St. Aelred: The Patron Saint of LGBT People and Integrity

Today's Scripture Readings

Ruth 1: 15-18 (NRSV)

So she said, ‘See, your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and to her gods; return after your sister-in-law.’ But Ruth said,
‘Do not press me to leave you
   or to turn back from following you!
Where you go, I will go;
   where you lodge, I will lodge;
your people shall be my people,
   and your God my God.
Where you die, I will die—
   there will I be buried.
May the Lord do thus and so to me,
   and more as well,
if even death parts me from you!’
When Naomi saw that she was determined to go with her, she said no more to her.

Philippians 2: 1-4 (NRSV)

If then there is any encouragement in Christ, any consolation from love, any sharing in the Spirit, any compassion and sympathy, make my joy complete: be of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility regard others as better than yourselves. Let each of you look not to your own interests, but to the interests of others.

John 15: 9-17 (NRSV)

Jesus said,"As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his love. I have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete.

"This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one's life for one's friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. I do not call you servants any longer, because the servant does not know what the master is doing; but I have called you friends, because I have made known to you everything that I have heard from my Father. You did not choose me but I chose you. And I appointed you to go and bear fruit, fruit that will last, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask him in my name. I am giving you these commands so that you may love one another."

Blog Reflection

I have a very important message today for those who wonder if the Church should be welcoming and affirming of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning and/or queer (LGBTQ) people.

Being LGBTQ is about love.

Being Christian is about love. 

Our sexual orientation albeit homosexual,bisexual, pansexual, metrosexual, heterosexual is about love.

Being a Priest, Bishop, Deacon, Religious, lay member/leader etc is about love.  Allowing the Church to be more inclusive of LGBTQ people in all of our Sacraments and Sacramental Rites is about love.

Aelred was one of three sons of Eilaf, priest of St Andrew's at Hexham and himself a son of Eilaf, treasurer of Durham.^[1] He was born in Hexham, Northumbria, in 1110.

Aelred spent several years at the court of King David I of Scotland, rising to the rank of Master of the Household before leaving the court at age twenty-four (in 1134) to enter the Cistercian abbey of Rievaulx in Yorkshire. He may have been partially educated by Lawrence of Durham, who sent him a hagiography of Saint Brigid.

Aelred became the abbot of a new house of his order at Revesby in Lincolnshire in 1142^[2] and in 1147, abbot of Rievaulx itself, where he spent the remainder of his life. Under his administration, the abbey is said to have grown to some hundred monks and four hundred lay brothers. He made annual visitations to Rievaulx's daughterhouses in England and Scotland and to the French abbeys of Cîteaux and Clairvaux.
Aelred wrote several influential books on spirituality, among them Speculum caritatis ("The Mirror of Charity", reportedly written at the request of Bernard of Clairvaux) and De spiritali amicitia ("On Spiritual Friendship"). He also wrote seven works of history, addressing two of them to Henry II of England, advising him how to be a good king and declaring him to be the true descendent of Anglo-Saxon kings. Until the twentieth century, Aelred was generally known as a historian rather than as a spiritual writer; for many centuries his most famous work was his Life of Saint Edward, King and Confessor.

Aelred's work, private letters, and his Life by Walter Daniel, another twelfth-century monk of Rievaulx, have led some writers to infer that he was homosexual. In writing to an anchoress in The Formation of Anchoresses, Aelred speaks of his youth as the time when she held on to her virtue and he lost his.^[3] Nevertheless, all of his works encourage virginity among the unmarried and chastity in marriage and widowhood and warn against any sexual activity outside of marriage; in all his works he treats of extra-marital sexual relationships as forbidden and condemns "unnatural relations" as a rejection of charity and the law of God. He criticized the absence of pastoral care for a young nun who experienced rape, pregnancy, beating, and a miraculous delivery in the Gilbertine community of Watton.

Aelred died on January 12, 1167, at Rievaulx. He is recorded as suffering from the stone (hence his patronage) and arthritis in his later years (Patrologia Latina 195). He is listed for January 12 in the Roman Martyrology and the calendars of various churches.  (Source: Wikipedia).

