St. Gregory the Great said, “Since God is love, then surely
he can do more who loves more.”
The Opening Prayer for this Mass in honor of Saint
Scholastica refers twice to love. “We
pray, O Lord, that, following her example, we may serve you with pure love and
happily receive what comes from loving you.”
When our love for God is pure, it produces abundant and
joyous fruits that can transform our family, and community, and world. On the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus proclaimed,
“blessed are the pure of heart, for they shall see God.”
Scholastica loved and served God with a purity of heart, and
purity of heart leads to the experience of the joy of God’s friendship.
Scholastica was a consecrated virgin who dedicated her life
to deepening her faith and love for God.
When Vatican II stressed the Universal Call to Holiness, we
were being reminded that all Catholics are called to strive for greater love of
God and neighbor.
Saint Scholastica was of course the twin sister of St.
Benedict, and she helped St. Benedict develop the rule for the Benedictine
Order. The primary tenet of the rule of
St. Benedict, which Scholastica helped author is “To prefer nothing to the love
of Christ.”
We must honestly examine our lives, and with God’s help
identify those behaviors and attitudes which keep us from witnessing to the
love of Christ. For in the end, it is
the love of Christ which is our deepest yearning.
Scholastica had a tender love for her brother Benedict. They would often meet on occasion to discuss
the Christian life. One day, Benedict
was visiting his sister at the convent, and it was nearing the time for him to
return to his own monastery for prayers.
As he departed, she prayed for a God to prolong their meeting, and God
sent a terrible storm, that kept Benedict from returning home. So, he waited out the storm by continuing his
holy conversation with his sister.
Scholastica can be invoked particularly for siblings who do
not love each other as they should. She
is the patron saint of nuns, epileptic children, and storms.
Through Saint Scholastica’s prayerful intercessions, May all
we do today be directed to Him, for the Glory of God and salvation of souls.
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