All Saints Day (A); November 1, 2026

Rv 7:2-4,9-14.  Ps 24.  1 Jn 3:1-3.  Mt 5:1-12a

Deacon Jim McFadden

As we celebrate the Solemnity of All Saints, our brothers and sisters who are really close to God, who are really holy, it behooves  us to think about holiness because after all we’re all called to be saints.

So, what are we in for?   There are two aspects we should pay attention: first of all, it is a gift: we can’t grab it because it’s something that can only be received; secondly, it’s a process of becoming; in short, it’s a journey because we’re all works in progress.  Holiness: a gift and a journey.

Holiness is a gift which comes from God and this gift was first received at our Baptism, in which we received the Holy Spirit: our body is now the temple of the Holy Spirit.  If we allow the Holy Spirit to grow within us and animate our lives, our lives will be completely changed, which our beloved Pope Francis noted in his first apostolic exhortation (cf. Gaudate et Exsultate, 15).  Saints are not some distant unreachable heroes from a distant past, but they’re here among us: in our families, parishes, and friends.  One can just sense someone who is close to God; there’s a certain aura.  Their starting point is the same gift that we have all received: Baptism.  But what makes them different is that they are cooperating with the Holy Spirit, allowing the Spirit to animate them to the very core of who they are: beloved children of God.  These contemporary saints take the Christian life seriously: they live the Our Father and they do so with simplicity because they differentiate what’s essential from what’s secondary or superfluous. They’ve received the gift, they’ve run with it, and they strive to  live according to where the Spirit leads them.  Consequently, no matter what their external circumstances are, they are happy because as St. Paul notes they are “moving, living, and having their being in Christ Jesus,” who gave us the Holy Spirit. Put simply, holiness makes us happy because God loves us and we gratefully know that.

Every gift can only be received and it cannot be taken.  And, what do we say when we receive a gift: “THANK YOU!”  Being close to God, being holy is a special gift and we don’t’ want to squander it on something that’s not God; we want to live with a grateful heart,  which leads us to the second aspect.

Holiness is a journey: we don’t become saints over-night.  And, it’s something that’s not done individually but is done within the Church family.  Holiness is a journey we do together because we’re all interconnected to one another as members of the mystical Body of Christ, the Church.  So, we minister to teach other, help each other along the way, united with the Communion of Saints in Heaven, in Purgatory, and here on earth.

Saints support us along the way; if we take the wrong path, their silent presence will give us a corrective action via their example. They are our sincere friends: their  only agenda is for us to realize our destiny which began at our Baptism.  So, we can trust them, take their advice because they only want our good.  In their prayers for us, we receive their help and friendship, and with them we are bound together as brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus. 

People of God at our Baptism the journey into holiness began in which we received the gift of the Holy Spirit.  Are we grateful for that gift?  Do we appreciate that He is calling us to holiness and helps us to arrive at our eternal destination:   Do I feel close to the Saints?  Do I pray to them, do I talk to them sharing my life with them?  Do I know the sacred story of some of them.  Am I moved by their example?  Do I realize that it does me a great deal of good to become friends with them, to  address them in prayer?

May Mary,  the Queen of all the Saints, make us feel the joy of the gift received and increase in us the desire to realize our eternal destination.  Amen.