Maybe a saint is just someone who refuses to go away. Maybe saintliness has more to do with stubbornness than with sanctity. Perhaps a saint is not someone who marches to the beat of a different drummer, but who stands fast when the drum beats retreat.
What seems nobility on the part of Naomi may be no more than enlightened self-interest. When your husband bails on his clan to live with the enemy, you don’t score points back home. When you come back a widow with two dead sons, you don’t help your case. Toss a couple of gentile daughters-in-law into the mix and you can forget about joining the Junior League.
Ruth is a saint because she resolves to be a blessing even where she is an embarrassment. “Intreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee.” I’ll stay where I’m not wanted because I know it is where I’m needed. Naomi sends her off-brand relation to work among the bottom of the ninety-nine percent in a job with no sexual harassment policy, then pimps her out to the boss. As a result, we get Jesus.
St. Mary of Egypt was one of the desert mothers. A twelve-year-old runaway, she became prostitute in Alexandria. She grew curious about Jerusalem and worked her passage to the Holy City by offering her favors to the sailors. While there she had a vision that sent her to the desert, where she lived for almost a half-century and guided many to faith. A pilgrimage paid for by prostitution resulted in sainthood: Sometimes I think Our Lord Jesus has no scruples at all.
Saints Alive!
Doug
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