For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?” Esther 4:14
“Balthildes was an Englishwoman, who was carried over whilst yet young into France, and there sold for a slave, at a very low price, to Erkenwald, mayor of the palace under King Clovis II. When she grew up, her master was so much taken with her prudence and virtue that he placed her in charge of his household. The renown of her virtues spread through all France, and King Clovis II took her for his royal consort.
This unexpected elevation produced no alteration in a heart perfectly grounded in humility and the other virtues; she seemed to become even more humble than before. Her new station furnished her the means of being truly a mother to the poor; the king gave her the sanction of his royal authority for the protection of the Church, the care of the poor, and the furtherance of all religious undertakings.
The death of her husband left her regent of the kingdom. She at once forbade the enslavement of Christians, did all in her power to promote piety, and filled France with hospitals and religious houses. As soon as her son Clotaire was of an age to govern, she withdrew from the world and entered the convent of Chelles.
Here she seemed entirely to forget her worldly dignity, and was to be distinguished from the rest of the community only by her extreme humility, her obedience to her spiritual superiors, and her devotion to the sick, whom she comforted and served with wonderful charity. As she neared her end, God visited her with a severe illness, which she bore with Christian patience until, on the 30th of January, 680, she yielded up her soul in devout prayer.”
Balthildes of Chelles (c. 626-680) in The Lives of the Saints by Alan Butler, 1894 (Global Grey edition, 2019) 30 January reading.
As I travel in Eastern Europe, I am finding inspiration from saints whose generous service shaped society in the castles and structures of days long past.
Bathildes is one of those saints who made the most of her “for such a time as this” moment.
She went from slave to queen long after Esther in the pages of the Old Testament, and did not let this shift corrupt her. She used her place as consort to serve as a conduit of blessing.
What about you? What work has God “furnished” you to do?
Let’s read again what Butler reports about Bathildes: “Her new station furnished her the means of being truly a mother to the poor; the king gave her the sanction of his royal authority for the protection of the Church, the care of the poor, and the furtherance of all religious undertakings.”
And notice what else she did. Rather than hold the post indefinitely, she passed the work on to her son, Clotaire. That may be her greatest accomplishment. This act would ensure sustainability.
Ponder today both on the work God has furnished you to do, and how you will pass that on to others so it continues to shower generous blessing long after you are gone.
And thanks for your prayers for our program work in Slovakia today.