Friday of the Fifth
Week of Easter
ST. ISIDORE THE FARMER
Jeremiah,
Chapter 44, Verse 10
To this day they have not been
crushed down, nor have they shown FEAR.
They have not followed my law and my statutes that I set before you and your
ancestors.
God knows the human heart we tend to trust in our
human strength, or our clout, or our wealth, or weapons. God knows and He wants
us to trust in Him not any of these things. Even to this very day we have not
learned this lesson we in America have learned to trust in the strength of our
Army; which is the greatest Army in the world and have forgotten the true basis
of our strength which is printed on our money: In God We Trust. Many people in
high offices like to play the prophet: but “A wise person is superior to a
prophet” (Bava Basra 12a) Think a prophet can see the future but a wise person can see the present.
God asks us to be present to each other each and every day. Live in the
Present!
Words of wisdom Saint Teresa of Avila:
“I
am afraid that if we begin to put our trust in human help, some of our Divine
help will fail us.”
“The
most potent and acceptable prayer is the prayer that leaves the best effects. I
don’t mean it must immediately fill the soul with desire . . . The best effects
[are] those that are followed up by actions—–when the soul not only desires the
honor of God, but really strives for it. “
“You
pay God a compliment by asking great things of Him.”[1]
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. He
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
deep religious instincts. He rose early in the morning to go to church and
spent many a holiday devoutly visiting the churches of Madrid and surrounding
areas. All day long, as he walked behind the plow, he communed with God. His
devotion, one might say, became a problem, for his fellow workers sometimes complained
that he often showed up late because of lingering in church too long. He was
known for his love of the poor, and there are accounts of Isidore's supplying
them miraculously with 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."
Things
to Do:
·
Establishing
or replenishing a a Mary garden would be an appropriate way to celebrate
the combination of the feast of St. Isidore and the month of May, dedicated to
Mary.
·
There
is also a lovely book on Mary gardens printed by St. Anthony Messenger Press
called Mary's Flowers: Gardens, Legends and
Meditations by
Vincenzina Krymow.
Daily
Devotions
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