It is interesting how this weekly article has changed over the months. It began with my attempting to share the vision of our Patriarchal Synod for all parishes – that is revitalize and reenergize Ukrainian Greek Catholic parishes. The Synod has asked each Eparchy and parish to look at what it means to be vibrant and relevant in our modern world. It seems that this is the task of all Catholic Churches. In the West there is the great effort of Evangelization – that is the Church being a vibrant force in the world for good by sharing the Good News.

It is my contention that before we can spread the Good News of Christ, we have to be engaged in becoming holy. Of course I think this, unfortunately, frightens most people since they don’t believe they have it within them to become saints. And yet if we are baptized into Christ, if we say we are Christians, we have been called to be saints.

The first big question is: What does it mean to be a saint? To be a saint can’t mean being perfect since there is only one Who is perfect, God! It can’t mean being without sin since there is only One Who is without sin, God!

The second big question is: What is holiness?

One interesting definition for holiness is the state of being whole, that is really understanding who you truly are in God’s creation. As a human being, therefore, it means being aware that a part of you is spiritual and a part of you is material! It means that you must support the development of both dimensions of your life. Being called to holiness means being called to develop the spiritual dimensions of your life.

All religions claim that it is their purpose to help people focus on the development of their spiritual nature. Christianity offers us a model for our spiritual development, namely Jesus Christ Who we believe is none-other-than God incarnate.