Isidore the Farmer (May 15)
ISIDORE THE FARMER (c10801130) was a labourer who worked at Torrelaguna near Madrid, where his daily toil was prone to divine intervention.
One day, after he had been accused of arriving late for work, his employer, John de Vergas, was vouchsafed a vision of angels leading a team of white oxen and ploughing alongside Isidore. In the circumstances Isidore kept his job; indeed he worked all his life for de Vergas.
On another occasion, Isidore gave half a bag of corn to starving birds. His friends mocked him for his compassion; miraculously, though, the half bag which remained yielded double the usual amount of flour.
Isidore married Maria de la Cabeza and had a son, who one day fell down a deep well. In answer to his parents' prayers, the water rose and delivered the boy safely at ground level. In gratitude, Isidore and Maria decided thenceforward to live both chastely and separately. Their son, however, died later in childhood.
Isidore's relics became associated with miracles. He was canonised in 1622, along