Who do you live for?

As I’ve mentioned in my homilies, one of the convictions that drives me is the Church’s continual reminder of the universal call to holiness. Everyone is called to be holy and to become a saint. Yet sometimes people hear the words ‘holy’ or ‘saint’ and don’t exactly know what it means to be striving for holiness and to become a saint.We might have a vague idea of what it means, but if you were asked to explain to someone what it means, would you be able to do it?

What the call to holiness ultimately boils down to is the reality that everything in this life is meant to be for God’s glory. Holiness is first and foremost about God, not us. The allpowerful God of the universe created everything that exists to manifest His power and glory. All of creation is meant in some way to be a physical manifestation of God’s power, mercy, goodness, love, glory, and other attributes. The invisible God of all things created the world to be a visible reflection of Himself. This means that in everything that exists, we can see in a variety of ways the fingerprints of God. Creation can teach us about God and about who we are in relation to Him. Saints are a living and breathing reflection of God Himself. Coming to the realization of this truth was a profound and pivotal moment in my own life that shifted the way I think about the faith and about life in general. Before coming to this realization, I tended to think about the faith in terms of ‘how does this relate to my life?’—which is not a wrong way to think about things. However, it’s actually only the first part of the question. If we stop there, we miss the bigger picture and the point of life. The fuller question is, ‘how does this relate to my life so that I can give as much glory to God as possible?’ Or, another way to put it would be ‘how is God wanting to glorify himself through me?’ When we start to think this way, it changes the way we see every aspect of life, and it affects the way we live.

The saints are a kaleidoscope of the various perfections of God. Through someone like Mother Teresa, we see God’s profound

love for every human person. Through someone like St. Thomas Aquinas, we catch a glimpse of the incredible wisdom of God.

Through someone like the repentant criminal who was crucified with Jesus, we see the great love and mercy of God available to each person even up to the moment of death. In every interaction with any person throughout life, if we are looking with the eyes of faith, we can see something of the glory of God.

It’s important to remember that the more a person is earnestly striving for holiness, the easier it will be to see God’s glory and grace shining through them. Through sin, we disfigure the image of God within us. But when we strive to overcome our sins and to conform our lives to Jesus and the teachings of His Church, the presence of God will much more clearly radiate from us.

So the question is, are you striving to live for yourself, or for the glory of God? Is God the center-point of your life toward which everything else in your life is ordered? Are you seeking to uproot all sin from your life so that God’s glory can moreradiantly shine through you? This universal call to holiness is a profound gift from God. It’s something we can’t obtain for ourselves apart from His grace and divine assistance. But if we sincerely strive to cooperate with the Lord—through repentance, living a sacramental life, spending time each day with the Lord in prayer, seeking to love God and neighbor in all things—then we will day-by-day become the saints God is calling us to be as we share in His own divine life. May God grant you the grace to sincerely desire a life of holiness above all things so that you can be a living reflection of Him in this life and see the fullness of His glory forever in the next.

Know of my prayers for all of you,

Fr. Patrick