A homily by Father Mike Gilson, S.J., a member of the class of 1984, preached at De La Salle High School in Concord, California.

It is wonderful to be home. This is the first time I’ve had the privilege of celebrating Eucharist here at De La Salle High School as a priest. Celebrating with you means a lot to me because so much of my formation as a priest and as a human being happened when I walked these halls as a student. Listen to me as I say that again: so much of my formation as a priest and as a human being happened when I walked these halls as a student. I’ll come back to that.

It has been fun preparing for today, but not easy. Every time I sat down to think about you, and celebrating this Mass with you, I found myself distracted. I would try to focus, and then I would start thinking about people who had an influence on me while I was here at De La Salle. Some of them are still here. Mr. Olwell was my math teacher, but he was also a tremendous support for me during some of my real struggles in high school. Mr. Ladouceur was one of the first people in my life to really challenge me to think about my faith. Patti Stauch has been an important mentor in my life and remains a treasured friend. There are a lot of people here who mean a lot to me, but the truth is, there are more people here in this room than any one of us realizes.

People like Charlie Jokerst, a dear friend and classmate of mine who was far too young when he died. Quite simply, Charlie was the heart of our class, and that is a heart that keeps on beating. Charlie’s here this morning. Gary Peterson was one of the first people with whom I ever discussed the possibility that I might be interested in religious life. Gary was like the soul of our class, and his life also ended far too soon, but he’s here. Relationships change with death, but they don’t end.

There are a lot of Christian Brothers here today as well. Saints have walked these very halls — like Brother Edward Behan. Brother Edward continues to be an inspiration in my life, particularly when I struggle. I remember visiting the Brothers at Mont La Salle in Napa a few years after I graduated from De La Salle. After dinner I walked by the chapel and saw Brother Ed on his knees before the Blessed Sacrament having what can only be described as a gentle conversation with a close friend. It remains my vision of what a relationship with Jesus can be. I guarantee you, gentlemen, Brother Edward prays for you each and every day. His death has only brought him closer to his best friend. You are lucky indeed to have someone so close to Jesus putting in a good word for you.

Saints have walked these halls, and they still do. There are a lot more people here than any of us recognize — a great cloud of the living and the dead whose lives and prayers shape and form each one of us in ways we hardly recognize. This isn’t just an idea; it’s my experience, and if you are paying attention it’s yours, too. It is a deep human connection that seems to defy words. Well, we have a word for it. It’s called communion. We celebrate it here, and we live in it all the time.

Saints have walked these halls, and they still do. So here’s a question: Do you want to be one of them? Saints are ordinary people of faith like you and like me. Ordinary lives become extraordinary through commitment to God and to God’s people. Holiness, sainthood is a choice.

I told you that so much of my formation as a priest and as a human happened when I walked these halls as a student. That is happening to you. You are being shaped and formed by the people around you. You are becoming. Some of that is beyond your control, but it’s not all luck. You have a choice. And don’t you dare say, “But I’m just in high school.” The choices you are making now matter. You are becoming.

If you want to be a saint, like John Baptist de La Salle, like Ignatius Loyola, like Francis and Dominic and Mother Theresa and John Paul the Great, like blessed Brother Edward and all the holy women and men whose lives give witness to God’s unending love for God’s people — if you want to be like them, your choices matter.

If you want God’s blessings, do you know who you should hang out with? Our Gospel this morning makes that clear: spend time with the poor in spirit — and with the poor. Choose to be with those who suffer and mourn, with the meek; you’ll never be the same. Learn from those who hunger and thirst for righteousness; they’ll make you hungry and thirsty too. Let your lives be formed by the merciful, by the clean of heart. Let your lives be challenged by God’s children who live and who die for peace. Let your lives be changed by standing with those who are persecuted and abused and left out and alone.

You are becoming, so why not become a saint? We’ve got enough men who live for themselves, we really do. Why don’t you become men who live for others?

How? Seek God’s blessing. Where? Among his blessed ones. Who? Those who need you the most, and whose suffering and sadness and weakness and poverty and hunger and thirst can help you become the person God dreams of. When? Well, that’s a good question. Let’s pray about that one.

“You are becoming, so why not become a saint? We’ve got enough men who live for themselves. Why don’t you become men who live for others?”
Father Mike Gilson, S.J., celebrating Mass at his alma mater,
De La Salle High School

Father Mike Gilson, S.J., is a member of the class of 1984 of De La Salle High School in Concord, California. The excerpt above is from his homily at an All Saints Day liturgy at the school in November 2007. De La Salle High School was founded in 1965 and is part of the Lasallian educational family. The Lasallian mission is “to provide a human and Christian education to the young, especially the poor.” This mission, developed over the past three centuries by the Brothers of the Christian Schools under the inspiration of their founder, St. John Baptist de La Salle, now reaches more than 80 countries and nearly a million students. In the western United States, Lasallian education is a dynamic network of schools serving more than 10,000 students from middle school through college. Visit De La Salle High School at www.dlshs.org.

Photos: Greg Tarczynski