Admonition VII: Let good action follow knowledge
he letter kills, but the Spirit gives life [2 Cor 3:6]. To imitate Christ we have to know Christ and we learn of Christ from the Gospels. But we can know Christ for many reasons. For example, we can read the Gospels out of curiosity, out of a sense of duty, or simply to be able to tell others what the following of Jesus entails. This gives us knowledge but knowledge of itself is of little value. Knowledge must flow over into what we do. Francis heard a passage of the Gospels read in church and the passage struck a chord in him. He heard the words that say a disciple of Christ should not have gold or money, but should preach the kingdom of God and do penance. When Francis heard these words from the Gospel of Matthew he said: 'This is what I want, this is what I seek, this is what I desire with all my heart'. Immediately, Francis went out of the Church and began to put these words into actions. Franciscan spirituality entails knowing Francis, how he thought and what he did. Through this knowledge of Francis we have a road map showing us how to follow the footprints of Christ. But, with this map in hand, do we say, yes this is what I want to do and then go out and do it? It is all too easy to have knowledge, even to keep learning more and yet not put into practice what we know. We can know the letter of the Gospels but, unless we listen to the voice of the Spirit within us, the letter will kill us.
