For All The Saints

 Happy All Saints' Day! 

I suspect that in most Catholic churches, at least those in the U.S., the song, "For All the Saints" was sung at Mass today. My favorite verse is: 

O blest communion, fellowship divine!

We feebly struggle, they in glory shine;

Yet all are one in thee, for all are thine.

This verse speaks, in poetic language, of the communion of saints and the oneness of the Body of Christ, which cannot be separated by physical death. That is why I love to read about the Saints and get to know them. We are all one in Christ and I know that they always have my back. 

This morning at Mass, another verse struck me. This one is really about tomorrow's feast of All Soul's Day, and it brought me to tears remembering Dad who passed last year:

The golden evening brightens in the west;

Soon, soon to faithful warriors comes their rest;

Sweet is the calm of paradise the blessed.

But that is not the subject of this post. 

In a sermon, St. Bernard, the abbot, said, "Calling the saints to mind inspires, or rather arouses in us, above all else, a longing to enjoy their company, so desirable in itself. We long to share in the citizenship of heaven . . . " So let us make friends with those "citizens of heaven" now, in whatever limited way that we are able. 

I did not do a very good job last year in keeping up with this little project. Sometimes, it is just not as easy to come up with what to post. So, this year, I have decided to choose an over-all theme for the month of Saints. I hope that will make choosing a Saint each day a little easier. About 5 weeks ago, I had the tremendous privilege of attending the Beatification of Blessed Fulton J. Sheen. I did a post on Fulton Sheen back in 2019, when he was still s "Venerable" (Joyful Spirit: Ven. Fulton J. Sheen), but it got me to thinking. Blessed Fulton died when I was 13 years old - his life span and mine overlapped. There are still people alive today who met the new Blessed in person - and many more who remember watching him on TV. 

Too often, we Catholics think of the Saints as people who lived a long, long time ago. Their life stories seem to be a combination of legend and myth. But Sainthood is not a relic of the past. There are still Saints-in-the-making walking among us today. There may have even been someone at Mass with me this morning who will someday be raised to the altar as a Canonized Saint - and more who may never be publicly recognized as Saints but will still reach the glory of heaven. With that in mind and as an encouragement for those of us who "feebly struggle", this month I plan to feature modern Saints. These are people who lived in the 20th century; whose life stories are not pious legends but were documented and photographed. 

I would like to acknowledge Wikipedia for their help in providing me with a list of 20th century Saints and Blesseds and also Meg Hunter-Kilmer and her book "Pray for Us" which has provided much inspiration.