Saints and Holiness
His Holiness Pope Shenouda III speaks about the true concept of holiness, explaining that saints are people who lived with God with pure hearts, regardless of the type of their life or the form of their service.
He explains that holiness is not limited to one kind of people, for there are saints who were heroes of faith, martyr saints, saints from the desert fathers, and others who lived holy lives in the world and in pastoral service.
He also confirms that God does not look at the outward form of life, but at the depth of love and the purity of the heart. He mentions the story of Saint Macarius the Great, who learned that two married women lived at the same spiritual level as him because of the purity of their hearts and their love for God.
His Holiness rejects the wrong concept that holiness is connected only to miracles or visible gifts, explaining that true holiness is the holiness of the heart and the inner life with God. He gives the example of John the Baptist, whom Christ described as great although the Bible did not mention miracles performed by him.
He also explains that the lives of the saints were hidden and humble lives, in which they did not seek appearance or vain glory, but rather hid their spiritual works, while God Himself revealed their holiness to people.
He points out that what we know about the saints is only the outward frame of their lives, while the true depth of their relationship with God is a mystery known only to God Himself.
He also confirms that God gave the Church many kinds of saints so that every person may find the suitable example for himself, whether in the life of solitude, service, marriage, monasticism, or secular life.
At the end of the lecture, His Holiness advises people not to imitate others literally, because every person has his own calling and path with God, and the important thing is that a person lives faithfully and purely according to what is spiritually suitable for him.
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