In the spirit of St. Hedwig, Widow ~ III Classis
Thursday in the 18th Week after the Octave of Pentecost
October 2nd – Feria V
Readings:
- Proverbs 31:10–31 — “Who shall find a valiant woman?”
- Matthew 13:44–52 — “The kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hidden in a field…”
On this feria quinta within the eighteenth week after Pentecost, as we commemorate St. Hedwig the Widow—a noblewoman turned ascetic, patroness of the poor, and exemplar of Christian widowhood—it is especially fitting that Holy Church presents us with the figure of the mulier fortis, the “valiant woman” of Proverbs, alongside Our Lord’s parables of the hidden treasure, the pearl of great price, and the net cast into the sea.
The pairing is not accidental. The woman of Proverbs and the seeker in the parables both pursue what is precious, even hidden: virtue and the kingdom of heaven. Both renounce lesser things to obtain what truly matters.
The Valiant Woman: A Living Icon of Virtue
“Who shall find a valiant woman? Far and from the uttermost coasts is the price of her.” (Prov. 31:10)
St. Jerome, in his commentary on Isaiah, when reflecting on the valiant woman, likens her to the Church herself, whose worth surpasses all worldly estimation. But she is also the image of every soul united to Christ in charity, particularly of those holy women whose strength lies not in worldly power but in spiritual nobility.
St. Hedwig, though born of ducal blood, considered herself a servant of Christ. After her husband’s death, she renounced all courtly finery and entered a Cistercian monastery—not as a nun bound by vows, but as a widow bound by love. Like the woman in Proverbs, “she hath opened her hand to the needy, and stretched out her hands to the poor” (v. 20). She became the very embodiment of caritas operosa, of love in action.
St. Ambrose writes in De Viduis that the widow’s life is a hidden treasure, adorned with spiritual gold: “Though she be stripped of her earthly spouse, she becomes the bride of Christ.” This is the valiant woman who weaves garments not of wool but of prayer, who feeds not only her household but the poor in spirit, and whose lamp does not go out by night—symbol of unceasing prayer.
The Hidden Treasure: The Kingdom Sought in Sacrifice
In Matthew 13, Our Lord gives us three short parables—each a facet of one great mystery: the nature of the Kingdom of Heaven. It is like a treasure hidden in a field, a pearl of great price, and a net drawing in fish of every kind.
Like the valiant woman, the man who finds the treasure or the merchant who discovers the pearl acts decisively. They sell all—a total renunciation—for the sake of that which surpasses all things. So too the saints: they abandon prestige, comfort, and even family ties to cleave to Christ alone.
St. John Chrysostom teaches that the field is Holy Scripture, in which the treasure—Christ and the life of grace—is hidden. Only those who dig, meditate, and sacrifice, can find it. The merchant in search of the pearl is the soul yearning for wisdom, who, upon discovering true doctrine and virtue, counts all else as loss (Hom. on Matthew 47).
St. Hedwig, then, is both the finder of the treasure and the valiant woman who has cultivated her field with diligence. Her treasure was not gold nor pearls, but Christ hidden in the poor, in the cloister, in the Eucharist. Like the wise scribe Our Lord speaks of, she draws from the storeroom of her heart both the old and the new—her noble heritage transformed by supernatural charity.
Synthesis: The Life Hidden with Christ in God
In the valiant woman and in the Gospel parables, the Church gives us a meditation on value. What do we truly esteem? What is worth sacrificing all else to gain? St. Hedwig answers with her life: only Christ. And not Christ as a vague idea or lofty abstraction, but Christ in His kingdom—His poor, His Church, His Cross.
St. Augustine, in his Confessions, speaks of the soul’s search for God as a long wandering, until one realizes that the treasure is already near: “Late have I loved thee, O Beauty ever ancient, ever new! Late have I loved thee… You were within me, but I was outside…” (Conf. X.27).
The treasure, like the woman’s virtue, is hidden—not because God plays games with us, but because love must seek. The hiddenness invites longing. And longing gives birth to holiness.
Conclusion: A Widow Crowned, A Church Enriched
Today’s liturgical memory of St. Hedwig the Widow gives flesh to both Proverbs and the Gospel. She is the woman of valor whose price is above rubies; she is the one who has sold all to possess the pearl of Christ. Let her life be a mirror for our own: are we willing to trade what is passing for what is eternal?
May we, like her, become scribes trained for the Kingdom—drawing forth both tradition and transformation. And may we remember: the treasure is Christ. The price is everything. And the reward? Everlasting joy.
Collect (From the Mass of St. Hedwig):
O God, who didst teach blessed Hedwig to leave the pomp of the world for the humble following of Thy Cross: grant that, by her merits and example, we may learn to trample under foot the perishable delights of the world and overcome all the difficulties that arise.
Through Our Lord Jesus Christ…