“Above all, always see Jesus in every person….” (St. Charles de Foucauld)

I am a cradle catholic. I went to catholic school. The stories of the saints were a normal part of my catechesis. That’s not a complaint…they are important to hear. We use them as examples of how to be holy and they show that it is possible to live a life worthy of heaven. However, there was a lack of connection. They were these men and women who lived a long time ago and didn’t seem to have to deal with the usual issues we do in regular life. Granted, if you grew up like I did, there was a bit of a skew in education. There wasn’t always an honest story given of some saints. They maybe had too gruesome of a death or maybe they weren’t as perfect as we were taught to believe they were. (There has always been some protection of the innocent minds of children.) It was only in my digging as I reached confirmation and beyond that I began to understand they truly were like us. When I taught religion, I never left out certain details. I’ve found that the older grade school students feel the same way I did – how do they relate to ME?! I strived to make that connection. 

So…let’s investigate some…maybe ones with which you are not as familiar.

The most recent and most tangible story is the one of Blessed Carlo Acutis. He died at the age of 15. He had a very tough battle with cancer. He was, otherwise, a typical teenager. He loved technology and Pokemon. He played virtual battles online with friends. Carlo had social media accounts. He is just like our kids today. What made him different was that, although he was a “normal” teen in many ways, he was different because his focus was constantly on Christ, specifically in the Blessed Sacrament. His target on this planet was getting to heaven. He was known to say things like, “We are to live for the infinite, not the finite. The infinite is our one true home.” Carlo didn’t get wrapped up in the usual sins that teens battle with in life. He listened to God in his life and used that as a beacon to get where he wanted to when he eventually passed away. As he continues toward being canonized a saint, I’m sure more information will come out about him. If you are interested in this millennial saint, his mother just published a book about Carlo’s life – “My Son Carlo”. 

Now, I realize that, although Carlo Acutis is an easy symbol of the possibility of teenage chastity and grace, his knowing he was dying might make the more cynical of us think – he was dying, of course he found a special relationship with God. So, let’s consider others, like St. Lawrence.

St. Lawrence was a deacon in the first half of the 200s and we don’t know much about his life. (I know, I know – we went back to the times that seem totally unrelated to our lives. Just keep reading…) Pope (Saint) Sixtus II had been elected four days prior to Lawrence and four other clerics being persecuted, harassed, and eventually martyred for their faith, presumably under the edict of Emperor Valerian. His martyrdom is what has made him an influence on me. It was documented by many, like Ambrose and Augustine. After being stopped by the emperor’s men about the wealth of the Church and the Church owing the emperor his due, he tells them that he will indeed bring back to them the treasures of the Church. Here’s the thing – they expected gold and money, but Lawrence brought back the blind, orphaned, widowed, leprous, etc. His honesty, which seemed a little cocky, was taken to be a mockery of the emperor, and Lawrence was taken away to be tortured.  He was placed on a gridiron no more than a foot away from hot coals. He was made to lay there and suffer. After a while, it was asked if he’d succumb to their request. Lawrence’s response is one that makes him more like us than we may realize. He looked at them and is said to have exclaimed, “It is well done! Turn me over!” Some would call that remark cheerful in knowing that those who are accepting of their suffering become closer to attaining a seat in heaven. I see that as a slightly arrogant and honest remark to people who are being unjust. A smart quip in the direction of those who are being unreasonable. Haven’t we all had those moments where we had a quick tongue that confused the person attacking us? It was not unkind nor was it rude. It was honest, but a little saucy. 

Here’s one more – St. Philip Neri. He is another one that lived a long time ago, but he used a very human trait to maintain his spirituality. That trait is humor. If you’re like me, your sense of humor might get you in trouble. People like us tend to make others feel like we’re never serious. This is incorrect as we use humor to lighten the load – ours or others. Philip Neri was no different. He lived in the 16th century, and very early on decided to not be a businessman, but rather dedicate his life to God. He studied philosophy, decided he wasn’t going to be an ordained priest, and lived the next 13 years of his life differently than most during this time. He was a layperson, non-ordained Christian, who dedicated much of his life to prayer and service of the world through the rules of the Church. He was one of us, or how many of us should be. He didn’t spend his entire life as a monk hidden in an abbey somewhere or a life-long cleric, dressed as one, and sent into the world per their vocation. He was different. His journey led him to do different things. He spent those years perpetuating the mission of Mother Church, and doing so with popularity and jollity. He was well-liked by clerics and other laypersons. He made piety and spirituality seem like a tangible thing.

Now, he did eventually become a priest, under the advice of his confessor, and founded an institute that focused on a daily life of informal talks about the faith with a prayer service that included Sacred hymns. (He was harshly judged for this Oratory, called a heretic, as it focused on lay people and not specifically clerics. We know now that us, lay people, are capable of serving the Church in a different, but equally important way as clerics.) Philip was an amazing confessor, able to melt away some of the rigidness of the confessional. He was always charitable and made sure to have a joke ready to help lighten the load.

We have all been told that we are to aim for ‘saint’ in our lives, but we never are told how to do that other than generic traits like having faith, being prayerful, living for God. Those are necessary to become a saint but the reality is that we must do it in our way. Be it as a video game loving teenager; a smart aleck, quipping cleric; or as a layperson with a sense of humor – our way to heaven is exactly that, OURS. We must live like Christ, but in a way that still reflects who we are. We don’t have to be perfect. We must love God and follow the ways of Christ, perpetuating the mission of Mother Church. We must be moral and follow the commandments as best as we can. We need to receive Christ in the sacraments, gaining the graces that will help us along the way. However, how we do that is up to us. We are guided but still given free will to choose. Pope Francis said this in 2022 on the Solemnity of All Saints – “Today, we celebrate all the saints, and we might have a misleading impression. We might think we are celebrating those sisters and brothers who were perfect in life, always straight, precise, or rather ‘starched’…they speak of a life that goes against the grain, a revolutionary life! Saints are the true revolutionaries.” (Pope Francis, Angelus, Solemnity of All Saints, 2022) 

May we strive for the title of saint in a way that is holy, but as individual as we are. This is how we can get to heaven.