Evening Praise: Feast of All Saints 

It is the feast of All Saints.  
I remember coming home in the 70s and 80s and into the 90s when this chapel was so filled that we younger ones had to sit in the seats in the aisle. Sometimes when I come to chapel for prayers and see all  these empty places, I imagine those seats occupied by some of those sisters who have gone before  us…saints that are part of that multitude of witnesses the book of Revelation describes. Just since I  entered the community in 1960, there have been 472 sisters who have gone to join that multitude. 

These were saints who lived the beatitudes in their times, sometimes brilliantly and sometimes not so  great. I am sure that most of you can remember many of them. Today we can call on them and their  example to help us learn to live the beatitudes in our times. 

In his apostolic exhortation, Gaudete et Exaltate, Pope Francis (also a member of that multitude)  describes what that life can look like in our times.  

Blessed are the poor in spirit. We are asked to walk with the poor. That doesn’t just mean contributing  to overcome their financial situation, although it can include that. We need to set our hearts, not on  wealth rather than poverty, or good health rather than bad, a long life rather than a short one. We are called to imitate Jesus, who though rich, made himself poor. 

Being poor of heart: that is holiness. Can you think of sisters you have known who would be poor of  heart? 

Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. We live in a world that from the beginning has  been a place of conflict, disputes and enmity on all sides, where we pigeonhole others on the basis of  their ideas, their customs and even their way of speaking or dressing. In this world, Jesus calls us to be  meek. If we regard the faults and limitations of others with tenderness and meekness, we can actually  help them and stop wasting our energy on useless complaining.  

Reacting with meekness and humility: that is holiness. Which sisters have you known who knew how to  react with meekness and humility?  

Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. 

The world tells us just the opposite: entertainment, pleasure, diversion and escape make for the good  life. But a person who sees things as they truly are and sympathizes with pain and sorrow is capable of  touching life’s depths and finding authentic happiness. They discover the meaning of life by coming to  the aid of those who suffer, understanding their anguish and bringing relief. 

Knowing how to mourn with others: that is holiness. Which sisters come to your mind?

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. 

Jesus offers a justice other than that of the world, so often marred by petty interests and manipulated in  various ways. True justice comes about in people’s lives when they themselves are just in their  decisions; it is expressed in their pursuit of justice for the poor and the weak. 

Hungering and thirsting for righteousness: that is holiness. Which sisters do you know whose lives were  marked by this hunger and thirst?  

Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy. 

Mercy has two aspects. It involves giving, helping and serving others, but it also includes forgiveness and  understanding. Giving and forgiving means reproducing in our lives some small measure of God’s  perfection, which give and forgives abundantly. 

Seeing and acting with mercy: that is holiness. Who comes to your mind as we ponder this beatitude?  Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.  

A heart capable of love admits nothing that might harm, weaken or endanger love. A heart that loves God  and neighbor, genuinely and not merely in words, is a pure heart; it can see God.  

Keeping a heart free of all that tarnishes love: that is holiness. Who are the loving sisters you have  known?  

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. 

This beatitude makes us think of the many endless situations of war in our world. Yet we ourselves are  often a cause of conflict or at least of misunderstanding. Peacemakers truly “make” peace; they build  peace and friendship in society. Every believer is called to work for peace.  

It is not easy to make this evangelical peace, which excludes no one but embraces those who are a bit  odd, troublesome or difficult, demanding, different, beaten down by life or simply uninterested. It is hard  work; it calls for great openness of mind and heart. We need to be artisans of peace, for building peace is  a craft that demands serenity, creativity, sensitivity and skill. 

Sowing peace all around us: that is holiness. Who are the peacemakers who have touched your life? Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  

Jesus warns us that the path he proposes goes against the flow, even making us challenge society by the  way we live and, as a result, becoming a nuisance. He reminds us how many people have been, and still  are, persecuted simply because they struggle for justice, because they take seriously their commitment  

to God and to others. Whatever weariness and pain we may experience in living the commandment of  love and following the way of justice, the cross remains the source of our growth and sanctification.  

Accepting daily the path of the Gospel, even though it may cause us problems: that is holiness.  

Can you sense the presence of that multitude of saints who have blessed our lives in this community?  Let us rejoice together with them as we affirm our commitment to live the beatitudes. Let us call on them  to strengthen us as we strive to follow their example.  

 (This homily quotes extensively from Gaudete et Exaltate, 67-94)