To Be Like Them in Goodness!

Saturday, November 1, 2025

Solemnity of All Saints!

Rev 7:2-4, 9-14; 1 Jn 3:1-3; Mt 5:1-12a

The Solemnity of All Saints invites us to live like those saints we admire and whose intercession we seek. 

I wonder if there is any grammar that defines who a saint is. While a theoretical definition may look abstract, a genuine examination of their lives gives us confidence that we can imitate their goodness thanks to the discovery that they have all struggled like we do.

While sticking to the list of saints in Catholic hagiography should be our topmost priority, we also need to relate to the names that we may not find there. We find such saintly people from all walks of life. We cannot ignore or overlook their inspiring lives as they radiate Christ more authentically in their struggles, determination, and commitment.

Hence, I intend to take cues from saintly lives in order that we may imitate their goodness.

1. Transformation: Centuries ago, a young man named Augustine was led into his brand of heroism by hearing about the lives of others who had dared to do great things. Augustine was walking in the garden behind his house. Over the stone wall between his yard and his neighbors came the voice of someone reading the lives of the saints. (People used to read aloud in those days). Fascinated, Augustine listened to the stories of how brave young men and women had given their all for God during the Roman persecutions of Christianity. Suddenly, the thought dawned on him: ‘If these young men and women could do it, why can’t I?’ He not only raised this question but went on to become a holy man, one of the most brilliant minds in the history of the Catholic Church. 

• St. Augustine’s life invites us to ask ourselves, ‘If they could, why can’t I?’ because his life is a loud reminder that it is never too late to be who we might have been. A quote attributed to Nathan Morris reads, ‘Edit your life frequently and ruthlessly. It is your masterpiece after all.’

2. Fidelity: Kachin State, a Christian stronghold in Myanmar, witnessed daily protests against the military rule, with thousands of people taking to the streets in several cities following the coup on February 1, 2021. Priests, nuns, and Catholic laypeople had shown their solidarity with the people of Myanmar by taking part in anti-coup protests, holding placards that read ‘Justice and Democracy Will Prevail.’ As Myanmar security forces cracked down on street protests on February 28, Sister Ann Rosa Nu Tawng was determined to protect the people staging peaceful protests against the military coup. Undeterred by fear, Sister Nu Tawng knelt down before the security personnel, pleading with them not to shoot the unarmed civilians. She showed Christian courage when she pleaded with the security personnel, saying, ‘Just shoot me if you want to; the protesters have no weapons, and they are just showing their desire peacefully.’ Even when the security personnel ordered her to leave the place, she stressed, ‘I have prepared myself that I will give my life for the Church, for the people, and for the nation.’ 

• Sr. Nu Twang, the nun from the Sisters of St. Francis Xavier congregation in Myitkyina, the capital of Kachin State, showed the world that courage is not always standing up but kneeling down too. Her activism is an example that the power of true love is manifested in altruistic praxis, because we only have what we give. 

3. Commitment: Dr. Garth Alfred Taylor was born in Montego Bay, Jamaica, in 1944. He was a gifted eye surgeon, a family man, and above all else – a humanitarian. One of his favorite sayings was, ‘I came into this world with nothing, and all I’m going to leave with is my conscience.’ He gave life to his words. What made Garth’s impact so profound was that he didn’t just practice medicine – he lived it. For more than 20 years, he travelled around the world to developing nations, selflessly helping to save people’s sight. In his own words, ‘I found my Nirvana 23 years ago….by treating avoidable blindness. People don’t just get back their sight; they get back their self-esteem.’ Because he cared and had the courage to act, he blessed the lives of thousands of people. At his funeral, the church was so full that many people had to stand out on the street.

• Dr. Garth Alfred Taylor’s life is an invitation to discover ourselves in service like him. His life reminds us of Albert Einstein’s saying, ‘Only a life lived for others is a life worthwhile.’ His edifying life teaches us that serving God and needy humanity are not two different vocations. 

Reading about these exemplary lives, I am strongly convinced that we do not lack examples that can inspire us.

As we rejoice in the great multitude of saints who have gone before us, their inspiring lives are meant to become ours. If we can imitate their holiness successfully, we will surely partake of the heavenly glory that they are now privileged with.

Let us pray that we may ever be willing to be like them in goodness.

Fr. Dhinakaran Savariyar