God Calls us to a Holy Life

“We know certainly that our God calls us to a holy life. We know that He gives us every grace, every abundant grace; and though we are so weak of ourselves, this grace is able to carry us through every obstacle and difficulty.” St. Elizabeth Ann Seton

Recently, I was watching the secular media, probably during a moment of weakness. The discussion of the crowds paying respects to the late Benedict XVI was inconsistent, and the description of the Benedict’s papacy was also not so complimentary. The labels came out quickly describing Benedict as an out of touch conservative, and that the only people forming lines were those on one extreme of the Catholic Church. I usually do not read the comments made by secular media. As I remember, Benedict was quick to compliment the media once John Paul II died because their reporting seemed to be a bit more balanced. As I moved over to the Catholic media, I read article after article about how converts made their way into the Catholic Church from various walks of life because of Benedict. It struck me to read such beautiful comments. I think often of the elderly people I see at mass and wonder how many popes they have lived under and yet they are still at mass every day. It is so beautiful to watch.

“Be good, love the Lord, pray for those who do not know Him. What a great grace it is to know God.” St. Josephine Bakita

It really is a grace to know God. Benedict lived such a humble life and yet he was maligned by the media. Fulton J. Sheen said that people only know what they think is the Catholic church but not what the Church truly is. When Don Luigi Giussani from the Catholic Movement, Communion and Liberation died in 2005, Pope John Paul II sent then Cardinal Ratzinger to the funeral in Milan; those in attendance were struck by his words about our founder. We still read his homily from that day. Benedict was very close to the experience of the movement. Benedict XVI as then Cardinal Ratzinger spoke highly of Giussani. “It was in this way that he understood that Christianity is not an intellectual system, a collection of dogmas, or moralism. Christianity is instead an encounter, a love story; it is an event.” He reiterated sentences I have heard over the years in my experience of the CL movement. This was one of the many aspects to Benedict’s life. He said another time, “If the lungs of prayer and the Word of God do not nourish the breath of spiritual life, we risk suffocating in the midst of a thousand daily cares. Prayer is the breath of the soul and of life.”– Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI

Again, it is not that Benedict had magical words, but he followed Christ. This was made clear in the way he lived his life. I was sad that day that he offered to give up the papacy. Not because only, he could do it, but because I love the Church and I worried then. However, I was reminded by the Carmelite Sisters that Christ oversees His Church. We need to be reminded of this always. Whenever I enter a Catholic institution, it is always beautiful to see a photo of the current pope. It is important to know who we follow in our faith because it really is an event. Two quotes standout in my mind.

“The things that we love tell us what we are.” St. Thomas

“Anyone who seeks truth seeks God, whether or not he realizes it.” St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross