{"id":58767,"date":"2025-10-13T04:46:34","date_gmt":"2025-10-13T09:46:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/?p=58767"},"modified":"2025-10-13T04:53:18","modified_gmt":"2025-10-13T09:53:18","slug":"brother-sun-sister-moon-a-living-fresco","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/?p=58767","title":{"rendered":"Brother Sun, Sister Moon – a Living Fresco"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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This morning WLBOTT<\/strong> held a private viewing of the 1972 Franco Zeffirelli movie Brother Son, Sister Moon<\/em>. It is a profoundly beautiful movie, and it left it’s emotional impact on us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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But first, we must ask:
Q:<\/strong> How cool is the Austin Public Library?
A:<\/strong> Very cool.<\/p>\n<\/div>

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Historical Accuracy<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

We asked Elder G<\/strong> to sync up scenes in the movie with actual events in St. Francis’ life. The movie presents a good historical recap.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Elder G:<\/strong>
Here\u2019s a quick \u201cscene-to-history\u201d guide so you can see what Zeffirelli kept, softened, or shuffled. I\u2019ll keep it tight:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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  1. Young Francesco the soldier \u2192 prison and illness
    \u2022 Film<\/strong>: Francis comes back shattered from war, fevered and changed.
    \u2022 History<\/strong>: In 1202<\/strong> he fought Perugia, was captured at the Battle of Collestrada<\/strong>, imprisoned nearly a year, and fell seriously ill\u2014key to his conversion.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. The leper embrace
    \u2022 Film<\/strong>: A turning point\u2014he stops, embraces\/kisses a leper.
    \u2022 History<\/strong>: Early sources (Thomas of Celano\u2019s First Life<\/em>) explicitly describe Francis kissing a leper; he later cared for lepers regularly.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. \u201cRebuild my church\u201d at San Damiano
    \u2022 Film<\/strong>: He prays before the San Damiano crucifix; hears Christ tell him to repair the church; he literally rebuilds chapels.
    \u2022 History<\/strong>: The San Damiano crucifix is indeed tied to his call \u201crepair my house.\u201d He first took it literally (stonework) before understanding the broader reform.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  4. Public renunciation before the bishop
    \u2022 Film<\/strong>: Before the bishop (and his father), Francis strips off his clothes, returning everything and choosing Lady Poverty.
    \u2022 History<\/strong>: This dramatic scene is straight from early traditions; multiple accounts report him standing naked<\/strong> before the bishop as he renounced his inheritance.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  5. Gathering the first brothers and choosing poverty
    \u2022 Film<\/strong>: Friends join him; they live simply and preach.
    \u2022 History<\/strong>: He soon attracted companions and formed the Order of Friars Minor<\/strong>; evangelical poverty was the core. (Formal papal approval came in 1209.)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  6. Journey to Rome and audience with Pope Innocent III
    \u2022 Film<\/strong>: Barefoot brothers face a resplendent court; Pope Innocent III, moved (after a dream), blesses and approves them.
    \u2022 History<\/strong>: Francis did go to Rome and received initial approval<\/strong> from Innocent III in 1209<\/strong>. The famous dream<\/strong> of the Pope (Francis holding up the Lateran Basilica) appears in medieval tradition and is often linked to that approval. The ornate staging is cinematic, but the substance is rooted in the sources.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  7. The work life vs. the poor\u2014cloth merchant father
    \u2022 Film<\/strong>: Tension with Pietro Bernardone (the wealthy cloth merchant); scenes in the dye-vats and workshop.
    \u2022 History<\/strong>: Francis really was the son of a prosperous cloth merchant; his rejection of that world is central to every biography.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  8. Clare of Assisi (what the film downplays)
    \u2022 Film<\/strong>: Clare is barely present (depending on cut), with no full arc.
    \u2022 History<\/strong>: In 1212<\/strong> Francis received Clare; she founded the Poor Clares<\/strong> at San Damiano\u2014hugely important to the Franciscan story but mostly outside the film\u2019s scope.
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  9. \u201cBrother Sun, Sister Moon\u201d (the title) vs. the actual Canticle
    \u2022 Film<\/strong>: The title (and the film\u2019s spirit) echoes the Canticle of the Creatures<\/em>.
    \u2022 History<\/strong>: Francis composed the Canticle<\/strong> around 1224\u20131225<\/strong>, later than the time-window the film focuses on. So the film evokes it, but it isn\u2019t depicting the act of composition.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  10. What the film omits<\/em>: the Sultan & the stigmata
    \u2022 Not in film<\/strong>: His 1219<\/strong> encounter with Sultan al-K\u0101mil<\/strong> during the Fifth Crusade, the stigmata<\/strong> at La Verna (1224<\/strong>), and the Greccio Nativity<\/strong> (1223<\/strong>)\u2014all key historical episodes that happen after the early years Zeffirelli chose to dramatize.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    Bottom line<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

