St. Isidore de Seville: Patron Saint of the Internet?

I'm not much in to jewelry myself.  I have two rings, a wedding band and a ring that is silver and gold. The gold reminds me of my divine nature, made in the image of the Creator and the silver that I was redeemed by a price.  There's more to the story behind this ring but I'll save that for another time. The reason I mention this is because I've recently added something new. A medallion of St. Isidore de Seville around my neck. St. Isidore is the Catholic's patron saint of the internet, technology, and computers and their users. Now, before you wonder if I've converted to Catholicism, hang in there for a bit and let me explain.

St. Isidore lived around 1600 years ago, which if nothing else makes his sainted patronage noteworthy. He was a stalwart advocate of education who believed seminaries should include classes on science, literature, medicine, and other academic subjects. In short, he was not afraid of information that might seem to contradict the Spiritual Truth. He also was responsible for creating an encyclopedia which remained in use for hundreds of years after his death. You may not pray to the saints, but you must admit that he was a remarkable man.

Despite his being remarkable, I don't pray to him for guidance or miracles but I do remember him. I remember his desire to educate, to disseminate Knowledge and not just speak Truth. If we, as Christians, are afraid of science or medicine, we cut ourselves off from a rather large part of God's creation. There is much we can learn, much we need to learn about this world we live in and our place in the cosmos. An atheist can look at the night sky and ask, "Where is God?" but Christians should look at the same panorama of stars, galaxies, nebulas, and temporal anomalies (threw that one in for my Star Trek fan friends) and see His handiwork everywhere. You may be asking yourself "What does this have to do with a saint, the thing over which he was granted patronage wasn't even invented for a millennium and a half after his death?" I'm getting to that.

In John 9, starting at verse 6 we see Jesus heal a blind man. He took some dust, spit on it and made clay, then put that mess into the blind man's eyes. Then he told the man to go and wash in the pool of Siloam (which means "sent" by the way). The man's healing was realized after he did what Jesus told him. Great story. What I find interesting is that in Mark 8, beginning with verse 22 Jesus encountered another blind man. This one he led out of the city and spit in his eyes and laid hands on them to give him sight. And even more interesting is that in Matthew 9:27, Jesus healed 2 blind men with only a touch and the phrase "Become what you believe" (or "According to your faith be it unto you" for our King James stalwarts that believe it was the translation that Paul used).

Jesus healed with dirt and spit, with just spit, and with just a touch and a few words. If Jesus could have healed all four men with just a touch, why all the spit and mud? I believe the answer lies in the question he asked the two blind men in Matthew. "Do you believe I can do this?" They may not have realized it, but they set the stage for their healing when they answered "We do!" It was the confession of their faith that healed them through the touch of the Messiah. From this I conclude that the blind man in Mark needed the spit to trigger his faith and the one in John had to have mud put in his eyes to activate his faith. We see this in so many places, Jairus told Jesus that if he were to touch his little girl, she would be healed ("Don't be afraid, only believe") The centurion knew that Jesus only had to speak the words to heal his servant("I have not found such faith in all of Israel"). The woman with the issue of blood was absolutely convinced beyond a shadow of a doubt that should she touch even just the hem of Jesus' robes that she would be healed ("According to your faith...").

According to your faith, be it unto you. What is it that you believe Jesus can do in your life? Or more importantly, what do you believe he CAN'T do? C. S. Lewis, arguably the greatest Christian apologist of the twentieth century put it this way: "We are what we believe we are." What do you believe you are? The Word says we are Kings, Priests, Joint Heirs with Christ. Do you believe it? So often we believe what others say we are and don't dare aspire to anything more. What do you tell your children? They will believe what you tell them.

So, what does this have to do with St. Izzy? When I think of him, I remember that God is sovereign over technology. That He watches over computer users. That Al Gore had very little to do with the creation of the internet. Also, I remember that I do not need to fear information. Knowledge can only confirm the presence of God in the universe-- IF one approaches facts with an open mind. If you don't believe in the possibility of the Divine, you will never see Him no matter where you look. If, on the other hand you DO believe in a Creator, you will see Him, no matter where you look.

I used to have a motto in Latin: Aut viam invenium, aut faciam. It was reportedly said by Hannibal when he was told he would never get elephants through the Alps to attack Rome and means "I will find a way, or invent one." But now, I have a new motto. One inspired by St. Isidore de Seville, patron saint of the internet, technology, and computer users: Conari vicis id de, tum vicis id in. Which roughly translated means "Try turning it off, then on."