Suddenly its raining saints, with the Pope canonizing five men and women at one go and with India also having Mother Mariam Thresia Mankidiyan recognized as one!
But I wonder how these worthy individuals would have reacted if they had known they were being canonized, “Cardinal Henry Newman how do you feel being made a saint?”
“Bob!” I can hear the Cardinal who was once an Anglican saying, “Whether I am just a servant, or a saint of God, makes no difference to me, as long as I serve my God!”
And I am sure this would be the reaction of the other four new saints too and also all the saints of the world.
Serving the God, they loved with all their heart and soul was the only thing that mattered.
Which brings me to another important point, “Out of love comes service!”
And going even another step farther, “As they loved God, God, changed their hearts to look with God like eyes at the rest of humanity!”
The transformation comes from the One above.
Our duty is to love our Creator, and as we love, dramatic changes in the way we look at each other and other human beings will take place. We don’t have to work towards it. It will happen, because we start imbibing the heart of God!
When that happens, the world sees the change! We become the salt and light of the earth, and are able to change and transform lives of those around us, sometimes without even speaking a word.
And that is the real saint.
Mother Teresa was one! She was so filled with God’s love, that as she cared for the sick, the destitute and dying, people saw the God she worshipped.
There are many who want to live one with God, and having found Him, retreat to a mountain top and spend the rest of their lives in quiet meditation, peaceful in their closeness. But when one serves his fellow brothers and sisters, one is sharing with the world the love and peace they have found.
Because through their service, the light of the divine shines out!
As I see religious men and women of different faiths, disgracing themselves through sexual scandals, cheating their followers and stealing property, all I can say is that through every such act, they don’t shame just themselves but take the people away from God.
But today let us lift our spirits, as we welcome these five new saints, whose lives now glorified, will point more and more towards a God, who can transform our inner selves to serve those outside of ourselves!
Like them, if you want to reveal God to others, do it through the way you live..!
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Robert Clements is a newspaper columnist and writes a daily column, which has graced the pages of over 60 newspapers and magazines, from a daily column in the Khaleej Times, Dubai, the Morning Star, London, and in nearly every state in India, from The Statesman in Kolkata, to the Kashmir Times in Kashmir to the Trinity Mirror in Chennai.
Each one of us is a saint in making. The saints were like us in all respect, they ran the race and won the crown and we are surrounded by so many of them who encourage/cheer us to run our race to reach where they are.
For all the saints who from their labour rest is a beautiful hymn. One more hymn I remember is ‘Only remembered by what we have done ‘ All of us who serve the Lord and in turn live according to His teachings are Saints
Bob! Keep writing the beautiful insights like you did today and always! Encouraged👍
Very well said, Bob. It is our lives that should show the God we worship.
Right you are Betty. Thanks