The Lives of Saints Follow a Certain Basic
Life Pattern in their Following of Christ
Life Patterns in Hagiography
Introduction
As we read a few lives of the saints, especially those who are known
as "
sinners-turned-saints", we will discover a certain pattern which
their life experience reveals. Though some are gifted with special
spiritual maturity and already exhibit it at very young ages -
such as St. Catherine of Siena - there is in general a pattern by
which saints are transformed from a life that is often associated
with sinful living and then a turning point is experienced when
they convert from their former life and start on a journey towards
a greater knowledge and love of Christ.
What is hagiography?
Two definitions in Microsoft Encarta Dictionary
defines hagiography as: [1] biography dealing
with the lives of saints; and [2] a biography that shows undue reverence.
This article will dwell more on the first definition of hagiography, which is
the study of the stories and biographies of the lives of the saints in the
Catholic church. Hagiographers are often not mere biographers of the lives
of the blesseds and the saints. They often are scholars and make analytical
studies of the saints' life - especially when there are socio-historical
elements to be considered or extraordinary spiritual phenomenon and mystical
writings which they have left as a spiritual legacy to their followers or
disciples.
The lives of the saints
In the lives of the saints, especially in the traditional and classic way
they have written about them, we are called to be aware that some stories
or accounts related to their life are written for pious reasons and may
have no historical basis in fact. That is why when we open the pages of
an old biography of a saint, we are sometimes surprised if what is written
about them were really true. In our modern society, when we already have
built up a body of sciences, we are more or less in a position to weigh the
truth and to balance with our own mature judgment what relates to pious legends
and what may be true according to the spiritual giftedness of the saint.
Since the disciplines of history and science as the exact sciences we know
them now did not exist before, especially in the Middle Ages, then it would
be easier to understand how some stories are really written so that the
message that retains in our understanding is: that God can use saints as
instruments of His healing power, miracles and supernatural wonders.
What we are called then to focus our attention is not so much on what
seemingly impossible feat that a saint can do but his story is meant to
exemplify and truly portray that God uses His servants in order to express
sanctity and the virtue of charity.
Common life patterns among the lives of the saints
Every saint has his or her own unique story, but when we read a lot of their
life histories, we will soon discover a common life pattern among many
of them. Below is a list that outlines what these common patterns are
through the example of the many famous and popular saints' lives.
Most of those who led saintly and heroic lives in the history of the Catholic
church usually go through these common life pattern:
1. a conversion experience where there is a turning away from a former life;
2. a period of intense prayer and solitude accompanied often by a withdrawal
from the busy world;
3. a period of intense apostolic activity that involves great works of love,
service and charity - with some performing miracles and wonders;
4. experiences of persecution and suffering as a result of this apostolic
work;
5. death by sickness, consumption, exhaustion due to penances or martyrdom
Other writers who may know of hagiography may probably find a pattern unlike
this one, but it is certain that he or she will have at least one of the elements
in the common life pattern of saints listed above.
1. Conversion experience
We have heard the fabulous and inspiring conversion stories that line up
our Catholic history of Christian heroes. Think of St. Francis of Assisi
who went home sick from battle with a fever. After his terrible fever, he
suddenly changed his demeanor and behavior to how people came to love him - the
Little Poverello of Assisi. Think also of St. Ignatius of Loyola who was
a soldier and was hit by a cannonball on his right knee. While convalescing
in the castle of his family, the only thing he was able to read was Thomas
a' Kempis "The Imitation of Christ" and a volume of Voraigne's on the life
of the saints. From then on, he resolved to turn away from his earthly
soldier life to becoming a soldier of Christ the King. Think also of the
popular St. Augustine of Hippo. How he turned away from his pursuit of
worldly wisdom and his life of unchastity to a life in Christ - inspired
by the leadership of St. Ambrose. Many, many saints who previously lived
worldly lives suddenly had a conversion experience that led them to realize
their sinfulness and turn back to Christ with great love. St. Teresa of
Avila was a 'worldly' religious before she became a reformer of her Order.
St. Thomas a Beckett was fond of wine, women and song before he took
seriously his appointment as Archbishop of Canterbury. From then on, he
lived an austere monastic life and often wore a hairshirt for penance.
