The Holy Family, united by the Sacred Heart of Jesus, exemplifies the love that strengthens us on our journey together.
The saints always have lessons for us in daily life. I’ve always known this, but it hit me differently this week as I helped to prepare the Register’s All Saints’ Day online content.
In my reading I was especially struck by a saint’s words about his fellow saints. On the Solemnity of All Saints in 2000, Pope St. John Paul II said:
[T]o know what is the way to holiness, we must go with the apostles up the mount of the beatitudes to draw near to Jesus and listen to the words of life that come from his lips. … The saints took these words of Jesus seriously. They believed that they would find ‘happiness’ by putting them into practice in their lives. And they realized their truth in everyday experience: [D]espite their trials, moments of darkness and failures, they already tasted here below the deep joy of communion with Christ. In him they discovered the initial seed, already present in time, of the future glory of God’s kingdom. This was discovered in particular by Mary Most Holy, who lived in unique communion with the incarnate Word, entrusting herself unreservedly to his saving plan.
In those inevitable moments when we need heavenly aid, it is so reassuring to know we have beautiful souls above to aid us here below.
Relatable Souls
How relatable that the saints experienced all that we do — and can show us the way.
It’s not those heroic moments — pledging unwavering faith in the midst of death and terror, as amazing as that witness is, or stalwart faith in the face of great suffering — but to their daily holiness that I am drawn.
I like to think of these holy men and women, who now live with God, in the ordinary minutes that life offers. How did the saints start their days? How did they organize their schedules? How did they pray? How did they love others well amid daily demands and stresses?
When you’re baking or cooking, think of the charity St. Elizabeth of Hungary exhibited when she distributed bread to the poor — and strive to extend that charity to those you are feeding, whether around your table or at the soup kitchen. Or if ice cream is on your mind, think of Blessed Solanus Casey — though his aid extends blessedly wider than that, too.
Feeling anxious or unsettled about the state of your day, or the nation or world? Look to St. Thérèse of Lisieux.
Spend time “resting quietly on the heart of Jesus,” as St. Thérèse recommends.
Caring for children? Look to St. Gianna Molla and St. Zélie Martin, wives and working moms who knew well the happy and heavy things that dwell in feminine hearts — from raising little ones and cultivating a faithful domestic church to sanctifying their own suffering.
If you have a messy desk, St. Maximilian Kolbe understands, even as his martyr’s love bids us to courage too.
Need better work-life balance? St. Gianna is your go-to for inspiration, as she encourages, “Live holy the present moment.” (St. Zélie, too: “Carry on bravely.”)
It’s a blessing that our friends the saints are wonderfully unique.
The Heart of It All
Ultimately, they all draw us closer to Christ and his beautiful heart.
Pope Francis includes solid Sacred Heart-related advice from the Little Flower in his new encyclical:
As we contemplate the heart of Christ, the incarnate synthesis of the Gospel, we can, following the example of Saint Therese of the Child Jesus, ‘place heartfelt trust not in ourselves but in the infinite mercy of a God who loves us unconditionally and has already given us everything in the cross of Jesus Christ.’ Therese was able to do this because she had discovered in the heart of Christ that God is love: ‘To me he has granted his infinite mercy, and through it, I contemplate and adore the other divine perfections.’ That is why a popular prayer, directed like an arrow towards the heart of Christ, says simply: ‘Jesus, I trust in you.’ No other words are needed.
In the encyclical, the Pope uses the example of other saintly women to continue his discussion of the Sacred Heart with a lovely turn of phrase: “resting in the heart of the Lord.”
“A number of holy women, in recounting their experiences of encounter with Christ, have spoken of resting in the heart of the Lord as the source of life and interior peace,” the Pope writes.
May God give us the grace to do likewise.
Maternal Moments
Our Lady — Queen of All Saints — is also mentioned in the encyclical, related to her maternal heart. The Pope explains:
What Mary ‘kept’ was not only her memory of what she had seen and heard, but also those aspects of it that she did not yet understand; these nonetheless remained present and alive in her memory, waiting to be ‘put together’ in her heart.
Later, he writes:
Many a page of the Gospel illustrates how attentive Jesus was to individuals and above all to their problems and needs. … Precisely out of concern for us, Jesus knows every one of our good intentions and small acts of charity. … In his humanity, Jesus learned this from Mary, his mother. Our Lady carefully pondered the things she had experienced; she ‘treasured them … in her heart’ (Luke 2:19, 51) and, with Saint Joseph, she taught Jesus from his earliest years to be attentive in this same way.
How beautiful — the Holy Family united by the Sacred Heart, whose compassion was cultivated by their domestic life together.
Together. The saints show us that we are striving toward heaven not alone, but together — bolstered by faith and the Sacred Heart as we follow Jesus along the way.
Perhaps my friend Thérèse reminds us best, in her beautifully simple way: “Love Jesus and make him loved.”
