Achieving Sainthood through Reading
Aim Higher . That is the one piece of advice for the pilgrim's return journey to the Catholic faith. In my adolescence, I found the demands of the church impossible to meet. Instead of hearing Aim Higher , I heard Be Perfect or Don't Bother . Go Big or Go Home. The reasons for abandoning the faith (and they are legion!) differ for us all. Not every other wayward Catholic was so panicked by the enormity of God's orders. Many just drifted away or became complacent. Or perhaps grew distracted by modern trappings. The old storylines are coloured by apathy, fear, disenchantment. Figure of Saint Francis of Assisi, Franciscan Renewal Center Paradise Valley, Arizona Public Domain The more dynamic twists in the great mystery are also numerous. How do followers find their way back? How do followers become saints? What tools does God use to make saints out of heathens? As I update my sophomore-level education of the Catholic traditions and the Catechism, I've taken to my Kind