For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not from you; it is the gift of God; it is not from works, so no one may boast. For we are his handiwork, created in Christ Jesus for good works that God has prepared in advance, that we should live in them. (Eph 2:1-10)
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/102124.cfm
The gift of God . . . we are God’s work of art. What a dignity we have in Christ Jesus. Mother Laura (1874-1949) is the first canonized saint from Colombia. She founded a religious community of women missionaries dedicated to the indigenous and the marginalized. She worked to overcome racial discrimination. Mother Laura was canonized May 12, 2013, by Pope Francis. Her tomb and shrine are in Medellín, Colombia.
These reflections are a result of more than 40 years of ministry as a Roman Catholic priest. Most of these years I spent in the Diocese of Charlotte which covers Western North Carolina. Now I am retired, and live in Medellín, Colombia where I continue to serve as a priest in the Archdiocese of Medellín.
Saint Laura Montoya, virgin, October 21
