Homily

In the feast of All Saints, the Church remembers the great crowds of common saints, that is all those who have come close to God’s mercy and have been welcomed in His house. They are not heroes of spiritual life or great spirits that enlightened the scenes of this world, people admirable but impossible to imitate. They are common men and women, disciples who have tried to hear the Gospel, and also many people of good will, even unbelievers, who have tried to love all, especially the poor and the weak. The Book of Revelation describes an incredible scene: “There was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, robed in white, with palm branches in their hands.” No one, no matter to which people or culture he or she belongs, is excluded from participating in this communion provided that they desire, long for, and try to reach it. This multitude is made up of the “children of God;” it is the family of the saints. These are not “important” and brave persons, but rather those called by God and who welcomed his call. They are first of all the weak, the ill, the needy, and the poor for “theirs is the Kingdom of heaven,” says Jesus. This multitude is then formed by all others who heard the Gospel and followed it.
One is a saint, then, not after death, but now already, from the time we come to be part of the familia Dei (trans: family of God), from the moment we are “separated” (this is the meaning of “holy”) from a destiny of loneliness and distress, from when we are “separated” from the sad life of this world to become part of the community of believers. John, in his first letter, says it clearly, “See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God; and that is what we are… Beloved, we are God’s children now; what we will be has not yet been revealed.” Holiness is the decisive commitment of every believer’s life; it is the horizon in which to inscribe our thoughts, actions, choices, projects, be they personal or collective. Becoming saints is the only thing that really matters. Holiness is not an intimate, almost private aspect distanced from the concreteness of daily life; just as one’s own life as a child of God, who belongs to his family and member of His family that is the Church, is not parenthetical to one’s own life. In order to save this belonging to the Lord and his family, many, and not just the highly spiritual, have shed their blood. Just think of the millions of unknown martyrs of the past century who rather than abandoning the faith and the Church have “resisted to the point of shedding their blood.” Holiness is really the energy that changes our lives and changes also the world. What then is holiness? It is living by following the Beatitudes. Yes, the Beatitudes help people to leave the condition of sadness faced by them and by our world. The Gospel conception of happiness, as opposed to the conventional one, is a valuable indication. It is true, we may wonder: how can we be glad, happy, if one is poor, afflicted, meek, and merciful? Yet, if we look carefully, the causes of bitterness in life are insatiability, arrogance, abuse, hatred, indifference, and everything that is against the Beatitudes. Holiness is not then an extraordinary path, good for hard times and special people. Holiness is the daily journey of men and women, who hear the Gospel, keep it hold in their heart and try to put it into practice. The saint is not the one who never sins. They are not holy, those who feel righteous. Saints are those who seek love, those who invoke mercy, those who are hungry of the Gospel, those who work for solidarity and peace; saints are those who kneel before the Lord and weep for their sin. This is why everyone, really everyone can be holy. We sinners are saints when we approach the altar and humbly ask forgiveness from the Lord. He immediately turns to us with his word and prepares us for the banquet of love.