Three Companions Legend

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The legend of the three companions is a legendary depiction of the life of St. Francis of Assisi , written around 1246 , which was probably written by three of his brothers who had known him personally. The legend was handed down in several manuscripts and was first printed in the Acta sanctorum in 1768 . The first German translation of the legend was created by SJ Hamburger in 1923. The new edition by Sophronius Clasen and Engelbert Grau from 1972 contains additional explanatory notes and an introduction to the text. The text-critical edition comes from Théophile Desbonnets from 1974.

Creation of the legend

By the General Chapter in Genoa in 1244 , many of Francis' first and closest companions had died, including Pietro Catanii , Pacific, Anthony of Padua , Barbarus, Humilis, Morikus, Bernhard Vigilantis and Silvester and Bernhard von Quintavalle . In order to faithfully preserve the memory of the life of Francis, the newly elected Minister General Crescentius of Jesi ordered that all brothers should communicate in writing what they knew about Francis. From this collection of incidents, anecdotes and memories, both the legend of the three companions and the second biography of Thomas of Celano and the "Dialogue on the Deeds of the Holy Friars Minor" by Thomas of Pavia emerged.

The origin of the legend has long been the subject of scientific debates. An accompanying letter with the legend is dated August 11, 1246. This date also agrees with the creation of the three-companion legend Sophronius Clasen. Théophile Desbonnets limits the time of origin to at least the years 1235 to 1248. Lorenzo di Fonzo, however, sets the origin of the legend of the Three Companions to 1305–1312, which is much later. The creation around 1246 is considered more likely in recent research, but the cover letter is now considered not part of the legend for text-critical reasons.

Authenticity of the legend

The authenticity of the three-companion legend was also controversial for a long time. Van Ortroy regards the cover letter and the legend text as not belonging together and therefore considers the real legend to be lost. Paul Sabatier considers the work to be the mutilated version of a much longer narrative for religious reasons. Only Sophronius Clasen was able to prove the authenticity of the text with certainty in 1964.

Authors of the cover letter

The cover letter comes from the three friars Leo, Rufinus and Angelus, who were among the first confidants of St. Francis of Assisi .

  • Leo had already joined the first brothers in 1210; he was Francis' confessor and secretary. Leo accompanied Francis when he retired to a hermitage for fasting and prayer, he was present when the rule was drawn up and also at the place of stigmatization, and he cared for Francis during his illness. In addition to the legend of the three companions, Leo has written other chronicles and collections, including the “Mirror of Perfection” ( Speculum perfectionis ) and the “Words of St. Francis”.
  • Rufinus was a cousin of St. Clare and is described in the legends as an extremely humble and obedient brother. According to the sources, he was the only one who touched his side wound during the saint's lifetime and revealed to Francis what the seraph had told him when he was stigmatized.
  • Angelus Tancredi was a knight from Rieti and also joined the community around 1210. He preferred to stay in hermitages. He also cared for the terminally ill Francis and is praised in legends for his tenderness and kindness. He also witnessed the canonization process of Saint Clare of Assisi .

The three companions were eye-witnesses of the events from the early days of the order and had close contact with Francis. For reports of incidents in which they were not directly present, they give the names of other brothers as witnesses, namely Philip Longus from Assisi, Massaeus from Marignano, Illuminatus from Arce and John.

Content

The legend of the three companions begins with a depiction of the origins of Francis as the son of a merchant in Assisi , and depicts his youthful vanity and extravagance, in order to make the contrast with his later life even sharper. Then his captivity in Perugia and his aborted attempt to become a knight are described. His turn to the lepers and his prayer in front of the icon of the cross in San Damiano take up a lot of space. In the next chapter the legend tells of the renovation of San Damiano.

It is then described how Francis felt addressed when he heard the Gospel according to Matthew and then simplified his clothing. A whole chapter is devoted to the calling of the brother Silvester, this story is probably an example of many similar calling stories of the brothers. The zeal and perfection of the first little fraternity is portrayed in a highly idealized way.

Then the legend depicts the journey of the first companions to Rome to confirm the original rule. The meetings of the brothers, their preaching activities and their sending out into the world are described. One chapter is especially dedicated to the change of protector of the order when Cardinal Johannes von St. Paul dies and Hugolin von Ostia is elected protector. Finally the legend ends with the depiction of the death of Francis and the canonization .

