‘St Isidora and Us’

 

We delight in scientific reason;

You feigned madness before others.

 

We crave boisterous banter with friends;

You refused to eat a meal with sister nuns.

 

We desire the choicest foods and finest flavors;

You drank the wash-water of the dishes.

 

We preen upon our lofty occupations;

You did not raise yourself above a kitchen maid.

 

We obsess over germs and cleanliness;

You wore an old rag upon your head.

 

We loathe the rebukes of our neighbors;

You delighted in the scorn of your sisters.

 

We dream of becoming celebrities;

You fled your convent for the wilderness and died

In an unknown place to escape your sisters’ praise.

 

The great Abba Pitirim bowed and asked your blessing;

He will ask nothing of us, but give instead:

The sternest curses to our God-hating hearts.

***

A life of St Isidora may be read here:

https://www.oca.org/saints/lives/2021/05/10/101345-blessed-isidora-the-fool-of-tabenna-in-egypt

--

Holy Ælfred the Great, King of England, South Patron, pray for us sinners at the Souð, unworthy though we are!

Anathema to the Union!