Bishop Solis: the saints give courage, inspiration

IC photo/Marie Mischel

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Bishop Oscar A. Solis and Patrick Lambert, principal of Judge Memorial Catholic High School, distribute communion during the All Saints Day Mass at the school.

SALT LAKE CITY — Bishop Oscar A. Solis, assisted by Deacon Dale Dillon, celebrated Mass on All Saints Day, Nov. 1, at Judge Memorial Catholic High School. Among the congregation were students, staff and faculty as well as those who had come to the school for the Grandparents’ Day celebration.

The Solemnity of All Saints, a holy day of obligation, honors “those men and women we consider as heroes in our Church,” the bishop said as he began his homily, adding that the saints “came from all walks of life” and “lived their faith in an exemplary way, with so much dedication, zeal, devotion and with joy.” The saints came from every nation and from every social and economic status, and were ordinary people “who lived an extraordinary way of life. They took their faith and relationship with God seriously. They were not perfect people; they were sinners like us, but they found a way to experience that transformation and conversion of their heart in order to embrace God to find their way back to God and to remain faithful until the end of their lives. … They walked the earth like us, experienced all the trials and tribulations, but persevered in their faith, in their hope, in their love for God and in their relationships with one another. The saints serve as an inspiration and a hope for all of us.”

It is not easy to live a Christian life, Bishop Solis noted, but “the saints we honor today give us the courage and inspiration that we can do it.”

At the close of the Mass, he urged those present to “be witnesses, an instrument of peace in our world. Bring joy to others.”  

After the Mass, Principal Patrick Lambert told the students that the bishop had challenged them to look at the lives of the saints, “and imitate their goodness. There are so many incredible examples that the saints have laid out for us of how to live our lives … Those were people that walked this earth and were able to leave an incredible legacy.”