(Optional) Memorial
of Saint Rose of Lima, virgin
(II Thessalonians
2:1-3a.14-17; Matthew 23:23-26)
Today we celebrate the
first saint born in the Americas, St. Rose of Lima. She was baptized Isabel
Flores de Oliva, the daughter of a Spanish soldier and an indigenous
seamstress. In her childhood she undertook the mortifications of St. Catherine
of Siena, her model. She ate little, prayed much, and devoted herself to Christ
as his bride. The name Rosa was imposed on her by Archbishop Toribio de
Mogrovejo, who was destined to be declared a saint himself. At first Isabel complained about her name, but
a Dominican priest consoled her saying: "' Well, daughter, is not your
soul like a rose in which Jesus Christ is recreated? '"
When her family had
financial problems, Rose helped out by planting a vegetable garden and doing embroidering.
She noted the greater poverty of the
indigenous people around her. Their
plight caused her to ask: “'If Christians are obliged to proclaim love
everywhere, why did they come to America with wars, destruction and hatred?'”
This question disturbed her until she discovered the redemptive value of
suffering. Rosa was beautiful, but she
resisted suitors so that she might dedicate her life to Christ through prayer
and care for the sick poor. She died of tuberculosis at the age of thirty-one.
We find it difficult
to understand the mortification of the saints like Rose of Lima. It strikes us as exaggerated piety or perhaps even
madness. But it is wiser to see it as a way of sharing in the suffering of
Christ for salvation as St. Paul says in the Letter to the Colossians. We
should not do direct harm to our bodies. But fasting and praying on our knees
can strengthen both body and spirit.
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