Walking With Integrity last year wrote the story of how St. Aelred became the Patron Saint of IntegrityUSA.

At the 1985 General Convention in Anaheim, CA, at the suggestion of Howard Galley, Integrity/New York, the Standing Liturgical Commission recommended Aelred, along with a number of others, for inclusion in Lesser Feasts and Fasts. When this resolution came before the House of Bishops, the preconversion Rt. Rev. John Shelby Spong informed the house that, according to John Boswell, Aelred of Rievaulx had been gay--implying this might disqualify his inclusion. With little discussion the House of Bishops approved the others on the list but sent Aelred back to the commission which sent him back to the House of Bishops where, in spite of his being gay, and with the bishops' full knowledge that he was, he was admitted to the calendar.

During the 1987 national convention of Integrity, in St. Louis, the following resolution was submitted by the Rev. Paul Woodrum and was passed: "Whereas the Episcopal Church USA meeting in General Convention in Anaheim, California, in 1985, with full knowledge, thanks to the vigilance of the bishop of Newark, of St. Aelred's homoerotic orientation, did approve for annual commemoration in her liturgical calendar the Feast of St. Aelred on 12 January and did provide propers for the same, Therefore be it resolved that Integrity Inc. place itself under the protection and patronage of St. Aelred of Rievaulx and, be it further resolved that Integrity, Inc. dedicate itself to regularly observe his feast, promote his veneration and seek before the heavenly throne of grace the support of his prayers on behalf of justice and acceptance for lesbians and gay men." 

St. Aelred was one who though he embraced a life of celibacy did not discourage other forms of physical love between monks in his own community.

Aelred allowed his monks to hold hands and give other expressions of friendship (Holy Women, Holy Men, Celebrating the Saints, page 166).

Here in the 21st Century we understand that any physical relationship between consenting adults is a private matter between themselves and their Higher Power. 

I am writing this particular blog post on a day that means so much pain, sadness and anger among LGBT people.   The Canadian Prime Minister has dissolved thousands of same-sex marriages performed in Canada between couples who live in countries where they are not recognized.  The thousands of LGBT couples in the United States who went to Canada to be married there awoke this morning with the news that they are no longer married.  You can read the story of this move by the Canadian Prime Minister and the reaction of Dan Savage who's marriage in Canada has now ended here. 

Undoubtedly there are Christianist groups all over the United States who are celebrating this blow to equality for LGBT people.

The Scripture readings on this commemoration of St. Aelred remind us of how important love is to our vocation as Christians.  St. Paul tells us to have the mind of Christ who always put the needs of others a head of his own.   Even to the point of giving his own life on the Cross.   Jesus commands us in the Gospel to "Love one another as I have loved you."

The life vows of a Benedictine: Stability, Conversion of Life and Obedience are all about loving God, others and ourselves as the optional alternative Gospel reading from Mark 12: 28-34a says.  

Stability means offering ourselves to God as we are.  No masks on.  No pretenses.  No denying all that is strong and weak about us.  "The vow of stability" writes Esther de Waal in her book Living with Contradiction; An Introduction to the Spirituality of St. Benedict; "tells me that I must not run away from myself." (page 49).  By stability we mean anchoring everything about ourselves in God.

Conversion means allowing the God who invites me to not run away from myself, but ground everything about me in God; now I have to allow God to help me grow and "change".  This means that God takes me as I am, here and now and calls me to grow in my ability to love myself, my partner and others in a self sacrificing love. I am to take on the daily challenge of learning to accept others as much as I need to accept myself.  Loving myself and others is essential if I am going to live my life in a loving relationship with God.

Obedience, means that if I am going to achieve stability and allow God to help me experience conversion, I must be willing to listen to what God is calling me to do.  I must be willing to set aside all else I am doing and obey God's call to be obedient to what God is asking of me.  This means that I accept the struggle between my own will and the will of God.  If I am to experience growth in acceptance of myself and maintaining any kind of stability in God, while God calls me to conversion, I have to be willing to say yes to God's desire. 

