Today’s Scripture Reading (March 16, 2018): 1 Timothy 5
Íte of Killeedy was an Irish Nun who lived
during the 6th Century. She was an extremely individualistic woman
who taught many, and who lived a very simple life. Íte of Killeedy
likely died of cancer somewhere around her ninetieth birthday. But beyond her teachings and famous pupils (like Brendan
of Clonfert or Brendan the Navigator who some hold, although admittedly with
very little proof, might have been the first European to make it all of the way
to the Americas almost a thousand years before Christopher Columbus), it is Íte’s
ascetic lifestyle that sets her apart.
Specifically, modern biographers like to tell the
story of her beetle. According to the story, Íte of Killeedy had a pet
beetle that fed off of her flesh. Some argue that the beetle eventually became
the size of a small pig. While that is extremely unlikely, other stories say
that she lost her beetle when it wandered away from her only to be killed by
one of the other nuns who were living
with her. The act provoked Íte to anger, declaring that “For that deed, no nun
shall ever rule over me.”
Whether or not the story is true, it matches many
stories from an early church that seemed to connect sanctity and suffering.
Holiness was only available to the believer through a life of suffering. The
idea seems to stem from Jesus’s Passion, not just that he died on a cross, but
also that he was severely beaten and led a life that seemed to invite pain.
Asceticism is something that we do not understand now,
nor do we find a compelling example of it in Scripture. Jesus bled and died for
our sins, but there is no indication that his life was one of suffering. We
know that Jesus wept, but I suspect strongly that he also laughed.
And Paul seemed to preach against this connection of
suffering and holiness. Not only did he ask for his own personal thorn in the flesh to be removed (2 Corinthians 12:7,
maybe his own personal beetle), but he
also argues with Timothy over adding wine to his diet. It appears that Timothy
in his pursuit of a holy life had been drinking only water. The problem in the
ancient world was that water was often impure, and it carried with it a number of diseases and sicknesses. Most of those
sicknesses were removed from the wine in
the fermentation process. Timothy was setting a good example for his followers,
but he was doing it at the expense of his health. Paul’s instructions are
clear. It is not God’s will for you to be sick or in pain. You will be able to
do more for God if you take care of your body.
In Timothy’s case, that meant adding a little wine to his diet.
Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: 1 Timothy 6
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