Fr. Bob's Reflection for All Saints Day - Guest Post

Today the Church celebrates the Feast of All Saints: a day when the Church invites us to look beyond the saints we know by name and consider what it truly means to be a saint. But who are the saints? I once heard someone describe them as “Heaven’s football team.” We might think so when we read the letters of St. Paul, as he describes the saints as those who have run the race, fought the good fight and pressed on to win the crown. But not all saints were athletes – and sainthood is about much more than winning a race or achieving something extraordinary. The standard answer is to say that the saints are the heroes and heroines of Christian life –people for whom we name our churches and our children. They are the people who are close to God. When we think of the saints, we may picture a rare and extraordinary group, people like Francis of Assisi, Anthony of Padua and Teresa of Calcutta. Their holiness can seem so far beyond our own reach that sainthood feels like something reserved only for a select few. But sanctity is much closer than we realize. Being a saint means living the two great commandments Jesus gave us: love God and love your neighbor as yourself. If we strive to do that, we, too, can become saints. Perhaps it isn’t as difficult as we might think. In today’s Gospel, Jesus does not say, “Blessed are those who strive mightily to be righteous.” Instead, He says, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness.” In other words, blessed are those who recognize that they cannot become righteous without God’s grace. Jesus does not say, “Blessed are the makers of masterpieces.” He says, “Blessed are the meek.” He doesn’t say, “Blessed are those who thrill us with their brilliance.” Instead, He says, “Blessed are those who mourn” – those who do not turn away from the sorrow of a wounded world. You see, we do not need heroic holiness to become saints. The opportunity for sanctity is already before us. When we offer a listening ear to a struggling friend, help someone in need or feed the hungry, aren’t we becoming the people God calls us to be? Because of something you have done, someone’s life may be a little different. Sometimes we become so caught up in our sins and shortcomings that we forget the good we have done and how hard we try to do what is right. St. Augustine once wrote, “People go out to wonder at the mountain peaks, and the boundless waves of the sea, the long courses of the rivers and the motions of the stars, and yet they leave themselves unnoticed. They do not marvel at themselves.” My friends, take time to marvel – not at ourselves in pride, but at the goodness God has placed within us and at the good works of those around us. And perhaps, one day, All Saints Day will be your feast day. Yours in Christ, Fr. Robert Warren, S.A. Spiritual Director