Fulfilling requirements for sainthood
Matthew 5:1-12A
When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain, and
after he had sat own, his disciples came to him. He began to teach them, saying: “Blessed are
the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they who
mourn, for they will be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit
the land. Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they
will be satisfied. Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.
Blessed are the clean of heart, for they will see God. Blessed are the
peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. Blessed are they who are
persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you and utter every kind of
evil against you falsely because of me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will
be great in heaven.”
A couple of
weeks ago I gave a quiz on basic Catholic beliefs to our church staff. You’re
all thinking, “Man, I’m glad I don’t work for Fr. John – he gives tests!”
You’ll be happy to know that everyone passed the test. But I did have one
rather tough question, a real zinger. See if you know the answer. I asked, “Do
Catholics believe there are any saints on earth?” That is, do we Catholics
maintain that people who are alive on earth are saints? You might answer,
“Surely Catholics believe that really holy people are saints.” For instance, we
might say, “Mother Teresa was a walking saint!” Many would argue that Pope
Francis is a saint. Everyone thinks that Fr. John is a saint; just look how
holy he looks and acts! Or, how could we not say that tiny babies are saints?
But do you know what the right answer is? Catholics believe there are zero
saints on earth. Why? Well, because as long as we live, we can commit sins. As
you’re driving out of the church parking lot, someone cuts you off and you
curse at them. Sorry, you’re no saint. Therefore, do you know what is the first
requirement to become a saint? You have to be dead. Take a look at the saints
in the stained glass windows – St. Patrick, St. Gregory, St. Joseph – do you
know the one thing they all have in common? They are all DEAD! The only real
saint, therefore, is a dead saint, they cannot commit sins anymore; everyone
else is just a saint wanna-be, even Fr. John.
In the
gospel today, Jesus gives us further requirements to be a saint, that is, the
Beatitudes. Jesus lists at least 8 requirements – besides death – to become a
saint. He says, (1) “Blessed at the poor in spirit,” (2) “Blessed are they who
mourn, (3) “Blessed are the meek,” (4) “Blessed are they who hunger and thirst
for righteousness,” (5) “Blessed are the merciful,” (6) “Blessed are the clean
of heart,” (7) “Blessed are the peacemakers,” and (8) “Blessed are they who are
persecuted for the sake of righteousness.” In other words, if you want to apply
for the job of being a saint, your resume needs to have 9 qualifications: the 8
beatitudes and a death certificate.
By the way,
do you know what Scripture quotation is written on Bishop Taylor’s episcopal
coat of arms? It’s the third Beatitude, “Blessed are the meek for they shall
inherit the earth.” That’s on there because Bishop Taylor wants to check that
off the list because he wants to be a saint. Don’t tell him about the first
requirement! Do you know why Pope Francis has declared we celebrate a Year of
Mercy? It’s not just because he’s a really nice guy and wants everything to be
easy, and give everyone a pass for a year. It’s because that’s the 5th
Beatitude, “Blessed are the merciful.” You see, the bishop and the pope are
helping us prepare our resumes to be saints.
Now, let me
ask you another basic belief question. Today (Nov. 1) is All Saints Day, and
tomorrow (Nov. 2) is All Souls Day. Why don’t we just have one feast day and
simply call it “All Saints Day”? Because, after all, doesn’t everyone who dies
go straight to heaven? Let me ask that again: doesn’t everyone who dies go
straight to heaven? I ask that with utmost respect to those who have lost a
loved one, but our Catholic faith teaches most people go to purgatory first;
hopefully they go to purgatory. Why? You see, even though death is the FIRST
requirement to be a saint, it’s not the LAST requirement. The 8 Beatitudes are
not simply suggestions that we can take or leave; we have to master them, and
they have to master us. And any unfinished homework we didn’t do on earth, we
will complete in… Heaven, right? Wrong. Not heaven. We don’t get admission into
heaven until we finish our homework, and the lessons we do not learn on earth,
we will have to learn in purgatory. You might almost say Purgatory is like a
spiritual study hall. We cannot go to heaven until we learn our lessons of the
8 Beatitudes.
Folks, I
know all this talk about death and purgatory, saints and sinners can be rather
sobering, and maybe even a little scary. You know, I’ve counseled teens in my
office who were terrified at the thought of the afterlife. They were scared as
much of heaven as they were of hell, the whole concept of eternity frightened
them! So, let me bring us back to our most basic belief. The Good News of Jesus
Christ is “Good” because it is one of love, joy, peace and grace. In the end –
however God will sort things out – everything will not only be perfect, but it
will be “peachy” as a friend of mine likes to say. I ask him, “Hey, Philip, how
are you doing?” He always answers, “Just peachy!” In the end, everything will
be “just peachy” – that is basic Catholic belief.
So, let me
give you the test I have the staff. Do Catholics believe there are any saints
on walking on earth? The answer is “no.” Why? Well, as long as you’re on earth,
you can still commit sins. And saints cannot sin. Second, what’s the first
requirement to become a saint? You have to be dead. And what’s the difference
between All Saints Day and All Souls Day? The saints are in heaven, and the
poor souls are in purgatory still doing their homework, learning the 8
Beatitudes. So now, would you please stop telling everyone that Fr. John is a
saint?!
Praised be
Jesus Christ!
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