2. Prayer, solitude, withdrawal from the busy world
St. Benedict of Nursia is reported to have entered a cave in Subiaco to live a
life of solitude and prayer. St. Ignatius of Loyola also entered a cave
in Manresa where he discovered the movements of the Spirit and soon came
out with a system for discerning the movements of the spirits in our
spiritual life. Then what is really unforgettable among all the saints
is St. Anthony Abbot, a.k.a. St. Anthony of the Desert. He entered an empty castle
for 20 years and then when he came out, people exclaimed how he had not
changed a bit in those 20 years. He had such a remarkable calm and
equanimity in him that could not be disturbed by the noises around him. After
these conversion experiences of the saints, they found a need to search for
God all the more and to be in intimate union with Him. And they sought
it all the more ardently through prayer, solitude and isolation from the
busyness of the world.
3. Apostolic and missionary activity
After withdrawing into solitude, meeting God and learning to be in union
with Him, these saints often returned back to the world with an uncanny and
remarkable zeal and burst of energy which made them leaders of the societies
of their time. St. Ignatius of Loyola is well-known to have founded the Jesuit Order.
St. Benedict founded the great monasteries of Europe. St. Anthony of the
Desert also had followers. St. Francis of Paola, the wonder-worker hermit
also founded an association of hermits called Minims. St. Teresa of Avila
was a zealous reformer of the Carmelite Order. St. Francis of Assisi also
attracted a band of followers. He thought at first God's call for him was
to build the chapel of Portiuncula. Little did he know that the Lord wanted
him to reform the extreme worldliness of Pope Innocent's papal court through
the example of his prophetic band of mendicant preachers!
4. Experiences of persecution and suffering
As a result of their zealous works, many of these saints had to deal with
the Church's authorities or sometimes with the members of their own Order.
St. Ignatius of Loyola was put under the Inquisition because what he wrote
in his book, The Spiritual Exercises, is a new tradition in the Church. St.
Teresa of Avila suffered the rebukes of some of the Church authorities
because she wanted to improve the systems of her Order, thereby making it
more strict. Other saints suffered in different ways. St. Alphonsus Liguouri
was expelled as a general of his own congregation - the one he himself founded!
St. John of the Cross was imprisoned by his own community of brothers! And another
story is that because of the
popularity of St. Francis of Assisi with the people of his village, all of
them flocked to his chapel of Portiuncula. The church of the bishop and the
rich nobility was then left almost empty and without life. The bishop sent
emissaries to set on fire the little chapel of Portiuncula. One of St. Francis
of Assisi's brothers died in this event. All of these stories of the saints'
sufferings because of their following of Christ attest to the fact that because
they have chosen Christ, they had experienced His very cross and suffering
in their lives.
5. Death
We do not have to go into the many details of how some of the saints have
died a martyr's death. The martyrology of the Church attests to the fact
that the Spirit of God and the example of Christ has given the gift of much
courage and fortitude to these saints to witness to Christ in the same way
that Christ gave His life out of love for all of us. Although martyrdom is
as close to the witness of Christ a saint can get, most of the saints just
suffered much in life by bearing in patient holiness the sufferings that
they were to endure to love God and His Church. St. Francis of Assisi,
received the gift of the stigmata, the five wounds of Christ, in his person.
These wounds as we know are painful and they are always fresh with blood
constantly flowing. St. Bernadette of Soubirous, the girl who saw the
Blessed Virgin Mother, suffered from tuberculosis of the knee, making it
difficult for her to kneel. The death of many these saints was remarkable.
Those who were martyred were figures of great Christian courage. People
rushed to grab the bones of these martyrs because they truly believed
that in their being the power of God lived.
Summary
The common life pattern we see in the lives of the saints are a common
life pattern because they have basically set their life to imitate the
very life and example of Jesus Christ. The only difference is that in the
life of Jesus, there is no conversion experience as He was without sin.
So, except for the conversion experience of the saints, basically they
have followed Jesus' retreat into the desert for forty days (their period
of isolation from the business of the world); Jesus' missionary and
apostolic activity (the saints works of charity or in the mission); the
persecution of Jesus from the religious authorities of His time (the
saints' own experience of persecution and suffering); and the death of
Jesus in the cross (the painful death of many of the martyrs).