2nd Hand - The Franciscan Revival In The Anglican Communion By Barrie Williams

2nd hand in good condition but a few scratches on spine. 1982 edition

The popularity of St Francis of Assisi in the twentieth century makes it easy to overlook the fact that he was virtually unknown for most of the nineteenth century. It was only in the 1890s that biographies of the saint began to appear in profusion and that the particular appeal of Francis's poverty and simplicity brought the Franciscan ideal to a wider audience than it had reached at any time in the past.

Part of the upsurge of interest was of a purely romantic nature focusing on the Canticle of the Sun, the stigmata, meetings with lepers and stories of birds and beasts. One more practical result, however, was the rebirth of the Franciscan life within the Church of England. In this book the author tells the story of the rebirth and the growth that followed. He relates the various attempts to recreate the life by missions to tramps and hop-pickers. He deals with all the major Franciscan societies, both in the Church of England and in other parts of the Anglican Communion. His story takes in such bodies as the Society of the Divine Compassion, the Society of the Atonement and the Society of St Francis, and also the numerous orders for women that adopted the Franciscan ideal.

paperback 214 pages 13.5x21.5cm