You are Citizens like all the Saints
Today, we celebrate Saint John Paul II, a saint of our time. Some of us had the opportunity to be close to him, and we felt the warmth of his holiness. John Paul was a Pope fitting in his time. He was a true missionary who moved to all the world’s peripheries. He proclaimed nothing but hope and peace. He made everyone feel they belonged to this body: the Church. They were no longer foreigners but citizens, and it is not sometimes easy to know the rights and joys of citizenship until you become a foreigner somewhere. In foreign countries, things are sometimes different. The Jews shared their experience when they were in Babylon. They were very far from the temple and the presence of the Lord in his Holy city, Jerusalem. They could not imagine singing the Lord’s song on foreign soil. (Psalm 136)
Today, St. Paul tells us that we should not feel like foreigners while in church. We are full members. It doesn’t matter where you are or who you are. We are all full members and citizens of this body. Coming from Uganda, I have been graced to join my brothers of the Congregation of the Blessed Sacrament in the United States and other places of the world. Despite being foreign to the nation and sometimes to the language and other things, I have always felt at home with my community. I have never felt left out by anyone. I have always been welcomed by the faithful in our parishes and felt the warmth of their peace. I have felt like a citizen. I have enjoyed all the rights of God’s children, especially the sacraments. Dear friends, let us now, as citizens, enjoy whatever the Church presents for our sanctification and always live in communion with others.
Let us pray:
Eternal Father, we thank you for the gift of Saint John Paul II. His papacy brought life to the Church. He made us enjoy being your body as we celebrate him today. We pray that those who are losing hope may regain the strength to worship you, the one true God, and live happily with others. We ask this through Christ our Lord.
