CLEMMONS — Father John Eckert, pastor of Sacred Heart Church in Salisbury, offered “Called to Sainthood: Holiness a Day at a Time,” a Lenten retreat for women at Holy Family in Clemmons.
Approximately 100 women from across the diocese and other locations attended the day-long retreat Feb. 24.
Hosted by the Bishop Greco Columbiettes 9499, the retreat also included Mass, lunch, reflection time on the beautiful grounds of Holy Family Church, Eucharistic Adoration and the opportunity for the sacrament of confession.
During his talk about sainthood, Father Eckert said the Church’s standards are indeed very high and can be particularly challenging when it comes to unpopular teachings. “That’s why that high standard is coupled with unfathomable mercy,” he explained.
He also advised the group to avoid getting “bogged down” by recurrent struggles in the quest for holiness.
He encouraged everyone to examine the reasons for such roadblocks while avoiding being overly harsh or scrupulous.
“Think about where you were five years ago, 10 years ago. Sometimes, if you take that macro view, you’ll see that you’ve changed quite a lot. God works little by little. We get bogged down, and we may get tired, but God never gets tired of pouring out His mercy. Why? Because He looks at us and loves us,” he said.
“If we can hold onto that and spend time every day looking at our life through that lens of love and not be afraid of what’s there, being willing to confront it with the help of Our Lord, the help of the saints and the grace of the wonderful sacrament of confession, we’ll be fine. Ultimately, it’s all about us becoming saints, and that means eternal happiness with God.”
— Annie Ferguson, correspondent
Pictured: A number of Father John Eckert’s Sacred Heart parishioners traveled to Clemmons to hear more from their pastor on the universal call to holiness. Pictured (from left) are Pat Kobylus, Judy Hinkley, Father Eckert, Tere Freiberger and Renee Washington. (Annie Ferguson | Catholic News Herald)