If I accept God's will for my life as a gay man, then I must accept my sexual orientation, ground how I live it in the Gospel, the Rule of St. Benedict, and the Baptismal Covenant to serve others including my husband and many others in obedience to God's commandments.  If I make the attempt to change who I am, I am already being disobedient to God.

In St. Aelred we see an interesting dynamic about being LGBT and being someone who seeks God in our lives.  Instead of denying and trying to mask who we are, we are invited to be who we are and live it openly and honestly with God and others. 

We cannot find stability in God if we live in denial of our sexual orientation and/or gender identity/expression. 

We will experience the most wonderful conversion when we allow ourselves to be loved as we are, and to love our spouses, friends, families, and communities in the way God created us to love.  God will show us how to put others needs before our own and find loves fulfillment and joy in serving others through the awesome gift of our sexual orientation and/or gender identity/expression.  

When we face the reality of who we are and agree to serve others as God calls us, we are in fact obedient to God's voice in our lives and hearts. 

As we use our own experiences and tell our stories of how we learned to love ourselves and yet still fell in love with the God who created us and loves us as we are and by doing so help the reign of God to be established by working for the justice, peace, dignity, equality and inclusion of all marginalized persons including LGBT people, we are not only living the way of St. Benedict, we are also fulfilling the vows of our Baptismal Covenant.

The Baptismal Covenant, the Rule of St. Benedict, the life and patronage of St. Aelred, and the meaning of the Christian Life for LGSBT people is love. 

Let the inclusion and loving begun by our efforts continue.


Prayers

Almighty God, you endowed the abbot Aelred with the gift of Christian friendship and the wisdom to lead others in the way of holiness: Grant to your people that same spirit of mutual affection, that, in loving one another, we may know the love of Christ and rejoice in the gift of your eternal goodness; through the same Jesus Christ our Savior, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.  (Holy Women, Holy Men, Celebrating the Saints, page 167).

Pour into our hearts, O God, the Holy Spirit's gift of love, that we, clasping each the other's hand, may share the joy of friendship, human and divine, and with your servant Aelred draw many to your community of love; through Jesus Christ the Righteous, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.  (Prayer taken from Lesser Feasts and Fasts).

O God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, our only Savior,
the Prince of Peace: Give us grace seriously to lay to heart the
great dangers we are in by our unhappy divisions; take away
all hatred and prejudice, and whatever else may hinder us
from godly union and concord; that, as there is but one Body
and one Spirit, one hope of our calling, one Lord, one Faith,
one Baptism, one God and Father of us all, so we may be all
of one heart and of one soul, united in one holy bond of truth
and peace, of faith and charity, and may with one mind and
one mouth glorify thee; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.  (Prayer for the Unity of the Church, Book of Common Prayer, page 818). 

St. Ambrose of Milan: Orthodoxy Supports LGBT Inclusion

Today's Scripture Readings

Luke 12:35-37,42-44 (NRSV)

Jesus said to his disciples, "Be dressed for action and have your lamps lit; be like those who are waiting for their master to return from the wedding banquet, so that they may open the door for him as soon as he comes and knocks. Blessed are those slaves whom the master finds alert when he comes; truly I tell you, he will fasten his belt and have them sit down to eat, and he will come and serve them.

And the Lord said, "Who then is the faithful and prudent manager whom his master will put in charge of his slaves, to give them their allowance of food at the proper time? Blessed is that slave whom his master will find at work when he arrives. Truly I tell you, he will put that one in charge of all his possessions."

Blog Reflection

Let me say at the beginning of this entry that I do love orthodox theology.  I really do. The rich theology that has brought us the Trinity, the Incarnation, the Real Presence in the Eucharist and the Liturgy is a true delight of mine.  In a conversation in which orthodoxy is being unfairly ridiculed, I tend to side with orthodoxy.  On the other hand, when orthodoxy is being used as an excuse for exclusivity and that Christianity is celebrated as a religion of "triumphalism" and "supersessionism" I am still very orthodox when I respectfully disagree.