It is interesting how much and what the legend leaves out. The main part of the text describes the vocation history of the saint and the beginnings of his fellowship, a further important part is the death of Francis, but the later years of Francis' life are only hinted at. Many of the stories known from later legends, such as the legend of the wolf of Gubbio or the sermon on the birds , are also missing in the three-companion legend. Miracle reports are completely absent. Compared to other collections of legends, this work is extremely sober and reduced to the essentials of the life of Francis, which the brothers were worthy of imitation. This cannot be explained by the fact that the brothers were not aware of these legends because they were already described in the first biography of Thomas von Celano (1228/29) and this work served as the brothers' table reading .

reception

The legend of the three companions was used repeatedly as a source by later biographies and legends, certainly also because of its authentic proximity to the origins of the order. This is proven by text-critical analyzes for the second vita of Thomas von Celano (written 1246/1247). While Thomas von Celano decorates the events in his presentation with biblical parallels and theological interpretations, the unknown author of the legend writes in simple short sentences and lets the events speak for themselves. The book of edification “Dialogue on the Deeds of the Holy Friars Minor” by Thomas von Pavia († around 1280) also uses the three-companion legend as a source.

The legend of the Three Companions is of great value for research into the history of the Franciscan order because, in addition to its role as a source for later works, it also confirms and clarifies many of the statements made by the earlier Franciscan legends (for example the first Vita of Thomas von Celano). In addition, the legend of the three companions reveals details that are not recorded in any other work. Such a special asset is, for example, the description of the youthful life of Francis of Assisi, his light-heartedness and excess, which is later reflected in the excessiveness of his penitential life. His preference for knightly and courtly manners, which continues to show in his later life, is shown more clearly in the legend of the three companions than in other biographies.

The legend of the three companions is still an important source for the life of Francis of Assisi, because of all the biographies of the saint, precisely in its sobriety, it can be considered the most authentic.

See also

literature

  • Théophile Desbonnets: La “Legenda trium sociorum”. Edition critique. In: Archivum franciscanum historicum. Volume 67, 1974, pp. 38-144.
  • The legend of the three companions of St. Francis. The brothers Leo, Rufin and Angelus tell of the beginning of his order . Introduction by Sophronius Clasen OFM, translation and comments by Engelbert Grau OFM. Dietrich-Coelde-Verlag, Werl 1972, ISBN 3-87163-008-X , ( Franziskanische Quellenenschriften 8), (also: 1993 there, ISBN 3-87163-197-3 ; or Butzon & Bercker, Kevelaer, ISBN 3- 7666-2027-4 ).

Footnotes

  1. ^ Sophronius Clasen: On Van Ortroy's criticism of the "Legenda trium sociorum". In: Isidoro Agudo (ed.): Miscellanea Melchor de Pobladura. Volume 1. Institutum historicum OFM Cap., Rome 1964, pp. 35-73.
  2. Théophile Desbonnets: Nouvelles recherches sur la généalogie des biographies primitives de saint François. In: Archivum franciscanum historicum. Volume 65, 1972, pp. 66-106.
  3. Lorenzo di Fonzo: L'Anonimo Perugino tra le Fonti france scane of secolo XIII. In: Miscellanea francescana. Volume 72, 1972, pp. 435-465.
  4. ^ Helmut Feld: Franziskus von Assisi. 2nd, revised edition. CH Beck, Munich 2007, p. 10.
  5. quoted in: Helmut Feld: Franziskus von Assisi and his movement. Scientific Book Society: Darmstadt, 1994.
  6. ^ Paul Sabatier: De l'authenticité de la Legende de Saint Francois dite des Trois Compagnons, Paris 1901.
  7. ^ Sophronius Clasen: On Van Ortroy's criticism of the "Legenda trium sociorum". In: Isidoro Agudo (ed.): Miscellanea Melchor de Pobladura. Volume 1. Institutum historicum OFM Cap., Rome 1964, pp. 35-73.
  8. z. B. von Sophronius Clasen: On van Ortroy’s criticism of the “Legenda trium sociorum”. In: Isidoro Agudo (ed.): Miscellanea Melchor de Pobladura. Volume 1. Institutum historicum OFM Cap., Rome 1964, pp. 35-73.