June 3, 2019

I welcome all our readers to the new Month of November. It is a month when Christians, especially Catholics all over the world, are expected to reflect on two major feasts which are celebrated every November, namely, the Solemnity of All Saints (November 1) and the Commemoration of All Souls (November 2). While the former reminds us of our brethren who are already in heaven, the latter asks us to pray for our dead members who are in purgatory.  Thus, the two feasts persuade Catholics, and indeed all Christians, to reflect on what will be their situation in the hereafter.  In this edition, we have decided to explain how we can be citizens of heaven.  Indeed, we shall explain the nitty-gritty of how each person can become a saint, the most desired intention of every human being on earth, hence the title, “You Can Be a Saint!”

 

To be saintly is not the same as being sanctimonious. To be saintly means to be holy, and this can only be possible with God; being sanctimonious involves making a show of sanctity or pretending to be holy. The former is what God demands of us (cf. Lev. 19:2; Matt 5:48), the latter is prohibited. Saintly people are not those who believe that it is impossible for them to commit sin. Rather, the saints are those who always acknowledge that “to err is human,” and when they do go wrong, they are ready and willing to repent immediately. Unfortunately, however, majority of Christians manifest the so-called “holier than thou” attitude. This category of Christians believes that all other persons are sinners who must be avoided. Suppose they are right in their thinking, can their action be correct? Certainly not! Put differently, if these “holy Christians” are indeed holy and others are “sinners” as they naively believe, then, they must help the sinners to attain salvation. After all, Christ came for the sake of sinners, that they may attain salvation (Jn 3:16). He never avoided sinners, but he even ate with them, in order to convert them. Christ wills the salvation of the human race and the damnation of none (cf. John 3:16; Acts 28:28; 1 Tim 2:4, etc.).

 

The word “holiness” is better understood within religious context. In religious parlance, “holiness” means “being holy or sacred”; and “holy” means “Of God”; associated with God or with religion. For example, the Holy Bible; Holy Writ, the Bible; The Holy Land, where Jesus lived; the Holy City, Jerusalem. “Holy” equally means somebody or something devoted to religion; for instance, a holy man.         According to St. Theresa of the Child Jesus, “Holiness is not a matter of this or that pious practice; it consists of a disposition of the heart which makes us small and  humble in the arms of God, aware of our weakness, yet confident, boldly confident, in the goodness of our Father. (J. Beevers, St. Theresa of the Child Jesus, Bombay: St. Paul’s Publication, 1993). Card. Manning would say, “Holiness consists not in doing uncommon things, but in doing all common things with an uncommon fervor.” (J. Maurus, A Source-Book of Inspiration, (Bandra, Bombay: Better Yourself Book, 1987, p. 154 ).  From the above definitions, we can deduce that holiness deals, first and foremost, with internal disposition; our readiness to do what God wants. “From the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks,” so goes the adage. Thus, whenever a person does what is pleasing to God and man, such an act certainly springs from the heart, and people see it as holy. On the other hand, when somebody does a shameful thing, people immediately recognize its badness. Holiness is, therefore, the connection between one’s good internal dispositions and his pleasing external manifestations.

 

Holiness or sanctity does not necessarily consist in doing extra-ordinary things, but in doing ordinary things in an extra-ordinary way. That is what Card. Manning is trying to portray in his definition—that one should perform his ordinary daily duties with great zeal and fervour, without complaining or arguing. If this is done with good intention, then, such a person is holy.

 

From whatever angle the word “holiness” is viewed, it must be related to or associated with God. God is “holiness” itself. Consequently, whatever is holy in this life must share from or participate in God’s holiness. If we do what God demands of us, then, we are holy. James Alberione supports this idea of holiness as latent in doing God’s will. To quote his verbatim: “Sanctity is a stubbornness about fulfilling God’s will always and in spite of any difficulty” (J. Maurus, already quoted, p.155).

 

“Who is a saint?” you may ask.  And I will answer that ordinarily, a saint is a holy person. In other words, when the word “saint” is used in a broad sense, it refers to all people who  do what God wants them to do, with the right intention, in the right place, and at the right time. Elizabeth Isichei has noted that, the word “saint” is context-bound or context-dependent. That is, it means different things in different contexts. According to her, the word “saint” “… can refer  to those officially canonized, a process which in practice requires the support of a strong pressure group and ample financial resources….The second meaning of the word refers to the whole community of the blessed but,   except in the case of the canonized, there is no way of knowing who these are. The word ‘saint’ is used… in a third sense; what one might call ‘a saint by acclamation’; an individual who is regarded by those around him as outstandingly holy and close to God” (Elizabeth Isichei, Entirely for God: The Life of Michael Iwene Tansi, (Ibadan: Macmillan Nigeria Publishers Ltd., 1980, p. ix).

