Following Francis at the Time of the Antichrist: Evangelical Poverty and Worldly Riches in the Lectura super Lucam of Peter of John Olivi

Forty years ago, speaking of Peter of John Olivi’s commentaries on the Gospel of Matthew and the Gospel of John, Raoul Manselli affirmed that these texts prove that Olivi had “a vast knowledge of the exegetes who preceded him, a vivid perception of the role of the Bible within the contemporary life of the Church, and, last but not least, a vivid understanding of the complex significance and value of being Franciscan.”1 Undoubtedly, this judgment can also be extended to the Lectura super Lucam, which Fortunato Iozzelli edited in 2010, thereby becoming the first of Olivi’s Gospel commentaries to be available in a modern edition.2 Iozzelli’s critical edition offers scholars a precious opportunity to better understand a text that, notwithstanding the increasing number of studies on Olivi, has remained largely unexplored and serves to point out the role of this text within the complex exegesis, theology, and spirituality of Olivi.3 His biblical commentaries assume a paramount