True holiness does not mean a flight from the world;
rather, it lies in the effort to incarnate the Gospel
in everyday life.
--St. Pope John Paul II
We’re not called to be gods or goddesses, but we are indeed called to be holy. In the book of Leviticus, God says, “Be holy, as I am holy.” Jesus tells his disciples to be “perfect” as our heavenly Father is perfect.
More recently, St. Teresa of Calcutta reminded us that holiness is not reserved for just a few but is everyone’s “duty.” Indeed, the Second Vatican Council proclaims the “universal call to holiness.”
Convinced yet?
Holiness is something that God does with us, or in us. In the end, any conversion that happens is God’s work.
But we must first desire it. We must open the door to God’s activity within us. Can we be open to God’s call to be more loving, more compassionate, and more concerned with the needs of others? Can we be open to the need for change— moving away from selfishness, complaining, and bitterness? The desire for holiness is the start of a life of holiness.
This doesn’t mean that we become cookie-cutter versions of one or another saint. As Thomas Merton said, “For me, to be a saint means to be myself.” Our holiness will fulfill, not eradicate, our personalities.
Nor will we become gods or goddesses! Rather, we will become more fully ourselves: human, and still flawed, but closer to the people God desires us to become.
--Fr. James Martin,
Facebook, November 2, 2022
Facebook, November 2, 2022
No comments:
Post a Comment