St Mary of Egypt: To Whom Much is Forgiven

 Today we read every parent's horror story in the book In Caelo et in Terra. We read about St Mary of Egypt.

When she was only twelve, she ran away from her Christian home and became a prostitute. For the next seventeen years, she was a woman of the night. I won't go into the details, but her life was sordid and horrible. 

One day a procession of pilgrims came through her town, making a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. Something that her parents taught her growing up was sparked, and she joined the procession. I'd like to say she was miraculously saved and changed, but no. She paid for her passage with the other pilgrims by exchanging sexual favors. Very sad.

When she reached Jerusalem, she tried to join the other pilgrims in venerating the actual cross that Jesus died on. But an invisible wall prevented her from going to it. She realized that her sins were literally holding her back. She repented, visited the cross, saw an icon of Mary, and her life was changed. She then went into the desert and lived a life of penance and prayer from then on.

Her story is sobering. You can read more about it here.

But it's also heartening. You and I both have sins that hold us back, too. And with Mary of Egypt, we can become saints when we turn from those sins and put our faith in Jesus.

God, thanks for teaching us through this cautionary tale. St Mary of Egypt, pray for us.