By Bo Sanchez
“Bo, what’s your secret for being holy?”
Yeow! Questions like those make my stomach do triple somersault inside. But instead of screaming till my lungs explode, “I’m not holy!” I answer their question with great solemnity.
“I suffer for Jesus as much as I can,” Their eyes dilate, their jaws drop, and their bodies freeze. I go on, “I sleep only two hours a day so I can pray more; I put broken glass inside my shoes, that through the pain of each step, I mortify for the sins of the world; and I only eat a bitter food so that I will hunger more for the pleasures of heaven...”
“Oh, Bo...” Some in the audience are now almost on bended knees, ready to venerate this saint in front of them. “And my best secret for holiness is...” and I pause for greater effect, my eyes scanning the hushed crowd, all of them on tiptoe, waiting for my sacred pronouncement, “...is knowing how to crack jokes, like this entire conversation we’re having.”
Secret? There aren’t any, because loving God is simple. Oh yes, as we grow older, we start searching for more complex theories that will fulfill our lives and give us peace of mind. So we start reading this famous philosopher; this modern thinker; that New Age stuff...
Only to find out that in the end, Lola was right, after all. Remember her? She said to you...
Be a good child.
Say “I’m sorry” when you’re wrong.
Return things that don’t belong to you.
Say your prayers daily, when you wake up and before you sleep.
Help the poor and needy.
Love your mom and dad because they‘ll grow old and die before you know it and then you’ll have regrets forever.
Don’t lie. Never cheat. Always tell the truth.
Pray the rosary while going to work or school.
Go to Mass (and come early to prepare for it.)
Don’t be selfish, or it’ll give you nothing but misery.
It’s not a complete list. (Jesus has to be Lord over every area of your life.) But it’s a great list. I’ve tried them out and whadya know? Lola was right, after all.