gapbetweenthemandhumanswaslessthanotherChristians
supposed.
But a misleadingimpressionoftheviews ofSaintFrancis
maybegainedifonelooksonlyathisattitudetolarksandthe
otheranimals.ItwasnotonlysentientcreatureswhomSaint
Francisaddressedashissisters:thesun,themoon,wind,fire,
all were brothers and sisters to him. His contemporaries
described him as taking “inward and outward delight in
almosteverycreature,andwhenhehandledorlookedatthem
hisspiritseemedtobeinheavenratherthanonearth.”This
delightextendedtowater,rocks,flowers,andtrees.Thisisa
descriptionofapersoninastateofreligiousecstasy,deeply
movedbyafeelingofonenesswithallofnature.Peoplefrom
avarietyofreligiousandmysticaltraditionsappeartohave
hadsuchexperiences,andhaveexpressedsimilarfeelingsof
universallove.SeeingFrancisinthislightmakesthebreadth
of his love and compassion more readily
comprehensible.Italsoenablesustoseehowhisloveforall
creaturescouldcoexistwitha theologicalpositionthatwas
quiteorthodoxinitsspeciesism.SaintFrancisaffirmedthat
“everycreatureproclaims:‘Godmademeforyoursake,O
man!’” The sun itself, he thought, shines for man. These
beliefswerepartofacosmologythatheneverquestioned;the
forceof his lovefor all creation,however, wasnot to be
bound by such considerations.
Whilethiskindofecstaticuniversallovecanbeawonderful
source of compassion and goodness, the lack of rational
reflection can also do much to counteract its beneficial
consequences.Ifweloverocks,trees,plants,larks,andoxen
equally, we may lose sight of the essential differences
betweenthem,mostimportantly,thedifferencesindegreeof