Patron Saint: Simone Weil
In honor of the Simone Weil Colloquy

Over the past few years, the mystical philosopher Simone Weil has captured my soul's imagination. I think she really knew God. In the short 34 years she lived, she struggled to love God fiercely, with all of her being. She saw it as a natural consequence that she would therefore love the poor and marginalized, so much that she tried to experience what it was like to live like a factory worker (the picture is from her Renault factory ID), and like a poorly paid soldier. Her awareness of God started with a number of mystical experiences, and intensified as she experienced God’s love throughout her life, especially in the midst of suffering. She believed, “we cannot take one step towards the heavens. God crosses the universe and comes to us” (from The Love of God and Affliction). Instead, we can only turn our faces toward God. She believed that if we ask God for bread, God will not give us stones.

If we could only live this truth.

For an introduction to her work, I suggest Eric Springsted’s collection of her writings, Simone Weil, published by Orbis. I don’t know how to do links on this blog yet, so you’ll have to google it.