Salutations! How are you today? Hopefully you are doing well as a bell—
ringing out in joy for the glory of the Lord. :) Every year we as Catholic Christians have the opportunity to come together on November 1st to remember all of those holy men, women, and children who lived extraordinary lives here on Earth and are now enjoying the full life of Heaven.
Over the last two thousand years there have been approximately 10,000 people who have been formally canonized or declared saints by the Church. While those folks are inspiring witnesses to the Grace and Mercy of Christ and are officially recognized for their sanctity we also have reasonable hope that the number of those in Heaven is actually much greater.
For example, many of us are blessed to know family members and friends and others who led exemplary lives of service to God and neighbor. While we don’t believe that you can earn your way into Heaven it is nonetheless a good manifestation of the presence of the Holy Spirit at work in our lives to lead a life of faith-filled generosity. In the Letter of Saint James we read,
“
Indeed someone may say, 'You have faith and I have works.' Demonstrate your faith to me without works, and I will demonstrate my faith to you from my works
”
(2:18).
As members of the Mystical Body of Christ with a diverse array of gifts and abilities let us make use of them to glorify God and build up His Kingdom here on earth. Let’s also ask for the intercession of the saints to help us on our earthly pilgrimage. In doing so, we will live more and more like the saints who have gone before us so that we may follow them on to the realm of eternal Light, Life, and Joy.