At just thirteen years of age, St. Simeon heard the Beatitudes and resolved to live a life of prayer and penance. This young shepherd boy, born in Syria about 388 AD, was given the incredible vocation of practicing long fasts and great penances for most of his sixty-nine years.
After several years in a monastery, St. Simeon chose to practice his great austerities while living on the top of a pillar high above the ground. Although he was continuously exposed to the elements, he remained in constant state of prayer.
The extraordinary grace of this unusual life can be traced to the supernatural atmosphere still lingering from the time Our Lord was present on earth.
St. Bernard said, "O, happy solitude! O, only happiness!" Silence allows one to think , to be serious and to contemplate eternity. Modern man shuns this attitude to the detriment of the entire civilization. For when death comes, man now must face seriousness without preparation.
Let us ask St. Simeon for the grace to understand the need for solitude and isolation so that we will have a greater union with Our Lord and Our Lady.
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