Thursday, May 15, 2014

Homily: St. Isidore the Farmer - Prayer and Generosity




At the beginning of this month on May 1, we celebrated the feast of Saint Joseph the worker.  Today we celebrate the feast of a farm worker.  Not to be confused with Saint Isidore of Seville, this saint was born in Madrid, Spain in 1070 and spent his whole life working as a farm laborer for the same landowner.  He married a girl as poor as holy as himself, and after their one son died in infancy, they lived the rest of their married life in perfect chastity in order to dedicate themselves totally to the service of God.   Both he and his wife St. Maria de la Cabeza became saints. 

The couple practiced great generosity towards the poor despite their limited circumstances.  The poor would often follow Isidore home from the farm, and would enjoy greater portions of food than Isidore and his wife.
Isidore was a man of intense prayer and his life was marked by numerous miracles and supernatural interventions.   He would attend Mass daily, and all day long, as he walked behind the plow, he communed with God. 

He was canonized with four very notable Spanish saints in 1662. The group, known as "the five saints", included St. Ignatius of Loyola, St. Teresa of Avila, St. Francis Xavier, St. Phillip Neri, and St. Isidore. The feast of Saint Isidore is celebrated in the United States with special devotion and he has been named patron of the National Catholic Rural Life conference—that is, he is the patron saint of farmers. 

He is also a model of spirituality for us.  He made his day an offering to God in a simple, but heroic manner.  We should want everything in our day to give glory to God, not just our prayers, but also our humble labors.  As he walked behind the plow and planted seeds in the soil, Isidore offered a simple prayer for someone.  Routine work can be turned into a beautiful prayer to God by saying a prayer with each piece of clothing folded, or each potato peeled, or praying the rosary while driving.


Prayer made his soul more fertile than the soil he worked.  May St. Isidore help us to be led by God in the ways of prayer and generosity towards all for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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