All praise be yours, my Lord, through Sister Death,
From whose embrace no mortal can escape.

Woe to those who die in mortal sin!

Happy those She finds doing your will!
The second death can do no harm to them.

--St. Francis of Assisi

The above words are from the Canticle of Creatures by St. Francis, and they served as the basis for a reflection on the Feast of St. Francis that Fr. Tom Carzon, OMV, the Pastor of Holy Ghost Church in Denver gave to my Knights of Columbus Council at our regular meeting last Tuesday, which coincided with the Feast of St. Francis. Fr. Tom told us about a friend of his from back east, whom he had known since before he entered the seminary who was dying. This friend of his was still young (not yet 40), and did not believe she had the opportunity to become the great saint she had wanted to be; however, Fr. Tom reported that she was facing death with great courage, and was unafraid of her fate. We all have something to learn from her, he said. He invited us to consider the possibilities of our lives if we were unafraid of death. If we accepted the teachings of Fr. Francis and understood in our hearts that death was a part of God’s creation to be loved and praised, what would be left to be afraid of? We would be free to live great lives of Christian abundance.

Father’s meditation on death was prescient. On Thursday we lost Brother Knight Frank Kiernan. Frank was an institution in our council, and had been an active member longer than I have been alive. Unlike many of the older Knights in our Council, Frank still came to the meetings every month; he served on committees and volunteered to help at events. Everybody knew Frank. About half of our active members had their first degree conferred by Frank. He is going to be missed terribly. He lived a live of service as a Catholic Gentleman.

Death is the final means by which God shows His dominion over men. It is the final moment when we are called to an ultimate poverty before Him. In our death we become completely dependent upon Him and upon His Judgment. There is nothing left for us to do. Death is the ultimate poverty, because it is the state of the most extreme dependence on the Mercy of the Creator. It is not surprising that the Seraphic Father would praise Sister Death in the same way he praised Lady Poverty, his beloved spouse. However, Fr. Francis teaches us that we need have no fear for our brother knight Frank. Franks spent his life in service, turning himself over to God. In a way, all of that was practice for his final moment. If we can comfortably stand poor and dependent before our Father in death, we have no need to distress:

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.