Prologue

Jesus Maria. The most clement and kind God created the rational soul to bestow eternal life on it, and as an illustration of this, He placed mankind in an earthly paradise. To show plainly that He had done this, and that He wished to confer holiness on mankind, He gave them all the necessary means to easily achieve this end, among which recently there are religious Orders, and especially the Friars Minor, in which a person is invited to perform all the works that lead to perfection and his final objective with all ease.

If then, as well as providing such practical and uncomplicated means, the most holy Lord has very graciously chosen a person for such distinction, why would someone who has professed this Rule not strive to diligently perform well? Therefore, he must engage all his effort and strength in applying what he has promised in the Rule, knowing how important this is. Otherwise, he will not be able to observe it, since the will is unable to deliberate over what is unknown, and, consequently, cannot achieve the set purpose.

Thus, a person who really wishes to achieve a given end effectively not only seeks the means but also strives to remove the impediments, among which ignorance, the mother of all error, is included.

This does not exclude those who profess the Rule since, if they do not know, they should strive to find out so that they do not fall through having their eyes closed and perish with their eyes open, as the Rule is short and thus unclear in many places.

There are some who, either through ignorance or neglect, show little judgment or think that they know everything, but show quite the opposite in their observance of the Rule. Certainly, at times those who know little presume more, and those who are less inclined to look ahead lack insight. One who is wise fears and turns away from evil. The fool presumes and falls.

He who goes ahead imprudently does not act with simplicity, since he thinks that he has discovered the right path, but in the end is led to miserable death. There is no doubt that just as being afraid of falling where there is no fault is characteristic of a fearful mind, as Gregory says, so too, to have no fear where there is fault (according to the opinion of the Saints and of the Church) is characteristic of a temerarious mind. Such a person is blind to what are regarded as grave and serious matters and obvious major and minor transgressions, even when the danger of damnation is quite evident. This is a consequence of either habit, when someone is brought up on these defects, or when because of his personal sensual comforts his emotions have become inordinate, not being attentive to pleasing our Lord Jesus Christ, nor seeking His things, but one’s own.

These things distort the judgment of reason since judgment usually follows emotion, or because they do not have the fear of God either through ignorance or keeping bad company.

Because of this, a good brother who desired to serve his Creator faithfully, to inviolably observe the Rule that he had professed, and in the end to save his soul, and who was also afraid that dangerous times had arrived together with the wiles of his adversaries, the devils, and seeing that within the Order many followed different paths—some being too broad and dangerous, some too scrupulous and narrow—and wishing to set his mind at rest,

once again sought out an experienced, upright, and mature father and sought advice regarding the above matters from the many and solid documents that he possessed. In the course of a most useful conversation between them, he composed a work entitled: The Dialogue of Salvation Between a Scrupulous Brother and a Mature Brother, following the saying of the Apostle to the Romans: Rationabile obsequium vestrum; and this took place in 1527.

After some time, when this Scrupulous Brother observed that the Mature Brother, who had formerly lived with the highly respected “family,” which he regarded as most safe, had changed his opinion and entered the reform of the Capuchins, where there was clearly true observance of the Rule, he came back to him and demanded to know the reason for the change. So he rewrote the same Dialogue once again, leaving out some things which were not very necessary, adding others according to the real interpretation of the Rule as our saintly fathers, who were famous for holiness and for enlightened teaching, and the Supreme Pontiffs had decreed that it be understood and observed.

They did this out of great zeal for their salvation, to the benefit of all, to remedy relaxations, and to merit the blessing of God. Blessed Francis asked the Lord to bless those who meditate on and discuss the Rule, search for its true meaning, and strive to observe it.

Following the sequence of the chapters of the Rule, the Dialogue contains a short summary of all the Papal declarations on the Rule as well as those of the doctors of the Order.

It is written in the mother tongue, the vernacular, so that the simple and uneducated brothers can understand it better. It is short so that it may be read more often and committed to memory easily. One will also find here those things which the other Dialogue referred back to the book of Privilegi as well as things which have been added that are of great value and importance.

In many places and with regard to many points, one will also find expressions of Saint Francis’ wishes and intentions marked with an indication in the margin: Nota.

Deo gratias. Amen.

In the Name of the Lord, here begins the Rule and Life of the Friars Minor.