The Holy Spirit bestows holiness in abundance among God’s holy and faithful people.../El Espíritu Santo derrama santidad por todas partes, en el santo pueblo fiel de Dios... - Pope Francis, Gaudete et Exsultate
Sunday, January 9th, was the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord. When Jesus emerges from the water we are told a voice came from heaven and said, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.” (Luke 3:16) Later, after Mass, I was reading a National Catholic Reporter article where Mark Etling suggested the idea of praying a litany this year to the small saints in our lives—what Pope Francis calls the saints “next door” in his Apostolic Exhortation Gaudete et Exsultate (paragraphs 6-9) - and that spoke to me.
Most of us already keep the big name canonized Saints such as Saint Francis of Assisi, Our Lady of Guadalupe, or Therese of Lisieux in mind and call upon them as the occasion arises. Etling shows how we look to those who achieve big things—those who founded hospitals and religious communities, who are spiritual masters, etc., but we often overlook the holiness of those quietly doing small things day after day.
As I read Etling’s litany of those who are saints next door for him, whose saintliness he experiences in person, I was mentally making my own list: the dedicated volunteers who staff the mobile showers on Monday and Thursday (at the Columbia site and Family Services respectively) and the folks who volunteer at Youth Hope came to mind first. Hopefully you, too, were able to make a mental list of people whose day to day actions has God saying, “You are my beloved son/daughter; with you I am well pleased.”
Showcasing SHA talent: Inspired by Matisse, Samantha in 3rd shows us how to celebrate the everyday saints in our life.
God bless,
Mrs. Alhadef
Campus Minister
4th Grade Aide
Jr. High ELA Aide