Lord." At this, the man began to weep and cry aloud together with him.

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[HE REPLIES TO A BROTHER WHO ENCOURAGED HIM TO HAVE SCRIPTURE READ TO COMFORT HIM]

On another occasion, at the time of his eye disease, he endured such pain that one day a minister said to him: "Brother, why don't you have one of your companions read to you from the prophets or other passages of Scripture? In that way, your spirit will rejoice in the Lord ^{Lk 1:47} and receive great consolation." He knew that he rejoiced greatly in the Lord whenever he heard the divine Scriptures read to him.

"Brother," he answered him, "every day I find so much sweetness and consolation in my memory from meditating on the humility of the footprints of the Son of God that, if I were to live till the end of the world, I'd have no great need to hear or meditate on other passages of Scripture."

He often called to mind and afterward spoke to the brothers this verse of David: "My soul refuses to be consoled." For this reason, as he frequently told the brothers, because he had to be a model and example to all the brothers, he refused to take, not only medicines, but even necessary food in his illnesses. Because he took these things into consideration, he was severe with his body, not only when he appeared healthy, although he was always weak and ill, but also when he was ailing.

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[HE AVOIDS HYPOCRISY, CONFESSING WHAT HE HAS EATEN DURING AN ILLNESS]

One time when he had recovered somewhat from a very serious illness, after some consideration, it seemed to him that he had received some little delicacies during that illness, although he ate only a little, since with his many, diverse, and serious illnesses he was not able to eat.

One day, although still sick from a quartan fever,^a he had the people of Assisi called to the piazza for a sermon. When he had finished preaching, he requested that no one leave until he returned.

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« Ita deberem ire plangendo et eiulando sine verecundia per totum mundum passionem Domini me! ». ³At ille una cum ipso cepit plorare et fortiter lacrimari.

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¹Alia vice, tempore sue infirmitatis oculorum, quia nimis inde doloribus affligebatur, quadam die dixit ei quidam minister: 2 « Frater, quare a tuo socio non facis tibi legi de scripturis prophetarum et aliis scripturis, unde tuus spiritus in Domino exultabit, et inde accipiet maximam consolationem? ». ³Sciebat enim quod multum in Domino letabatur, cum audiret legi divinas scripturas.

⁴At ille respondit ei: « Frater, tantam dulcedinem et consolationem invenio cotidie in mea memoria ex meditatione humilitatis vestigiorum Filii Dei, quod si usque in finem seculi viverem, non multum necesse esset michi alias scripturas audire vel meditari ».

⁵Unde sepe reducebat ad memoriam et postea fratribus dicebat illud davidicum verbum: Renuit consolari anima mea. ⁶Propterea, sicut multotiens dicebat fratribus, quia oportebat, ipsum esse formam et exemplum omnium fratrum, ideo non tantum medicinis, sed etiam cibis necessariis in infirmitatibus suis uti nolebat. ⁷Et propterea quia hec predicta considerabat, non tantum quando videbatur esse sanus, licet semper esset debilis et infirmus, sed etiam in suis infirmitatibus, suo corpori erat austerus.

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¹Unde quodam tempore, cum aliquantulum convaluisset de quadam maxima infirmitate, consideravit et visum fuit ei quod habuisset aliquantulam pitantiam in illa infinnitate, licet parum comederet, quoniam propter multas et varias et longas infirmitates comedere non poterat.

²Exurgens quadam die, cum non esset de febre quartana liberatus, fecit populum Assisii ad predicationem in platea convocari. ³Cumque finisset predicationem, precepit illis ut nullus recederet donec ad ipsos reverteretur.