Jerome--A Story of Contrasts

Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus is known to the world today simply as St. Jerome. The big deal about Jerome is that he was an early Bible translator taking the Hebrew and Greek manuscripts of the Old and New Testaments and translating them into the common language of the West. His Bible, known as the Latin Vulgate, stood as the official Bible of Europe until the Reformation. But beyond his great contribution to the Church and Western Civilization, Jerome was a bit of a study in contrasts. For instance Jerome was a respected scholar and a very learned bookworm, yet at the same time was very loving and relational with the people around him. Few scholars have both qualities. Jerome is known to be quite vicious in his writings to and about heretics and false doctrine, yet passionately loved the Church and the people of Christ. Another contrast is that he lived sequestered away in a monk's cave in Bethlehem where he could find isolation and yet had visitors come to meet and learn from him from all over the world. Finally, at one time or another he lived nearly every major city in the Roman Empire; Alexandria, Rome, Constantinople and yet Jerome considered the deserts of Israel to be his personal paradise. Jerome is a real paradox--a relational scholar, a socializing monk, equally passionate in his love and hatred, living in the middle of nowhere and yet known the world over. If there is a lesson for us about Jerome's life it probably would be that God transforming power in our lives is what makes us useful to Him. He takes what might look like a disadvantage or quirk of personality and is able to refashion it into something He can use for the Kingdom.