Saints Are Not Just Social Justice Warriors
A few thoughts on the Cabrini Movie
I went to see the movie Cabrini by Angel Studios on Sunday with a friend. Now, I had been excited to go see it; after all, it is not every day that a saint movie comes to the big screen. However, I walked away feeling a bit underwhelmed by the movie. Now, I am not going to write a full review of film, but rather just share a few thoughts that came to me.
It is clear from the movie that Mother Cabrini was a force to be reckoned with. She stopped at nothing to help the immigrants of New York. However, it was very unclear where her passion to help came from. Her ambition? A deep sense of justice? The movie left you wondering what motivated, them and where her vocation came from in the first place. Instead of showing the real Mother Cabrini’s deep prayer life and devotion to Jesus, the movie focused on her righteous anger.
I think this is a sad loss. Mother Cabrini was so much more than a social justice warrior. She was a saint - someone whose life was devoted to serving Jesus, not because of ambition, but because of a deep, fervent love for Him.
To quote the real St. Frances Xavier Cabrini:
"We must pray without tiring, for the salvation of mankind does not depend upon material success...but on Jesus alone."
The beauty of the saints flows from their deep prayer lives, not simply their actions. Anyone can be a social justice warrior and stand up for a cause. But it takes a transformative and living relationship with Jesus to be a saint. The movie did not show this.
Spiritual writer and peace builder Henri Nouwen speaks of the connection between prayer and social justice activism in Peacework: Prayer, Resistance, Community.
He writes:
“Nothing is more important in peacemaking than it flows from a deep and undeniable experience of love. Only those who deeply know that they are loved and rejoice in that love can be true peacemakers. Why? Because the intimate knowledge of being loved sets us free to look beyond the boundaries of death and to speak and act fearlessly for peace. Prayer is the way to that experience of love.”
So as good as it is to build orphanages, stand up to politicians and hesitant church leaders, and found hospitals, we cannot forget that all of these actions are empty without the Love that is found in a relationship with Jesus Christ.
The real Mother Cabrini showed this to be true in her life. The movie Cabrini?
Not so much.
I am not saying that you shouldn’t go see the movie. I am all for supporting the Christian arts. Just know that there is more to the story than what you see onscreen.
To close, let us join in the prayer of St. Francis Xavier Cabrini, that we may seek to stand up for justice, rooted in the love of Christ.
“My good Jesus, give me the grace to love you with all my heart and to serve you with great fidelity in this life so that I can be a grain of sand to build up your glory for all eternity.”
Things I’ve loved this week:
The book Little Men by Louisa May Alcott. Talk about giving children a holistic education! You can listen to the free audiobook here: Little Men audiobook
My Lent 2024 playlist. Listen here: Lent 2024
This article by Tsh Oxenreider: Don't Just Talk About Unplugging, Actually Unplug