Francis of Assisi: The way of poverty and humility

by William R. Cook

""My task . . . is to rely as much as possible on both written and visual sources, although I obviously must consider the discoveries and insights of modern scholarship, in order to present Francis of Assisi as a major figure in the mystical tradition. This means I will not be much concerned with Francis as the founder of a religious order. I will not present a detailed biography, although the first chapter provides a general overview in order to make the more detailed discussions of his spirituality more intelligible. Rather than attempt to discuss all texts by and about Francis of a mystical nature, I shall instead focus on six elements of his life and spirituality--his conversion; his relationship to the created world; the creation of the Christmas crib at Greccio; the role of learning; the relationship between the active and contemplative life; and his stigmatization at LaVerna in 1224, two years before his death. I believe that a detailed discussion and analysis of these aspects of Francis's life will best introduce the reader to Francis of Assisi."" --from the Introduction William R. Cook received his PhD in medieval history from Cornell University. At present, he holds the rank of Distinguished Teaching Professor at the State University of New York at Geneseo. Professor Cook has taught and lectured on St Francis throughout the United States and has directed summer seminars on Francis's life for the National Endowment for the Humanities in Assisi and Siena.

Genres: History, Religion, Nonfiction, Biography, Audiobook, Christianity, Philosophy

135 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 1975

About the author

Dr. William R. Cook is the Distinguished Teaching Professor of History at the State University of New York at Geneseo, where he has taught since 1970. He earned his bachelor’s degree cum laude from Wabash College and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa there. He was then awarded Woodrow Wilson and Herbert Lehman fellowships to study medieval history at Cornell University, where he earned his Ph.D.

Professor Cook teaches courses in ancient and medieval history, the Renaissance and Reformation periods, and the Bible and Christian thought. Since 1983 Professor Cook has directed 11 Seminars for School Teachers for the National Endowment for the Humanities.

His books include Images of St. Francis of Assisi and Francis of Assisi: The Way of Poverty and Humility. Dr. Cook contributed to the Cambridge Companion to Giotto and edits and contributes to The Art of the Franciscan Order in Italy.

Among his many awards, Professor Cook has received the Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Teaching. In 1992 the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education named him New York State’s Professor of the Year. In 2003 he received the first-ever CARA Award for Excellence in the Teaching of Medieval Studies from the Medieval Academy of America.

Reviews

[Corey Wozniak]

I’m very interested in the subject of this study, but was unimpressed by these lectures. The two professors are genuine, and surely they’re knowledgeable. But I found their tag-teaming of the lectures distracting, their voices and verbal tics mildly annoying (sorry), and the lectures somewhat repetitive and ramble-y. This has been my least favorite “Great Course” so far. Maybe I’ll check out Chesterton’s biography instead.

[Julie Davis]

This is a simply superb overview of Francis' life, covering everything from the context of his actions in his times, to modern his influence on modern times. I especially appreciated their approach to St. Clare as her own person and not just someone who copied St. Francis.

[Dariko]

I love professor W. Cook and thoroughly enjoyed his lecture on Francis of Assisi from the Great Courses, which he presented together with his colleague R. Herzman. This book is a little gem and will be a valuable addition to my collection of books about my favourite Saint.

[Jim]

St Francis is a really famous saint (statues and everything), yet few really know much about his life and contributions ("Oh...didn't he like birds and found the Franciscans?"). These brief lectures really don't add much about his life, other than he was born rich...then angered his father...was disowned...stripped naked to renounce his family and fortune...made friends with influential people (like a pope)...like animals...apparently received stigmatization (like St Paul)...tried to be martyred...died young. Many viewed this humble (grubby?) man as a Christ-like figure, espousing Jesus' teachings without the Jewish reformer cloak. I see him more as a St Paul-type evangelist, spreading the 'Good news' of Christianity.
It seems he was a mild-mannered, good sort of man, bent on living a life of poverty. His legacy lives on through the Order of the Franciscans...a charitable (and quite admirable) organization devoted to helping the poor, and eschewing wealth (even though much wealth is required to help people in need.
This is a good introduction course, but lacks the background to be a really great one.
It's a blessing that the course is often on sale...

