Saint Peter Damian – Wading Through the Mud

After the tragic early death of his parents, Saint Peter Damian began his life caring for pigs. I find this interesting because for the rest of his life Saint Peter Damian didn’t seem to mind getting messy. He rejected the path to fame and wealth and even forsook more comfortable accommodations as a monk in order to live the life he believed God had called him to. He was not a quiet monk. He had no problem confronting corruption and practices that concerned him. He dug into the complex issues of his day and did his best to present a vision for what he believed God was calling the church to do in response to them. Today the Church still has plenty of mud pits and messy corners. It is often my personal preference to steer clear of these. I prefer to stay clean. Saint Peter Damian reminds me that to be a follower of Jesus means we need to be willing to go into the mess and the mire sometimes. It’s often in the messy places where we will find Jesus is at work.