Each year on Oct. 4, the Catholic Church celebrates the feast of St. Francis of Assisi.
Here at this school named in his honor, members of the campus community take a moment early in each October to reflect on the life of St. Francis and the example he set for others. But this is not the only time students at the University discuss the man born Giovanni di Pietro di Bernardone.
Every freshman at SFU is required to take a Franciscan Goals for Today course where they learn about St. Francis and his life, as well as the Franciscan Goals of Higher Education.
“I really enjoyed learning about St. Francis’ story,” said senior Tyler Beckwith. He said his favorite stories about St. Francis are the ones when he helped the leper and rebuilt the San Damiano Church.
Beckwith also said he enjoyed the story of Francis and the wolf of Gubbio and that he found St. Francis’ vow of poverty commendable.
“I think that’s something very admirable, being able to live with not a lot and be happy,” he said. “It’s a good way to think about life.”
Junior history major Adrianna Boldizar said she has learned a lot more about St. Francis since coming to SFU, including how he bore the wounds of Christ through his stigmata.
“He had a lot of things that many people would deem valuable,” said Boldizar, “but he threw all of that away for something he felt was greater.”
Beckwith and Boldizar said they are inspired by the way St. Francis lived his life and how his values continue to be lived out today by the members of the Franciscan Order.
“It’s cool to see how it’s been centuries since Francis himself walked this Earth, yet his way of life is still so relevant today,” said Boldizar.
Beckwith feels that the best way to honor Francis’s memory would be to emulate the way that he lived and remember that he is a good role model for both college students and people of any age.
