Way to Holiness

1. IN GOOD COMPANY:
FIVE LIFE HACKS TO
HEAVEN
FELICIANO T. MUNGCAL, III, LPT |SEPTEMBER

2. OBJECTIVES:
• TO ILLUSTRATE THAT THE SAINTS ARE ORDINARY PEOPLE
WHO HAVE RESPONDED TO GOD’S LOVE BY ALLOWING HIM
TO USE, THEM AS INSTRUMENTS OF HIS GRACE AND LOVE;
• TO HIGHLIGHT THAT THE SAINTS CAN ACCOMPANY THE
YOUNG PEOPLE IN THEIR JOURNEY TO HOLINESS;
• TO CHALLENGE THE PARTICIPANTS TO RECOGNIZE AND
JOURNEY WITH THEIR OWN PERSONAL SAINT;

3. WRONG IDEAS ABOUT
HOLINESS

4. WRONG IDEAS ABOUT HOLINESS
IT IS ONLY FOR SOME
CHOSEN FEW. IT IS RARE
AND DIFFICULT, IF NOT
ALTOGETHER IMPOSSIBLE,
FOR ORDINARY PEOPLE.

5. CORRECT IDEAS ABOUT HOLINESSHOLINESS
IS OFFERED TO ALL THE
BAPTIZED.
BAPTISM IS A TRUE ENTRANCE
INTO
THE HOLINESS OF GOD
THROUGH
INCORPORATION INTO CHRIST
AND
THE INDWELLING OF HIS SPIRIT.
BY
HOLINESS WE AVOID A LIFE OF
MEDIOCRITY, THAT IS,
REDUCING
CHRISTIANITY TO

6. WRONG IDEAS ABOUT HOLINESS
ONE NEEDS TO BE A PRIEST
OR A NUN WHO WILL HAVE
THE TIME AND TRAINING
TO BE HOLY.

7. CORRECT IDEAS ABOUT HOLINESS
HOLINESS IS A
CALL AND A TASK
FOR EVERY
CHRISTIAN, NOT
JUST FOR A
CHOSEN FEW.

8. WRONG IDEAS ABOUT HOLINESS
IT IS CORNY.
ONE HAS TO BE GOODY-
GOODY, WITH ONE’S FEET ON
THE GROUND.

9. WRONG IDEAS ABOUT HOLINESS
HOLINESS IS OF THE PAST BUT
NOT FOR US IN THE MODERN
WORLD.

10. CORRECT IDEAS ABOUT HOLINESS
THE WAYS OF HOLINESS ARE
MANY,
ACCORDING TO THE VOCATION
AND TEMPERAMENT OF EACH
INDIVIDUAL.

11. WRONG IDEAS ABOUT HOLINESS
HOLINESS CAN WAIT LATER ON,
PERHAPS WHEN ONE IS
ALREADY OLD AND HAS NO
MORE CARES ABOUT THE
WORLD.

12. WRONG IDEAS ABOUT HOLINESS
HOLINESS IS NOT REALLY THAT
IMPORTANT. IT IS GOOD IF ONE
HAS IT, BUT REALLY ONE CAN
GET QUITE WELL WITHOUT IT.

13. CORRECT IDEAS ABOUT HOLINESS
THERE IS A NEED FOR
A GENUINE TRAINING
IN HOLINESS.

14. WRONG IDEAS ABOUT HOLINESS
TO BE HOLY IS TO BE WITHOUT
SIN. OUR LIFE IS ALREADY
TAINTED BY SIN. WE HAVE NO
CHANCE FOR IT.

15. WRONG IDEAS ABOUT HOLINESS
ONE CAN BE OVER HOLY.
BAKA LUMAGPAS KA SA
LANGIT.

16. CORRECT IDEAS ABOUT HOLINESS
TO BE HOLY IS THE MOST
IMPORTANT THING IN LIFE.
THERE IS ONLY ONE
SADNESS IN LIFE, THAT IS,
NOT TO BE HOLY!

