Story for Michaelmas Festival

Where No Light Shines

This story is appropriate for younger and older children.

Once upon a time there lived a peasant - a very bad peasant. He was lazy and miserable and he used very bad language. He beat his children and he was cross all the time - in fact he was very vey bad.

One day St Michael decided that something should be done about all of this, so he called one of his angels to him and said, “Dear Angel, there is a bad man down on earth. Will you go and live in his house for one year and try to make him better? You must leave your wings behind, but there is a little red cap and as long as you have this you will be able to return to heaven. Do not take it off and do not loose it.”

So the angel, whose name was Christina, took off her wings and put on the little red cap and went down to earth. When she reached the peasants house she knocked on the door. The peasants came to see who was there. Christina said, “Good woman, will you take me as your serving maid? I do not want any money, only give me some food and a corner to sleep inland I will serve you well for a year.” “This is alright,” thought the peasants wife and so she bade Christina to come inside and fastening a big apron over her white garment, set her to work.

It was marvellous to see the change that wrought in that house less than no time. When the peasant came home from work everything was in such good order, such a fine dinner awaited him that there was nothing to scold or to grumble about. When he used bad words Christina sang with such a sweet and gentle voice the peasant felt such shame. In short her beauty, goodness and her kindness and good deeds blew all the peasants ugliness away.

Well presently the devil began to notice the changes in the house. He was accustomed to a very plentiful harvest of mean and ugly deeds from the peasants, and when these started slowing down he decided to look into the matter.

“Oh no,” said the devil, St Michael has sent one of his angels. I will send one of my devils and we will see what happens now!”

So he sent one of his devils to the peasants house and the first thing the little devil did was to put his foot into a basket of eggs and smash them so that they ran all over the floor. But Christina simply cleaned up the mess with never a cross word.Then the devil set to work to upset more things and to cause as much confusion and disturbance as he

could. He teased the children and made them cry, he started quarrels and fights among them. But whatever he did Christina put it to rights again with such patience and sweetness that the devil grew tired of his own working and fell to watching Christina. She was so beautiful and everything around her was beautiful and he began to dislike the idea of leaving all this and returning to the darkness and the ugliness of his own world.

At last Christina’s year was up. She said, “Now I am going back to heaven. Goodbye little devil” “Goodbye” he said forlornly, “I wish I was going with you”
Christina started off but she had not taken many steps when the spirit of mercy touched her and made her return. “I am sorry for you Devil,” she said, “here, take my little red cap and go to heaven instead of me.” And she took the little red cap off her head and placed it on the devils head. No sooner was it there than the devil began to change. The nasty unkind look that always covered his face began to lift and a heart began to beat in his breast - for you must know children, that a devil does not have a heart.

He looked at Christina standing there, so good and beautiful. He took the red cap off his head and said, “Where you are, Christina, there is heaven. I will stay with you.”

So they both stayed on the earth, helping other people so that one day all might go to heaven together. And St Michael looked down from heaven and was very very happy.

Read our Michaelmas Blessing post HERE. 

Parents need something too! Read Michael's Sword of Iron HERE.