ALL SAINTS DAY – EVERYDAY

By Teresa Monaghen

           

CELEBRATION OF THE UNIVERSAL CALL TO HOLINESS

            Every year the Pro Sanctity Movement celebrates the Universal Call to Holiness -- a celebration which originated in Rome in 1957 and has since spread throughout Europe and other parts of the world. This celebration is connected with the Solemnity of All Saints, for the Universal Call to Holiness is at the basis of the Movement's spirituality and apostolate.

            All Saint’s Day celebrates every day saints and is an everyday occasion. It can and must be celebrated in our homes, schools, places of work and play, everyday! In this article I will share a few ideas that might help.

 

HOW DID THE FEAST BEGIN

            When Pope Boniface IV consecrated the Pantheon in Rome for Christian worship, he had “eight and twenty carts” laden with the bones of martyrs brought from the Catacombs to be placed there. He declared that day, May 13, in the year 609, to be the Feast of All Saints.

            For over a century, the observance of All Saint’s Day remained unchanged. Pope Gregory III (who died in 791), changed the date to November lst when he dedicated a chapel in the Basilica of St. Peter’s to “all the saints.” The date for the feast was thus permanently set.

           

THE COMMUNION OF SAINTS

            Who does the feast of All Saints honor? Obviously, it honors Peter and the other apostles who were personally chosen by Jesus. It certainly includes the martyrs, for example Stephen and Cecilia, who gave their lives for their belief in Jesus.

            It honors the mystics, the contemplatives and the hermits who have prayed with and for the followers of Jesus down through the ages. It definitely celebrates people like Francis and Clare of Assisi who left a former way of life to more closely follow in the footsteps of Jesus and at the same time it honors Monica, a mother and Maria Goretti, a young woman.

            In our own times, there have been (and are) many people we might call saints, among them Pope John XXII, Dorothy Day, Thomas Merton, Pope John Paul II and Mother Teresa of Calcutta and her Sisters.

            In the body of Christ there are many members, and every member has a potential for holiness. All the people we have named were (and are) real human beings who have been recognized by the church and their communities as exemplary followers of Jesus. They did not live on pedestals like plaster statues, even though after their deaths we have sometimes given them statue-like qualities.

            Though we talk a great deal about holiness and sanctity, we have yet to break through our plaster images to discover the real people whose life-stories can inspire us and help us to respond to our personal call to holiness.

 

HOLINESS AND COMMUNION

            This year, Pro Sanctity will spend much time pondering our call to holiness and our communion and union with God and with others. It is our theme for the year and it invites us to enter mind, heart and action into the great truth of our union with God and our call to reflect His holiness. We are one in the heart of God, created out of love, for love and to be love for others. Our holiness is a gift! We did not earn it, but we do have to use it! The fullness of life and love comes in living. We may not feel worthy or because of sin, we feel separated from God and from others, but it is important to remember, however, that though the saints yearned for the fullness of life in Christ, they were also, like us, sinners, fragile and in need of God-and they knew it.

            In spite of struggles, they ultimately surrendered to God’s love generously, by imitating the total surrender of Jesus. The saints remind us that we, too, can witness God’s holiness to others. We, too, can receive God’s gifts with open and loving hearts, with generosity, joy, peace and trust in God’s guidance. And in our role as members of the Body of Christ, we have many opportunities to help others discover the holy people of the Church that we call Saint and at the same time discover their own call to holiness. Pro Sanctity mission, the mission of all baptized, is to help each other live the fullness that God meant for us.

           

 

PERSONAL PREPARTION FOR “OUR” FEAST DAY, ALL SAINTS DAY

            What must we do to celebrate everyday All Saints Day and make everyday an occasion to live holy lives in communion with our brothers and sisters? Here are a few suggestions.

 

1.   Make full use of the sacrament of reconciliation. It is the sacrament that purifies our hearts, strengthens our resolve and reunites us with Christ and our brothers and sisters.

2.   Eat good food and grow strong. Receive the Eucharist as often as possible and spend time with the Lord whenever you have a moment. A relationship with Jesus needs time and presence to develop.

3.            Evaluate your personal prayer life. Give God priority time according to your state in life and He will in turn give the insight and the interior strength to embrace fully your call to holiness.

4.   Take up and read a good spiritual book such as a life of a saint or a classic in Christian literature because, as St. Gregory the Great said, “Spiritual reading is the fuel that keeps the fire burning.”

5.   Charity is the litmus test of how we are living our call. The way we treat one another and ourselves, sheds light on our love for God, “Whoever loves his brother and sister, remains in the light” (l John 2:10).