Phillip. 19. Catholic.
I'm trying to follow God's will and striving to live a life of holiness. I live and blog with the conviction that we are all called to be saints.
doubleplusgoodful asked: Will you please tell me about the Pro-Sanctity Movement?
Absolutely!
The Pro Sanctity Movement was founded by a young Italian priest who was absolutely convinced that all people, no matter their situation, are called to live a life of holiness and thereby become a saint. He wanted to create a utopia of saints, a society where holiness was an everyday word.
His spirituality was confirmed by the Second Vatican Council. Chapter 5 of the dogmatic constitution on the church, Lumen Gentium, is focused on this universal call to holiness.
Most notably, Bishop Guglielmo Giaquinta founded two secular institutes: the Institute of Apostolic Oblates for consecrated laywomen and the Institute of Apostolic Sodales for diocesan priests. These men and women consecrate their entire lives to spreading the universal call to holiness and providing means for people to respond to that call.
My Tumblr URL - beholybehappy - was inspired by the Pro Sanctity Movement, of which I am a member.
More information can be found here.
From the Rule and Constitutions of the Community of the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal
Excellent practical ways to grow in holiness:
53. The friars are to respond to the grace of God through a life of continuous conversion and self-emptying in order to live a chaste life. We can do this chiefly by fostering:
a) A fervent life of personal and communal prayer;
b) A deep love for the Holy Eucharist;
c) A personal love for and confidence in the Mother of God, devotion to St. Joseph and all the saints;
d) A genuine participation in the fraternal life of the community;
e) Meditation on and study of the Word of God;
f ) Frequent reception of the Sacrament of Penance and regular spiritual direction;
g) A joyful austerity;
h) Sacrificial service towards one another and those in need;
i) A healthy discipline applied to a balanced way of life made up of prayer, manual labor, study, recreation and exercise.
Anonymous asked: Hey! Love your quest for holiness. As a preotestant, I'm curious why Catholics often pray to saints or to Mary, when one can just pray to God? Jesus tore the veil and gave us the gift of a direct, personal relationship with YHWH and intercession seems roundabout now. Thanks!
Hi, thank you for your question! It’s an important one.
First, it’s important to understand what a saint is. A saint (which comes from the Latin sanctus, meaning holy) is someone who is in Heaven and who has won the greatest reward - eternal union with God. Our entire journey of holiness here on earth ends in eternal sanctity, ends in becoming a saint.
Secondly, Catholics ask the saints for their intercession in the same way that a non-Catholic Christian might ask a friend here on earth to pray for them. Catholics recognize that God’s family not only includes those here on earth, but those who have gone before us marked with the sign of faith.
Thirdly, Catholics do indeed have a very personal and direct relationship with God. If you’ve ever been to a Catholic Mass, you’ll notice that it’s a gigantic prayer directly to God himslef. Also, the most intimate moments of many Catholics’ faith lives happen in direct relationship with God - we receive God’s sanctifying grace in Baptism, we receive God’s own flesh and blood into our bodies in the Eucharist, and we receive the fruits of the Holy Spirit in the Sacrament of Confirmation.
I hope that was a help. For more information about intercession of the saints, including relevant Bible passages and quotes from the Church Fathers, check out the Catholic Answers tract on that very subject.
Be holy! Be happy!
- Phil
Anonymous asked: one thing you want to tell 1)someone in your real life 2)someone on tumblr
To everyone: “Be a saint! What else is there?”
jadedothespaceything asked: I just want to say that your blog is such an inspiration to me as a Catholic in this modern world. Keep up the good work. :)
Wow, thank you so much! This really means a lot to me.
Catholics are definitely swimming against the tide in our culture. But it’s important to remember that we are journeying toward Calvary, and if there’s no Cross involved, there’s something fundamental missing.
Why I Am Catholic: A Message to Young People
I’ve been invited to speak to my parish’s Confirmation II class, in answering the question, “Why are you Catholic?”
By way of an answer, I am Catholic because I want to be a saint. I am a member of the Pro Sanctity Movement, where we seek to spread and provide means to respond to the Universal Call to Holiness. We are all called to live a life of holiness, and thereby become saints. There’s no ‘cookie-cutter’ saint, and we should avoid thinking of sanctity as something impossible. If you’re in heaven, you’re a saint.
When I think of the lives of the saints, I cannot help but think of the great joy that radiated from their faith. I think of the beautiful smile of Blessed Teresa of Calcutta or the wonderful personality of Blessed Pope John Paul II, two examples of saints in relatively recent times. The lives of the saints are filled with a contagious joy.
So we ask ourselves, form where does that joy come?
A quote that I’ve always liked from St. Augustine says, “You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our hearts are restless until they rest in you.”
It’s a beautiful image of the human condition. Here on earth, in our sinfulness, we try to fill ourselves up with power, honor, pleasure, and material goods. The world, the flesh, and the devil make many promises - promises that they cannot fulfill perfectly. In time, we become addicted to sin, and we find ourselves still restless.
Our hearts can only find rest in God. My friend once described it like this: we’re all buckets with holes in the bottom. We try to fill ourselves up with power or honor or pleasure or material goods, only to find that they have escaped through the hole as soon as we put them in. In order to fill ourselves up perfectly, we must be submerged into the ocean of God’s love.
Only in doing the will of God and in serving Christ will my restless heart find perfect rest, fulfilled joy, and a happiness that I cannot even fathom this side of Heaven. We have to remember, however, the Christ founded a Church. The Church that Christ founded is still around today, and it’s called the Catholic Church.
Christ can never be separated from his Bride, the Church. The two are intimately linked. One cannot serve our Savior without also serving His Church. And one cannot involve himself in the Church without abandoning himself to Jesus Christ. You cannot divorce the two - Christ is the Bridegroom, and His Church the Bride.
Finally, the Catholic Church gives me the means by which I can grow in holiness and become a saint. I receive this grace in the Sacraments:
- I become an adopted child of God in Baptism;
- my sins are forgiven through Confession;
- I receive my Savior very intimately in the Eucharist; and
- I become a soldier of Jesus Christ on the day of my Confirmation.
Without the Catholic Church, I would have no hope of growing in holiness. Without the Church, I would be restless, addicted, and stuck in filthy mediocrity. I am Catholic because when I get to Heaven, I want God the Father to look at me, and, smiling, say, “Well done, my good and faithful servant.”
Be a saint!
If you’re in Heaven, you’re a saint.
You want to be a saint? Will it!
I somehow feel this is oddly appropriate for my blog.
(via inmytsinelas)
so like sainthood is really cool.
hope to see all you people in Heaven.
TUMBLR MEETUP: HEAVEN
Date/Time: TBA
