Holyween: Be-a-Saint March

“…because God tested them and found them worthy to be with him.”

– Wisdom 3:4-5

 

To counter the pagan influence of Halloween, our church invited children to dress up as their favorite saints. After the children’s mass, they paraded and were given treats along the route. No ghoulish costumes. No glorification of evil. Our parish priest encouraged the children to think about what is admirable in the saints they chose. It is perhaps in the hope that they will emulate these saints’ traits.

Looking at the photos posted by the parish (just check these out in the Our Lady of Fatima Parish’s FB page as I didn’t have time to get permission to repost) there were a lot of children who participated. I hope this catches on, after all, everyone is encouraged to be a saint.

I’m sure a lot of you like me will turn beet red and say, “What? Me, a saint? I sin too much to be one. I’ll never be a saint.” But I came across this quote, actually several variations of them as they were attributed to different people like Robert Louis Stevenson, St. Teresa of Calcutta, Nelson Mandela, and St. Josemaria Escriva:

 

“A saint is a sinner who keeps trying.”

 

So, let’s keep trying, one baby step at a time. Let’s think of it as a marathon march, not a 100-meter dash.

There are some steps we can do when we backslide or stray from the path. Let’s try this together as I’m sure failure to be holy will happen to me and to you:

• Accept that there are days when you can’t be as good as you should be.
• But remember what caused you to be unholy and resolve to do better.
• Try again. If we fail today, there’s always tomorrow.
• When you feel the itch to do wrong, breathe, pause, and think WWJD (What Would Jesus Do).

It’s hard I know! I’ve failed many (x 100) times but, again, let’s keep trying. And if we do make it to sainthood, what do you think you’ll be the patron saint of? I’ll probably be the patron saint of Clueless Solo Moms or Young Once Struggling to be Fit and Wrinkle-free.

Belated Happy Holyween!