On
a beautiful spring day in 2003 I calmly walked into an auditorium at Vestavia
Hills High School. The entire student body and many parents were gathered for
the annual awards day assembly. All of the honors given to both underclassmen
and seniors were kept in secret from the students until that day. Of course,
parents of the students were informed so that they could attend the ceremony. Midway
through the presentation the principal began describing the accolades of the
Service Award recipient. I recall thinking that whoever this person was sounded
a lot like me. He or she was involved in many of the same activities, served
within my organizations, and even participated in my favorite service clubs.
Eventually though it became clear that this person was not someone I knew, but
was indeed me.
Whatever
placid feelings I had at the beginning of that day had vanished and I was
overwhelmed with a strange wash of emotions. I had never set out to serve
others for recognition, so I felt uncomfortable walking onstage to receive an
honor. And yet, I was happy that the projects that I cared about were being put
in the spotlight vicariously. Then, I felt embarrassed when a wave of pride
rolled over me. By the time I returned to my seat with friends congratulating
me I did not know what to think. The corny phrase “Character is what you do
when no one is looking” ran through my mind. Finally, I remember thinking of
all the other students who deserved this pat on the back for engaging in
service as much if not more than I did. Strangely this last thought has stuck
with me more than anything else from that day.
Quite
often the person who most deserves praise for some deed or accomplishment does
not receive credit for her hard work. We rarely recall other Civil Rights
Movement leaders that stood beside and behind the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King
Jr. or Mrs. Rosa Parks. We remember names like Whitney, Morse, or Bell for
their inventions, but easily brush aside anyone who laid the groundwork for
them or assisted them as they discovered something novel. We forget so easily
the names of musicians who left bands like the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, or
Fleetwood Mac right before they made it big. Most times it seems the ones who
are working in the background or who support the big names are not remembered
in the same way as those who were in the right place at the right time.
Recently
we celebrated Basil the Great in the Church. Often he is given credit for being
the founder of monasticism within the entire eastern branch of Christianity. However,
he did not do this on his own. In fact, without his sister Macrina the Younger
whom we remember today, Basil would have known very little about running a
community of monastics.
Macrina
lived an extraordinary, inspirational life that often gets overshadowed by her
brothers’ fame. You probably thought that was a typo as I wrote brothers’ fame,
instead of brother’s fame, but Macrina had multiple brothers whom we remember
as saints. In total she had 10 brothers and though she was the eldest and
perhaps the most innovative, spiritual, and grounded Basil, along with Gregory
of Nyssa and Peter became bishops! All of her siblings came to
her though to learn the teachings of Jesus and how to live out a life devoted
to Christ.
When
Macrina’s father died, she and her mother built a Christian community on family
land. They lived a life without possessions, brought in women who were
starving, and even taught many of these women to be dedicated followers of Jesus.[1]
Her example inspired her brothers to renounce possessions and start Christian
communities on their own. Unfortunately, like so many other times throughout
history we remember the man, but not the woman behind the man. In this case,
Macrina was the saint behind the saints!
For
us who seek to live lives inspired by, transformed through, and enveloped
within the community of God—that is the Trinity—we would do well to learn a
lesson from Macrina and how she has been remembered. Nothing we do is for the
credit of it on its own. Often someone else will receive the praise we so
selfishly desire. Truthfully though if we are to thrive in the life of God we
must seek not our own glory but God’s. That is what Macrina did and it is what
we will do if we walk in the way of Christ. May you too be a saint behind the
saints. Amen.
x
[1] Kiefer, James. "Macrina." Mission of
Saint Clare. July 19, 2017. http://www.missionstclare.com/english/July/morning/19m.html
(accessed July 19, 2017).
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