St. Ambrose of Milan was a great philosopher and theologian in the time of the great Arian controversy.  As an Oblate of St. Benedict, many of the great hymns that support belief in the Trinity that are used in Morning and Evening Prayer were composed by St. Ambrose.   One of the great Advent hymns found in the Hymnal 1982, number 55 was written by Ambrose between 340 and 397 and translated by Charles P. Price who was born in 1920. 

"A meditation attributed to him [Ambrose] includes these words: "Lord Jesus Christ, you are for me medicine when I am sick; you are my strength when I need help; you are life itself when I fear death; you are the way when I long for heaven; you are light when all is dark; you are my food when I need nourishment." (HWHM page 106).

I will not write anything here that would suggest that Ambrose defense of all that is Christian is anything less than.  Yet, even the greatest Saints in Church history had their faults.  "If anti-Semitism were not a Christian virtue, Ambrose of Milan would not be a Christian Saint" (Gray Temple, Gay Unions In the Light of Scripture, Tradition and Reason, page107).   Anti-Semetism as well as any notion that Christians, men, heterosexual people, Caucasian individuals are exceptional and therefore privileged is anything but a Christian virtue.

This is why I do enjoy Episcopal theologians such as Bishop John Shelby Spong who are not afraid to turn orthodoxy on its back, pick it apart and put it back together again with a renewed understanding. 

Jesus calls on those who follow him to "Be dressed for actions and keep your lights lit...  so there may be an open door for when the master returns."  This is a call for Christians to prepare that way for Jesus, by keeping our minds and hearts open for Christ to come and convert ourselves, our culture, the Church and society.   As many affirming Christians work for the inclusion of LGBT people and challenge our LGBT communities that not all Christians are anti-LGBT, it is a call and opportunity for orthodoxy to keep its lamps lit and welcome the Master in new and wonderful ways.

I find it a very poor use of orthodoxy and even the word "traditionalists" when they are used to suggest that Christianist imperialism is somehow a good thing for the Church and the world.

Yesterday, Secretary of State Hilary Clinton gave an outstanding speech about the United States doctrine of LGBT rights on a world wide global scale.   It was a reflection of the wishes of the Obama Administration to call for universal equality for LGBT people all over the world.  It was a welcome and timely message.

Already today Christianist individuals such as Pat Robertson of the 700 Club and Peter Spriggs of the Family Research Council along with Matt Barber and Tony Perkins have been slamming Obama.   Peter Spriggs outright accused Obama of "fanatical cultural imperialism."

While the United States is not completely innocent of spreading our own imperialism, calling for a world that is more accepting of LGBT people is an effort to move away from the imperialism of heterosexism. 

The orthodoxy that makes the Christian religion is exactly why we must work for a more inclusive world and Church that seeks equality and justice for all marginalized persons.   Our faith is not about encouraging oppression, violence and prejudice.  The Christian Faith is a relationship that sets the prisoner free and gives sight to those who cannot see.  The Christian Faith and all that is terrific about it with it's prayers, creeds and sacraments, is an invitation that makes us uncomfortable in our Pandoras boxes and calls us to reach out beyond ourselves. 

Being LGBT and chosing to exercise all that is great about diverse sexual orientations and/or gender identities/expressions has at it's core what being an orthodox Christian is all about.   The Christian Tradition of loving our neighbors as we love ourselves, and giving a vision of God that is anything but status quo, is exactly what the orthodox Christian is all about.  It gives a vision of a God we cannot see, touch or find, suddenly very close, personal and able to be as close to us as a living cell.  

Finding room for the outcast and those thought to be unlovable is all that orthodox Christianity is about.  St. Ambrose may not have said that or written that in his time, but it is the ideal of what his work was suppose to produce.

May we as Christians be found faithful in all that we believe, by making our Faith live in our work towards equality, inclusion and justice for all marginalized persons.  Including, but not limited to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning and queer people. 


Prayers

O God, you gave your servant Ambrose grace eloquently to proclaim your righteousness in the great congregation, and fearlessly to bear reproach for the honor of your Name: Mercifully grant to all bishops and pastors such excellence in preaching and faithfulness in ministering your Word, that your people may be partakers with them of the glory that shall be revealed; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.  (Holy Women, Holy Men, Celebrating the Saints, page 107).

