LEO OF ASSISI, blessed - Autograph blessing of St. Francis to Brother L. of Assisi, Sacred Convent.
LEO OF ASSISI, Blessed. - B. in the last decades of the 13th century, d. in 1271. An intimate and faithful companion of St. Francis, who called him "little sheep of God," for the simplicity and innocence of his life, Brother L., perhaps already a priest, embraced the Franciscan life in the very earliest times: he was not, however, among the first 12 companions of the Saint, who chose him as his confessor, and often also as secretary and confidant.
For him St. Francis wrote the autograph blessing, still preserved in the basilica of the Saint in Assisi, the Praises of the Lord and a letter. After his death, he too had to suffer at the hands of Brother Elias. He later lived in small hermitages. In 1243 he was certainly at Greccio, from where he signed the dedicatory letter of the famous "Legenda trium sociorum" (written by him and by the other companions of St. Francis, Brother Angelo and Brother Rufino) addressing it to the general minister Brother Crescentius of Jesi.
It is difficult to determine precisely the strictly Leonine element in the various redactions and manipulations that his memoirs underwent through successive compilers, especially in the Speculum perfectionis. The Franciscan Spirituals often appealed to his writings at the beginning of the 14th century. He certainly wrote a life of Brother Giles (v.); it is not known whether his two opuscules Verba s. Francisci and De intentione Regulae s. Francisci were part of a larger work.
The name of Brother L. is known in particular for the famous dialogue on perfect joy contained in ch. VIII of the Fioretti of St. Francis.
Bibliography6 worksIn addition to the biographical sources of St. Francis, an ancient biography, with more recent interpolations, is preserved in the Chronica
BIBL.: In addition to the biographical sources of St. Francis, an ancient biography, with more recent interpolations, is preserved in the Chronica XXIV Generalium (ca. 1360), in Analecta Franc., III, Quaracchi 1897, pp. 65-74; L. Lemmens, Documenta antiqua franciscana, I, Scripta fratris Leonis, ibid. 1901; P. Sabatier, Le Speculum Perfectionis ou mémoires de frère Léon, 2 vols., Manchester 1928-31; Cuthbert of Brighton, Frate L., in Boll. della Soc. internaz. di studi francesc. in Assisi, 32 (1935), fasc. XIII, pp. 59-84; cf. also A. Quaglia, L'originalità della Regola francescana, Sassoferrato 1943, p. 30 ff.; id., Origine e sviluppo della Regola francescana, Naples 1948, p. 106 and passim.
Ghinato, Alberto. “Leone d'Assisi, beato.” In Enciclopedia Cattolica, vol. VII, col. 1135. Città del Vaticano: Ente per l’Enciclopedia Cattolica e per il Libro Cattolico, 1951. https://azioneromana.com/article/leone-d-assisi-beato.
MLA
Ghinato, Alberto. “Leone d'Assisi, beato.” Enciclopedia Cattolica, vol. VII, Ente per l’Enciclopedia Cattolica e per il Libro Cattolico, 1951, col. 1135. Azione Romana, https://azioneromana.com/article/leone-d-assisi-beato.
BibTeX
@incollection{ec7_leone_d_assisi_beato,
author = {Ghinato, Alberto},
title = {Leone d'Assisi, beato},
booktitle = {Enciclopedia Cattolica},
volume = {VII},
pages = {1135},
note = {Cited by column},
publisher = {Ente per l’Enciclopedia Cattolica e per il Libro Cattolico},
address = {Città del Vaticano},
year = {1951},
url = {https://azioneromana.com/article/leone-d-assisi-beato}
}
One of some 20,000 entries brought back from the twelve printed volumes (1948–54). Spotted something? Help us improve it.
Click or scroll to zoom · drag to pan · Esc to close
