On December 19th at 10:55 p.m. on ORF 2; afterwards: “Decluttering your life”
Vienna (OTS) – Like hardly any other Christian saint, Francis of Assisi (1181–1226) shaped not only Christian practice but also the spirit of the West. He took following Christ literally. For the new “criss-cross” production “In the footsteps of St. Francis of Assisi,” which ORF 2 will show on Tuesday, December 19, 2023, at 10:55 p.m., director Peter Beringer has Assisi and Greccio and those there in the run-up to Christmas Franciscans who worked there and created a portrait of the man Francis of Assisi and his time from the encounters and conversations with them. Steffi Zupan’s film “Decluttering Life” follows at 11:25 p.m., which explores the following questions: How much possessions do you need to live well or to be happy? And is a trend reversal in sight?
“In the footsteps of St. Francis of Assisi” – A film by Peter Beringer
Francis, a rich merchant’s son from Assisi in Umbria, had given up all his possessions and lived with lepers and cared for them. He only wore a simple habit with a hemp cord and often not even sandals. He wrote and preached in the vernacular, unlike the learned theologians and religious specialists of his time. He was so good at discussing and arguing that even the Sultan in Egypt was impressed. All this made a tremendous impression on all classes of the population, rich and poor.
It was no coincidence that his radical ideal of poverty inspired people. The Catholic Church was a dominant power factor in the 13th century, rich and quite unpopular with the people. Back then, resistance could end at the stake. Religious poverty movements such as the Cathars, Waldensians and Humiliates opposed and appealed to Christ. Francis shared their ideal of poverty, but sought the blessing of the local bishop and the pope for his movement. The papacy was able to use the new order – like the Order of Preachers of St. Dominic, which was founded at approximately the same time – as a “weapon”, so to speak. Francis and his Friars Minor traveled through the country, preaching and teaching. The fact that they appeared poor and modest, earning their living from small donations and the work of their hands, deprived the other movements and supposed enemies of the church of the basis.
The invention of the Christmas nativity scene, which is attributed to Francis, shows the simple and striking means with which Francis wanted to bring the message of Christ closer to people: He built a feeding trough in the church in the small town of Greccio, filled it with straw, put a live ox and added a live donkey, built an altar over the trough and held the Eucharist:
See, God was born so poor, see, you should follow this example. Francis believed that all humans and natural beings are animated by God. Consequently, he considered not only all people but the entire creation to be worthy of protection – an anticipation of modern human rights and environmental protection ideas.
Francis is considered to be the first saint who is said to have received stigmata, the wounds of Christ – whether he taught himself these or whether they really formed spontaneously was already controversial back then. They documented his complete identification with the Savior. Francis was canonized in 1228, just two years after his death – an unheard of event at the time.
“Decluttering Life” – A film by Steffi Zupan
Flashy advertising messages, shopping as an experience and excessive consumption: There are people who have committed themselves to a completely different lifestyle because they think they will be happier with it. They clear out, go on a “consumer diet” and try to make do with very few things. They borrow what they need – and they share what they have with others. Just a new elitist “lifestyle” that you have to be able to “afford”? Or a liberating alternative to a life under the pressure of economic constraints?