Tales of St. Francis: Ancient Stories for Contemporary Living

by Murray Bodo

A refreshing book of Christian stories, each accompanied by a contemporary moral or lesson, and each conveying universal, continuing truths to help readers deal with the demands of a materialistic world.

192 pages, Paperback

First published September 4, 1988

About the author

"Those are the two magnetic poles of my life: books and the Franciscan Priesthood. The glue that holds them together is Saint Francis of Assisi himself. From the time I was thirteen years old and read Sophie Jewett's God's Troubadour, The Story of St. Francis of Assisi, St. Francis has been a major inspiration of my life. I became a Franciscan in 1955; I've written about him, prayed for his intercession, studied him, taught his life and spirituality and for the last 34 years led pilgrimages to Assisi " - Murray Bodo

Reviews

[Hannah Elhard]

Unique take on the life of a favorite saint

[Andy Littleton · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bought this book because I liked the cover. The content didn’t grab me, but the cover still does. Therefore, 3 stars. I really struggled to connect the tales and the applications. They felt like a stretch.

[Amelia and John · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved the approach that Bodo took here! The stories were not so much documenting the life of Francis, but about capturing the spirit (or, in Bodo's word, the "image") of St. Francis.

I'd been wanting to read about St. Francis for a while, and this was my first book on him. Definitely recommend.

[Singleton Makin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Simple and wonderful nuggets

[Seraphim Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

A must for parents, teachers or catechists that want to pass on the beauty of Franciscan spirituality.

[Leah Beecher · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was at a used book sale, and we are tackling the Middle Ages next year in home schooling and I saw a lot of Saint Francis books, so I picked this one up. I have become increasingly interested in the mystics: Spiritual simplicity and serious devotion that produced amazing testimonies and service for Christ. This particular book on St. Francis took spiritual application one more niche higher, as it had short little devotional insights after each short story surrounding each "tale of St. Francis". I found some of them very insightful and timely. Some not so much. As is always the case with inspirational reading. The author is a Franciscan Monk, and states that in doing his research he included stories only that have been passed down through the centuries; giving more validity. It is a matter of personal faith, of course, how much of the super natural one believes. The very short stories served as perfect quick thoughtful reads.

[Michael · Rating 2 out of 5]

A short book about St. Francis, told from the point of view of those who were around him. I found it fairly boring, to be honest. Plus, it's hard to read about St. Francis while watching "The Pacific." Also...St. Francis was sort of a weirdo.

[Eunsung · Rating 5 out of 5]

A really amazing collection of stories from medieval stories, which includes a story about St. Francis written from a wolf's perspective. I also enjoyed Fr. Murray's reflections at the end of each story. These stories reminded me of folk stories in the South and also in Native American lore.

[John Hebenton · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great resources for telling storties about Francis.

[Brian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another Franciscan book by Bodo

[Kayla M · Rating 4 out of 5]

school summer reading