Memorial of Saint Scholastica, Virgin
(I Kings 8:22-23.27-30; Mark 7:1-13)
Solomon built the “First Temple” in Jerusalem to unify the
people of Israel. The people came there
from every part of the vast kingdom to worship.
They also celebrated Israel’s principal feasts and offered sacrifices
for sins.
The Temple was to the people of Israel what a monastery
chapel is to a community of nuns. The holy
women come together several times a day for common prayer in the chapel. Most monasteries practice “Eucharistic
Adoration” where the Blessed Sacred is exposed in the chapel for a most, if not
all, of the day. The chapel is space
where the nuns not only praise God but encounter Him much like healing is found
in a hospital.
Because of her association with her brother, St. Benedict, today’s
patron -- St. Scholastica -- is said to have founded the Benedictine nuns. Not much is known of her life. However, like Benedict, she was dedicated to
God. She worked, prayed, and lived
simply with other consecrated women to express her love for the Lord.
