With the stones he shares existence, with plants he shares life, with animals he shares sensation, and with the angels he shares intelligence.”*1 In saying this, Bonaventure was trying to give theological weight to the deep experience of St. Francis of Assisi (1181–1226), who as far as we know, was the first recorded Christian to call animals and elements and even the forces of nature by familial names: “Sister, Mother Earth,” “Brother Wind,” “Sister Water,” and “Brother Fire.”
