ALL SAINTS DAY

George Offerman

For those Catholics out there, this is one of those feast days that shows the triumph of our faith.  It’s a time to celebrate the lives of those who came before us and who lives such exemplary lives, that we can model our own lives after them.  For those of you who have taken the time to study some of these saints, it can be a great source of comfort, as well as a challenge.  The stories of the saints are meant to give us hope and direction in uncertain times such as these, as well as pass on the concept that God is always there for those who put their faith in him.

I have personally read many accounts of saints and their lives, but probably not enough of them.  It seems the most common feature these remarkable people demonstrate, is their ability to persevere when nearly all around them either want to give up, or actually give up.  These people seem to be able to fight through a great amount of rejection, and very often, the rejection came from the hand of the Faith they were actually attempting to live.  It seem so easy to look at many people today who very well may be living saints, and heap criticism or scorn on them because they don’t seem to be as ‘glamorous’ as those who are recognized as saints.

Our church teaches it is our duty to strive for living sainthood, through sanctified living and daily communion with our Savior.  While I am sure there are many people living today that meet this qualification, it would seem most don’t and it is so necessary to have people like this to spur the rest of us on to live in this way, and bring honor and glory to our God.  It also appears that those individuals, who reached such a sanctified state, also experienced levels of joy and peace that are nearly nonexistent in our current age.   These people seemed to have reached a level that can only be surmised and speculated about and is very difficult to understand.

It definitely seems that to live a sanctified life today would put one on a direct firing line, between dealing with the amount of darkness in the world, and the ever growing hostility with the Christian way of life.  It definitely will challenge any level of comfort and convenience, and most likely will result in alienation from most people.  But on the other hand, it would be of great value, as it would bear witness that anyone can live the Christian life at any point in history and it would definitely attract some to the ranks.  Is that not a large part of our mission while here?

We definitely could use the inspiration of these men and women who paved the w ay for the faith to continue.  We would benefit greatly from knowing and emulating their bravery and courage when presenting the faith, and being very unapologetically in the method we go about passing on what we know to be true.  We can be like them and it is only a decision away.  Too many contemporary folks believe these people are too high on a pedestal, and thus don’t want to even try to live such sanctity.  We need to have the urgency that our saints had when spreading the Gospel.  It is what is needed at this time in history, and the torch is in our hands.