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I've known a lot of really holy people in my life. I've been lucky enough to call many of them friends. They're such a gift to me because of their incredible witness to the joy of the Gospel and for the ways that they challenge me to grow in my own faith. It's truly a blessing to have these holy friends, but sometimes it can be hard.
There's the temptation to compare ourselves to others in our journeys to holiness. We can think about how we're not enough when we look at ourselves in comparison to them, but as I discussed in another blog (found here) asking if we're enough isn't fruitful! We are certainly enough in God's eyes, but He does ask us to respond to His love with our own.
Today I wanted to talk about a different temptation that comes along with having holy friends: the temptation to idolize them, to put them on a pedestal. When the Lycaonians in the first reading see the Apostles' mighty works, they cry out and call Paul and Barnabas gods. They seek to offer sacrifice to them. But Paul and Barnabas stop them, saying that they are not gods but indeed serve the one true god. To Him alone should we offer our sacrifice and worship.
This is a pretty extreme example of idolizing someone, but what are the subtle ways in which we do it in our own lives? When we put someone on a pedestal, we take away their humanity. There's an immense pressure for them to be what they're not: perfect. We can often unwittingly follow that person instead of Jesus. We become disciples in the school of Insert Name of Holy Friend Here. Paul talks about this in 1 Corinthians 3.
It's very good to seek out holy friends that can draw you deeper into your relationship with Jesus, but if you find yourself talking to or about them more than you talk to or about Jesus then you should take a step back. Jesus is our ultimate end.
"Not to us [or our friends], O Lord, but to your name give the glory."
-Amanda Nobis, Director of Evangelization