"Sacrifice Everything for Everything"

"Do not be afraid or terrified with fear of them but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts.” Attributed to St Sebastian

I was asked to read at the Italian mass at my parish this past weekend because the parish was in need. I do not usually attend that mass; I go to the English one which is earlier. I was happy to help, but I was also wondering how long the parish would offer the Italian mass as that segment of the population is dwindling. Recently, I met with a priest friend who was a bit discouraged at the lack of attendance at mass on a Sunday. The Carmelite nuns I know well reminded me that Christ is like a perfume and people will see and smell it and would be attracted to anyone who points to Christ. Others do not need to follow a person. The cult of personality is dangerous. We follow Christ.

“So can I call myself nought other than that which I am: a Christian.” St. Perpetua

I think often and have read about the Christians in the early Church. They sacrificed so much, and the Church thrived on the blood of the martyrs. We cannot live solely on that because we live in a challenging world. There are many distractions and many obstacles. We cannot simply watch and wait. I was struck by St. Sebastian of whom I know very little. St. Sebastian is the patron saint of soldiers, athletes, and those who desire a saintly death. I was curious about this saint whose feast day is this month. A parish in Brazil that I follow on social media curiously honours St. Sebastian. I thought that this was an interesting saint to honour. There are always the usual novenas to saints that are famous. St. Sebastian was someone who was left for dead with 14 arrows, but he was killed afterwards. He tried to support the persecuted Christians in the early Church.

“To live without faith, without a heritage to defend, without battling constantly for truth, is not to live but to ‘get along’; we must never just ‘get along’.”

AND

“We must sacrifice everything for everything: our ambitions, indeed our entire selves, for the cause of the Faith.” Pier Giorgio Frassati

What can we sacrifice for God? How can we repay Him for what He does for us. It is so easy to be distracted and get confused. However, we cannot stop at our feelings of confusion and frustration. We continue to look at Christ and those around us who show us the road ahead. We need to keep our hands on the wheel so as not to go off the road. This is important since we need to ask who we are following and how can the road we are looking for lead to Christ.

“It is indeed more through suffering and persecution than through eloquent preaching, that God wills to establish His Kingdom in souls.” St. Therese of Lisieux