The Family of God

     Belonging to the Family of God brings such a smile to my face! And finding out all that I can about my holy "siblings," has been a source of pride and pleasure, throughout my life.

     Of course, every family has a mother, and God's family is no different. Mary is "The Mother" par excellence and holds each one of her children in her Immaculate Heart to bring them to Christ, her
Son. While on earth, Our Lady lived as the perfect disciple, by accepting God's will with complete trust, as it was revealed to her. We are called to imitate Mary by doing the same, for in scripture she tells us, "to do whatever He tells you." In her unique role, as Queen of angels and saints, she sends help from heaven in our struggle toward sanctity, and watches over us with a mother's love.

     We then have the saints of the Church - those canonized and those not. The first two saints I remember learning about were St. Joan of Arc and St. Pius X. I was in second grade and was so very much impressed with the story of St. Joan and her "adventures" with God. I longed to emulate her in her generous service to God and even become a soldier for Him. I'm not so sure how well I would have fared in battle, prison or being martyred at the burning stake, but as a little girl, it sounded very exciting. I was introduced to St. Pius X because I was being prepared to receive my First Holy Communion. He was the Pope that lowered the age for reception of Holy Communion, and I was very grateful to Him for doing so. I already loved Jesus so very much and couldn't wait to be one with Him.

     It was in third grade that I met the saint who would turn out to be my favorite for quite some time - St. Therese of the Child Jesus. I fell in love with her because she made holiness an attainable goal. She prided herself in being little and totally dependent on God and His graces. She introduced me to her "Little Way" toward sanctity, which I tried my best to imitate.

     I read a book about her entitled, "The Little Queen," by Mary Windeatt, and it changed my life forever. Therese ignited a fire of love in my heart for God that still burns to this day. She also planted the desire in me to give my life to God as a Carmelite nun, which turned out not to be part of God's plan.

     As the years progressed, I discovered more and more saints and my list of "favorites" grew. Each saint loved and served God in their own particular way and their lives witnessed the many different avenues to love Him.

     St. Catherine of Siena was a mover and a shaker, yet had a very intimate relationship with God the Father, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. St. Frances de Sales was so gentle and full of wisdom in giving direction for the spiritual life, yet brought clear and firm teaching about the faith at a time when confusion was abound in the Church. St. Teresa of Avila and St. John of the Cross were very active in reforming the Carmelite order, yet practiced, wrote and taught about contemplative prayer and union with God.

     I could go on and on with an almost unending list, but would be remiss not to mention saints that have lived in our time. Newly canonized Sts. John Paul II and John XIII, touched our lives in a tremendous way as they fleshed out Christlike living to our very wounded world. Blessed Mother Teresa taught us to find Christ in those who wear distressing disguises. St. Gianna Molla was a married woman, physician and mother,who gave her life for her unborn child. St. Maximillian Kolbe and St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross (Edith Stein), brought God's presence to the darkness of Auschwitz, and laid down their lives for Him.

     Each saint was a unique and special work of the Holy Spirit. They cooperated with grace to become another Christ, and bring His love and light to our world. We too are offered similar graces to become the saints of the twenty first century. God has a plan for each of us to become the man or woman He has called us to be from all eternity - and sainthood is part of that plan.

     It may seem like an impossibility, and it certainly would be, if it were just up to us; but with the help of God and His grace, the example of our holy siblings, as well as their intercession for us, let us join the ranks of holy men and women who have gone before us and strive toward sainthood.

     "Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us rid ourselves of every burden and sin that clings to us and persevere in running the race that lies before us while keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus, the leader and perfecter of faith." (Heb 12 vs 1-2a)

   

   


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