Novena to Saint Ann - Day 4, Friday, July 21, 2006

The focus of the novena this evening: Saint Ann, Model of Holiness. The prayer form this evening was Taize prayer, so reflective, so beautiful. Building on last night's reflection on the Church, Father shared a beautiful reflection on holiness and how the church is filled with saints and sinners but in most cases they are not polar opposites but rather two different tendencies that both live within each of us. The goal of our life's journey is manage our sinfulness and grow in holiness. Drawing our attention to a particular panel of stained glass windows, Father highlighted the extraordinarily human lives of some great saints of "The Americas" and invited us to seek deeper holiness by getting to know better the lives of holy people as well as canonized saints. At the conclusion of Taize prayer, there was an opportunity to shed some of our sinfulness and gain grace through the Sacrament of Reconciliation.

Another graced evening on the journey ...