A Model Life

When Francis was praying at the old San Damiano church, he heard Jesus on the cross talking to him saying, "Francis, repair my church."  Francis thought Jesus meant church with a lowercase "c" and by the church he was in.  But what Jesus meant was the capital "C" church.  So Francis took cloth from his father's shop and sold it to make money to repair the old church.  When his father found out about what he had been doing, his father dragged Francis in front of the whole town and the Bishop and demanded that Francis return back the money to his father.  The Bishop told Francis to give back the money and God will provide.  So Francis gave his father all the money and and took off all the clothes that his father gave him.  In front of the town Francis said,"Pietro Bernardone is no longer my father.  From now on I can say with complete freedom, 'Our Father who art in heaven.'"  After that, Francis went off into the freezing woods wearing nothing but castoff rags to sing.  Then robbers beat him up and took all his clothes and from that day on, Francis had nothing and everything.