Today we read about a man who teaches us today about how we should treat evil leaders: a timely message!
St Stanislaus of Szczepanow lived in Poland in the 11th century. He was taught his faith by his parents, who died when he was still young. He took to heart Jesus's words and gave away his possessions, becoming a priest. He then became Bishop of Poland.
The king, whose name was Boleslaw, was an immoral man who argued with the church over the possession of a piece of property. Stanislaus went head to head with the king, and also challenged his very immoral lifestyle. Stanislaus pleaded with him to change his ways, even with tears and begging. The king refused. Stanislaus was forced to excommunicate him. The king was so enraged that he followed Stanislaus to the church and assassinated him while he said mass. Good for Stanislaus! He became an instant saint and went straight to heaven, do not pass go, not necessary to collect $200. But bad for the king, who now had murder on top of all his other sins. From what little I know of St Stanislaus, I'm sure that he prayed for God to forgive the king. He was more concerned about the king's soul than he was his own life.
And that definitely gives us a blueprint to work with today. There are some truly evil people in places of power around the world today. Even if you don't believe half the stories, there is widespread pedophilia and sex trafficking happening all over the world, especially in the US, and very powerful people are involved.
Why doesn't God just strike them down and put good people in charge? Well, St Stanislaus gives us a clue: God is being patient with us, giving the evil time to repent from their evil before it's too late.
Say a prayer for the evil people in charge of the world today. That they find God before the meet Him in judgment. You can read more about St Stanislaus here.
God, thank You for reminding us to pray for our leaders, especially when they're evil. St Stanislaus, pray for us.
No comments:
Post a Comment