Vatican City, 1 November 2015 (VIS) –
The Holy Father appeared at the window of his study in the Vatican
Apostolic Palace at midday today to pray the Angelus with the
faithful gathered in St. Peter's Square on the solemnity of All
Saints. “Today, we feel the reality of the communion of saints to
be particularly alive – our great family, made up of all the
members of the Church, both those of us who are still pilgrims on
earth, and those – far more in number – who have already left and
gone on to Heaven”.
Francis recalled the characteristics of
the saints, as they are presented in the Book of Revelation. “They
are people who belong totally to God, ... a multitude of the 'chosen'
clothed in white and marked with the 'seal of God'”, and explained
the meaning of bearing this seal – that “in Jesus Christ we have
truly become children of God”. He asked, “Are we aware of this
great gift? We are all children of God! Do we remember that in
Baptism we have received the 'seal' of our Heavenly Father and became
His children? ... Here is the root of the vocation to holiness. The
saints we remember today are indeed those who lived in the grace of
their Baptism, who kept the 'seal' intact, behaving as children of
God, seeking to imitate Jesus; and now they have reached their goal
because they finally 'see God as he really is'”.
Their second characteristic is that
they are “examples to imitate. … Not only those who are
canonised, but, so to speak, the saints 'next door' who, with the
grace of God, made the effort to practice the Gospel in the
ordinariness of their life. ... To imitate their gestures of love and
mercy is rather like perpetuating their presence in this world.
Indeed, those evangelical gestures are the only ones that resist the
destruction of death: an act of tenderness, a generous help, time
spent listening, a visit, a good word, a smile. … To our eyes these
gestures might seem insignificant, but in God’s eyes they are
eternal, because love and compassion are stronger than death”.
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