+ St Isidore who lived and died in the 12th century, has become the patron of
farmers and rural communities – which comprises most of the Richmond Diocese in
which we live. When he was barely old enough to wield a hoe, Isidore entered
the service of John de Vergas, a wealthy landowner from Madrid, and worked
faithfully on his estate outside the city for the rest of his life. Me married
a young woman as simple and upright as himself who also became a saint—Maria de
la Cabeza. They had one son who died as a child.
Isidore had a deep religious
instinct and prayed many hours in the church. He would visit different churches
around Madrid in order to pray as walked from one to another. In these walks he
communed with God. He was known for his love of the poor, and there are
accounts of Isidore supplying them with miraculous food. He had a great concern
for the proper treatment of animals. He died May 15, 1130, and was declared a
saint in 1622 with Ignatius of Loyola, Francis Xavier, Teresa of Avila and
Philip Neri. Together the group is known in Spain as “the five saints.”
The gospel passage today talks
about two kinds of people chosen by Jesus: the Judases, and the hard-working
very human holy ones. We each have a choice as to which kind we want to be:
but, we must realize the almost disturbing fact that both kinds of people are
perfectly free to choose the life they want: for God’s wants us to be free – so
that we can freely choose to love him – above all else.
With St. Isidore let us take
care of creation, animals, plants, crops and pets and people that God puts into
our lives today to care for!
Amen!
No comments:
Post a Comment