Saint Rose of Lima Yesterday was the feast of Saint Rose of Lima. The first thing listed in the Catholic encyclopedia article about Rose is “Virgin.” Of course. No surprise from a church that covers up sex abuse and struggles to deal with sex and sexuality in a healthy way. I am put off right away. “What about women who are mothers?” I think. Still, second class, I guess. Countless saints, there, I am sure. Someday might “Mother” be first on the list of saintly qualifications? I move on.
Then comes the hagiography: Her infant face was seen transformed by a mystical rose…whatever that means. The list continues with constant prayer, adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, secluding herself in her room, committing to virginity, to a meatless diet (the connection to cooking vegan with my sister and sister-in-law) and eventually to eating almost nothing. All this as she struggled against the opposition of family and friends.
As many lives of saints who lived in this period, Rose is said to have practiced severe acts of mortification especially after becoming a member of the Third Order of Dominicans (Her parents refused to let her become a nun.), and worn a metal circlet studded with spikes like thorns everyday, a metal chain around her waist, and coarse clothes. She also fashioned a bed of broken glass, pot shards, and thorns. Will the holiness never end?
On the bright side, she was an artist with a needle and made lace and needlework to help support her family when they fell into hard times. And she preformed works of charity. That gets limited notice in this article.
Happily, I did not read only the Catholic Encyclopedia account of Rose’s life. It turns out in her final years, she opened up a room in the house to care for homeless children, the old, and the sick. Her actions are said to have been the foundation for social services in Peru. This didn’t make the CE article. Again, not a big surprise seeing how the Vatican reacted to the LCWR’s emphasis on just such work with the poor and marginalized instead of spending more time proclaiming the Church’s teaching on abortion, homosexuality, and same sex marriage.
I thought about these things as I drove to spend the morning with my sister-in-laws learning to cook a healthy, meatless meal. My sister and I had a great time and eventually brought home some delicious food for dinner. I mentioned Rose of Lima and my discoveries about her.
“Hope you don’t mind being in a blog,” I said, sure the day would somehow find its place in mine. As we worked together in the kitchen I thought of the things about Rose of Lima’s life that spoke to me and might speak to my readers. Certainly not sleeping on a bed of glass and thorns. Or being a virgin. No. What Rose did was remain true to herself despite continued opposition and ridicule from those she loved.
That is tough in any time or culture. I think of marginalized people and how they face oppression and ridicule. They might be poor, homosexual, transsexual, abused, unemployed, homeless. I thought of people who decide to live a simpler lifestyle eschewing the consumerism that has a death grip on this country (and other parts of the world.) They might be people who, for whatever reason, make choices that are not mainstream.
I also thought of Rose’s self-denial. If the stories are to be believed, to say she was extreme is an understatement. Yet, her desire to give up comforts that she perceived as impediments to a relationship with God is something we can emulate.
The Incarnation tells me that creation is good and the world is not to be abandoned, but transformed. That means no need to sleep on glass or puncture your head with a metal crown of thorns. But, to resist buying what we don’t need, to use resources wisely, to spend some time in prayer and reflection that we might otherwise fill with television, iPods, and other gadgets (Which are also great tools to be used, just not non-stop)…these are things we can do.
We can resist the siren call to a life of comfort, isolated from those most vulnerable, and use our time and talents in service to the common good. That would look different for everyone. For some it will mean staying home to raise their children or juggling work and parenthood.
Or maybe working two jobs to make ends meet. Or using the free time economic security provides to volunteer somewhere. It can mean eating less and more healthily (as my morning of cooking prodded me to consider), consuming less material goods. Just allowing oneself times of quiet and prayer can be challenging today.
Being holy means being who God made you to be, no matter what everyone else thinks. And part of that journey is taking to time to figure that out. Rose of Lima didn’t have much time to accomplish that. She died at thirty-one.
If I were to write the list of attributes that preceded an article on you Rose, I would write: “Contemplative, Strong Woman, Servant of the Poor and Needy.”
But then, no one asked me.
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