17. ERGO, WHAT IS HOLINESS?

18. ERGO, WHAT IS HOLINESS?
HOLINESS IS THE HIGH
STANDARD OF
ORDINARY CHRISTIAN
LIVING.
(NOVO MILLENNIO INUENTE, 31)

19. ERGO, WHAT IS HOLINESS?
HOLINESS IS THE
PERFECTION OF
CHARITY.

20. ERGO, WHAT IS HOLINESS?
HOLINESS IS DOING
THE WILL OF GOD.

21. ERGO, WHAT IS HOLINESS?
HOLINESS IS ONENESS
WITH GOD.

22. ERGO, WHAT IS HOLINESS?
HOLINESS IS CLOSER
FOLLOWING OF JESUS.

23. SAINTS AND THE WAY TO
HOLINESS

24. “…I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Holy Catholic
Church,
the communion of the saints, the forgiveness of
sins,
the resurrection of the body, and the life

25. INTRODUCTION TO SAINTS
WE ARE SURROUNDED BY SAINTS EVERYDAY.
• IN PARISHES, HOSPITALS, SCHOOLS – AND EVEN STREETS IN OUR
NEIGHBOURHOOD.
• THOUGH RANDOM NAMES, BUT WE KNOW THAT THESE NAMES HAVE
GREAT SIGNIFICANCE – AFFILIATION, PROFESSION AND THE LIKE.
THEY PLAY ACTIVE ROLE IN OUR CHURCH -- EVEN THOUGH THEY ARE
NO LONGER ON EARTH.
• WHEN HOLINESS SEEMS UNATTAINABLE IN OUR LIVES, THEIR STORIES
CONTINUE TO INSPIRE AND ENCOURAGE US.
• THEY ARE ORDINARY PEOPLE, JUST LIKE US, WHO CHOSE TO BE FULLY
FOR CHRIST, AND BECAUSE OF THIS, THEY HAVE SUCCEEDED IN THEIR
JOURNEY TO HOLINESS.

26. WHAT IS A SAINT?

27. WHAT IS A SAINT?
SAINTS ARE “EXCEPTIONAL EXAMPLES OF INDIVIDUALS
WHO HAVE HEROICALLY LIVED OUT THEIR FAITH IN
CHRIST TO THE FULLEST,” (CLASSEN, 2012)
“BY CANONIZING SOME OF THE FAITHFUL, [THAT IS], BY
SOLEMNLY PROCLAIMING THAT THEY PRACTICED HEROIC
VIRTUE AND LIVED IN FIDELITY TO GOD'S GRACE, THE
CHURCH RECOGNIZES THE POWER OF THE SPIRIT OF
HOLINESS WITHIN HER AND SUSTAINS THE HOPE OF
BELIEVERS BY PROPOSING THE SAINTS TO THEM AS
MODELS AND INTERCESSORS…” (CATECHISM OF THE
CATHOLIC CHURCH, 828)

28. TWO PRIMARY CHARACTERISTICS OF A
SAINT?
A PERSON WHO WAS
VICTORIOUS OVER THE
STRUGGLE WITH SIN IN
HIS/HER LIFE.

29. TWO PRIMARY CHARACTERISTICS OF A
SAINT?
AN INDIVIDUAL WHO
HAS DISPLAYED
HEROIC VIRTUE.

32. #HOLINESSGOALS

33. #HOLINESSGOALSGOD’S LOVE IS LIKE PURE WHITE
LIGHT THAT IS PASSED THROUGH
THE PRISM OF HUMANITY AND
THEN SHONE WITH THE BEAUTY OF
A RAINBOW.
WITH THEIR UNIQUE TRAITS AND
PERSONALITIES, THE SAINTS
REFLECT GOD’S GLORY IN
DIFFERENT WAYS.
NO MATTER WHAT YOUR REALITY
IS RIGHT NOW, THERE IS ALWAYS A
SAINT YOU CAN RELATE TO. THERE
IS ALWAYS A SAINT THAT WILL BE
OUR EXAMPLE IN OUR JOURNEY TO
HOLINESS.

