Occasion – be joyful and glad in the call to holiness in today's world

The Church needs saints, not superheroes. From the very beginning of his election to the See of Peter, Pope Francis has often spoken of the holiness of the Church, and he has outlined not only what characterizes being a saint, but also what a saint is not. On October 2, 2013, during a general audience, he emphasized that the Church "offers everyone the possibility of walking the path of holiness, which is the Christian path" towards an encounter with Jesus. The Church, he observed, "does not reject sinners"; it welcomes them and invites them to allow themselves to be "infected by the holiness of God." Francis warns against a static and artificial imagery associated with saints, because holiness is something much deeper, fueled by gestures, "many small steps," that everyone can take wherever they live and work. "Every state of life leads to holiness," he affirms. For Pope Francis, "there is no saint without a past, nor a sinner without a future." Holiness cannot be bought or sold, but it is a gift to be received. "Holiness is a path towards the presence of God, and another cannot do it in my name. It is a path that one must take with courage, with hope, and with the readiness to receive this grace."