Celebrating Saints, Souls, and Seekers



Artwork by Sr. Ellen LaCapria showing significant holy ones in the Vincentian Family

 Hell, Heaven, and Purgatory--that is how my pastor spoke of Halloween, All Saints Day and All Souls Day.  When he spoke of Halloween it was that there is a hell and there are scary things in the world.  However, God is far more powerful than evil.  Yes, there is power with the name of Jesus.  How often do we try to do hard things on our own?  How long does it take us to call on Jesus? 

So we have the day of scary things with the assurance that we are not alone.  Then we have a day that helps us look at so many different role models.  There are so many people that we know have "made it"!  We all have our favorite saints those that resonate with something deep inside us.  Today we pray for all those who have died with hope that they have made it to Heaven or will make it to there soon.

So what about us seekers?  Do we take these days to reflect on our own lives and our mortality or is it just another commercial holiday celebrating Halloween and ignoring the other days?

October 19th there was an article in the Baltimore Sun "Apathy after hit-and-run strikes a nerve in China".  Think story of the Good Samaritan from the scriptures, but replace the victim with a 2 year child  who had wandered off from her mother and into the street.  More than a dozen pedestrians and motorist passed the already hit bloody child who still lay in the street.  Finally, a female trash collector came by and rescued the child--no one would help this woman even to call an ambulance.  The child's mother came and the two women got help for the child.
It is hard for me to imagine this to be real!  Yet it is--all too real!  The article went on to explain that there is no Good Samaritan law to protect helpers from liability--as we have in the U.S.  It is sad that we must have a law so people feel safe to help someone else in time of great need.  Even without a law, isn't it our duty to help our neighbor? 

Here is  the explanation that was outlined in the paper:
           "Many said they see the country's obsession with prosperity as the main reason for eroding moral standards. 'China as a nation has lost its passion and is beyond hope,' Haowu Yiyi said on Weibo. 'It is a nation that can sell its soul for money.'"

The Chinese culture has traditionally been very group oriented, unlike the individualistic American culture.  So, has the seeking of wealth torn out the soul of many Chinese?  Can't we say we see that in many Americans?  Look at the financil crisis--so much greed!

Yet, no one is beyond hope.  We find our hope and strength in Christ! Christ shows us how to live and love one another.  If we are truly seeking, He is the Way and can show us the way.  We need each other too--we cannot do it alone.  As on Halloween, we can walk around full of fear or we can be brave and go forward with purpose and in the company of others.

Let us walk together in the light of Christ!

What does holiness look like?

What is holiness? There are so many examples of holiness in our midst and they often look different from one another. ABC's 20/20 is doing a show on miracles attributed to the intercession of JP II. There is the life of Mother Teresa whose story many people are familar. What about Sr. Dorothy Stang?

Sr. Dorothy was a missionary to Brazil. As she ministered to the poor farmers in the rain forest she found that their land rights were ignored and their land taken from them by rich farmers and ranchers. These rich farmers and ranchers also clear the rain forest for their mega farms and ranches and the wood is sold. There are huge tracts of land now without living vegetation. Sr. Dorothy in her solidarity with the poor farmers whose land was being taken without legal repercussions, spoke up for their rights. To make a long story short, a price was put on her head and she was killed. Today in Brazil Sr. Leonora Brunetto finds herself in a similar situation. She has received death threats as the people in the area have also. Since 1988 1,200 activists, small farmers, judges, priests and others have been killed because of their efforts to preserve the rain forest.

So where does the holiness fit in? If you google Leonora Brunetto you can find the main article about her. In it she says, "I cannot lie and say I'm not scared. But at the same time I know God is with us."

In different times we hold up different models as examples of holiness. In our present time, we find holiness in people such as JPII, Mother Teresa and Sr. Dorothy Stang. They are people so grounded in prayer and their relationship with Christ that action must flow from them. They were each able to stand up strong about the rights and dignity of all people despite the opposition all around them.

St. Louise de Marillac, co-founder of the Daughters of Charity, died in 1660--this is the 350th anniversary of her death. Yet, she wasn't canonized until 1934. I believe it is because she is a saint for this present time. She was a great leader and changed the face of social work forever--all this because Christ was the center of her life.

Through this season of Lent and into Easter, have we grown in holiness? Have we centered are life more on Christ? Do we reach out more to those in need as Christ did? Especially those considered outcasts of mainstream society? If not, the blessing is we still have today, tomorrow and the next days to work on it!