Saint Francis Receiving the Stigmata

Giotto di Bondone (c. 1267–1337) — c. 1295–1300 · Tempera on panel · Louvre Museum, Paris

“But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.” — Galatians 6:14 (KJV)

About

This panel (about 1295–1300), now in the Louvre, shows Francis on Mount La Verna receiving the wounds of Christ in his hands and feet, rays running from a winged seraph-Christ in the sky to the saint below; Brother Leo sleeps in the corner.

The Meaning

The church of Francis's day believed God sealed His servant's body with Christ's own wounds — the stigmata — as the final likeness of a life spent imitating Christ. What Scripture asks of all of us, this panel pictures in one man.

For Us Today

Let Christ's likeness, not the world's, be stamped on you. I am crucified with Christ (Galatians 2:20) is every believer's portion — not in wounds, but in a life surrendered to the cross's pattern.

Image: Public domain · via Wikimedia Commons — the file’s page. Tap the picture to open the full-size original there.