Holy Fools

No, April Fools Day is not a Christian holiday. But perhaps it should be. The Apostle Paul wrote,

God deliberately chose things the world considers foolish in order to shame those who think they are wise.

and

The message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing.

There is in Christian tradition a group known as Holy Fools. These were otherwise saintly people who poked fun at anyone acting holier than thou. The great Holy Fool of Russia was Basil the Blessed, a man so revered that the Cathedral in Moscow was named in his honor. Basil walked through Moscow wearing nothing more than a long beard. Basil threw rocks at wealthy people’s houses and stole from dishonest traders in Red Square.

Few, if any, doubted Basil’s holiness. Czar Ivan the Terrible feared no man but Basil. Basil was also given to eating meat on Good Friday. Once he went to Ivan and forced the Czar to eat raw meat during the fast saying, “Why abstain from eating meat when you murder men?” Countless Russians died for much less, but Ivan was afraid to let any harm come to the saintly Basil.

Curious? You'll find a sermon about Holy Fools here.