Today we celebrate the feast of a little known but very imitable saint in the Church: Bernardine of Siena: we all can find something about him to imitate and apply to the way in which we live our lives.
Bernardine lived in the early 1400's. And one day, when he was twenty years old he went to the door of the largest hospital in Siena and announced that he wanted help. A plague was raging through the city so horrible that as many as twenty people died each day in just that hospital alone. And so Bernardine and some companions came to help tend to the ill! They tended the ill, and also organized and cleaned the hospital. Only at the end of the plague did Bernardine himself fall ill – of exhaustion.
But that was Bernardine's way – whatever he did, he put his whole self into it. Immediately after he recovered he was back caring for the sick – but this time he was responsible not for w whole hospital, but just for one person – an invalid aunt of his. For fourteen months she got his full attention. Throughout his life, he put as much energy into caring for one person as for hundreds, as much commitment into converting one citizen as to preaching to a whole city.
After his aunt died, Bernardine started to think about where his life should be going. And so, he threw himself wholeheartedly into prayer and fasting to discover what God wanted him to do. One might have expected him to continue his work with the sick but in 1403 he joined the Franciscans and in 1404 he was ordained a priest.
The Franciscans were known as missionary preachers, but Bernardine did very little preaching because of a voice that was weak and hoarse. For twelve years he remained in the background, his energies going to prayer or to his own spiritual conversion and preparation.
At the end of that time, he went to Milan on a mission (the city where centuries earlier Ambrose was Bishop, who was a very eloquent and powerful preacher). When he got up to preach his voice was strong and commanding and his words so convincing that the crowd would not let him leave unless he promised to come back.
Thus began his life as a missionary preacher, one whom Pope Pius II called a second Paul. As usual, Bernardine threw his whole self, body and soul, into his newly found vocation. He criss-crossed Italy on foot preaching for hours at a time, several times a day about punishment for sin, reward for virtue, the mercy of Jesus and the love of Mary. His special devotion was to the Holy name of Jesus.
He was later made vicar general of his order. All his energy during that period went to renewing the original spirit of the Franciscan order. He preached up to the very end and died peacefully in 1444 at the age of 64.
May we imitate Bernardine in proclaiming the Name and works of Jesus loudly and clearly to all we meet each day: especially by the eloquent actions of loving service to all in need. May we throw our whole selves into our discipleship with Jesus and may we, like Bernardine, find an amazing reward waiting for us for doing God's will each and every moment of the day!
Here am I, Lord; I come to do your will.
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