Source: Historia de Sancto Francisco by Iacobus de Voragine (Ad Fontes Library).
| Apud Portiunculam iuxta eius cellam cicada in ficu residens frequenter canebat; |
Portiuncula: small town about a mile from Assisi |
| where did the cicada live? what did the cicada do? | |
| quam vir Dei manum extendens vocavit dicens: "soror mea cicada, veni ad me." Quae statim oboediens super eius manum adscendit. |
vir Dei = Franciscus quam = cicadam, object of vocavit quae = cicada |
| what did Francis tell the cicada to do? did the cicada obey? | |
| Cui ille: "canta, mea soror cicada, et dominum tuum lauda!" quae protinus canens nonnisi licentiata recessit. |
cui = cicadae quae = cicada |
| what did Francis command the cicada to do next? | |
| Parcit lucernis, lampadibus et candelis, nolens sua manu deturpare fulgorem. |
parco, -ere: takes dative nolens: takes infinitive (deturpare) |
| how did Francis treat candles and other sources of light? | |
| Super petras reverenter ambulat intuitu eius, qui dicitur "petra legis divinae"; |
intuitus: in the sense of respect, consideration |
| how did Francis treat the stones he walked on? | |
| vermiculos, ne transeuntium pedibus conculcentur, levat |
conculcentur: subject of this passive verb is vermiculi: transeuntium: genitive plural (hominum) ne: negative purpose clause |
| what did Francis do with worms that he found? | |
| et apibus, ne inedia pereant glacie hiemali, mel et optima vina iubet apponi, |
iubet apponi mel et optima vina apibus, ne (apes) inedia pereant (in) glacie hiemali apponi: present passive infinitive |
| what did Francis do to help the bees in winter? | |
| fraterno nomine animalia cuncta vocabat. |
e.g. "frater vermiculus", "soror cicada", etc. |
| how did Francis address the animals? | |
| Miro et ineffabili gaudio replebatur ob creatoris amorem, cum solem, lunam et stellas intuebatur et eas ad creatoris amorem invitabat. |
replebatur: subject is Franciscus invitabat eas (creaturas) ad creatoris amorem |
| what did Francis say to the sun and moon and stars? | |
| Coronam sibi magnam fieri prohibebat dicens: "volo, quod fratres mei pulices partem habeant in capite meo". |
prohibebat coronam magnam fieri sibi quod = ut |
| why did Francis not want to cover his head? | |
| Cum apud castrum Alvianum praedicaret,
propter garritus hirundinum ibidem nidificantium audiri non poterat. |
garritus: masc. acc. plural hirundinum, s.v. hirundo (Franciscus) non poterat audiri |
 |
what happened when he was preaching at Alviano? (a town in Umbria, Italy) |
| Quibus ille: "sorores meae hirundines, iam tempus est, ut loquar ego, quia vos satis dixistis; tenete silentium, donec verbum domini compleatur." |
quibus = hirundinibus |
 |
what did Francis say to the swallows? |
| Cui continuo oboedientes protinus conticuerunt. |
cui = Francisco protinus = adverb |
| what did the swallows do? | |
| Transeunte aliquando viro Dei
per Apuliam unam bursam magnam repperit in via denariis tumentem, |
transeunte viro = ablative absolute |
| what did Francis find along the road? | |
| quam socius videns accipere voluit, ut pauperibus erogaret, |
quam = bursam |
| what did the man traveling with Francis want to do? | |
| sed ille nullatenus permisit dicens: "non licet, fili, alienum auferre." |
ille = Franciscus fili: vocative |
| why did Francis disagree? | |
| Sed cum ille vehementer instaret, Franciscus paululum orans iubet, ut bursam tollat, quae iam colubrum pro pecunia continebat. |
quae = bursa |
| what happened when Francis prayed? | |
| Quod videns frater timere coepit, sed oboedientiae volens implere mandatum, bursam manibus capit et inde magnus serpens protinus exilivit. |
inde = de bursa |
| what was in the purse now? | |
| Et ait Franciscus: "pecunia servis Dei nihil aliud est quam diabolus et coluber venenosus." |
nihil aliud quam = "nothing other than" |
| what did Francis say about the true meaning of money? | |
| Cum vero ad dies iam appropinquaret extremos, longa infirmitate confectus super nudam humum nudum poni se fecit |
ad dies extremos = ad diem mortis fecit se poni = poni is passive infinitive |
 |
what happened when Francis approached the end of his life? |
| fecitque omnes fratres ibidem assistentes ad se vocari |
vocari = passive infinitive |
 |
who did Francis summon? |
| et manus singulis imponens omnibus ibi praesentibus benedixit et instar cenae dominicae singulis bucellam panis divisit. |
benedicere: takes dative panis: genitive singular |
| what did Francis do when the brethren arrived? | |
| Invitabat, ut moris sui erat, omnes creaturas ad laudem Dei; nam et mortem ipsam cunctis terribilem et exosam hortabatur ad laudem |
moris, s.v. mos hortabatur: deponent verb (transitive) (Franciscus) hortabatur mortem ad laudem (Dei) |
| what did Francis want everyone - and everything - to do? | |
| eique laetus occurrit et ad suum invitabat hospitium dicens: "bene veniat soror mea mors." |
et laetus (Franciscus) occurrit morti et invitabat (mortem) ad suum hospitium veniat: 3rd person singular pres. subjunctive |
| what did Francis say to Death? | |
| Ad extremam igitur horam veniens dormivit in domino. Cuius animam quidam frater vidit in modum stellae similis lunae in quantitate, soli in splendore. |
cuius = Francisci similis: takes genitive or dative lunae...soli: dative |
 |
what did one of the monks see when Francis died? |
