Homily for Today

Welcome my brothers and sisters in Christ to today's commemoration of the Feast of All Saints. This Feast was instituted in the Eastern Church during the 4th century for the purpose or remembering all the martyrs of the early Church. Gradually, it developed to also include the non-martyrs. As such, it can be said that the purpose of this Feast in the Holy Catholic Church serves to commemorate all of our brothers and sisters in Christ, known and unknown, who have moved on to their eternal glory.

This Feast also serves the purpose of awakening our awareness to the status of our sainthood. It reminds us that by the grace of the Heavenly Father, we should continuously strive to be sanctified by the power of the Holy Spirit in the Most Holy Name of Jesus.

In the Letter of Paul to the Romans, we read that we are "called to be saints." [Rom. 1:7] In the First Letter of Paul to the Corinthians, we read that "those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus, (they are) called to be saints..." [1 Cor. 1:2] In numerous other passages of the New Testament, not only do we read that we are called to be saints, but also, that we are saints. [2 Cor. 1:1; Eph. 1:1; Col. 1:2, 4, 12]

Why is this? It is because when we received the Holy Sacrament of Baptism, we were admitted into the Body of Christ. At that moment, having been cleansed of all traces of original sin and those sins that were committed prior to our Baptism, we became "like living stones, (to) let ourselves be built into a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ." [1 Pet. 2:5]

In our struggle to attain sainthood, we can and do, continuously count on the guidance of the Holy Spirit to lead us, to teach us and to remind us of all what Jesus has said. [Jn. 14:26] The Holy Spirit teaches us to pray. "(He) helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes with signs too deep for words. And God, who searches the hearts, knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God." [Rom. 8:26-7]

Over and above being admitted into the Body of Christ through the Sacrament of Baptism, we have received the Sacrament of "Confirmation to increase and deepen the baptismal grace; to root us more deeply in the divine filiation which makes us cry, "Abba! Father!"; (Rom 8:15.) to unite us more firmly to Christ; to increase the gifts of the Holy Spirit in us; to render our bond with the Church more perfect; (LG 11.) to give us a special strength of the Holy Spirit to spread and to defend the faith by word and action as true witnesses of Christ, to confess the name of Christ boldly, and never to be ashamed of the Cross: (Council Of Florence (1439) DS 1319; LG 11; 12.) [C.C.C. # 1303]

In his inspired wisdom, Saint Paul perceived that one of the obligations of the saints was to minister to the other saints. [Rom. 12:13, 15:15-6; 1 Cor. 16.1; 2 Cor. 8:4, 9:1; Heb. 6:10] By his example and his words, he affirmed this duty in many of his writings.

To minister to the other saints means to evangelize to others. Many believers associate the word "evangelize" with "preaching." As such, they conclude that only a preacher can evangelize. They conclude that only preachers should defend the faith. That conclusion is deceptive. It promotes procrastination. It promotes spiritual laziness. It denies the other saints of the right to be fed spiritual food that is sound. To renounce one's obligation to spread and defend the faith is synonym to being ashamed of the Most Holy Name of Jesus. Such an attitude can only lead to spiritual death.

Parents are called to evangelize to their children. Spouses are called to evangelize to each other. True Christians are called to evangelize to their family, their friends, in their work place, wherever God provides the opportunity for them to spread the Gospel and defend the faith.

The Holy Spirit has blessed each and everyone of us with spiritual gifts. "The gifts that He gave were that some would be... evangelists, some pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the Body of Christ." [Eph. 4:12] 

Reviewing today's First Reading from the Book of Revelation, [Rev. 7:2-4, 9-14] we heard that "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. They cried out in a loud voice, 'Salvation belongs to our God who is seated on the throne, and to the Lamb!" These were the martyrs, "they who have come out of the great ordeal... who have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb." [Rev. 7:14] These saints, we remember today.

The Second Reading from the First Letter of John, [1 Jn. 3:1-3] reminded us of the great love of God who has chosen to call us His children. During our sanctification through the power of the Holy Spirit, we are being transformed into the likeness of Christ. "What we will be has not yet been revealed. What we do know is this: when he is revealed, we will be like him, for we will see him as he is." [1 Jn. 3:2]

Because we are being transformed into the likeness of Christ, those of the world do not and cannot possibly know us. For the worldly seek fame, pleasures, wealth; they do not know Jesus. Not knowing Jesus, they cannot understand our love for others, nor the fruit of the Holy Spirit that shines through us. To them, we are "strange" beings.

While we are being rejected by those who are of the world, we should "rejoice and be glad, for our reward is great in Heaven." [Mt. 5:12] The Kingdom of God does not belong to the rich but rather to the poor of spirit. The Kingdom of God does not belong to those who persecute others but rather to those who hunger and thirst for righteousness. The Kingdom of God does not belong to those who party all the time or to those who have no time for the poor, the widows or the orphans. Rather, it belongs to those who mourn. The Kingdom of God does not belong to those who continuously feed their minds with the sins of the flesh but rather to the pure of heart.

As we continue with the celebration of the Holy Mass, let us keep in mind that the Kingdom of God belongs to those who bear their crosses, those who persevere in their living faith, those who fix their eyes on the Lord Jesus. "And may the Lord so strengthen our hearts in holiness that we may be blameless before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all His saints." [1 Thess. 3:13; 2 Thess. 1:10]