Cardinal Cipriani reiterates: it’s not enough just to be ‘good people’

Lima, Peru, Nov 11, 2008 / 19:10 pm

The Archbishop of Lima, Cardinal Juan Luis Cipriani, said this week “the family is a gift from God” and that contrary to the common saying, it’s not enough to be “good people,” “we should be saints.”

During his program Dialogue of Faith, the cardinal called on parents to raise their children “with patience and good example,” adding that “human work is not just economic exchange, it is also a wonderful way to develop oneself and to improve positive attitudes.”

Cardinal Cipriani noted that the great changes in the world do not take place through political movements, but rather through individual persons, and therefore he called the faithful to conversion, to be “honest, joyful and generous,” to attend Sunday Mass and to help the sick, “because these small details are the soul of any change.”

The cardinal also referred to the Christian meaning of liberty, saying the freedom of the person is reflected in his or her commitment.  “The greater your word is, the freer you are, the more faithful you are at home, with your children; you are freer because people say: this guy doesn’t sell out. I think we are attacking this free and joyful world God has given us with our pride and selfishness,” he explained.

“We must struggle to be more faithful to the word given to us in that beautiful prayer, or in that friendship,” Cardinal Cipriani said. “We need to be a little bit more generous. Brothers and sisters, look and see if there is light in your life, and I’m talking about your heart, your conscience, that need to go to our Father God. It’s not enough to just be a good person, we need to be saints. We need to continue putting our love and trust in the Lord,” he said.