THE GOOD NEWS
ARCHBISHOP BELTRAN

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May 17, 2009

The Good News...

           ...Saints Yesterday and Today

We are usually more moved or impressed by very simple practices than by highly theological propositions or arguments. For example, there is a fine tradition in the Church to adopt a saint’s name at the time of Confirmation. The saint then becomes your chosen patron.  This is not just a routine practice  but a thoughtful choice made by  the individual. In order to do this, the Confirmation candidate must research, read and learn about the saints. Then the saint selected be-comes a model, an example and an inspiration.

Each year, principally during the Easter season, I confirm teenagers  in at least 50 of our parishes. The groups of candidates are anywhere from two or three to 103! The total number I confirm each year in the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City is usually slightly over 1,000. During the ceremony of Confirmation, each of these candidates must request the sacrament and tell me the name of the saint they have chosen as their patron or patroness. Sometimes I  ask the candidates why they have chosen that particular saint as their patron.  I am thrilled and amazed at the very thoughtful, faith-filled and enthusiastic response many of these candidates make.

For young people being confirmed, the choosing of a patron saint is much more than ceremonial. It is an opportunity for them to discover a person of faith with whom they can bond. They begin to recognize the strength and integrity of the saint.  They develop deep respect and realize that they too can live good and holy lives. Their explanations reveal a new sense of hope which often results right then and there in a joyful commitment to the Lord.

The selection of a patron saint at the time of Confirmation affords great spiritual benefits to those who do so thoughtfully and prayerfully.  In fact, all of us would benefit from such a practice. With the use of the Internet, we can find all kinds of information about the saints. Like the Confirmation candidates, let us all make friends with the great men and women of history. They are the ones who have attained the fullness of life by the grace of God. They are the ones who can inspire and en-courage us.  They can help and guide us.

In the early Church, people referred to each other as brothers and sisters and as saints of God. The Catechism of the Catholic Church defines the word “saint” as the holy one who leads a life in union with God through the grace of Christ and receives the reward of eternal life.  Therefore, the Church is called the “Communion of Saints.”

The fact that each of us has been created in the Image and Likeness of God for a special purpose is clear and certain. That purpose is to come to know, love and serve God on this earth so that someday we can be united with Him forever in heaven.  We were created by God precisely to become His saints. This is the whole reason for our existence. This is the purpose of our life on this earth.

Like the men and women of old who today are the saints of God in heaven, let us faithfully respond to Almighty God. Let us follow the example of the saints of yesterday so that we become saints today.