Cardinal William Goh has underscored that holiness is not confined to church ministries, stressing that lay Catholics can achieve sanctity through their work in everyday life.
“Serving in church ministries is not the only way to grow in holiness; another way is to live it out at the workplace,” said the Cardinal during a Mass on June 28 to mark the 50th anniversary of the death of St Josemaria Escriva, founder of Opus Dei.
According to a report by Catholic News SG, Cardinal Goh told a congregation of about 800 people, many of them Opus Dei members, that “Saint Josemaria showed the way to sanctify ordinary life.”
Opus Dei, which means “work of God” in Latin, teaches that daily work is a path to holiness and has some 95,000 members in 68 countries, primarily lay people.
“All Christians are called to holiness, but God gives us special charisms for the work each one of us does,” he added.
Founded in 1928 in Spain, Opus Dei promotes the idea that all people are called to become saints by carrying out their daily tasks with love and excellence. St Josemaria’s best-known spiritual book, The Way, has sold nearly four million copies and been translated into 43 languages.
Among those present at the anniversary Mass was 75-year-old Suzanne Ooi, a Penang-born Opus Dei numerary who met the saint in 1969 while studying in England.
Recalling their brief encounter in Rome, she said, “He stood patiently waiting for me to speak, but I didn’t speak Spanish and was lost for words.”
“He looked at me with a lot of affection and a gentle smile, and after some time, he made the sign of the cross on my forehead before continuing on his way. He gave the impression of a caring and kind person, someone you could confide in,” she added.
Ooi later moved to Singapore in 1983 with two other female members to open a centre in the West Coast area.
Today, Opus Dei operates six centres in Singapore – three each for men and women – and includes some 200 members and 300 cooperators who support its mission.
Singapore’s first Opus Dei priest, Fr Damien Lim, was ordained in 2011 and now serves as Assistant Rector at St Joseph’s Church.
At the close of the Mass, Fr Ralph Valdes, who leads Opus Dei’s East and South Asia region, praised members for embodying the founder’s teachings. “How is St Josemaria’s message spreading 50 years after his death? Through his ‘living books’ here,” he said.
