1st November 2020. ALL SAINTS. Mt 5, 1-12a
This Sunday we celebrate the Solemnity of All Saints, a feast that takes precedence over the corresponding Sunday. The Gospel of this day proposes to us the text of the Beatitudes, in which Jesus points out to us the way to become saints, and so that we can fulfil his desire to “be holy as your heavenly Father”. Pope Francis, in his exhortation Gaudete et Exultate, speaks to us of “the saints next door”, and with it he refers to so many people who work day by day for their families, to the sick who suffer patiently and offer their illness, to the elderly who live their many years with joy, to all those who strive from their possibilities to make a better world, to the young who live their faith in a society that puts many obstacles in their way, in short, to all those who are a reflection of God’s presence in our lives. Because we cannot doubt that the Holy Spirit continues to impel many good people to live the ideal that Jesus had.
This holiness is possible in this 21st century. We are all called to it. A few days ago, the 15 year old Carlo Acutis was beatified. Despite his few years, he was able to make the Beatitudes a reality. He made the message of Jesus the centre of his life, until an early death brought him into the presence of the Father. His case has been publicized by the media and even commented on in television programmes in non-religious settings. But although known, he is not the only one, since there are many young people, and others less young, who continue to struggle every day to make their lives a light for those around them. They are the saints next door. To which we must count among all the Saints. May the Spirit of Jesus impel us to live seeking holiness.
Juan Ramon Gomez Pascual, cmf
