What is it like to be desired by many people? Movie stars, models, and celebrities get a lot of fan mail and even some marriage offers! Our saint was greatly desired as a marriage partner by kings and an emperor in Europe. She was the daughter of the King and Queen of Bohemia, which made her desirable for political alliances. She was betrothed to the Duke of Silesia at the age of three, but he died soon after. Then King Henry VII of Germany, King Henry III of England, and Emperor Frederick II of the Holy Roman Empire all wanted to marry her. Such choices! She only wanted to serve God in the religious life and the pope sided with her. She eventually became a Poor Clare nun and devoted 45 years of her life in seclusion in the monastery where she lived in prayer and obedience until her death in 1282.
Where is God calling us to serve him? Marriage? We need happy and holy husbands/fathers and wives/mothers to be signs of God's love for the Church and to bring new life into the Church. The single life? We need people to dedicate themselves to service of others. The religious life? We need men and women to take vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience living out their special charism, or gift. It may be like St. Agnes in joining the Poor Clares who pray constantly, or to the Notre Dame Sisters who serve through education and social justice, or to the Jesuits who teach and do missionary work. God desires us to be in every nook and cranny of society. Pray to know your vocation as did St. Agnes of Bohemia.
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