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6 min
I remember that one day at a coach station I was surprised to see that a lady, who otherwise looked quite respectable, was walking barefoot. It took me a few minutes to realise she was mentally ill; when I watched her closely, I noticed she was walking round and round as if aimlessly. This incident led me to draw the parallel that we, too, can be regarded as mad if we go round in circles, living as though we had no real purpose.
It is true that, for the most part, from childhood onwards, we have been taught that we must strive for a good social standing: a good education, a good job, a good family, to be wealthy and to enjoy life. These are some of the things the world regards as signs of success. Often, we spend time pursuing these goals without ever truly achieving them, as if we were chasing the wind (cf. Eccl 2:11). A desire that is satisfied gives rise to another, new desire that is ever more demanding. Yet, time and again, we have been let down by: failure in exams and in love; a lack of decent work; business failure; property destroyed or lost; family disappointments; disobedient children; and so on. It is just as true that very few manage to buy or build a house, buy a car, receive proper medical care, or provide for all the family’s needs. We regularly seek worldly pleasures which, however, leave a bitter aftertaste or a deep sense of dissatisfaction. It also happens that we achieve our life’s goals, forgetting that on this earth we are merely pilgrims. Sooner or later, we shall return to our Father, leaving behind everything we have accumulated. We brought nothing into this world, and we shall take nothing out of it (cf. 1 Tim 6:7).
Material possessions and the enjoyment of a high social standing are not bad things. But our attitude towards these things often distracts us from eternal delights and the world to come (cf. Col 3:1). God tells us why he created us: ‘God’s will is your sanctification’ (1 Thess 4:3). Holiness is our common vocation. Christians are called to live out the ideal of holiness and to hold it up as an example to others. Saint John Paul II said: ‘Only the saints can renew the world. They renew the Church from within and lead her towards what she is meant to be’. The Second Vatican Council stated that all the Christian faithful, in whatever state of life they may be, are called to grow daily in holiness amidst the circumstances of their lives (Vat II, LG, 39). Through our baptism, the seed of holiness is sown within us and we are consecrated to God. Pope John Paul II also said that when a catechumen is asked, ‘Do you wish to receive baptism?’, what is in fact being asked is, ‘Do you wish to be holy?’. In the New Testament, Christians were called ‘the saints’ (1 Cor 6:11; Acts 9:13). This is why holiness is not just a matter for priests, monks, nuns or a select few. We are all called to holiness.
It is true that our sins and weaknesses often discourage us, and it feels as though we will never be able to live out our vocation to holiness. Yet the history of the Church teaches us that great sinners have become great saints. Saul, a murderer and persecutor of the Church, became Paul, the Apostle to the Gentiles. Mary Magdalene, a prostitute, was converted and became the herald of Christ’s resurrection. St Augustine, in his *Confessions*, says that his life was at first steeped in errors and sins. The Holy Curé of Ars said: ‘Saints are not all alike. Some of them could not even have lived together. They do not all take the same path, but they reach the same goal. Not all of them started out well, but they finished well.’ Saint Vincent de Paul said that the perfection of charity does not consist in ecstasies. For Saint Thérèse of Lisieux, ‘Holiness does not consist in the accumulation of practices, but in an inner disposition of our heart, with the awareness that we are weak yet trusting in the mercy of God, who is our Father’. Father Libermann believes that holiness consists in our willingness to serve God. In fact, God alone is holy, but he shares his holiness with us. Therefore, above all, we must have the desire to be holy and to make use of the means that God places at our disposal to achieve this goal. Many people have chosen this path to true happiness. We need only mention the young Saint Carlos Acutis.
We cannot imagine the Church without saints. Yet they were not so different from us. We too are called to be the saints of the Church in our own time. Among the criteria mentioned by Saint John Paul II as necessary for the recognition of an authentic Catholic association, the pursuit of holiness ranks first (Christifideles laici). The true members of a ‘Word of God’ group will be those who seek holiness. Even consecrated life has no real meaning unless one seeks holiness. Whatever your state of life and whatever sins you may have committed in the past, you too are called to holiness. This is the only true purpose of your life. If you do not seek holiness, you are wasting your life; you are distorting your vocation. In this month of November, when we commemorate the departed, let us remember that our lives have true meaning only if we seek holiness. Let us pray regularly: ‘Lord, increase in me the desire to be holy’. Lord Jesus, may this new spiritual year, in which the Word of God groups are celebrating their thirtieth anniversary, be a year of growth in holiness for every member.
Henri Bayemi
