All of Us Are Called to Be Saints!

I will never forget the moment when I first realized the call to sainthood.

Sitting in Mass while in college, the priest asked this question: “Now, are we all called to be saints?” I found myself shaking my head “no”—sainthood didn’t seem like something expected of the ordinary person, let alone of myself.

But the priest shocked me with an emphatic, “yes!” And furthermore by proceeding to preach like this was a teaching that everyone should know about.

Cradle-Catholic here…. before that moment, I hadn’t ever heard the teaching that God calls all of His flock to sainthood. Now, granted, I’m sure I heard it growing up in Sunday school, or by reading a Catholic book, or possibly in another Mass homily. But it wasn’t until that moment in time that I truly heard the calling.

God wants me to be a saint.

The path to sainthood is not cut and dry.

Here’s the thing: at the time of hearing this destiny of sainthood, my view of the saints resided in something of the ethereal. Those perfect, idyllic people who maybe weren’t even truly human at all, just some type of angels in earthen form who lived ages ago. Nothing attainable or relatable to my human condition.

I often heard my other Catholic friends—the ones whom I looked up to in all matters of the faith—talk about their favorite saints. They would refer to reading “The Lives of the Saints,” and for a long time, I thought that was simply a published biography of all the Saints who ever lived. (For the record, there are publications by that title detailing many common saints, but no single book holds a biography of every saint there ever was—yet!)

It was precisely after that epiphany in Mass when I started being introduced to the saints.

Or truly, they started introducing themselves to me.

I soon realized that most saints were quite human and led rather “normal” lives, but they allowed God to transform them into the extraordinary. Sure, some of them were witnesses to Marian apparitions, or burned at the stake, or had miracles from heaven worked for them. But that wasn't the case for everyone.

As my own journey of discipleship with Jesus continued, I learned of those whose past sins and struggles coincided with my own. Like St. Augustine, who infamously stated during his own conversion, “Lord give me chastity, but not yet!”

Or St. Teresa of Avila, who spent decades of her life charmed by the world and lukewarm in her faith. At age 41, she finally began a prayer life, from which Jesus ignited her faith and inspired her to reform the Carmelite order. Today, she is one of four female Doctors of the Church, largely due to her writings on prayer.

Then there are the more “modern” Saints, the ones whom perhaps we ourselves were privileged to catch glimpses of in their public lives. John Paul II and Mother Teresa’s holy witnesses in our time remind us that sainthood is not just for those who lived centuries ago but is a reality for every age.

Hearing their stories, I can’t help but think that they too once marveled at the saints who came before them.

That’s the beauty of the Church and her Communion of Saints. We are made to inspire each other to greater holiness through our own examples. Yet, we often don’t realize the impact of what God is doing in our lives until much later.

So on this Solemnity of All Saints, take some time to celebrate the saints that inspire your own faith. Thank God for their witness and example. Learn more about their lives—where they came from, what their struggles were, and what caused God to transform them into something beautiful.

Then, look at your own life. Ask yourself if you truly believe that God has destined you, too, for sainthood. What will your story look like? How will you allow God to lead you on your own path to holiness, with all your imperfections and failings that only He can redeem and transform?

If you feel far from the path to sainthood, what will put you back on track? A newfound prayer life, better accountability, going back to confession? Remember that all saints had a past, just like you. Your story isn't over.

Let's end in a prayer for this holiest of days.

Dear God, thank you for the example of the Saints. I desire to join in their company, worshiping you forever in Heaven. Please help me follow their footsteps, and yours, Jesus Christ. Please help me to conform myself to Your image, seeking Your will in all things, as the Saints did. Please help me to devote myself, and all that I do, to Your glory, and to the service of my neighbors. Amen. [Pray More Novenas]

“Not all of us can be rich, wise, famous…yet, all of us, yes all of us, are called to be saints.” ~St. Josemaria Escriva