Reflection by: Dominic Chua
Franciscan Roots and The Tradition of The Nativity Set – Day 4 – GRECCIO
#sequelachristi2025
Today we visited two sites: The Franciscan sanctuary of Fonte Colombo and the Sanctuary of Greccio, both places where St Francis lived at different periods of time.
<Picture of Fonte Colombo’s entrance>
Inside the monastery, we visited a Benedictine chapel donated to the Friars when the order was founded. It was this very chapel that the early friars prayed, celebrated mass, and were together in communion with the Lord. I was struck that this was the exact same chapel that Brother Leo (one of St Francis’s first followers) celebrated mass and where so many Friars would have passed through. I was also deeply drawn to the simplicity of the room: wooden chairs, brick floors, and a simple altar that was wide open but contained only a wooden crucifix. I realized that that was analogous to how they lived: those friars could have chosen paths of wealth and comfort, but instead they chose to devote their lives entirely to Jesus and serving him.
<Inside the Benedictine chapel donated to the Friars>
The first sanctuary, Fonte Colombo (translated meaning “Fountains of the Doves”, due to St Francis seeing a pair of doves drinking from a rock fountain in the mountains which inspired him to build his sanctuary there), is significant because that is where the Franciscan Rule of 1223 was born. St Francis spent his time in a small crevice in the side of the mountain praying, fasting, and drafting up the Rule for what is currently the present-day Franciscan order. He sought out such places because such caves were akin to entering the heart of Jesus through the wounds on his side. Today, a chapel dedicated to Archangel St Michael, which St Francis had a devotion to, is built on top of his crevice.
<Chapel dedicated to St Micheal above where St Francis prayed>
As I fought the cold and walked on the path to the crevice that St Francis took to be his safe space, what struck me most keenly was the early Friars’ commitment to their value of poverty. Here I was shivering with my padded jacket and gloves, while all St Francis and his friars wore were their habits—yet they somehow braved cold winds and the winters of Assisi. I was awestruck with their faith and commitment to their way of life.
After Fonte Colombo, we broke for lunch at an Italian Restaurant with beautiful views.
Finally, we went to the Franciscan sanctuary in Greccio. Here, it was where St Francis organised the first live nativity set. St Francis sought to warm the cold hearts of those in Greccio by bringing them the spirit of Christmas, and delivering it to them in person. He wanted to make the mystery of Christ’s coming tangible and relatable, emphasizing Christ’s humanity. With live animals and St Francis’s contagious joy, this was the precursor that has become the nativity set tradition. There, we also saw the modest conditions that the Friars lived and worked in. To end the day, Fr JP celebrated mass for us.
<The location where the first live nativity set was held>
<Where the friars lived in Greccio>
<Mass at Greccio>
