The call to holiness is a call to be saints. Saints are those men, women, and young people whose lives reflected the virtues and life of Jesus in extraordinary ways. They were ordinary people who, with the grace of God, became radiant examples of faith, hope, and love.

Yet, when we revisit the topic of being called to be saints, we may find ourselves uneasy. Awareness of our own sinfulness can lead us to discouragement and to the mistaken belief that this calling is beyond our reach. But the words of Jesus remind us otherwise: “Jesus looked at them and said, ‘For human beings, it is impossible, but not for God. All things are possible for God’” (Mk 10:27). All things indeed are possible when the human person freely cooperates with the grace of God and allows the life of the Holy Spirit to act within him.

An honest examination of the universal call to holiness also compels us to reflect on its reality. Why would God call the human person to holiness, to radiate His Son, if such a call were unattainable? It is possible, again, through grace and through the cooperation of the human will.

We cannot underestimate the power of sin and the effects of Original Sin in particular. Here, I refer to concupiscence, the inclination toward sin. We can say that concupiscence is the pull of the ego, the part of us that insists at times, “I will do things my way, not God’s way.” It is that voice within us that desires to be loved but resists giving love in return. Concupiscence is real. Each of us can recall moments of honest self-examination when we have asked ourselves Why did I do that? What was I thinking?

Yet, despite concupiscence, despite the reality of sin, there is grace — the very gift of God Himself. Grace is God’s mercy, God’s forgiveness, God’s love. In the light of grace, which makes all things possible according to God’s permissive will, we return to the question: What is the human person?

In response, theologians such as St. John Paul II have reminded us that man is made to love. No matter what particular vocation we consider, every vocation requires this essential human characteristic: Man must be willing to love.

Jesus Christ, the perfect man, the fullness of humanity, reveals what it means to love. He shows us what is possible. He teaches us that love is self-gift, the giving of oneself for the sake of the beloved. By Jesus’s self-gift through His incarnation, life, death, and resurrection, all humanity has been redeemed. Through Christ, the human person is no longer enslaved by sin but can live forever in communion with God the Father. The human person can reach his or her potential.

Sin divides and isolates; it prevents us from giving ourselves freely to others. Love restores unity and makes the gift of self possible.

The beauty of this self-giving love is revealed very clearly in the vocation of marriage. When a man and woman enter into the sacrament of matrimony, they give themselves entirely to one another. The promises they make on their wedding day express the breadth and depth of this mutual self-gift. When they become parents, they must share this same gift of love with their children. When selfishness enters the home, love begins to fade, and harmony is disrupted.

The word “dysfunctional” is often overused, yet it helps describe what happens when self-centeredness undermines family relationships. When parents act out of selfishness rather than self-giving love, the relationships between husband and wife and between parent and child no longer function as they are meant to. The consequences of such disorder often reverberate through the lives of children well into adulthood.

It costs something to love children into existence, and it costs something to raise them with the awareness that they, too, are called to be saints, to reflect the life and virtues of Jesus. It costs something to rise at all hours of the night to care for them, to provide food, shelter, and affection. It requires patience, forgiveness, and constancy.

To all spouses, I make this appeal: Remember that the union of a Christian man and woman is a sacrament, a living sign of grace. God dwells in the midst of your love and your married life. If you allow God to be an active part of your marriage, He will be. He will bless you with the gift of His love and life through the presence of the Holy Spirit.

In conclusion, we return to the psalmist’s question: What is man that you are mindful of him? Man is called to be a saint. A woman is called to be a saint. Each is called to be like Jesus Christ, to radiate His virtues and to reflect His love. Jesus shows us the perfection of humanity. He reveals that the human person is made to love and to make a sincere gift of self.

Whatever our vocation — marriage, priesthood, consecrated life, or the single life — each requires that we learn how to give ourselves away in love. For this is what it means to be human.