About the Book

What happens when five decades of evangelical certainty collide with questions that won't stay silent?

Rather than abandoning faith entirely, Shadowing St. Francis chronicles a reconstruction project: What was worth keeping? What still held meaning in the modern world?

Along a 120-mile pilgrimage through Italy, following the footsteps of Saint Francis, a surprising truth emerged: the most important thing about divine power is that it never coerces. God calls but never forces.

In an unexpected twist, artificial intelligence became a valuable companion in this theological exploration—not as guru or oracle, but as an unbiased advisor with no institutional agenda. Free from denominational loyalties, AI could present Christianity's great debates without steering toward predetermined conclusions. It offered what years of church conversations couldn't: a neutral space to examine forbidden questions.

This book offers a coherent reframing of ancient Christian faith—one that takes science seriously, sees truth as discovered rather than created, and centers on a God who values relationship over rules, love over doctrine, and freedom over control.

For anyone who's been told their questions are dangerous. For those who suspect walking away from institutional religion might be walking toward something more real. For every pilgrim still searching for a God worth believing in.

Sometimes the most faithful thing you can do is leave.