Merciful God, who sent your messengers the prophets to preach repentance and prepare the way for our salvation: Give us grace to heed their warnings and forsake our sins, that we may greet with joy the coming of Jesus Christ our Redeemer; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. (Second Sunday of Advent, Book of Common Prayer, page 211).


O God, you made us in your own image and redeemed us through Jesus your Son: Look with compassion on the whole human family; take away the arrogance and hatred which infect our hearts; break down the walls that separate us; unite us in bonds of love; and work through our struggle and confusion to accomplish your purposes on earth; that, in your good time, all nations and races may serve you in harmony around your heavenly throne; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. (Prayer for the Human Family, Book of Common Prayer, page 815).

Called by Jesus to Justice and Equality. Not Dominionism.

Scriptural Basis


Mark 3: 7- 19a (NRSV)

Jesus departed with his disciples to the sea, and a great multitude from Galilee followed him; hearing all that he was doing, they came to him in great numbers from Judea, Jerusalem, Idumea, beyond the Jordan, and the region around Tyre and Sidon. He told his disciples to have a boat ready for him because of the crowd, so that they would not crush hi for he had cured many, so that all who had diseases pressed upon him to touch him. Whenever the unclean spirits saw him, they fell down before him and shouted, "You are the Son of God!" But he sternly ordered them not to make him known. He went up the mountain and called to him those whom he wanted, and they came to him. And he appointed twelve, whom he also named apostles, to be with him, and to be sent out to proclaim the message, and to have authority to cast out demons. So he appointed the twelve: Simon (to whom he gave the name Peter); James son of Zebedee and John the brother of James (to whom he gave the name Boanerges, that is, Sons of Thunder); and Andrew, and Philip, and Bartholomew, and Matthew, and Thomas, and James son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus, and Simon the Cananaean, and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him. 

Blog Reflection

In his book: "Rescuing the Bible from Fundamentalism" Bishop John Shelby Spong says of Mark the Evangelist: 

"[Mark]...grasped neither the great philosophical thought processes of his day nor the nuances that lay behind the popular mythology.  He simply accepted the street version of this mythology without question.  He shared without demurrer in the popular conclusions of that time regarding not only demons but also certainty that the earth was flat, the conviction that God dwelt just about the blue canopy of the sky, adn that the sun rose and set as it circled the earth.  The earth, for Mark, was not just the center of the universe, it was also the extent of all that God had made.  To the author Mark there was no reality beyond that which could be seen, and thus no explanations were necessary beyond the supernatural one that explained quite adequately for that time and place what a pre-scientific world could readily observe." (Page 130).

One of the greatest tragedies of Christianity is what Rev. Canon Gray Temple calls "supercessionism" in his book Gay Unions: In Light of Scripture, Tradition and Reason.  The idea that all world thought, religions, morality, world governments etc must supercede into how Christianity defines it.  

The problem with this ideology is what version of Christianity gets to define what?


This past week I came across a blog post in Right Wing Watch.  The article is about Texas Governor Rick Perry who is putting together a prayer gathering.   Among the groups with which he is teaming up with is The Southern Poverty Law Center's Designated Anti-Gay Group: The American Family Association and others who have become part of a movement called The Dominionists.

Among the positions of The Dominionists is that "only Christians have the authority and power to govern in the United States." And among the many so called "rights" that Dominionists have is the right to remove even by violence if necessary anyone who does not reflect their understanding of Christianity.

This kind of thing is the problem that results if people read the Bible in particular a Gospel narrative such as the one from Mark for today's Daily Office without doing some research and critical thinking about what is actually happening in that reading..


If we read today's Gospel at face value and with a literal interpretation it may very well sound as if Jesus is organizing the Apostles to carry out the mission of dismissing demons.  Demons as the Christian Church might decide are destroying the Apostles definition of what is right in terms of the family, sexuality, women, governmental organization and so on.   

Quite frankly, this is the approach that the Dominionists who also call themselves "The New Apostles" are taking in an attempt to scare Christians into believing that everything President Barack Obama and all liberal Christians and other religions might be attempting to do in American politics. 