34. #FRIENDSINHEAVEN

35. #FRIENDSINHEAVEN
OUR FRIENDS AND FAMILY TO
PRAY FOR US, THE SAINTS ARE
CONSIDERED OUR GREATEST
INTERCESSORS SINCE THEY ARE
WITH CHRIST IN HEAVEN.
"BEING MORE CLOSELY UNITED TO
CHRIST, THOSE WHO DWELL IN
HEAVEN FIX THE WHOLE CHURCH
MORE FIRMLY IN HOLINESS.... THEY
DO NOT CEASE TO INTERCEDE
WITH THE FATHER FOR US, AS
THEY PROFFER THE MERITS WHICH
THEY ACQUIRED ON EARTH
THROUGH THE ONE MEDIATOR
BETWEEN GOD AND MEN, CHRIST
JESUS... SO BY THEIR FRATERNAL
CONCERN IS OUR WEAKNESS

36. #CALLEDTOHOLINESS

37. #CALLEDTOHOLINESS
THE CHURCH CANONIZES SAINTS
AS MODELS OF HEROIC VIRTUE
AND INTERCESSORS. BUT WE ARE
ALSO CALLED TO HOLINESS.
THE “COMMUNION OF SAINTS”
THAT WE PROFESS IN THE
APOSTLE’S CREED ACTUALLY
REFERS TO THE WHOLE CHURCH,
GOD’S HOLY PEOPLE.
“THE COMMUNION OF SAINTS IS
THE CHURCH” (CCC 946). WE, AS
PART OF GOD’S FAMILY, ARE
CALLED TO BE SAINTS.

38. FIVE LIFE HACKS TO HEAVEN

39. SANCTIFYING GRACE
IT REFERS TO A STABLE AND SUPERNATURAL DISPOSITION THAT
PERFECTS THE SOUL ITSELF TO ENABLE IT TO LIVE WITH GOD, TO ACT BY
HIS LOVE. (CCC 2000)
THE FIRST STEP TO BECOME A SAINT IS TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT WE CAN
NEVER DO IT BY OURSELVES. WITH HUMILITY, WE MUST ACCEPT GOD’S
SANCTIFYING GRACE. IT IS A FREE GIFT FROM THE LORD THAT WE MUST
ALSO FREELY ACCEPT. IT IS THROUGH THIS GRACE THAT GOD MAKES US
HOLY.
“WHAT GOD COMMANDS, WHICH MAY SEEM HUMANLY IMPOSSIBLE, HE
GIVES US THE MEANS TO CARRY OUT.” –S T. JOHN PAUL THE GREAT.
“IN ONE WORD, I DESIRE TO BE A SAINT, BUT I KNOW THAT I AM
POWERLESS, AND I IMPLORE THEE, O MY GOD, TO BE THYSELF MY
SANCTITY.” –ST. THERESE OF THE CHILD JESUS

40. ACCEPTS GOD’S WILL
BEING A SAINT IS SIMPLY ABOUT DOING GOD’S WILL AS HE WILLS IT,
WHEN HE WILLS IT, BECAUSE HE WILLS IT. WE MUST HAVE A
COMPLETE TRUST IN THE LOVING PLAN OF GOD.
WE MUST FULLY PARTICIPATE IN IT REGARDLESS OF HOW IT
EFFECTS OUR CURRENT REALITIES. WE SHOULD TRUST THAT IT IS
DONE IN HIS PERFECT TIME AND FOR HIS PERFECT REASON.
A BEAUTIFUL EXAMPLE IS ST. JOHN PAUL THE GREAT’S FATHER.
THREE YEARS AFTER THE DEATH OF HIS WIFE, HE BURIED HIS SON
EDMUND CRYING OUT REPEATEDLY, “THY WILL BE DONE!” IN JOYS
AND VICTORIES, BUT MOST ESPECIALLY IN PAINS AND SUFFERINGS,
TO ACCEPT GOD’S WILL IS TO TRUST THAT GOD IS KIND AND
LOVING ESPECIALLY WHEN IT DOESN’T SEEM LIKE IT.

