Our Invitation

Matthew 28:18-20 "And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age."

My kids' Catholic school gave out tee shirts with a logo “Live like a Saint” written in big letters across the back. The navy color with white letters makes these words, spoken by a priest who was their school chaplain, stand out.

I sometimes forget about their tees until I see my kids loading my grocery cart or helping out at the Church fish fry and I catch a glimpse of the quote. I have to smile at how they are evangelizing without even knowing it.

This school has produced a cardinal, a current bishop, and a local nun who runs another school. I think the reason the school has been so successful is that it has a real sense of community, a fearlessness about its true Catholic identity. Maybe we need a bold invitation to be saintlike, and maybe we need to preach with blazing letters?

A depressing statistic in the news is nearly four out of ten young adults do not belong to any religion. The stated reason so many are not a part of a larger church community is that many young adults are not marrying and having children.

A friend who came into the Church through the RCIA program said she became a Catholic because of the witness of her son, who attended Catholic schools. It wasn't anything large, but rather his faith lived daily that made her decide to join the Church.

I wonder if we all wore tee shirts that say “Live like a Saint” if we might see more people pausing and examining their own lives. I must admit that when my kids wear their navy tees talking about becoming saints, I have to think about my own behavior and assess if I am living up to the quote. I'm not sure if the school knew what a blaze of fire it was igniting, but the seed is there in our community.

The small things we say and do can have a large impact. It can be simple things like a rosary hanging from a car review mirror, or a bumper sticker about Christmas, but these small acts of faith are very important.

I hope that more Catholic churches, schools, and hospitals print more tees like this one and give them out. We all need a gentle reminder in the sea of worldliness that we are called too to live a good life. Sometimes we preach with words, other times with tees.