Was the prophetess Anna a church-lady?
Or was she a contemplative, who never left the temple? A prototype of early nuns, widows who dedicated their lives? Or was she just homeless and took refuge in the temple?
Her example makes one appreciate the pious ladies we meet at church. The faithful elderly who never miss daily Mass, who pray the rosary. Those who volunteer to water the plants and tidy up. Those who remind priests of the rubrics and how the Eucharist should be reserved and reverenced.
Old people are a blessing, not a curse.
“let us ... think of those other exiles – I would call them ‘the hidden exiles’ who may be marginalized within their own families – the elderly for example who sometimes are treated like burdens”. - Pope Francis
Song for this post here.
I would love to grow up and be a Church Lady. I would want joy though and not bitterness. I would want to be seen and wondered about as I go about dusting the pews, picking up trash, mopping the floor, ironing the altar cloth and or making chicken soup for the Padre.
ReplyDeleteI would be praying or humming the whole time too...respectfully, of course and never loud so as to attract attention.
Were I to be complimented for my "good works" I would smile, bowing gently, while giving the glory to the Lord Jesus and thanking his holy Mother for leading me by the hand to help scrub the toilets too...a dirty job but somebody holy has got to do it!
That's how I want my life to end...found gone from this world, after having cleaned up for Sunday Mass the night before.