Brother Juniper, Companion of St. Francis of Assisi


Brother Juniper was so full of pity and compassion for the poor, that when he saw anyone poor or naked he immediately took off his tunic, or the hood of his clock, and gave it to him. The guardian therefore laid an obedience upon him not to give away his tunic or any part of his habit. A few days afterwards, a poor half-naked man asked an alms of Brother Juniper for the love of God, who answered him with great compassion: "I have nothing which I could give thee but my tunic, and my superior has laid me under obedience not to give it, nor any part of my habit, to anyone. But if thou take it off my back I will not resist thee." He did not speak to a deaf man; for the begger forthwith stripped him of his tunic, and went off with it. When Brother Juniper returned home, and was asked what had become of his tunic, he replied: "A good man took it off my back, and went away with it." And as the virtue of compassion increased in him, he was not contented with giving his tunic, but would give books, or clocks, or whatever he could lay his hands on, to the poor. For this reason the brethren took care to leave nothing in the common rooms of the convent, because Brother Juniper gave away everything for the love of God and to the glory of his name.

Little Flowers of St. Francis

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Internet Resources

Brother Juniper is the creation of Fred McCarthy. He first saw the light of day in the summer of 1942 in the main reading room of Friedsam Memorial Library at St. Bonaventure.
His gifting first came to light when he visited a sick monk and asked if there was anything he could do to make him feel better. The monk replied, 'I could really go for a roast pig's foot.'...
Steve Tomkins, Loose Canons: Golden Moments from the Pages of Church History
"Brother Juniper, we are all going out, therefore, by the time we come back, I wish thee to prepare a little food for the refreshment of thy brethren." "Most willingly," replied Brother Juniper; "leave it to me."
Bruderhof Communities
Including: How Brother Juniper kept silence for six months; How Brother Juniper, in order to be despised, played at see-saw; How Brother Juniper went one day to Assisi for his own confusion...
Brother Ugolino
But perhaps the most unexpected tradition holds that Brother Juniper responded to Brother Tendelbene's death by saying that he would like to turn the dead friar's skull into a bowl and cup for his daily use.
John Ryan Haule
Brother Juniper was very surprised to hear that anyone would be upset over an act of charity.
Bruderhof Communities
...through Brother Juniper's actions, the entire congregation had recognized how far they had departed from the ideals of the movement and how inappropriate it would be to become angry with someone who had not departed from those ideals.
Lynn Harry Nelson
Brother Juniper was well known for his literal interpretation of the Franciscan virtues of poverty and charity and would give away all his clothes and once even cut the bells off the altar cloth to give to a poor woman.
Sanjida O'Connell
In this article I explore what has been called "holy folly" or "crazy wisdom" or "foolish wisdom" as an alternative route to rekindle the love of wisdom in the hearts of contemporary women and men.
East Asian Pastoral Institute

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