“Drawing Close to the Saints” | Postcards from Rome 2026

It is incredible how God uses so many different types of people for the building up of his Church. Every person has their own unique gifts that they can offer to God, and despite all our weaknesses, God uses everyone for the building up of his Kingdom. Even if we fall into sin, the Lord always has complete control of everything and can bring good out of even the greatest evils. This is shown in an amazing way when considering all the Saints that are honored in Rome, and these Saints can help us to be inspired to live lives of holiness.

The city of Rome is filled with relics, tombs, and churches dedicated to so many different Saints. By taking the time to pray with these Saints, I have been able to feel close to many of them. I have noticed that at times there can be a temptation to hear about the great things different Saints have done and to think to myself that becoming a Saint is something that is not within my grasp. While there is some truth in this because it is only by God’s grace that someone can live a life of heroic virtue, it is also true that God wants me to live a life of great holiness even more than I do. Since he is the one who has the power to grant the necessary grace, I hold on to the hope that I can live the life of a Saint.

It is also important to remember that even though many Saints lived extraordinary lives, they were still human and had to struggle like everyone else. Many of the greatest Saints also lived lives filled with grave sin before God changed everything. Even after their initial conversion, there are great Saints who continued to struggle to live in a deeper communion with God. I have become more convicted that God wants to bring about a very large number of Saints in our time and that he wants me to strive with all my strength to be included in that number. There really is hope for all of us if we are willing to open ourselves up to receiving God’s grace. God is love, and he wants to give us what we need to do all that he asks of us so that we become united with Love itself and become Saints.

Michael Bauer
Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis