was no group who more qualified as the “least of the brethren” than the lepers of the day. Assisi afforded Francis a perfect opportunity to carry out this command since its environs contained two rather large leper colonies—one dedicated to Saint Mary Magdalene and the other under the patronage of San Salvatore, the Savior—as well as at least three others within walking distance of the town. If Francis found compassion for the leper to be the axial moment of his conversion, the early biographers