In 1204, the army of the Western Christians fought the army of the Eastern Christians at Constantinople. The armies wanted to show which Christians were The Greatest.

The Western Christians “won,” sacking the city, plundering its ancient wealth, and smashing its incomparable beauty.

Neither the Western Christians nor the Eastern Christians realized how true it is that “God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong.” (1 Corinthians 1:27).

But St. Francis of Assisi realized how true this is. And so, in 1205 he became The Least of the Least.

He renounced all the wealth and lusts of the world. Living in absolute poverty, he traveled from place to place, preaching about the Way of Jesus.

To spread his Kingdom on Earth, God rejected the strength of armies (Luke 9:51-56). Instead, God chose the weakness of St. Francis of Assisi. Why?

Because God’s “strength is made perfect in weakness.” (2 Corinthians 12:9 (KJV)).

That is also why God chose to give Joy and Peace to Humanity by using The Weakest of The Weak—a young mother, Mary, and her tiny baby, Jesus.

When armies fight to show who is The Greatest, they destroy life. But when people follow the Way of Jesus by becoming The Least of the Least, they save lives.

Furthermore, the lives that they save will be enjoyed to the full, going out in Joy and being led forth in Peace in the Way of Jesus (John 10:10; Isaiah 55:12).

That is why there is a “kingdom prepared . . . since the creation of the world” for those who give a hungry person something to eat, who give a thirsty person something to drink, who give shelter to a stranger, who give clothes to a needy person, who care for a sick person, and who visit a prisoner (Matthew 25:34-36).

St. Francis of Assisi found the perfect way to dramatize this Truth of Christmas and this Truth of Easter. He gave us the Nativity Scene.

The Nativity is simple. A tiny baby. A loving mother. A faithful husband. A homeless family. A humble stable. Lowly shepherds. Lordly kings. Bleating sheep. Singing angels.

Yet the Nativity is profound. God is with us, even when we are poor and homeless, even when we find ourselves in “humbling places.” The lowliest family is blessed. Poor people worship God. Rich people worship God. Nature worships God. Heaven worships God.

This Vision of the Nativity by St. Francis of Assisi is profoundly simple.

Yet, this Vision of the Nativity by St. Francis of Assisi gives Joy and Peace to all Humanity.

While the “victories” won with swords cause disasters for all Humanity, the words that God spoke through St. Francis of Assisi cause blessings for all Humanity. Because God has promised:

“As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is my word that goes forth from my mouth. It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it. You will go out in joy and be led forth in peace. (Isaiah 55:10-12).

The life of St. Francis of Assisi shows us the Truth of Easter. Although it appeared impossible for the Church to survive the flaws of The Greatest, God resurrected the church at its darkest hour using the most unlikely person (The Least of The Least!)—a poverty-stricken beggar preaching the Good News about the Way of Jesus.

The Good News that St. Francis preached—and that he still teaches all Humanity with his Vision of the Nativity—is the Truth of Christmas and the Truth of Easter.

We can find God’s blessings even in the most unlikely, most desperate times. How? By experiencing the Joy that comes from following the Way of Jesus—the Truth of Easter.

We can live in harmony with God, Humanity, Nature, and all creatures of our God and King. How? By experiencing the Peace that comes from following the Way of Jesus—the Truth of Christmas.

We can spend our lives going out in Joy and being led forth in Peace. How? By experiencing the truth of these words that God spoke through St. Francis of Assisi and his Vision of the Nativity almost 1,000 years ago:

“All creatures of our God and King,

Lift up your voice and with us sing

Alleluia, Alleluia!

Thou burning sun with golden beam,

Thou silver moon with softer gleam.

O praise him, O praise him.

Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia!

And all ye . . . of tender heart,

Forgiving others, take your part,

O sing ye, Alleluia!

Ye who long pain and sorrow bear,

Praise God and on him cast your care,

O praise him, O praise him,

Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia!

Let all things their Creator bless,

And worship him in humbleness,

O praise him, Alleluia!

Praise, praise the Father, praise the Son,

And praise the Spirit, Three in One,

O praise him, O praise him,

Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia!”

Merry Christmas!

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To learn more about the Truth of Christmas and the Truth of Easter, please read my book Visions of the Church (published with my book Visions of America), especially at pages 167-170 and 211-212.

To learn more about St. Francis of Assisi, please read my blogs “St. Francis Made the Way of Jesus Great Again”, “St. Francis of Assisi’s Vision of the Nativity”, “The Nativity Scene: Baby Jesus”, “The Nativity Scene: Mary”, “The Nativity Scene: Joseph”, “The Nativity Scene: The Homeless Family”, “The Nativity Scene: The Humble Stable”, “The Nativity Scene: The Shepherds”, “The Nativity Scene: The Magi”, “The Nativity Scene: The Sheep”, and “The Nativity Scene: The Angels”; and the chapter “Relying on the Lunar Module” in my book Visions of the Church (published with my book Visions of America), at pages 181-185.

The chapter about St. Francis of Assisi refers to the Lunar Module because I use the flawed—yet triumphant—flight of Apollo 13 as my narrative thread to give an overview of 2,000 years of Church history in only 60 pages!

I have three reasons to use the word “Vision” in my phrase “St. Francis of Assisi’s Vision of the Nativity”.

First, I like the parallelism with my use of “Vision” in my books Visions of America and Visions of the Church.

Second, the Nativity Scene is definitely inaccurate from a strictly historical perspective. The word “Vision” fits the fact that the Nativity Scene captures the spiritual truths which St. Francis wanted to communicate by conflating the facts related in the Gospels.

For example, the Magi did not arrive on the night Jesus was born. Furthermore, as I note in my book Hoping in the Lord, a “stable” in Bethlehem was probably part of a villager’s home (rather than being a freestanding barn like in England when the KJV was translated and as depicted on most Christmas cards) because people generally kept their animals (and the mangers to feed them) inside part of their tiny houses at night.

Third, I like to use the word “Vision” because we need Visions such as those of St. Francis in the Nativity. Otherwise, the Bible warns us that “[w]here there is no vision, the people perish” (Proverbs 29:18 (KJV)).

To learn how the New Testament Church lit the world—not by might nor by power—but by God’s Spirit (Matthew 5:14,16; Zechariah 4:6), please read my book Lighting the World.

To read more about the Nativity, please read my book Hoping in the LORD, at pages 12-46.