May 24 - Saint Simeon Stylites the Younger

Quick Facts

• Simeon's father died when the boy was five years old, and he became the ward of a monk named John who lived nearby.
• When Simeon was seven, the two moved onto platforms at the top of pillars in order to ensure their solitude.
• Word spread about the sanctity and wisdom of the pair; they attracted so many pilgrims and would-be disciples that at age 20, Simeon came down from his pillar to hide in the mountains.Ten years later there were more would-be students, and this time Simeon decided to help them; he built a monastery for them, and in it placed a pillar for himself.
• Ordained at age 35; the bishop climbed onto the platform to impose his hands.
• Simeon celebrated Mass on his platform, and the monks climbed a ladder to receive Communion.
• Healer and miracle worker, he spent 69 of his 76 years living off the ground.