41. INSPIRED AND INSPIRING
SAINTS WERE INSPIRED BY THE PEOPLE AROUND THEM.
THEY WERE INSPIRED BY OTHER SAINTS AND INSPIRED BY
THE EVERYDAY EXAMPLES OF HOLINESS THAT THEY
WITNESSED.
AS A RESULT THEY LIVED OUT LIVES O HOLINESS AND
BECAME AN INSPIRATION TO THE PEOPLE AROUND THEM.
WE ARE CALLED TO DO THE SAME, LIVE A LIFE IN THE
LIGHT, A LIFE OF AUTHENTIC JOY AND HOLINESS.
IN DOING SO, WE TOO CAN INSPIRE THE PEOPLE AROUND
US TO DO THE SAME.

42. NO MEANS NO, YES MEANS YES
WHEN WE WANT TO BE HOLY, WE MUST BE COMMITTED TO SAYING
NO REPEATEDLY TO ANYTHING THAT IS NOT OF GOD AND WE
MUST SAY YES REPEATEDLY TO EVERYTHING THAT IS OF GOD.
LET YOUR NO MEAN NO AND YOUR YES MEAN YES.
THIS DOES NOT MEAN THAT WE WILL NEVER FAIL, IT IS AN
EVERYDAY STRUGGLE, AN EVERYDAY BATTLE. LET US NEVER WAVER
AND ALWAYS ENTRUST OURSELVES TO THE LORD’S LOVE AND
MERCY EACH AND EVERY DAY.
AS ST. JOSEMARIE ESCRIVA SAID, “DON'T FORGET THAT THE SAINT
IS NOT THE PERSON WHO NEVER FALLS, BUT RATHER THE ONE WHO
NEVER FAILS TO GET UP AGAIN, HUMBLY AND WITH A HOLY
STUBBORNNESS.”

43. TRULY ONESELF
READING THE LIVES OF THE SAINTS CAN BE INSPIRING FOR SOME
BUT CAN ALSO BE DISCOURAGING FOR OTHERS.
SOMETIMES PEOPLE THINK THEY HAVE TO FOLLOW THE LIVES OF
THE SAINTS EXACTLY, IN ORDER TO BE HOLY. SOMETIMES THEY
THINK YOU HAVE TO SPEND ALL DAY IN CONTEMPLATIVE PRAYER
OR EVEN BECOME PRIESTS OR NUNS TO BE HOLY.
BUT, IF YOU LOOK CLOSELY, YOU WILL FIND THAT THAT IS NOT THE
CASE. THE SAINTS JUST STRIVED TO BE THEMSELVES. THEY STRIVED
TO FULLY LIVE THE LIFE THAT GOD CALLED THEM TO LIVE.

44. CONCLUSION
SAINT [YOUR NAME]

45. CONCLUSION
THERE ARE TWO WAYS TO LOOK
AT A CHALLENGE [TO BECOME
HOLY]:
1. IT IS POSSIBLE, BUT DIFFICULT.
2. IT IS DIFFICULT, BUT POSSIBLE.

46. CONCLUSION
IN THE WORDS OF ST. JOHN PAUL THE GREAT,
“YOUNG PEOPLE, DO NOT BE AFRAID TO BE
HOLY!”
“THE MOST BEAUTIFUL AND STIRRING
ADVENTURE THAT CAN HAPPEN TO YOU IS
THE PERSONAL MEETING WITH JESUS, WHO IS
THE ONLY ONE WHO GIVES REAL MEANING TO
OUR LIVES.”

47. DISCUSSION STARTERS
1. SHARE YOUR FAVORITE SAINT OR THE
SAINT THAT HAS BEEN ACCOMPANYING
YOU IN YOUR JOURNEY.
2. WHAT IS THEIR STORY? HOW DOES IT
RELATE TO YOUR JOURNEY TO HOLINESS?