This week, Father Michael and I will be talking about Angels and Saints in Episode 4 of our Advent Series. Our journey towards renewal re-energizes us again as we strive for holiness - becoming the best version of ourselves. And that's where the angels and saints come in.
I thank my guardian angel - my constant companion - every morning for her protection, and for the strength and guidance she gives me each day. I ask her to nudge me, pull me, tug me - whatever she needs to do - to keep me on the right path. I am so grateful for her but as St Augustine said 'Too late have I loved thee.' I write my books with the hope that my grandchildren will know about their guardian angels - something I never taught their parents.
And the saints are our models of a holy life. They were not born saints. They also had to work to stay on that path of holiness. But each of them has a story to tell and a virtue worth discovering. We are all called to be saints and those that went before us are ever vigilant to intercede on our behalf.
So this week as we approach that most holy Christmas Day, I imagine that I am in the fields with the shepherds listening to the choirs of angels singing alleluia! I see the star shining in the sky and my heart fills with joy! The world - and all of us in it - will begin again. We will turn our eyes toward Jesus and move forward step by step, always closer to Him, with our angels at our side and the saints urging us forward.
Merry Christmas! Jesus Christ is born!
