The priest says the words: “Go in peace, the Mass has ended.”

For most of my life, I heard that and thought, “Good, we are done.” But now I hear it differently. It’s not a dismissal. It’s a commission. A sending. Go forth… into the world. Go forth… to live the Gospel. Everything we’ve talked about in Forge, the lion inside, clearing distractions, walking The Way, living in rhythm, participating fully in the Mass, all of it has been preparing you for this moment. Because holiness is not the finish line. It is the starting point.

All the virtue you build, all the awareness you cultivate all the small acts of faithfulness you practice they are not for you alone. They are for others. Because faith that does not touch the world is incomplete. Love that is not given away is incomplete. A life that is not poured out is incomplete. You are called to bring this into your classrooms, your workplaces, your families, your friendships, to speak truth when it is hard, to show kindness when no one is watching, to stand firm when it costs you something, to encourage, to lift, to serve. This is how the Mass leaves the church and enters the world. Because if holiness becomes something you keep for yourself, something you use to measure yourself against others, something that quietly says “Look at me” then it has already begun to rot.

That is not the life Christ calls us to. That is not The Way. Christ did not form His disciples to admire holiness; He sent them out to embody it.

There’s a dramatic scene in the film, Fury. A group of soldiers during World War II are immobilized in a disabled tank. At a crossroads, they must make a last-ditch effort to flee or defend the point, which would potentially save thousands of fellow soldiers further from the action. The crew is surrounded and vastly outnumbered. They know they are not getting out if they choose to stay. All the emotions are weighing on the crew as they prepare for what to do next. Then one of the crewmembers nicknamed “Bible” speaks.

“You know there is a bible verse, I think about sometimes. Many times. It goes:

“And I heard the voice of Lord saying: Whom shall I send and who will go for Us?

And … [as he begins to cry] … And … I said:

Here am I,

send me.

In that moment, those words are no longer from a page written thousands of years ago. They become a decision. A choice to stand. A willingness to sacrifice. That is what Go in Peace really means. Not, be safe everyone. Not, have a good day everyone. But mission. It is about finding your mission.

When the Resurrected Jesus stood before the disciples and said, “Peace be with you.” He assured them, all is healed, sin and death have been conquered. But then he immediately follows this peace with, "As the Father has sent me, so I send you." In other words, Go.

And when that call is received… it moves you. So go forth not just for your own holiness but for the transformation of the world around you. Keeping your head down, and being pious for the sake of piety, is a dim light of the faith. Instead, as St. Catherine of Sienna said, “Be who God meant you to be and you will set the world of fire,” that is what holiness is about, a moving outward, a bright radiant light. A fire here on earth. From self-centered to other-centered. And remember this, you do not go alone. God goes with you, the saints intercede for you, the Body of Christ walks with you. So go forth not timidly but boldly into the world, into your life, into your calling. Take what you have learned, take who you are becoming, and answer the call. Why not you? Go in peace… and blaze a trail.