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bjbjqPqP Hi, this is Ruthie Oberg with a devotion from history. Peter Damian died on February
23, 1072, but not before beginning what became one of the strangest fads in Christian history.
Damian advocated a life of extreme austerity. In denying worldly pleasures, he found it
useful to whip himself with a leather strap and he taught the practice to those around
him. Others monks began lashing themselves while reciting the Psalms each psalm was accompanied
by 100 strokes with a leather strap to the back. They felt that this act of suffering
honored Christ s suffering and served as an act of penance; it was a way to achieve favor
with God. This practice, called self-flagellation, became popular among some areas of Christianity
during the Middle Ages, especially in times of famine and plague, as people hoped that
their suffering would catch God s attention and they would find relief from their circumstances.
Flagellants marched through the city streets, singing hymns and scourging themselves with
needle pointed iron tipped whips until the blood ran down their bodies. On October 20,
1349, self-flagellation was condemned by papal order, and rightly so, but the practice still
continues in isolated pockets of Italy, Spain, Portugal, and the Philippines as bloody pilgrims
march through the streets during the Lenten season. How sad it must make the heart of
God to see His children hurt themselves in an effort to gain his grace. We can never
pay for our sins by shedding our own blood nor do we achieve more of His favor by abusing
ourselves. The Bible tells us that HE was wounded for our sins and that HE took our
punishment and by doing so HE made us completely well. When we take our place in Jesus the
price for sin has been paid and there is no need to continue trying to pay that bill.
Let s learn that lesson from history. Hi, this is Ruthie Oberg with a devotion from
history Ruthie Oberg Normal.dot Ruthie Oberg Microsoft Office Word home Hi, this is Ruthie
Oberg with a devotion from history Title Microsoft Office Word Document MSWordDoc Word.Document.8