November 6
Celebrating the saints as we become one!
As we celebrated All Saints Day, it is easy to forget that we really mean ALL saints not just those that have been canonized.
This is from a Homily by Pope Francis:” It’s easy to miss the “all” part of the Solemnity of All Saints. The big names come to mind, but do we ever pause to add our own name into the litany of saints? “In God’s great plan,” Pope Francis has said, “every detail is important, even yours, even my humble little witness, even the hidden witness of those who live their faith with simplicity in everyday family relationships, work relationships, friendships. There are the saints of every day, the ‘hidden’ saints”.
Those who join us for Liturgy during the week are sometimes surprised that we have different readings from those that are in their missal or missalette. The reason for this is that the Franciscans as well as other large religious communities have their own Liturgical Calendar, which includes the saints of the universal Church but gives special emphasis to the saints in their order. In November we celebrate both the Solemnity of all Saints as well as the Feast of the Franciscan Saints and we also have a day when we celebrate our Franciscan brothers, sisters, relative s and benefactors who are deceased.
On Sunday we had the reading from St. Luke’s Gospel about the tax collector Zacchaeus. It fits very well with our celebration of Saints this month. He reminds us that Jesus seeks us out even when we are “small” either in stature or good works. Maybe we relate to Nelson Mandela who said, ‘I am not a saint, unless you think of a saint as a sinner who keeps on trying.’ So may we keep on trying!
Sister Mary, OSC