings. The opportunities from the abundance, for our priests and religious, while helpful to the Church in Europe and America, may also be creating a new challenge for our local church. In some situations, the opportunities and privileges may lead to a misguided purpose of the calling if someone’s attitude is a display of wealth and status. The access to foreign currency, contacts, and relationships at ministry places overseas can be misdirected. In some situations, it may have enabled the new wave of owning properties at home, establishing businesses for family relatives and friends, and aiding personal projects, which could easily be misinterpreted by the frail mind. This scenario is not peculiar to those in a foreign mission. It can also be seen among some of us at home who have had access to wealth in one way or another. Some are involved in that chase for material possessions in a way that makes the ministry space odious. Sometimes, questionable.

Archbishop Nwachukwu further mentions the ‘selfie’ moment that destroyed the peace of the Garden of Eden. This is also very insightful. When the focus is away from God, in whose image we are created, being that we are created for him, it fast-tracks the danger of losing our ideal place before God. As a matter of fact, at the foundation of every materialism is the gratification of the self. The self is exalted above the ‘other’ and the ideal purpose of the calling. Materialism is going beyond what one needs to what one wants at the detriment of the needs of the ‘other’.

Detachment, on the other hand, is being content with what one needs for daily living. It is living without worries and the anxieties that come with hoarding or keeping material possessions. It is the spirituality of the Lord’s Prayer, “Give us this day, our daily bread.” It is the use of material goods for their purpose, to spread the kingdom of God, like in evangelical charity. It is to refuse any form of material attachment that makes our life complicated.

God wanted our first parents to keep their focus on him and him alone. When he warned them about the tree in the middle of the garden, he was asking them to be detached from it. Simple instructions were given for them to learn the Spirituality of boundaries in the midst of plenty.

The fruit of the missionary enterprise is in the abundance we now experience in different parts of Africa, especially in Nigeria. If priests detour from the purity of the vocation, it can channel false energy to our detriment. And the best way to fight the spirit of materialism is the rediscovery of the true meaning of our calling as priests, servants, and ministers of God.

In the missionary mandate of Christ to the 72 disciples (Lk 10:1-9), he warned them against the extra tunic and carrying of purses (Lk 10: 4-7). Their welfare would be dependent on those they meet. They should be content with what only helps with the mission. The distraction that comes with the acquisition of wealth often eclipses the sacred nature of the mission. There is a simplicity that should accompany the ministry to make it credible. Materialism destroys it.

Once one claims fear of his security as an excuse, the anxiety of that future begins to drive his approach in the ministry. He begins to work for himself and not for God or the Church.

The Church, with this Jubilee celebration of St Francis of Assisi, is asking us to return and rediscover the spiritual legacy of Francis of Assisi. However, we may see the criticisms of his radical approach to poverty, his courage to live it out amidst its reckoning challenges, inform us that it is possible, after all. In more realistic terms, a good attempt at appreciating his wisdom can be a first step to a renewal. While the individual circumstances may differ, not to consider the legacy of St Francis of Assisi as a call to action will be a big omission.

Fr Anthony Osuji, in our 2026 retreat for the priests in Owerri archdiocese, challenged us on “intergenerational responsibility.” If we do espouse the legacy of our forbears, the simplicity of their lives and the sacrifices they made, what kind of legacy shall our contemporary priests leave for posterity? He relates the presbyterium as our “common home” (in the light of Laudato Si – the earth our common home). We have a duty to protect it for posterity. “… we have responsibility by justice to hand it over as comfortably as it can be to the next generation.” (Treasures in Clay Jars, p167) We bask in the joy of abundant vocation; it is also important that those aspiring to be priests are not wounded by it, even before they are welcomed into the presbyterium or are being drawn to it for the wrong reasons.

Such wrong reasons can lead to early disappointments and frustrations when a particular priest may have built his kind of priesthood away from the ecclesiastical spirit of mission with sacrifice or the preference of his local ordinary, and/or the providence of God. The many aberrations coming from healing ministries and centers have drawn a lot of criticism from orthodox praxis. The Church calls us and sends us, through competent authority, to “go and make disciples of all nations.” It is not to enrich ourselves. It is not to acquire wealth.

To finally help us appreciate the wisdom of Francis of Assisi, let us remember that when Jesus gave himself, he gave us everything – his body and blood, soul and divinity, his holy name, his tunic as well. He expired. Because he gave his strength and breath, too. He held nothing back. He was broken to make us whole. It is the priesthood of Christ that we are called to. As those who offer his sacrifice, we must be givers of everything we have received, and configured to his life.

5. In Conclusion: The mission of Saint Francis of Assisi is fundamentally Christo-centric. It was more like a reform that shook the people of his time. To remind us again, this reform was a way of life that integrates the following:

• A Christocentric imitation in the light of the gospels  

• Radical poverty and detachment from earthly possessions 

• Universal fraternity and ecological sensitivity 

• Evangelization through peaceful means and repentance 

His legacy remains a perennial call to the Church “to rediscover the Gospel in its richness, to live it with courage, and to proclaim it credibly through a life of witnessing.”

Should we be courageous to embrace his legacy, we shall be better disposed to make a practical response and commitment to being ambassadors and witnesses to peace and reconciliation in a world dangerously broken by tensions of friction and war. In some of our parishes, some priests are already losing the trust of our parishioners because of the craze for money.

It is Faith and courage that we need to live the spirituality of Francis of Assisi. Maybe our faith can be measured as ‘small’. If so, there is hope. We simply need to pray like the disciple, “Lord, increase our faith.” But where there is no faith, it becomes even a strange thing to imagine that a priest has no faith. That is a tragedy in the sanctuary. Faith and courage are all that we need to cross the labyrinth of imagining that material security, which we acquire here and now, will be our saving grace in our old age or in the account of our stewardship before the throne of the Master who called us into his vineyard.

Our materialism is hurting the Church in no small way. Rather than being instruments of peace, should we become instruments of hatred and rancour because we have been perceived as competing with the world in the acquisition of wealth, or because we have left behind some wealth and possessions that have the capacity to threaten our families and the credibility of the mission?

Let us make a choice that glorifies God and not oneself.

Let us rediscover Francis in a new way that appeals to our circumstances without compromise to that spirit of detachment that is Christ-like. May God help us to be worthy stewards of his mysteries and selfless custodians of the temporal goods in our time.