Saint Mary of Egypt (c. 344 – c. 421)

Mary of Egypt is the saint commemorated on the Fifth Sunday of the Great Fast in both the Eastern Catholic and Orthodox Churches as a venerableDesert Mother. In the Roman Catholic Church Mary of Egypt is the patron saint of penitents. At an early age, twelve years of age, she went to live on her own and began a life of loose living. She did not live a virtuous life, but rather a life of “immorality.” Although created in the image and likeness of God, she lived in the darkness of sin. Until she experienced a spiritual awakening, she was renowned for her sinfulness and was once stopped by an invisible force from entering the Church of the Resurrection, while on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land.

Mary of Egypt was deeply troubled by this. The grace of God then touched her heart and for the very first time, she repented for her sinful life. There flowed tears of compunction, true sorrow for sin. Raising her eyes before the icon of the Mother of God, Mary of Egypt prayed for true conversion. She promised to give up her past life of sin. She knew that Christ came into the world to call sinners to repentance. She then went to live in the wilderness, the desert for more than the next forty years. There she spent her time in prayer and fasting.

This story of humility and true conversion, change of heart, should lead us to know that with the help of God all things are possible. Despite one’s sinfulness, there is no reason to despair. The Lord God is loving, forgiving, and merciful. “A contrite and humble heart the Lord God will not spurn.” Let us repent of our own personal sins and continue to further develop a deeper spiritual relationship with Our Lord God and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Fr. George Worschak