I'm a real fan of Woody. Woody knows who he is but more importantly he knows whose he is. And he is quick to remind all his other toy friends whose they are as well. He does that by holding up his foot and showing the other toys the bottom of his boot - where it says, "Andy". And with that single action, the other toys are reminded of something very special - that they, like Woody, belong to someone.You have the name of someone written on you as well. His name is Jesus and I can see His name on you...look, right there it is, on your forehead...Jesus...written with water...at your baptism.
Sometimes we need to be reminded of whose we are. Woody does that for his fellow toys. Saints do that for us. With their lives they remind us of whose they are and whose we are.
For those of you who've seen Toy Story 3, did you notice how Woody's goal was to keep his friends together and get them back home to Andy? Their journey wasn't easy. Woody's family of toys faced a formidable foe, Lotso the bear, who tempted them with promises of a beautiful home at Sunnyside. But Woody knew that their real home was with Andy and nothing could replace that.
Saints do that in our lives. Whether already in heaven or still on earth, saints - by their words and by their lives - help keep us together and on our way home...to heaven...to Jesus.
Later this week, we will celebrate the life of Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha, the first Native American declared "Blessed" by the Church. Kateri was born in 1656 near the town of Auriesville, New York, the daughter of a Mohawk warrior. She was baptized by a Jesuit missionary at the age of 20 and devoted the rest of her life to Christ through her love of the Eucharist, through prayer and through the care of the sick and aged in Caughnawaga near Montreal. Called the Lily of the Mohawks, she incurred the hostility of her own tribe because of her faith. She died in 1680. Through her obedience to God's call, she has inspired many young men and women to follow Christ, even when following Him may lead them away from familiar surroundings.St. Paul wrote: "Whatever gains I had, these I consider a loss because of Christ. More than that, I even consider everything as a loss because of the supreme good of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For this sake, I have accepted the loss of all things and I consider them so much rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having any righteousness of my own based on the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God, depending on faith to know Him and the power of His resurrection and the sharing of His sufferings by being conformed to His death." (Philippians 3: 7-10).
Go see Toy Story 3. And when you do, think of all the saints, that have led people back to the One they belong to.
And now go be a saint!