Called to Holiness
Pentecost Sunday
“Lord, send out your Spirit, and renew the face of the earth.”Ps. 104
We aim for the wrong goal, we emphasize what doesn’t matter, we remain on the surface of religion-focused on appearances, externals, the visible; we fixate on religious practices, whether they’re boring or not, long or short, heavy or light, whether the priest or bishop is likable or not… but in reality, none of that is what truly matters. If we have risen with Christ, we are new creatures, and we must not think like pagans but like Christians and spiritual people.
The treasure is hidden in that field which is the Church; within that shell with no grand appearance, like the mustard seed, lies an enormous treasure: God with us — freedom from ego and sin, a paradise of love, joy, and peace, and all the other fruits and gifts of the Spirit. If we fail to reveal these in the Church, it is because of our mediocrity; instead of unveiling the Treasure, we conceal it.
Truthfully, it’s not easy to make it shine, as we are marked by the clumsiness and ignorance of our fallen nature, as well as sin; and on top of that, within every group, we live with a wide range of human, Christian, and spiritual maturity levels-from kindergarten to doctoral level. Yet we are all called to be light and to manifest the Kingdom of God here and now, through our words and works of charity, as children of God guided by His Spirit.
What matters is that each person strives not to be better than others, but to be better than yesterday, always advancing and never stagnating. The Christian life is one of constant growth and maturation. We cannot and must not decide how others should live, only how we ourselves do. Each day we must seek to be the best version of our faith and love, of our Christian life. Let us grow each day, using the means that can help us: prayer, spiritual reading, sacraments, charity, sacrifice, and more. This is the best way to open ourselves to the GIFT OF THE HOLY SPIRIT and to cooperate with Him.
I cannot attain anyone else’s holiness but my own. Each one is responsible for their own sanctification, and no one can do it for another. Just as no one can eat or study for you —because it is personal and non-transferable—so it is with growth in faith and love: no one can do it for you.
That’s why we must become aware that this is the main goal of our lives, the one God entrusts to us: our own sanctification. It is an essential requirement for entering heaven —and what good would it be to gain the whole world if we fail to enter the Kingdom of God? But beyond just thinking of heaven, sanctification is the highest thing we can aspire to for our own well-being here on earth too. If I am not holy, I am missing out on so much life, joy, peace, and love that I could have. LET US OPEN OUR HEARTS TO THE SANCTIFIER HOLY SPIRIT AND LET HIM GUIDE AND INSPIRE US ALWAYS, as we cannot reach it by ourselves.
