APRIL 2026
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Edition 52
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Conversion Stories
Pray as you Go
pages 6 & 7
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St Alphege - April 19
They Came to See St Francis and Found Christ Gwen Wiseman This year marked the 800th anniversary of the death of Saint Francis of Assisi. For one extraordinary month, from 22 February to 22 March, the mortal remains of the saint were placed on public veneration, drawing pilgrims from across the world to Assisi. During that time, hundreds of thousands passed through the Basilica, many travelling hundreds, even thousands of miles for the chance to spend just a few brief moments before the remains of the humble friar who once called himself “the little poor one.” At first glance, it might have seemed that pilgrims had simply come to see the bones of a medieval saint. Yet the friars serving at the Basilica say something far deeper was unfolding. What began as an act of devotion became something more personal: a moment of prayer, reflection and, for many, a renewed encounter with faith.
“It is startling to see the crowds”
Among those welcoming pilgrims to Assisi was Fr Daniel Mary Quackenbush, OFM Conv., an American friar from upstate New York who serves at the Basilica and is responsible for the English-language Mass celebrated each Sunday morning. “It is startling to see the crowds,” Fr Quackenbush said. “The fact that Francis still has this appeal after eight hundred years proclaims something about his holiness.” For Fr Quackenbush, the explanation lies in the depth of Francis’ interior life. “He had no enemies,” he said. “The only battle he fought was within himself, against anything that stood between him and Christ.” The saint’s holiness was not built on outward drama alone but on an interior struggle, a constant effort to surrender everything to God. “He was constantly trying to put to death whatever wasn’t love or truth,” Fr Quackenbush explained. This daily dying to pride, ambition
and self-will became the hidden path of Francis’ sanctity. He was canonised only two years after his death by Pope Gregory IX, who described him as one of the greatest imitators of Christ the Church had ever known. For Fr Quackenbush, the veneration of Francis’ remains was not about death. “The emphasis we’re trying to make is that this isn’t about death,” he said. “It’s about life.”
The grain of wheat
Many pilgrims arrived with curiosity or devotion. But as they moved through the experience something deeper began to stir within them. Standing before the remains of the saint, they encountered not only the memory of a holy man from the past but the question that shaped Francis’ life: “Lord, what do you want me to do?” This was the question Francis once asked before the crucifix of San Damiano, when he was still a restless young man searching for direction. After venerating the remains, pilgrims were led into a nearby chapel to renew their baptismal promises, shifting the focus from the life of Francis to their own. The friars framed this moment through the words of Christ in the Gospel of John: “Unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains just a grain; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.” (John 12:24) For the friars, the life of Francis is a living example of that Gospel truth. Like the grain of wheat that falls into the earth, Francis surrendered his life completely to God. In letting go of wealth, ambition and reputation, he discovered a freedom that transformed not only his own life but the lives of countless others. Francis spoke of death not with fear but with trust, referring to it in the Canticle of the Creatures as “Sister Death.” “The enthusiasm Francis still generates among the people of God is a sign he isn’t dead,” Fr Quackenbush said. “He’s very much alive.” Continued on page 2
The remains of Saint Francis of Assisi
Image: Gwen Wiseman