By M K George
Rome, May 17, 2022: St. Peter’s square is back to its festive mood. After almost three years of desolate space and token ceremonies, the square, which according to official counts can hold up to 300,000 people, had more than 50,000 people participating in the canonization ceremonies in the Vatican on May 15.
With ten saints from five countries, the mood of the people resounded in the happy howls when the names of the saints were read out. The South Indian, Italian and French presence were conspicuous by the presence of people from the respective countries.
There are more than 10,000 officially declared saints in the Catholic Church. Some of their histories are mixed with myths and have been challenged. However, the Catholic Church continues to raise men and women of saintly nature to be official saints, the latest of which was the ceremony last Sunday.
Some of the recent efforts to regularize the process of canonisation were the one by Pope Paul VI in 1969, the revision of the process in 1983 and the efforts by Pope John Paul II. It is reported that the latter canonized more saints than the popes from the previous 500 years combined.
Pope Francis too has been rather generous in canonizing saints. From 2013 when he assumed the head of the Catholic Church, Pope Francis has canonized 909 saints, which included 813 martyrs of Otranto as a group. Thus, he has already superseded John Paul II.
Challenging the concept of Sainthood
What is remarkable about the exercise is the challenge to the very concept of sainthood. Over the years, saints had become models who are for most mortals unapproachable except for mediation and intercession. Holiness seemed reserved for a few.
Pope Francis is doing a great service by making saintliness and holiness down to earth and accessible to ordinary men and women. In his recent canonization ceremony he said, ‘At times by over-emphasizing our efforts to do good works, we have created an ideal of holiness excessively based on ourselves, our personal heroics, our capacity for renunciation, our readiness of self-sacrifice in achieving a reward. In this way, we have turned holiness into an unattainable goal. We have separated it from everyday life, instead of looking for it and embracing it in our daily routines.”
The relevant reminder from Pope Francis remains this: “Holiness does not consist of a few heroic gestures, but of many small acts of daily love…Be holy by laboring with integrity and skill in the service of your brothers and sisters.”
Saintliness has become more reachable and more down to earth. Everyone is called to be a saint, much like the days of early Christianity where every believer was called a saint.
An invitation
The huge crowds that gathered in the St. Peter’s Square on May 15 heard a call to saintliness for every believer. You become a saint by being loved and loving. God has a dream for each one of the saints and each one of us, living our dreams become saints.
Pope Francis’ call is so simple, appealing and solidly challenging.
“Are you called to the consecrated life? Be holy by living out your commitment with joy. Are you married? Be holy by loving and caring for your husband or wife, as Christ does for the Church. Do you work for a living? Be holy by laboring with integrity and skill in the service of your brothers and sisters. Are you a parent or grandparent? Be holy by patiently teaching the little ones how to follow Jesus. Are you in a position of authority? Be holy by working for the common good and renouncing personal gain (Gaudete et Exsultate, 14).”
The ceremonies in the St. Peter’ Square, be it the simple Angelus time every Sunday, or the grand ceremony of canonization, have achieved a quality of organization, piety and spirituality which is unique in the world. The silence, listening, adulation, respect and orderliness among the vast crowds are signs of a holiness that we are called to live. It is a truly spiritual experience to be at the square, just watching the joy, tears and excitement of thousands.
We hope the world listens.
(Rome-based Father M K George looks after the affairs of the South Asian region of the Society of Jesus.)