Word to the Wise
Friday, November 1, 2024 - Nov. 1 - All Saints
[Rev 7:2-4, 9-14; 1 John 3:1-3; Matt 5:1-12a,738]"Who are these wearing white robes, and where did they come from?.....These are the ones who have survived the time of great distress; they have washed their robes and made them white in the Blood of the Lamb," [Revelation] See what love the Father has bestowed on us that we may be called children of God. Yet so we are. [1 John 3:1-3] "Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven....." [Matthew]
"Sainthood," like the Garden of Eden at the beginning of all life, is given to us at baptism and is ours to lose! We do not have to be "canonized." For most of us, it's not so much an actual loss that we sustain, it's a matter of how well we sustain the status. One could easily get the impression that to be a saint, one has to be miserable most of the time. Not so. Yes, the Christian life, lived well, will encounter struggles. Mother Teresa of Calcutta left a diary with startling statements about feeling abandoned by God!!! But she was "canonized" by public opinion long before any official action of the Church to "declare" her as a saint!
Holiness is the calling of all faithful Christians. It doesn't mean one must be in church all day or have multiple devotional practices. I once asked a student what he thought God expected of him. His answer was, "Stay close!" I've never forgotten that simple answer. How does one "stay close?" Simone Weil, an extraordinary woman who was never baptized and is yet considered a saint by many, characterized the relationship as one of "attentiveness." How aware are we of God?
The "communion of saints" we mention in the creed is not a roll call of the canonized. It is a vast reality to which we are all called by our baptism. A few will be singled out through "canonization" as examples of holiness in an extraordinary way. But most of us are called to the "holiness of the ordinary." The important thing is to be "attentive" and "stay close." AMEN