Chasing Francis: A Pilgrim's Tale

Ian Morgan Cron's first book, "Chasing Francis," is a gem. "Chasing Francis" falls into genre called wisdom literature, which is a very delicate balance of fiction and non-fiction, pilgrimage and teaching. Cron, an Anglican priest, centers the story on Pastor Chase Falson, an evangelical pastor, who hits the wall with burn-out and at the urging of his mother's cousin, a Franciscan Friar, encounters an old world saint, St. Francis, in his quest to sort out his faith and Christianity's place in the world today. "I wasn't sure what a Christian looked like anymore. My idea of what it meant to follow Jesus had run out of gas. I started to feel less like a pastor and more like a salesman of a consumerized Jesus I didn't believe in...I am fed up with all the feuding between the theological conservatives and liberals, the good guys and the bad guys...What if, now and then, we put the drums and guitars away, turned off the projectors, shut down the sound system, and waited quietly for God to emerge from the wood? Do we have enough faith to believe he'd appear to us as a community?" When Falson reaches the climax of his spiritual crisis in front of his congregation, he is put on leave and embarks on a spiritual journey to Assisi, Italy. He needs to find out what it is to be a Christian, what it means to be the church, and to decide if he wants to stay on the path he has been on. Falson finds a mentor named Saint Francis who teaches him why the church of the future needs to listen to the church of the past and helps him to fall in love with Jesus - and the church - again...but with a different perspective and approach. "Chasing Francis" captures the values and ideals that Francis held dear. Cron brings them to life throughout the book and narrows them to five categories: Transcendence - There is a big difference between knowing a lot about God and knowing God. Francis believed in transcendent encounters with Jesus were the key to people's coming to faith. The church must open our eyes and ears to the experiences that can act as portals into the life of God - the Spirit's presence in the community, contemplative prayer and meditation (solitude), the liturgy, and symbol rich experiences like Communion. Community - We need to be an organism that transmits the expression of Jesus on earth. We can disagree with others and, at times, we should - but whatever happened to gentleness and respect within our churches? Are we not a community of peacemakers - in our homes, our offices, our churches, and, most of all, in our world? Beauty - Most churches today are designed without any sense of the iconic because moderns like straightforward, unambiguous communication. We want `worship centers' where hominess is more important than holiness. But what about the arts - music, dancing, acting, painting, etc? For God, beauty is its own apologetic. The church should care about the arts. They inspire all of us to think about the eternal. Dignity - We're all broken peo

Chase Falcon, megachurch pastor, has lost his faith. When a young girl falls off her bike and never wakes up, Chase's answers suddenly seem hollow. His faith comes crashing to the ground at the worst possible time: in the middle of a sermon. "I used to have all the answers, just opened the Bible and there they were. The truth is, they aren't all there - or if they are, I can't find them. I've tried to convince you that Christianity is logical and straightforward, as if God can be codified and stuffed into files he can't jump out of. Each time uncertainty knocked on the door, I hid behind the couch until it went away. Now I'm the one who's thirsty. And the Jesus I've known for twenty years isn't making it go away." "And what about our church? I mean, is this all there is?..." Understandably, few at the church know how to react to Chase's crisis. When the elders ask him to take a leave of absence, Chase goes on a surprising pilgrimage, chasing and learning from Francis, better known as Saint Francis of Assisi. Through this novel, Chase's pilgrimage also becomes our pilgrimage too. Near the end of the book, Chase says, "When I left here, I wasn't sure what a Christian looked like anymore. My idea of what it meant to follow Jesus had run out of gas. I started feeling less like a pastor and more like a salesman of a consumerized Jesus I didn't believe in. Learning about Francis helped me fall in love with Jesus again - and with the church again, too." I didn't think I could learn so much from a novel, but then again, I've never read a novel that has a study guide before. This book expresses some of what I have experienced, minus the exotic pilgrimage. I was genuinely sad when the book ended because I wanted more. Not everyone will appreciate this book. Some will not know what it means to go through a crisis of faith, and will not appreciate Saint Francis as an example. But for those of us who long for more, Chasing Francis may take you on a pilgrimage, from a faith with all the answers to a more robust faith and genuine love for Jesus and the church.

Ian's book is a refreshment to those who perhaps have found their faith more cultural and academic than anything else. Ian's book is simply a wonderous tale of one man's conversion from a cultural religion of social politics and people pleasing to true Christianity. I don't generally have time to read, but I took a chance and made a shot at this book because generally Ian is very affluent and eloquent and always manages to gracefully communicate a point which touches the human soul, as well as the mind. For anyone who has found deep frustration in a church/religion which panders towards the traditional legalist and academic part of life, this book will bring your soul a fresh pale of water.

Don't let the book mislead you. This is a MUST READ for all who call themselves followers of Jesus. It is a timely book for the North American Church providing a most refreshing third way to engage in ministry. Truly a gift. I can hardly wait to see what else Cron gifts us with in the future. Bring it on. Inspiring. Insightful. Life-changing ...truly, if acted upon.

In Chasing Francis, author, singer/songwriter and pastor Ian Morgan Cron shares his vision for the postmodern church through an engaging story about a pastor who finds his way forward as a follower of Christ and leader in the church by looking back at the life and beliefs of St. Francis of Assisi. Chase Falson is the founding pastor of a New England church who becomes disenchanted with many aspects of modern evangelicalism. The senseless death of a young girl in Chase's congregation and his inability to help the girl's mother make sense of it devastates him to the point that he questions his own faith in a sermon before his church. No surprise, church elders then ask Chase to take time off to figure out where he stands. Seeking to figure it all out, Chase turns to his Uncle Kenny, a Franciscan priest living in Italy. Kenny invites Chase to join him for a time in Italy, which ends up being a pilgrimage for Chase to learn about St. Francis and what he believed the church and Christians should be. As Kenny and his fellow Franciscans take Chase to the places and recount the events that shaped Francis's life and beliefs, Cron paints a literary picture of what he believes the church should become. To try to summarize here the issues that Cron raises and thoughtfully addresses throughout the story and accompanying study guide in the appendix would not do them justice. My advice: read the book. In fact, I would encourage everyone in the leadership of spiritual communities to read this book and meet with others to dialogue about the issues raised in it. Cron creatively and intelligently addresses issues that are essential to the church's future. Like Chase Falson, most churches are trying to find their way in a postmodern world. How surprising, and wonderful, to find wisdom for today in the life of one of the spiritual giants of history who lived during the transition from the Middle Ages to Modern Times. Two other points I would like to make about Chasing Francis. First, I thoroughly enjoyed the interesting characters and vivid descriptions of places Cron weaved into the story. After my wife and I read Chasing Francis, we decided to change our upcoming travel plans to go to Rome and Florence instead. Second, I appreciated that Cron didn't paint the characters in unrealistic terms. These are real people with real problems who become the body of Christ to one another. They celebrate the joys in life together and, by being there for one another during life's trials, they cushion the inevitable blows we all experience. When I finished Chasing Francis it made me hope that Cron will write a sequel about Chase's experience trying to bring to life his new vision for the church. I'm also interested in what happens to the characters and relationships we learn about in Chasing Francis. Let's hope Ian Cron will keep this story going.