The Sacrament of Anointing of the Sick used to be called “the Last Rites” or “Extreme Unction” because the usual recipient was a dying person. Many Catholics still carry cards or wear medals so that, if they are in an accident, a priest is called to administer the sacrament.

Was she inspired? Was she mentally ill? Does her example of armed resistance have anything to say to Americans mired in unrest? What does a 19-year-old who lived from 1412 to 1431 have to teach us?

Over 40 years ago, a gentle Franciscan high school teacher penned a seminal book about Saint Francis. It wasn’t a biography or a treatise on the little Poor Man of Assisi but a romantic, imaginative work that presents the saint from the inside out.