St. Francis, by Nikos Kazantzakis

Last night I finished reading St. Francis by one of my favorite authors, Nikos Kazantzakis. One of the distinguishing characteristics of early 20^th century literature was the belief that modernity had divested

contemporary life of its spirituality and that the traditional paradigms and mental structures of comprehending and expressing faith had been forever extinguished. Some writers attempted to push forward with a secular and atheistic conception of the world. Other writers understood that there was a specific and undeniable need in humanity for the spiritual (however it was conceived) and sought to replenish it while still acknowledging that Western civilization could not return to its previous patterns. In this latter way we see various authors trying various methods: James Joyce (Greek mythology and Viconian philosophy), T.S. Eliot (fertility mythology, Buddhism, and Christianity), C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien (modern reconception of medieval Christianity), and Kazantzakis (Greek Mythology, Christianity, Buddhism, and Nietzschean mythology).

Kazantzakis was not a Christian but he had a healthy respect for the Faith and Jesus himself. Christ and Christianity are constant themes and subjects of his writings. His book, Saint Francis, is a fictionalized biography of the widely venerated Christian figure. Its subject is a familiar one for Kazantzakis readers: the anguished expression of the eternal struggle between the spirit and flesh. Indeed, though this is a fine book, the subject matter has been treated by Kazantzakis better elsewhere. And the portrait of Francis is more manic and passionately jutting that the gentle, humble, and spirit-filled Francis that history records. Instead, Kazantzakis turns the saint into a very fine 20th century existentialist character but without the 13^th century cultural underpinnings to make the figure credible to the story. This is unfortunate and a major flaw since he was able to achieve a perfect symbiosis of modern existentialism and 1^st century reality with his portrait of Jesus in The Last Temptation. Kazantzakis should have studied Thomas Mann’s The Holy Sinner in preparation for his book.

Nevertheless, despite some misgivings, the book itself is an enjoyable read while still not reaching the heights of his other books. Kazantzakis postulates that the life of a genuine seeker of God is one of constant crucifixion. It is a life of self-denial and of total sacrifice of the ego at the altar of the divine. St. Francis embodies this sacrifice in all that he does in his life thru poverty, prayer, stewardship, alms-giving, and ultimately stigmata.

I don’t think this book is for everyone, even those interested in attaining a greater spirituality through self-denial. I seriously doubt that those interested in the historical St. Francis of Assisi will get anything out of it. I think this is more a book for those already interested in the writings of Kazantzakis.