Saturday, October 2, 2010

St. Jerome

Thursday was the feast day of St. Jerome...he is known for numerous works and acts but foremost for translating most of the Bible into Latin (the Vulgate). While many Protestants are hesitant to believe in Saints, there is something to be learned from them.

Method X puts it this way:
Saints are getting a lot of press these days. We moderns are intrigued by people who lived lives of virtue and moral excellence. They seem so different from the rest of us. Observing saints more closely reveals that they were ordinary people just like us. They struggled with anger, fear, doubt, inadequacies, boredom and depression. What set them apart was their life purpose. More than anything else, they wanted to know God. So despite their faults and frailties, they have much to teach us.

I receive e-mails from the Method X (linked in blue) website and more often than not, take a few moments to read about different Saints as they list their feast days. One fact that stands out more than any other, they were willing to endure pain, discomfort and many times cruelty for Christ. At one point, I stopped reading about them all together, for it made me feel inadequate. Not only do I not have to face what they did...I'm not sure I would have the strength if called. Thankfully, God was patient with me and after a while, I returned...While I have not taken the step of interceding to them, I have found there is much to learn from their teachings and their lives. Learning about the saints is not for everybody...but how do you know unless you try? Besides, you already know some of them...St. Peter, St. Matthew, St. Mark...

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