Today in the book In Caelo et in Terra, we read about St Simon Stock. I had never heard of him, though I am familiar with the gift that he brought to the church.
When he was just a little kid, he was very pious and serious about his faith. At the age of just 12, he became a hermit and lived in a tree stump, which is also called a "stock", and that's where his name comes from. After years of living this way, he joined the Carmelites. He helped to reform them to help change the world. One day he was asking Mary's help in dealing with a particular problem, and she appeared to him and gave him a brown scapular, which he in turn gave to the church. That's why we wear brown scapulars today. You can read more about him here.
Sometimes God calls us away from the madding crowd to spend time with Him and become more like Him. Sometimes He does this so that He can subsequently send us back out into the madding crowd to make them a little less mad. Sometimes He calls us for years, like St Simon Stock. Sometimes He calls us for fifteen minutes in the early morning, late at night, or even at noon. Is He calling you today?
God, thanks for the inspiring example of this young man who brought us Your brown scapular. St Simon Stock, pray for us.
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