    Zeffirelli\u2019s movie is intentionally devotional and impressionistic, but many of its signature moments\u2014the leper, San Damiano, the public renunciation, and the papal audience\u2014are anchored in early Franciscan sources. The timeline is compressed, the pageantry heightened, and later milestones (Sultan, stigmata, Greccio) are left for another film.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    Al-Malik al-Kamil Nasir ad-Din Muhammad<\/strong> (c.\u20091177 \u2013 6 March 1238), titled Abu al-Ma\u02bdali (Arabic: \u0623\u0628\u064a \u0627\u0644\u0645\u0639\u0627\u0644\u064a), was an Egyptian ruler and the fourth Ayyubid sultan of Egypt. During his tenure as sultan, the Ayyubids defeated the Fifth Crusade. He was known to the Frankish crusaders as Meledin, a name by which he is referred to in some older western sources. As a result of the Sixth Crusade, he ceded West Jerusalem to the Christians and is known to have met with Saint Francis.
    – Wikipedia<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

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    Benozzo Gozzoli<\/strong> (c.\u20091421 \u2013 4 October 1497) was an Italian Renaissance painter from Florence. <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

    A pupil of Fra Angelico, Gozzoli is best known for a series of murals in the Magi Chapel of the Palazzo Medici-Riccardi, depicting festive, vibrant processions with fine attention to detail and a pronounced International Gothic influence. […] Gozzoli is considered one of the most prolific fresco painters of his generation. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    In 1450<\/strong>, Gozzoli received his first major independent commission from the monastery of S. Francesco in Montefalco. There, he filled the choir chapel with three registers of episodes from the life of\u00a0St Francis of Assisi.<\/p>\nWikipedia<\/a><\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

    From the Web Gallery of Art<\/a><\/strong>….<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    The Private Viewing<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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    PREMIERE: <\/strong>Brother Sun, Sister Moon<\/em> at the WLBOTT Art Cinema & Discount Bridal Gown Emporium<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The WLBOTT Art Cinema & Discount Bridal Gown Emporium (motto: \u201cCome for the Bergman, leave with a beaded tulle creation in eggshell or puce!\u201d<\/em>) is located in a repurposed former feed store just off County Road 17, between the abandoned roller rink and the place that still sells bait and<\/em> funeral urns.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

    We have exactly 14 folding chairs<\/strong>, all slightly bent from previous WLBOTT<\/strong> potlucks, plus a loveseat that smells vaguely of frankincense and mothballs\u2014reserved for dignitaries (i.e. anyone who remembers to bring snacks).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Today’s screening: Brother Sun, Sister Moon (1972)<\/strong> \u2014 Devotional Cinema Night, with complimentary burlap<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    Before the Screening: the Announcement<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

    Elder G<\/strong> steps forward, incense stick in one hand, popcorn scoop in the other:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    \u201cAs St. Francis renounced worldly riches, so too shall we renounce seat cushions and lumbar support. Please lower your expectations accordingly.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

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    Some AI Images of Francis and Clair<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    It’s interesting to imagine their journey as they aged.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    This morning WLBOTT held a private viewing of the 1972 Franco Zeffirelli movie Brother Son, Sister Moon. It is a profoundly beautiful movie, and it left it’s emotional impact on us. But first, we must ask:Q: How cool is the Austin Public Library?A: Very cool. Historical Accuracy We asked Elder G to sync up scenes […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[137,135,85,27],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-58767","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-brotherhood-sisterhood-of-man-woman","category-history","category-italy","category-movies"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58767","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=58767"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58767\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":58821,"href":"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58767\/revisions\/58821"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=58767"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=58767"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=58767"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}