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Thus;
a blessed beginning was confirmed
by a more blessed end.a
Where he learned, there he also taught;
and where he began, there he blessedly ended.
In all of his preaching, before he presented the word of God to the assembly, he prayed for peace saying, "May the Lord give you peace." 2 Thes 3:16 He always proclaimed this to men and women, to those he met and to those who met him. Accordingly, many who hated peace Ps 120:7 [Vulgate, Ps 119:7] along with salvation, with the Lord's help Mk 16:20 wholeheartedly embraced peace. They became themselves children of peace, Lk 10:6 now rivals for eternal salvation.b
24 Among these there was a man from Assisi with a holy and simple character, who was the first to follow devoutly the man of God.c
After him, brother Bernard, embracing the delegation of peace, Lk 14:32 eagerly ran after the holy man of God to gain the kingdom of heaven. d He had often received the blessed father as a guest, had observed and tested his life and conduct. Refreshed by the fragrance of his holiness, he conceived fear and gave birth to the spirit of salvation. He used to see him praying all night long, sleeping rarely, praising God and the glorious Virgin, His mother. He was amazed and said, "This man truly Lk 23:47 is from God." So he hurried to sell all Mt 13:46 he had and distributed it to the poor, not to his relatives. Grasping the title of a more perfect way, he fulfilled the counsel of the holy gospel: "If you wish to be perfect, go and sell all you own, and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me." Mt 19:21 When he had done this, he joined the holy man, Francis, in the same life and habit, and was always with him, until the brothers increased in number and he, with the obedience of his devoted father, was sent to other regions.e
- The church of Saint George, which stood on the site of the present Blessed Sacrament Chapel in the basilica of Saint Clare, was near the house of Pietro Bernardone and included a school which Francis attended. Clare went to the church to hear him preach and it was there that he was first buried in 1226 and there that his canonization took place in 1228.
- The proclamation or greeting of peace is a theme frequently present in medieval hagiography. Cf. William of Saint Thierry, Arnold of Bonval, Geoffrey of Auxerre, Vita prima s. Bernardi XXIII; Cf. Bernard, The Life of Malachy VIII.17
- The identity of this first companion remains unknown. He is never mentioned again in any writing, not even by Thomas himself. It has been suggested that after his initial enthusiasm he left Francis’s company.
- This is a reference to Bernard, son of Quintavalle di Berardello, a wealthy, educated noble and a member of a family that was prominent in Assisi.
- Sanctus can mean "saint" and, as such, refer to the title conferred by canonization. It may also simply mean "holy" and, thus, refer more generally to a holy person.
Vita Prima, Fontes Franciscani, p. 298-299
ut
felix initium
felicior consummatio commendaret.
5Ubi didicit, ibi et docuit,
et ubi coepit, ibi feliciter consummavit.
—6In omni praedicatione sua, priusquam convenientibus proponeret verbum Dei, pacem imprecabatur dicens: « Dominus det vobis pacem ».7Hanc viris et mulieribus, hanc obviis et obviantibus semper devotissime nuntiabat.8Propterea multi, qui pacem oderant e pariter et salutem, Domino cooperante, pacem amplexati sunt toto corde, facti et ipsi filii pacis et aemuli salutis aeternae.
241Inter quos quidam de Assisio, pium ac simplicem spiritum gerens, virum Dei devote primo secutus est.
2Post hunc frater Bernardus, pacis legationem amplectens, ad mercandum regnum caelorum i post sanctum Dei cucurrit alacriter.3Hic enim frequenter susceperat beatum patrem hospitio, cuius vitam et mores intuitus et expertus, refectusque sanctitatis eius odore, coneepit timorem et salutis spiritum parturivit. 4Videbat eum tota nocte orantem, rarissime dormientem, laudantem Deum et gloriosam Virginem matrem eius, mirabatur atque dicebat: « Vere hic homo a Deo est ».5Accelerat proinde vendere omnia sua et pauperibus, non parentibus elargitus est ea, et perfectioris viae titulum apprehendens, sancti Evangelii consilium adimplevit: « Si vis perfectus esse, vade et vende omnia quae habes, et da pauperibus, et habebis thesaurum in caelo, et veni sequere me ».6Quo facto, vita et habitu sancto Francisco associatus est, eratque cum eo semper, quousque multiplicatis fratribus, cum obedientia pii patris ad alias transmissus est regiones.
