It was July, five years ago that God called me back to Him
in the most kind and loving way. And I
began to attend mass occasionally between Sundays. I decided to go, on what I then determined to
be “important days”, in other words, days when we celebrated a saint. As late July approached, I realized that
almost every day is the feast of a well known saint.
Today
is the feast of St. Martha. Since I am
always struggling to be less like Martha and more like Mary, I do love the
reading from John. In it, she greets
Jesus after Lazarus has died. Her love
of the Lord and confidence in God’s grace allows her to say to Jesus, “But even
now (after Lazarus has died) I know that whatever you ask of God, God will give
to you.”
Last
week began with the feast of Mary Magdalene, the first to see the risen Lord
and the patroness of the Dominican Order.
We also celebrated the feasts of mystical St. Bridget, St. James the Apostle,
and Mary’s parents Saints Joachim and Anne.
And the celebrations continue into August, including the feast of St.
Dominic and the Assumption of Mary.
So in
these lazy days of summer, when life may be a little slower than during other
times of the year, I find it a good time to explore some of these men and women
who had the courage and faith to follow the Lord, no matter what he asked of
them. They followed His plan for their
lives and are forever fabulous examples for others to follow.
I
thoroughly enjoyed Pope Emeritus Benedict’s book, “Holy Men and Women of the Middle
Ages and Beyond”. It is a compilation of
his Wednesday audiences in 2009 and 2010.
In the middle of the book, he highlights seventeen women saints who
simply follow his will for them each and every day. The result is a life that is good for all whom
they encounter. They spread the Jesus’
message in their everyday work and deeds.
It may
be summer time, Ordinary according to the Church calendar, but the men and
women whom we celebrate are far from ordinary. It is a time to savor a Feast of Feasts!
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