Have you ever had anyone step into your life and change everything? That someone special who opens your eyes to see the world differently or reawaken the heart to be more receptive to the blessings of love? It almost always happens out of the blue, in truth most probably 100% of the time, because it is not something you can plan or look for but it is like the invisible gust of wind knocking your hat off your head.
Well, that someone special stepped into my life last week…her name is St. Marguerite Bays…who entered my mind and heart as I wrote and talked about her last week in celebrating her canonization in the Catholic Church. As I wrote last week and talked about in my Sunday homily, she was a woman of great faith who lived a life of service, prayer and devotion in her parish and her neighborhood. So why is this woman so special (other than she is a Saint, if that were not special enough) that I would feel such an instant love and joyfulness in getting to know her through the blessing of her story of saintliness? Well, it might come as a surprise to you…but…wait for it…her prayer life.
In my homily at Sunday Mass I asked you to think of someone who needed your prayers…and to lift that person up in prayer during the Mass but also daily, because we all need prayer. So, what happened? I guess it was one of those Holy Spirit moments when he moves you to see the world as God sees the world. As I looked out upon St. Lucy a thought popped into my mind…”How many St. Marguerite’s do we have in our parish?” In truth I didn’t think about it long because I needed to focus once more on the celebration of the Mass but it has been a thought that has reentered my mind over and over again: at prayer, at rest, at play and at work.
We know that we are all called to be saints but: do we actually see the saints around us or do we see what we do as holy and blessed leading us to sainthood in our own right? The first part of the question is often answered in the affirmative. I can list dozens and dozens of holy men and women I have encountered at the many parishes I worshipped at as a lay man and those I have served at as a priest. I encounter them daily in ministry doing the quiet work of God, not seeking the spotlight but silently going about the work of caring for and serving others in their lives. I am always moved to grace walking into the silent church building during the middle of the day and finding God’s children in prayer; praying for others, for themselves, for the silent petitions unknown and yet brought to God in faith. They are the living stones upon which the Body of Christ lives and breathes daily.
And this is where we come back to this special beloved woman who slipped into my life, casually opening my heart to see the blessing of love surrounding me and asking me to pray with more patience and grace for God’s Church as I promised on the day of my ordination. It is the intercession of a saint that invites me to a great and more fervent intercession of love.
Who are the saints in your life? Who are you called to intercede for in prayer today?
St. Marguerite Bays….pray for us
God bless,
Fr. Mark