Our Gang of Saints

Deacon Jim Parilli shares a reflection on the saints in advance of the Solemnity of All Saints, November 1.

Many of us grew up in a time when most of today’s technology did not exist. We were sent out to play on Saturday mornings and came home for dinner. There were kids everywhere. On my block, there were 20 children whose ages were within four or five years of each other.

Rick, Ricky, Marty, Georgie, Steve, and Greg made up my usual gang of friends. We would go to the park and play basketball and baseball. We’d climb the jungle gym and swing on the swings for hours. Days were fun. Occasionally, an argument between a couple guys would start but, in the end, we were there for each other. They were happy times with friends caring for friends.

As we got older, we were taught this truth: True happiness is to be found in God. Pope Benedict XVI, in 2010 speaking to children, said,

Once you enter into friendship with God, everything in your life begins to change. … You are attracted to the practice of virtue.

You begin to feel compassion for people in difficulties and you are eager to do something to help them. You want to come to the aid of the poor and the hungry. You want to comfort the sorrowful, you want to be kind and generous. And when these things begin to matter to you, you are well on the way to becoming saints.

Locations, proximity and even time do not define my “gang” anymore. The Solemnity of All Saints celebrated on Nov. 1 is the time when the church recognizes all who are saints, both named and unnamed. We honor those who devote themselves for the glory of God and the service of neighbor.

This is the gang you and I pray to be part of.

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My Unbound sponsored friend in Uganda helps me not only see and experience his life but also what truly matters in this life—reaching out to each other with open hands and a humble heart, one day at a time, for the hope of a better tomorrow.

And it’s all the more possible having the gang of St. Francis of Assisi, St. Jude, St. Eulalia and the four Teresas to intercede for us.

Click to tweet:
What truly matters in this life—reaching out to each other with open hands and a humble heart, one day at a time, for the hope of a better tomorrow. #catholicmom

Please pray:

Dear loving God, guide us to imitate Jesus as His saints have done, and remain united to Him. Prompt us gently to love our brothers and sisters both near and far. Help us remember and be steadfast that perfect love always entails an act of the giving of oneself for the benefit of the other, and it is precisely this that makes us most happy. Amen.