[Irena Pasvinter]

I'm not sure I liked the idea of two professors ( William R. Cook and Ronald B. Herzman) lecturing together in a weird academic duo -- not each of them doing a separate lecture but both speaking in turns on the same topic and with the same attitude, more or less echoing each other's thoughts.

Also, there was lots of praising of Francis of Assisi, admiration with his essence and legacy, explaining why and how he was such a great Christian, retelling of the stories about his great miracles and discussing how modern Christians could attempt follow in his steps. What seriously lacked was the scientific approach. The great "miracles" were never discussed scientifically. For example, it was simply stated a number of times that Francis miraculously received his stigmata (the wounds similar to the crucifixion wounds of Jesus Christ) as the final step of his way to embrace Jesus. No attempt was made to give a scientific explanation of the origin of his miraculous wounds although modern research can provide it. Obviously, faced with a Christian miracle, the distinguished professors are not in the least interested in the scientific research of the phenomena.

[Devon Neisen]

It’s like a 12 part podcast on Francis of Assisi

[Susan]

I really did not know much about St. Francis, so I found this very interesting. I also enjoyed having two lecturers at the same time. I've never seen that before in a Great Courses program.

[Angela]

It turns out there are a lot of inaccurate / overly dramatic / apocryphal accounts out there about Francis of Assisi, so I was pleased to find one based on actual research & primary sources penned by two Francis experts. Fascinating & with just the amount of detail I was looking for. I learned a lot not just only about Francis but also culture, politics, Christianity / Catholicism, and life in general in that part of Italy at that time.

[Don Heiman]

In 2013 Audible Audio released The Teaching Company course “Francis of Assisi. The course lectures are presented by William Cook and Robert Herzman. This 12 lecture 6 hour course features the life and legacy of Saint Francis from his birth in 1181 to his death in 1226. The lectures discuss how Saint Francis created an order of Friars who were highly committed to compassion, humility, and the sacredness of helping others overcome poverty and hardships. The lectures also discuss Francis’ meeting In 1219, with Muslim Sultan Melek al-Kamil during the 5th crusade; Pope Innocent III’s role in authorizing the order; and the phenomenal impact of the the rapid growth of Franciscan ministries throughout Europe. The lectures on Franciscan mysticism, ministries to those who suffer from disease such as leprosy, and lectures about Franciscan ministries that help people experience community love are all very inspiring. Also, Saint Francis commitment to Saint Clare’s cloistered community and the power of “street” ministries are very well done. The course guidebook has a timeline, glossary of terms, and an excellent annotated bibliography. (P)

[Dale]

A Review of the Audiobook

Published in 2013 by The Great Courses.
Lectures by William R. Cook and Ronald B. Herzman.
Duration: 6 hours, 10 minutes.
Unabridged.

The idea behind The Great Courses is a simple one - take a college lecture course given by an expert that knows how to give an interesting lecture and package it up as an audiobook that anyone can listen to.

In the case of this audiobook, there are two college professors that have a great chemistry together and really enjoy a discussion of St. Francis.

Before this audiobook, I knew only the barest of details of St. Francis so I found the entire discussion interesting and informative.

I do have a rather big complaint about the way the information was presented, however. They start with a biography of St. Francis up until the moment when he becomes recognized by the Pope and his movement is up and going. From that moment, they move to a...

Read more at:
https://dwdsreviews.blogspot.com/2022...

[Susannah]

Hooray for Professors Bill Cook and Ron Herzman - both are really knowledgeable experts and writers in their own right. But what's magical is the two of them in collaboration, which is tough to do without making it competitive. What I love about the two of them together is how they build upon each other with their own passion, personality and perspective. This is the first title I've finished with the two of them as co-authors, and now I'm going to go to St. Augustine's Confessions next. They do a fantastic job of bringing to contemporary life the historical context of St. Francis' time. Plus they tie in the most interesting points of all the books and movies about St. Francis in to a riveting, centralized point of view.

[B.]

I enjoyed this lecture series. Learned much about Francis and about Assisi. Didn't know he was a wealthy merchant's son who loved fabulous clothing, then gave it up. I think pleasure led to his feeling purposeless. He needed the challenge of poverty. On top of that, he wanted to live like the Lord Jesus - without a home, etc. Very nice. He fits in well with my own interest in minimalism and simplicity.

