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Homily for the Feast of Sts. Joachim and Anne

Fr. Ed Foley, Capuchin, is the vice-posulator for the Cause of Canonization for Blessed Solanus Casey.

Sainthood is a Journey of Hope

We are so delighted to have two new saints (SS. Paul VI and Romero) to the Church, and we are privileged now to invoke their prevailing intercessions.

Pope Saint Paul VI (1897-1978) became Pope of the Roman Catholic Church in 1963. He was Pope during the significant change, following the Second Vatican Council, Saint Paul VI, presented an inspirational value on evangelization to empower the community of believers and lean and lived on Christ’s mutual love of hope. Saint Paul VI encourages us in our witness to emulate Christ who proclaims the salvation of God’s never-ending gift of freedom. The tangible Good News here is the liberation from the oppression of the evil one and sin and to embrace God’s love because God is loved. St. Paul VI emphasized that evangelization summoned us to be reunited together anew with Christ, the Lord of freedom.

Journey of Hope Requires the Correct Attitude

The journey of hope requires turning our negative attitude into a positive attitude. Without the guidance of the Holy Spirit in our lives, our thoughts could turn into bad attitudes. We understand that a negative attitude is not merely an indication that God is not with us. Instead, it simply shows that God’s presence has not really transformed our interior understanding. Frequently we are dominated with self-interest and self-centeredness which might reduce our fruitful thinking. Therefore, we need to pray to the Holy Spirit to alert us to turn our negative attitude into a pleasant and mindful attitude. We might experience a bad attitude when we feel upset because someone asks for assistance or things are coming the way we wanted, and we turn them down without any clear reason. We became very concerned only about our problem—concerned about ourselves with anxiety that wears us down. In this case, we are definitely feeding on the pride of ambition...to place ourselves above others. This becomes a desire for self-recognition and one’s own importance. Since negative attitudes are not under the influence of the Holy Spirit, we are not supposed to allow them to mislead the activities of our graces. 

The Journey of Hope as a Walking Tabernacle

We are a walking tabernacle because God dwells in us and reveals his activity through us. As Christian, it reflects the event that involves all the baptized. A walking tabernacle is the saving work of Christ, our savior. As tangible, inspiring liturgical creatures, we are invited to participate in the liturgical activity to praise, honor, and give glory to our creator, God. St. Pope Paul VI, wrote in one of his encyclical Sacrosanctum Concilium that “Liturgical services are not private functions, but are celebrations of the Church, which [call for] “sacrament of unity, namely, the holy people united and ordered under their bishops” (SC, 26). Accordingly, the liturgical ritual is such that it engages the faith community’s participation; not an individual stage for a performance. It should be interactive and interpersonal even with its sacramental symbols in the church. Hence these symbols establish a touchable relationship with God and his people. So, together we become the walking tabernacle, the sacred space of Christ.