May 4th, 2025

Gaudete et Exsultate blog series: Chapter 1

As I mentioned in my intro to this series, I'm going to be reading and reflecting on Gaudete et Exsultate, by Pope Francis. This post is about Chapter 1, which is called The Call to Holiness. Thanks for reading - writing this helps hold me accountable for sticking to my plan!

I'll try to first summarize the core of what Pope Francis says, then I'll share some scattered reflections on my own thoughts. When I quote Pope Francis, I'll put the paragraph number in parentheses at the end.

Key Themes

First and foremost, Pope Francis wants to encourage each and every person, starting with me, to try to be holy.

I would like to insist on the call to holiness that the Lord addresses to each of us, the call that he also addresses, personally, to you: "Be holy, for I am holy." (10)

What that means, in more detail, he'll get into more in the remaining chapters. But he gives a definition when he says,

At its core, holiness is experiencing, in union with Christ, the mysteries of his life. (20)

He says that my very identity, unique to me, is to reflect a part of the Gospel in my life. My story, if I let it, will be full of high drama and great deeds, although maybe God will be the only one who sees this epic story play out. (8)

Every saint is a message which the Holy Spirit takes from the riches of Jesus Christ and gives to his people. (21)

This might sound distant from my day-to-day life. But in fact, holiness is available to me:

Are you married? Be holy by loving and caring for your husband or wife, as Christ does for the Church. Do you work for a living? Be holy by labouring with integrity and skill in the service of your brothers and sisters. Are you a parent or grandparent? Be holy by patiently teaching the little ones how to follow Jesus. Are you in a position of authority? Be holy by working for the common good and renouncing personal gain. (14)

(All of those are true for me, I'm sure some are true for many of you too.)

A simple attitude change is what's required.

Do not be afraid to set your sights higher, to allow yourself to be loved and liberated by God. Do not be afraid to let yourself be guided by the Holy Spirit. Holiness does not make you less human, since it is an encounter between your weakness and the power of God’s grace. (34)

"Do not be afraid." Where have I heard that before? Oh yeah, Pope John Paul II! 😇

I want to quote one paragraph in full, since it's beautiful and it just, somehow, sounds like Pope Francis in its conversational, direct story:

(16) This holiness to which the Lord calls you will grow through small gestures. Here is an example: a woman goes shopping, she meets a neighbour and they begin to speak, and the gossip starts. But she says in her heart: “No, I will not speak badly of anyone”. This is a step forward in holiness. Later, at home, one of her children wants to talk to her about his hopes and dreams, and even though she is tired, she sits down and listens with patience and love. That is another sacrifice that brings holiness. Later she experiences some anxiety, but recalling the love of the Virgin Mary, she takes her rosary and prays with faith. Yet another path of holiness. Later still, she goes out onto the street, encounters a poor person and stops to say a kind word to him. One more step.

Avoid sin. Love deeply. Pray often. Show kindness. I feel God calling within me when I read this, calling me back to the core of spirituality which is surrounded by the structures of religion.

Some thoughts of my own

Self knowledge / self love

I was struck by this part: "The important thing is that each believer discern his or her own path, that they bring out the very best of themselves, the most personal gifts that God has placed in their hearts" (11).

I have just finished listening to the audiobook of "On Getting Out of Bed", by O Alan Noble, and although I cannot quote him directly, he reflects on how it is possible to get stuck in a self-reflexive loop, something like, "I am going to keep trying because I want to live." There is nothing wrong with wanting to live, of course! But Noble reminded me that since God created me, and he is good and doesn't make mistakes, I was stamped with a purpose before I could ever want or do anything.

Similarly, I have often heard people say they are motivated to "live their best life". I think Pope Francis is reminding me that this is exactly right, and that I can be motivated to live my best life, not for myself, but as a way of loving God. After all, God's love for each other person allows me to try to see them the way God does, and I can even do the same for myself (a holy kind of self-love).

Distraction

Pope Francis reflects on how overstimulated I can become, by "constantly new gadgets, the excitement of travel and an endless array of consumer goods" (29). In one of the most moving sentences, he reflects that it may take a shock to prompt me to return my attention to God or to the obstacles such as temptations in my life:

Sooner or later, we have to face our true selves and let the Lord enter. This may not happen unless “we see ourselves staring into the abyss of a frightful temptation, or have the dizzying sensation of standing on the precipice of utter despair, or find ourselves completely alone and abandoned” (CARLO M. MARTINI, Le confessioni di Pietro, Cinisello Balsamo, 2017, 69.). In such situations, we find the deepest motivation for living fully our commitment to our work.

Another book I just finished reading, and I highly recommended to literally everyone, is Laurus. In short, the main character of the book finds himself responsible for the death (and, he fears, damnation) of 2 people he loves. In the utter shock of his guilt and shame, his whole life changes. He finds hope in pursuing a life of holiness, first through service as a healer, then as a "holy fool". He hopes that in living this way, he can save not only his own soul but that of his loved ones.

By God's grace, I think hearing this story provided me the sort of shock the Pope mentions without my needing to go through a disaster of the same proportions in my life. Sin, unaddressed or unrepented, is itself a disaster! (Because it separates me from God, and it hurts those God has put close to me.) Praise God that he gives us confession, all the sacraments, and all the grace of the Holy Spirit, to fight back against all temptation and towards openness to God's gifts which are fresh and new each day.

Evangelization

I've often struggled with the unescapable fact that, if the Gospel is the Good News, it must be spread - but how? (I am amused and slightly ashamed to think that, each time I read a good book, I start to evangelize for reading that book, more perhaps than the Gospel in that moment.) There is so much resistance, of course because of the sins of members of the Church, and also because of the challenging nature of much of God's teachings. (And other reasons too!)

I found hope in Pope Francis's words, "Holiness is the most attractive face of the Church." (9) If I can change my attitude in such a way that with God's help it radiates kindness, calm, humility, and other attractive attributes, then perhaps I can be share God's good news without being a cause of conflict or doing more harm than good.

Sincerely,
David Smedberg