SAINTS AND HEROES

Solemnity of All Saints Day

Matthew 5:12 - "Rejoice and be glad; for your reward will be great in Heaven".
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A teenager saved a little boy from drowning.  And he was called a hero.  A man, out of nowhere, saved an old lady from a burning house.  And he was called a hero.  You may have done something extraordinary, and have done it selflessly.  And people around you will call you a hero.

But, why are your name not found in a book?  How different are you from Rizal, Luna, del Pilar or Aquino?  But you are a hero to someone, and that is what is important.

And so when we are all called to be a saint, that means all of us.  We are all called to perfection in God.  We may not be canonized like St. Augustine or Pope John Paul II, who are called the "heroes of the Church", but we are saints to someone, or to a group, and that is what is important.

We are all called to be holy because being holy is our true being.  We are made in the image of God and not of anything else.  And so we must recognize our call to holiness.  There are no class distinctions within the Church or within the Christian life.  And there should be no obstacles in our lives that would prevent us from striving and achieving a deep spiritual life.

And during this All Saints Day, let us commemorate and pray for the eternal repose of their souls in heaven for our dearly departed who are the saints and heroes in our lives.

+ Let us pray:
Breathe in me, O Holy Spirit, that my thoughts may all be holy.
Act in me, O Holy Spirit, that my work too may be holy.
Draw my heart, O Holy Spirit, that I love only what is holy.
Strengthen me, O Holy Spirit, to defend all that is holy.
Guard me so, O Holy Spirit, that I may always be holy.
Amen +