This kind of organizing is very dangerous in and of itself.  


This does not reflect the kind of actions that brought about Jesus' calling and naming the Apostles in today's Gospel.  That is why "The New Apostles" and "The Dominionists" are missing the mark and creating a "brand" of Christianity, that all Christians should be very concerned and skeptical about.


This criticism is no "religious discrimination."  The criticisms I offer in my blog today are coming from the dangerous roads on which Christianists over the years have been taking the Christian religion.


The results are not only creating a faith made of fear and false understandings of the Bible.  They give the Christian religion and Jesus Christ a bad name.  That needs to be a real concern of all who believe in the Name of Jesus Christ as the Name above all Names, who is the compassionate and merciful Savior.


When Jesus calls the Apostles and names them, he is calling them to be a "companion" of the Lord (Philip Van Linden, C. M. Collegeville Bible Commentary, New Testament Volume, page 911).  The term "disciple" according to Van Linden, also means "learner".   "..and to learn from him it is necessary to be with him." 


"A second part of discipleship is located in the meaning of "being named" by Jesus. (page 912).   Van Linden goes on to refer to God's naming of things in Genesis in the creation story.


Part of being with someone is so that we may learn from that person's example.  The Apostles were named so as to reflect their companionship with Jesus who was teaching from his example and commanding them to do likewise.


As we see through out the Gospel narratives Jesus shows forth God's generous and extravagant love as the poor, the sick, the marginalized and those left behind are brought to the center and given their justice and dignity.  The work of Jesus is not based on a popularity contest.  Nor is the mission of Jesus defined on singling out one group of people to be pivoted against another.  It is also not a matter of claiming a domination of one religion over another.  We would understand the whole work of Jesus better and more accurately if we pay careful attention to not only what Jesus is saying, but also on what Jesus is doing.  Jesus is running from the whole idea of domination and submission as fast as he can.  Jesus came to rescue humanity from the idea that one person, group etc dominates while another is subjugated.  


The evil that Jesus calls the Apostles by name to "cast out" is an all out hatred defined by religious, social and political oppression and violence.  At no time during Jesus' ministry did he ever demand that an individual person be "converted" to his own religion.  Jesus did call people to a repentance of heart and life.  A repentance of the desire to subjugate women, LGBT, the sick, the poor, the immigrant, the Native American, the Muslims, the Jews and others based on religious, social and political bias.  


The problem with the philosophies and maneuvering of The Dominionists and the New Apostles is that they want to push individuals through fear, prejudice and violence masked as Evangelism, as a cult.  Making Christianity into an excuse to scapegoat and destroy what they do not agree with.  This is not the mission Jesus is naming the Apostles to in our Gospel today.  This is a proselytizing through coercion, spiritual malpractice and doctrinal abuse.

I implore all Christians, non-Christians, Atheists and people of good will to work together to call the Dominionists and The New Apostles out for their reckless work of injustice and spiritual violence.   We need to respond to these individuals and groups respectfully and peacefully and take the wind out of their sails here and now.  

Let us write our State, Federal and local Governments to keep in mind that the United States has a separation of Church and State for this very reason.  The United States was not formed to be a theocracy, but a democracy.  Let us state very clearly that we cannot tolerate nor give too much leverage to a group that proposes making America into a country of religious bandits and peace stealing people.  


As Christians, let us all recommit ourselves to the true teachings of our Founder.  Let us pray and ask God the Holy Spirit to guide all of us "into all truth" and to work for peace, justice and equality for all.  Amen.


Prayers

O Lord, mercifully receive the prayers of your people who call upon you, and grant that they may know and understand what things they ought to do, and may also have grace and power faithfully to accomplish them; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. (Proper 10, Book of Common Prayer, page 231).

Lord, make us instruments of your peace. Where there is hatred, let us sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is discord, union; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; where there is sadness, joy. Grant that we may not so much seek to be consoled as to console; to be understood as to understand; to be loved as to love. For it is in giving that we receive; it is in pardoning that we are pardoned; and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen. (Prayer Attributed to St. Francis, Book of Common Prayer, page 833).