All Saints

Today we celebrate the Solemnity of All Saints. This short post is a reminder… As we pray with the saints today, let us remember first and foremost that they were all deeply flawed, ordinary human beings, transformed by God to do the extraordinary.

The mural panels at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in Los Angeles are a great reminder that the saints are not so different from you or me. The difference might be – what choices do we make and how do we make them?

You can read more about the work of John Nava and his tapestries of the saints at the Cathedral here.

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Into thin air

On the Feast of All Hallows Eve
the air around us changes,
making the space between
this world and the next
so very thin.

On the Feast of All Saints
the air around us glistens,
making the space between
this world and the next
so very rich.

On the Feast of All Souls
the air around us shimmers,
making the space between
this world and the next
a luminescent reality.

On the Feasts of these days
the air around us is clear,
making the space between
this world and the next
invisible.

©Fran Rossi Szpylczyn

All you holy men and women

Today we celebrate All Saints Day. Do you have a favorite saint? If so, who is it? I am hard pressed when I ask myself that question… St Francis, St Teresa of Avila, St Ignatius Loyola, St Juan Diego, St Kateri Tekakwitha, St Dominic…  I could go on and on. Also there are those on the way to sainthood, such as Blessed Oscar Romero, Servant of God Isaac Hecker, and so many more.

The saints remind us that God works with what God has made and with what we bring when we show up. God can transform all of us, no matter what. Thanks be to God!