Reviewed by the Rev. Martin L. Smith

One of the tributes paid to Francis of Assisi soon after his death was the title alter Christus, “a second Christ.” For readers in the 21st century, this takes on a new layer of meaning. Modern scholarship has uncovered the whole range of divergent interpretations that rapidly sprung up around the life of Jesus of Nazareth, and the ways in which the needs of an evolving church shaped his image as the Christ. In ways that consciously parallel the scholarly quest for the historical Jesus, this latest comprehensive study of Francis by André Vauchez expertly delineates the multiple ways in which his contemporaries, and the generation that followed, framed and reframed his life.

Those who would like a fresh version of the story of the “real Francis” to emerge may experience something of the same disappointment felt by those who might have hoped New Testament scholars would uncover an easily grasped story of the original Jesus. But if the “real Francis” still eludes us, scholarship such as that deployed brilliantly by the author of this new study can still cast a much brighter light on this subject. And Vauchez includes an important section on the later afterlife of Francis’ image, illustrating how his persona has been reconceived and projected through the different lenses of a variety of interpreters, from 19th-century romantics to present-day activists, in the causes of interfaith dialog, ecological radicalism and peace.

Vauchez is professor emeritus of the University of Paris X and a leading expert in the religious movements of the middle ages and the literature of sainthood. So this study rewards the reader in three ways. First, making use of the results of wide-ranging research accomplished in the last 30 years, Vauchez brings the life of Francis into focus through detailed exploration of the complex social background of 13th-century Italy and Assisi itself. Second, the author provides tools for gaining a better understanding of the distinction between Francis himself and Franciscanism, the ecclesiastical religious order that the Church forged from Francis’ legacy, which blatantly deviated in so many ways from the values Francis had so dramatically and lyrically espoused during his life. Third, Vauchez brings to the forefront of his study the body of authentic writings of Francis, which it seems in older studies were never given the weight they deserved in forming our sense of Francis’ spirit and purpose.

Vauchez also brings well-founded insight and analysis to the discussion of his adroitly presented findings. For instance, without minimizing the way the mutation of Francis’ vision by those who would bend it to serve their own interests clouds Francis’ achievement with failure, the author here leads us to some understanding of the historical forces behind it, so that our response can be deeper than the bare accusation of betrayal. Likewise, Vauchez does not shy away from attributing some of the frustrating difficulties in grasping the significance of Francis’ life to internal tensions and inconsistencies within Francis’ own person.

And who are we even to expect perfect consistency? Perhaps a clearer sense of these tensions adds a new dimension to our awareness of Francis’ sheer vulnerability and humanness that intensifies his attractiveness to us today. Such clarity may mean far more to us than the reports of the miraculous that fascinated our ancestors, or the hero-worship of those who want to reduce his strangeness and use him for ideological ends.

But even allowing for these contradictions, this new biography will reinvigorate our appreciation of Francis’ originality and radicalism. As Vauchez writes, “Rereading the Gospel in the light of his own personal experience and that of a civic and knightly culture, Francis chose to follow a poor and begging Christ, always on the road and sharing with the marginalized the precariousness of their conditions of life, and to worship a God full of mercy who made the sun shine and the rain fall on the good and the bad alike. In doing this he was not replicating a model: he was creating one by virtue of his own personal sensibility, which was keen and which made for its originality.”

Martin L. Smith is an Episcopal priest, author and retreat leader. He is the author of a number of books exploring contemporary spirituality, including A Season for the Spirit, The Word is Very Near You, Love Set Free, Reconciliation, and Compass and Stars. His latest book, written with the Rev. Julia Gatta, is Go in Peace: the Art of Hearing Confessions.