Holiness of Life

Holiness of life; how does this phrase sound to you? A cliché? A never-realistic goal? A special reserve for the monks and nuns? On this day, after my dad’s passing yesterday, I draw from today’s Gospel to share some points about holiness.
 
During my early days in spiritual life, I used to identify holiness with only the monks and nuns wearing impeccable and solemn-looking cassocks or habits. This was the imagery from popular literature on holiness. I was wrong.

Holiness is for everyone. It’s indeed a universal call. The Church’s official documents and the Bible make this point explicitly. Nonetheless, understanding what it means to be holy can be foggy many times.
 
Sometimes, we suppose it’s in keeping the disciplines of our faith. We suppose it is about the following requirements of the law, like the rich young man in the Bible (Mark 10:17-27). We fail to see that morality is a necessary first step to holiness, but not the end. Holiness is a journey towards something, towards somebody; we detach from what takes our gaze from the Lord and attach to the Lord and the Lord’s ways. 

Holiness is Immersion in God’s Life

Only God is holy, just like only God is good. Holiness belongs to God. Therefore, holiness is a journey to God, who is holiness itself. It is immersion in God’s life. It is encountering, witnessing as well as living God’s saving grace. 

God is holy (see Leviticus 11:44-45; 1 Peter 1:16). To be holy is to be in God. To grow in holiness is to walk in the rings of the divine circle. It requires leaving everything behind and following the Lord, who is all that the soul is searching for (see Mark 10:28-30). In doing so, we are detaching ourselves from all that stands in the way of the Lord. 

Fortunately, just like we need a vehicle to get to the movies, we need the grace of God to become more intimate in the heart of holiness. We need the grace of God to be able to leave our comfort zone to give ourselves to the Lord in service. We realize that in doing so, we become truly free to serve the Lord and love and serve one another in a way that is pleasing to the Lord. In it, we find the holiness of life.

In effect, if we want to be holy and grow in holiness, let’s avail ourselves of the opportunity to come closer to God. All our activities, relationships, and services for the common good should draw us closer to God. It is then that all we do is sanctified. Walking in the footsteps of the Lord wherever we are and in whatever we think and do, all by God’s grace, is living a holy life. 

A Testimony of a Holy Death

On this note of the invitation to live in God, I announce the passing of Alphaeus Emelu (my dad). The Lord called him home yesterday around 3:30 am GMT. He was a strong, faithful father. He passed on after saying his usual twenty decades of the Rosary, Chaplet of Divine Mercy, and devotion to the Sacred Heart from 2:00 am-3:30 am. Finally, he went back to bed, and God said, “Son, it is time to come home.” He died holding hands with loved ones. 

It came as a surprise, but a holy surprise. I am beginning to appreciate more and more the promise of Mother Mary about a holy death if we are devout in saying the Rosary and the promise of Jesus about death on the wings of angels for those who say the devotion to the Sacred Heart. 

My dad was our hero in faith and action. He asked us for one thing, to continue his tradition of praying the twenty decades of the Rosary every day until his burial. I will inform you of the date for his funeral, which will likely not be this month. Please keep my family in your prayers. 

I pray for the grace of holiness of life and a holy death when the Lord calls us home. Amen. 

God love you. God bless you.

[Tuesday Week 8 Ordinary Time of the Year: Readings 1 Peter 1: 10-16; Mark 10:28-33]