Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
The beginning of November is jam-packed with important days. We start out with a bang with All Saints Day on November 1 st , followed immediately by All Souls Day on November 2 nd . Then, a brief pause, but back at it on November 4 th , for our parish feast day, as we celebrate our patron, St. Charles Borromeo. In each of these celebrations we are invited to remember both the fuller depth of the Church and our interaction with the saints.
If you’re not aware, I’m a big fan of the saints. Part of that goes all the way back to my childhood and my first parish, St. Peter’s in Riverside. It’s no longer in use, but was always a pretty church and I really loved the stained glass in it as a kid. The side windows featured a different saint in their respective pane, a complete portrait and the various symbols associated with them. But the real eye-catcher was the giant stained glass at the back of the church over the choir loft. It featured a huge St. Francis of Assisi in the center and then all the other Franciscan saints radiating out from him in smaller form. It absolutely fascinated me and gave me the notion that the saints aren’t just monoliths, standing alone, but connected to each other, and by extension, to us.
My interest in the saints has also been helped by my studies. In getting my degree in Spiritual Theology, a lot of the coursework talked about the saints themselves, but also the path of holiness that the saints are such good examples of. The saints aren’t just stained glass; pretty to look at but not very practical. They’re living examples of what it means to be close to God. Something each and every one of us is invited to. And even if the timeframes of their lives are different from our own, it doesn’t mean that we can’t learn from them all the same.
St. Charles Borromeo is a good example of this. In his day and age, the world around him was a challenging place. The Catholic Church was dealing with some serious issues of identity as it dealt with the Protestant Reformation. Advances in technology were both good and bad, with things like the printing press giving access to information to more and more people, but it also meant disinformation and confusion could be just as easily spread. Diseases and plagues were a challenge, creating a real need to care for the sick. Aren’t these all things that might also apply to the world around us today?
St. Charles saw the challenges of his time and responded to them with courage and humility, being a driving force for better education, in caring for the sick, and using his own personal resources to feed those in need. The saints encourage us all to live close to God. May we strive for such daily!
Peace and Goodness,
Fr. Dan
Recent Comments