SAINTS ALIVE!

(written to honor the feast of all saints)

 

The term “saint” goes back to the early days of Christianity when Paul used the term to designate the Christians to whom he wrote. With some—such as those wild Corinthians—he addressed them as “called to be saints.”  The term was later extended to the “holy ones” who had died in the Lord, many of them having been martyred for their faith. 

 

Each time we recite the Creed we remind ourselves of the “communion of saints”—our relationship with those who have gone before us into the fullness of God.  This obviously includes Peter, Paul, Francis, Clare, Catherine, etc. as well as our parents, relatives, and friends who, from our perspective, lived as holy children of God.  The saints are models for us as well as intercessors who pray to God for us and with us.  We look at saints as friends and fellow disciples. 

 

One of the finest books that I have read recently on this topic is one by James Martin, S.J. entitled My Life With the Saints.  What is unusual about this book is that it is not per se accounts of the lives of various saints but, rather, the story of his encounters with specific saints and how each played an essential role in his personal spiritual development. 

 

Fr .Martin’s odyssey began with his purchasing a plastic statue of St. Jude from a catalog at the age of nine.  From there it was seeing a monument of Joan of Arc in slides shown in his high school French class, viewing a movie about St. Therese of Lisieux, stumbling across a television documentary on Thomas Merton.  Some of the “saints” he includes have been officially recognized by the Church as such.  Others—such as Mother Teresa, Pope John XXIII, Dorothy Day—are not officially saints but on their way.  This book is an “easy read,” enjoyable as well as informative. I believe you will relish the time you spend with it.

 

My own life with the saints began in my Catholic home (with holy pictures in every room!) and Catholic school where I heard fascinating accounts of men and women who had lived lives totally dedicated to God.  The stories that most impressed me were those of the martyrs—ordinary people who were willing to give up life itself rather than violate their faith and its teachings.

 

Unfortunately, martyrs are not limited to early Christian times but continue in our present age.  In the 1980’s I learned about the martyrs of El Salvador—Archbishop Oscar Romero who was assassinated while celebrating Mass; the four American women (three nuns and a lay woman) who were caring for orphans and refugees;  the six Jesuits who ran the Catholic university.  All were killed because they attempted to live out the basic Catholic principle of the dignity and rights of every human person. 

 

As I write this, martyrdom is taking place in the country of Iraq with the recent assassination of the archbishop of Mosul, several priests and lay catechists as they left the cathedral.  Many other Christians have been threatened and thousands have fled their country for safety elsewhere. The Dominican Sisters in Mosul have had several of their convents destroyed; six of their younger sisters are presently with my congregation (Adrian Dominicans) in the Midwest. 

 

We are all called to be saints but, hopefully, our personal journeys will not require this kind of sacrifice. Rather, like all those who have gone before us, you and I are called to be saints by living the Christian life fully as they did.

 

 

Sister Marie Wiedner, O.P.