The Canonization of St. Josemaría Escrivá

Msgr. Escrivá de Balaguer “democratized” holiness, something the Pope has recommended to the whole Church. But how can ordinary men and women imitate a priest whose way of life is so different from the kinds of concerns they have to deal with?

St. Josemaría insisted over and over that he was not the model, that the only Model is Christ. And the only one who models is the Holy Spirit, he used to add. In this instance, and in every canonization, the Church is inviting us not so much to imitate the personality of a particular saint, but to learn from him how to imitate Christ. St. Josemaría, a secular priest who loved the world and its secularity, invites us to imitate Christ everywhere and all the time—in the circumstances of ordinary life.

I am convinced that the figure of St. Josemaría will always be timely. The best answer to your question is St. Peter’s Square during the canonization—several hundred thousand ordinary people who never make headlines, who try every month to make ends meet, who aspire to happiness by getting closer to Christ every day. They’ve come to Rome to thank God for the gift of this saint who has helped them discover the grandeur of their Christian vocation.

Juan Vicente Boo, in ABC, Madrid