The lecturers also talk about those who were intrigued by him, or inspired by him. I had never heard of Clare and her poverty movement. I will check out more about her. Francis continues to intrigue me. I also love the great detail that this lecture gives. I'll check out more of these.

[Robert]

Francis of Assisi said that animals glorify God with their being while men glorify God with their actions.

"If you live your life in a way that follows God, you are a living rebuke to those who do sinful things. You don't have to say a word."

Francis of Assisi

Francis took some things very literally, so that when he read "preach the gospel to all the creatures of the earth," he preached the gospels to all the creatures of the earth.

Francis referred to rocks as his brothers, to indicate that all of creation is his siblings in the sense that it was all created and sustained by God.

Chesterton referred to Francis as the last Christian.

[Scott]

It's ok. I listened to one of his Great Courses lecture on St. Francis, which was only 30 minutes long. I truly expected a deep dive on St. Francis, but it really didn't go anywhere. I didn't really understand the point. Felt like wiki article. Also, Dr. Cook is disappointingly secular, it seems like he is reluctant to talk about the miracles Francis performed, almost like he sees them as cultural legend rather than things that actually happened.

To Dr. Cook's defense, however, he does have a 12 hour lecture series dedicated to St. Francis, and that is great. For reading, St. Bonaventure's the Life of St. Francis is still the best.

[Keith]

I confess: I was the most mediocre of mediocre students of the lecturers, and cannot recall if they offered and I took their class on Francis of Assisi. I probably would have passed with a B.

But this course is a good introduction to Francis: a captivating personality, saint, and human.

I'm not sure if I can judge how well the material was presented, because, despite it being 20+ years since I took a Cook or Herzman course, their banter, solo and team-up, is too familiar.

[Jack]

This was an overview of the life and some of the legacy of Francis of Assisi. I was hoping to learn more about his teachings, and that's not really a big part of this book... if you're looking for contemplative material, keep looking. But if you want some context of the politics, culture, environment he lived in, then this may be of interest.

I will give the lecturers top marks - they keep the pace quick and they are engaging to listen to. It just didn't cover what I was looking for.

[Kate]

Francis is such a powerful historical and spiritual figure — these lectures present a ton of biographical info and food for thought. Totally worth the time and I will probably come back to the recordings.

[Carol Bakker]

A good overview of the founder of the Franciscans. I was skeptical about two teachers, but their style of expanding on the other's view without interrupting was quite enjoyable.

[A]

Good depth in describing a person so many people think they know about. Inspired me to learn more about St. Francis.

[Steve Kimes]

An excellent introduction to Francis and his influence.

[lconnor]

BEAUTIFUL

[Scott Thompson]

Good book about a good dude. Listen to the audio book. I loved the podcast style interplay between the narrators. I really like biographies, real life is so fascinating.

[K.K. Fox]

Fascinating.

[Alecia]

Meh. It was ok. Didn’t learn much new, but if you’re a novice about St Francis or the Medieval world, this would be a great place to start.

[Joseph]

St. Francis, St. Clare, St. Bonaventure, pray for us!

[Brianna Widdifield]

I always enjoy these two together!

[J.D. Steens]

This Teaching Company course is a good, first introduction to Francis of Assisi, and the Franciscan order that was built upon his work. At a point in his early adulthood, Francis turned from a path of self-orientation toward the world outside of himself. This turnabout stems from his new allegiance, not to his earthly father, but to "the one in heaven." Francis renounced the material world of things and possession, and put his energy into the things of Christ. This was compassion for the poor and suffering, and Francis' self-transcendence brought him joy, a feeling of closeness to God, as did the creations of nature. All were "foot prints to God."

The teachers of the course do a good job of conveying Francis' energy and passion. They argue that the suffering of others and the beauty of nature were for Francis expressions of God. Yet, an alternative way to look at Francis is whether he was a naturally compassionate soul - the best of evolution's creations - and whether it was this that gave Francis his transcendent feeling (losing himself) and whether what he attributed to God (Father archetype?) might have been his, Francis', own majestic expression.