On the feast of All Saints, I began thinking about Saints in general and what it means to be one. Over the years , we all learned about the saints in one way or another. It may have been at home, in school or in church. Or maybe being familiar with city names or sports teams. If someone or some place is identified with the “ST” title, there is a religious association and history worth knowing. As a boy growing up, with no comprehension of language translations, it took me time to figure out that San Francisco, for example, was named for Saint Francis. The historical religious influence is seen in twenty one of the settlement names which dot the coastline of California from San Diego north to San Francisco and beyond. The same in Quebec where I was born. Cities and towns named after saints abound. The spread of Christianity and its influence remains still today all over the world due mainly to what the church refers to as The Communion of Saints. Men and women who have gone before us, some canonized , others not, marked with a sign of faith. They have left their mark on the world. Their mark as children of God.
I have never once thought that I could be a saint. Too many distractions. Not holy enough. The list goes on and on. Then I realized that all saints as we have come to know them must have felt the same. Were they torn in their life journeys? Probably. What makes the saints different from the rest of us? Actually not much. Stories about saints are interesting. They were real human beings, flawed and imperfect. Some were considered wild and reckless. In this Year of Mercy, we are told that we all have an opportunity to respond to a call to be who we are truly meant to be. We are born with purpose. What are the possibilities?
No one ever expects to become a saint, but I do think there is a continuous invitation to climb higher. There is always room for improvement, growth and conversion as we live lives with human weakness and frailty. I believe that the saints responded to graced moments that did change or transform them. They allowed themselves to be open to the Spirit in their lives. They became less interested in self and reached out to others. Their lives became lives of service and they found joy in that service. Did they maintain a daily perfect life? I would say no. We all rise up at different times in our lives. There are setbacks, moments of trial and error, understanding through prayer and conscious decisions to change.
There have been those in our lives who we have loved and lost. Good people. Holy people. Human people with imperfections. They will never be canonized. They will not be recognized by the church in a special way. But they had a relationship with God. They walked with Christ. We witnessed it. We were influenced by them. They are the everyday saints in our existence. Remember them on All Saints day. They live in communion with God, the saints of the church and with us. The common thread is the faith that carried them through their earthly life until they entered into the mystery of Christ in a complete way. They were part of the building of the kingdom of God and have left us to continue the growth.
Could we all be saints, or for now at least on the road there? I think so. As children of God, we are meant to blend with the divine. We are all called to climb higher. We have a place at the table.
Jim Dunn
Blessèd Blending
November 1, 2016