The San Damiano Crucifix

“Francis, go and repair my house, which, as you see, is falling into ruin.”

Around 1205, a young man of Assisi knelt in the crumbling church of San Damiano, and the painted Christ above the altar spoke to him. The crucifix that called Francis is no ordinary work. Unlike the slumped, suffering Christ of so much Western art, this Christ stands upright and calm, eyes open, face serene: not the defeat of death but the triumph of life. Around him gather Mary and John, Mary Magdalene, the centurion, angels, and small details such as the rooster that recalls Peter’s denial and the dawn of forgiveness.

This short, illustrated study tells the history of the crucifix and the church where it hung, reads its images figure by figure and symbol by symbol, and shows its place in Franciscan spirituality. It closes with questions for reflection, so that the reader can do more than look at an ancient image: to pray with it, and to hear the same call Francis heard.