 

The following are among the qualities which Thomas S. Kepler says characterize a saint: His life is imbued with a deep love of Christian religion as a way of ‘feeling at home’ in the universe. He lives with a radiance because his spirit is rooted in God’s Spirit. A saint is a person who has quit worrying about himself because his life is centred in God. With Jakob Bohme he says, ‘though my head and my hand be at labour, yet doth my heart dwell in God’. He starts each day with these words: ‘May the image of Christ radiate through me this day in each life situation.’ He asks that God use him as an instrument of his love to bear the burdens of his fellow men. Like Francis of Assisi, the saint loves ‘not humanity, but men.’ He believes that before God’s kingdom can arrive in society, it must first begin in hm.       He desires to use the results of prayer and devotion to better the world.      When Saint Thomas Aquinas (1220-72) was on his death-bed, his sister asked, ‘Thomas, what is the main thing to do to get sanctity?’ And the saint replied, ‘the main thing is to have a great desire to get it.’ (J. Maurus, pp. 154-157).

 

Saints are categorized into two: major and minor. This categorization is dependent on the   kinds of works they did while they were alive, and the miracles performed at their intercessions after their death. The major saints are those who are outstandingly and exceptionally holy throughout their lives. These are the saints who are usually recognized and canonized by the Church. Their names are written in the Church’s official list of saints called ‘Martyrology.’ People can pray through them by invoking their names.

 

There are millions of other people in heaven who are also saints, but who did nothing except their ordinary Christian duties. They did these sincerely and without complaint.  They are not recognized by the Church, though their names are written in the “Book of Life.” As a matter  of fact, we do not know them, but they are known by God.         In this second category fall all those  in heaven. Any person at all would be a saint, provided he is already in heaven. As Rev. 21:17 tells us, “Nothing defiled shall enter heaven.” If a person is able to enter heaven, it follows that he is already holy (that is, undefiled) and, therefore, he is a saint de facto.

 

Holy Mother Church is encouraging all her members to aspire to be saints – at least to hope to be numbered among the minor saints, who became saints because they performed their ordinary daily duties. That is why this writer makes bold to say, “You can become a saint, whether or not you are recognized by the Church. After all, it is God that actually makes a saint, the Church only “canonizes,” i.e., confirms God’s work. To be candid, the Church believes that what these lesser saints did, we too can do, where they succeeded, we, too, can succeed.”

 

There are certain conditions that are necessary for sainthood. It must be noted, first and foremost, that the lifestyle of prospective saints must be generally accepted as holy by the people with whom they live. People should see Christ in them. A saint is one who is humble. It is this humility that motivates him to acknowledge his sinfulness and nothingness before God and thus repents accordingly. In this regard, he takes after Christ, the Humble One (see Phil 2:6-11).

 

He must obey the ten commandments of God (Ex 20:1-17) and the six chief commandments of the Church. If a person contravenes any of these commandments, then, he commits a grave sin. Strictly speaking, a saint is one who does not deliberately commit grave sin, but he may sometimes fall into venial sin. When this happens, he immediately confesses it and rises from it.

 

Generally, a saint is one who also obeys and practices sincerely the contents of the Beatitudes (Matt 5:1-12). A saint is one who is able to persevere in difficulties and tribulations. He bears these patiently without complaining (cf. Phil 2:1-4ff).

 

He must embrace and practise the three Theological Virtues of Faith, Hope and Love (Charity); and also practise the four Cardinal Virtues of Justice, Temperance, Fortitude and Prudence.  All this implies that o ne becomes a saint by the way he lives, not by the way he writes. In other words, one does not become a saint by writing a book, no matter how meritorious the book may be in the eyes of the Church. We are not saying that saints do not write books; we are saying that it is not because of such books that they become saints, but because they practise the contents of these books. In fact, the Christian rituals become empty, worthless and a mechanical repetition of formulas, unless we allow them to permeate and pervade all aspects of our lives. Put differently, Christianity is more a way of life than mere doctrine.

 

Furthermore, one becomes a saint through God’s grace and mercy. Saints are, therefore, made by God, not by the Church. That is why there are many unknown saints. The Church only formally declares some of her children saints and offers their lives to the attention of the world, so that they may be admired and imitated. It is the Holy Spirit that inspires the Church to do this. And in doing this, she acts with great care, prudence and utmost circumspection. Most thorough investigation is held into the life of a potential saint.

 

Besides, of all virtues, sanctity or holiness is the most compulsory virtue which a potential saint must possess. Thus, if one should practise all the other virtues without holiness, the person is only wasting his time. It is sanctity that actually makes a saint. The idea of “unholy saint” is a misnomer. Put differently, there is no such phrase as “a sinful saint.” Maynard remarks in this direction, saying: “Whatever the road by which one comes to know God, sanctity can never be outmoded.”  In other words, sanctity or holiness can never expire; it will continue to be a very pertinent virtue to consider in the making of a saint.

 

Lastly, before the Church categorically makes a formal declaration that a particular person is a saint, there must be miracles performed in his name. It must be proved that after his death, at least four miracles have been performed through his intercessions—two before he is beatified and two more before he is canonized. Any Christian can become a saint, provided he performs his ordinary daily duties perfectly well and without complaint (cf. Phil. 2:14-15). I pray the good Lord to grant us the enabling grace to become saints, to make heaven after our earthly existence.

 

By Rev. Fr. Mark Ajiga