The Kiss That Changed the World: St. Francis and the Leper

St. Francis and the Leper

In his youth, St. Francis was wealthy and ambitious, yet conflicted. He faced a series of life events that eventually led him away from a prosperous life as a textile merchant in his family’s business and into the life of a mendicant friar (brother), as he is known to us today. However, no event was more transformative than his encounter with a leper on the road near Assisi.

As Francis recounts, he was wearing "secular garments” and riding his horse, still “living in sin.” He saw a leper approaching and was initially utterly revolted, as was common in a time when lepers were ostracized and feared. Understandably, he first sought to avoid contact, turning his horse to the other side of the road. Yet, a force beyond himself compelled him to dismount, run to the leper, embrace and kiss him, and give him a generous amount of money. As he resumed his journey, he looked back and saw no sign of the leper. He was convinced that the leper was, in fact, Christ Himself, testing him and inviting him into a new life. He experienced a “sweetness of soul and body," transforming his bitterness and revulsion into spiritual and physical joy. After this pivotal moment, Francis never returned to his old life. He regularly worked in leper colonies outside of Assisi, washing, feeding, and caring for the lepers with his own hands. This radical act of love became a foundational experience for his new life and remains central to Franciscan Spirituality.

Franciscan Spirituality can be understood through four primary tenets.

First, life is incarnational and Christ-centered. Given the nature of his radical encounter with the leper, God is not a remote figure but the incarnate one who “bends down” to meet us and is present in the ordinary and “lowly.” Therefore, God is found not by escaping the world but by fully engaging with it and recognizing the divine in all things.

Second, there is a recognition of kinship with all creation. Best expressed in St. Francis’s Canticle of the Sun, his idea of relationship with the entire created order, including death itself, emphasizes profound love and care for creation.

Third, there is an embrace of humility, specifically adopting a life of poverty and seeking peace in all circumstances. Francis “married” what he called Lady Poverty, living without means and in solidarity with the poor and marginalized, seeing them as a special reflection of Christ. Among those who joined the Franciscan order of friars, this meant owning nothing, having no home, and begging (mendicant) for their livelihood. Although this was strictly followed at first, the order became less strict over time.

Finally, despite the seemingly austere nature of poverty and sacrifice, Franciscan spirituality is characterized by an irrepressible sense of joy. Not superficial happiness, but a deep spiritual contentment that springs from trust in God’s provident love. Overall, this all means that life is seen as a continual conversion, a recurring call to release ego and worldly attachments, enabling one to live more authentically according to the Gospel. Franciscan Spirituality is a simple invitation to live with an open heart, seek the sacred in the ordinary, and become an instrument of peace and love in the world.