What is meant by “saint” cannot be “someone who never does wrong.” There is no such thing. If you are a Christian, you believe there was only ever one sinless man. If you are Catholic, you also believe… something about his mother. No serious tradition can teach that a person can be such that they do no wrong. That is an absurd notion and ripe for abuse.[1] Even the Buddhist idea of Enlightenment or the notion of Christian Freedom mean a person has attained a state where they can be trusted to a certain degree or in certain terms, not that the will never do wrong. But still, a “saint” (if such a thing exists) should be something more than a “mensch.”
Sainthood
I submit that a saint is someone who wills our Happiness and, most importantly, our Goodness from a place of such power that their wishes, at least in part, come true. Catholics ask their saints to pray to God on their behalf, relying on this dynamic even after the saint is dead. Or, when looking to find a saint, compare our skepticism towards the charity of the rich to the hope we hold out to the denizens of the demi-monde. Despite all the good Bill Gates has done for the world, it is hard to believe that he did it because he truly wants us all to be happy—his ruthless monopolism, grossly disrespectful operating system, and close friendship with Jeffery goddamn Epstein are evidence enough of that. Conversely, however…unreliable Baudelaire was in his relationships, we know he is not breaking our hearts because he is callous or want evil for us.
If you have ever met a saint, you do not need me to sneak up on the definition like that through argument. It has been forced on you by experience that The Good can be meade manifest in humans and that all the legends are true. You might have a different take on it than I have here. Different parts of the experience may have stuck with you, or a different Most Important Thing may have settled out on top. The story-pearl you built up to smooth over the shock of the experience may have formed another shape in you but I think you will recognize what I am saying. In addition to blowing the excuses you have for staying Small away like so much dust, they sincerely want you to join them in Bigness.
The relationship of happiness to goodness is a complicated one I won’t unpack here, except to say that wanting someone to be one without the other is not saintly, or even very nice. I know people can be tricked by those who want them to have what they want, whether good or bad. It feels thrilling and validating, especially when you are young. But confusing getting what you want for becoming happy is absolute baby-brain shit and only proves that the person has never experienced either.[2] And while I think my readers will naturally reject those who want them to be good and miserable (badum tish!), I want to remind them not to be swayed by evocative examples from fiction (professionally made or cropping up in casual argument). It is interesting and dramatic when being happy is at odds with being good but we should not confuse shocking, illustrative cases for the normal course of things, especially if the examples are artificial. In fact, I suspect that wanting someone to be happy without wanting them to be good is incoherent and insane since “To see the good truly is to desire it insatiably…”. So, if the saints themselves are good, it is because there is nothing like the power of a good example.
St. IU
Let the hagiography commence.[3]
Like many saints, she is well-acquainted with poverty. She was born in a modest neighborhood in Seoul. However, in elementary school her parents couldn’t afford to keep her and her younger brother with them and sent them to live with their grandmother and their cousin in a one-room studio in suburb north of the city. She spent over a year there, seeing very little of her parents. While pursuing her entertainment career, her grades slipped in every subject except, fittingly, Korean literature. She failed 20 auditions[4] and got scammed by a fake music company. When she finally got a company to take her in as a trainee (not typically a paid position), she loved being in the studio because she could get something to eat there and had a decent place to sleep.
And now she is one of the highest-paid celebrities in Korea—cranking out banger after banger after banger—taking money off of Pepsi and Sony and using it to feed protesters resisting the coup of Yoon Suk Yeol. That is despite the fact that she can be a lackluster dancer and there are many actresses whose work I admire much more. But then, I do not admire people for being good at things; that’s absurd. I admire them for being good. And there are many reasons to think she is good.
I realize not everyone will be convinced by this kind of evidence but she just looks good. The way she moves and holds herself and even sits is so loose and easy and relaxed. It shows a clear conscience and an unburdened mind, not like a psychopath’s… but like a saint’s.
She ends the broadcast of her variety show IU’s Palette with a plea to find a missing child. She doesn’t have to do that. She found some old-guy youtuber fan of hers and made sure he got to come to her show. She didn’t have to do that. She has her staff print out fan messages/pictures in a little book and stays up late reading it. She doesn’t have to do that. I still have the key chain from the little goody-bag she gave all of us for attending her concert. She didn’t have to do that. She gave away props she used on stage at her concerts.[5] For the one I was at, she especially picked out an awkward young lady[6] with green hair to give one to. She didn’t have to do that. Hell, there is a whole section of her wiki just for shit she didn’t have to do. Like have a pizza party with disabled kids and their teachers… at which she served rice cakes… made by her mom… She really didn’t have to do that.
All these details are to suggest that when she tells us to “be happy and healthy,” at the end of her shows, she really means it—that she really does want us to be happy, like a Saint does. And—as you may have guessed from this post—it’s worked on me.
E.g. Aum Shinrikyo, duh. ↩︎
I use the word “experienced” advisedly, asa opposed to “had” or “achieved.” An even can occur in a person’s life but if they too numb or unreflective to really experience it, to process it in some way, it can teach them nothing. ↩︎
Facts from her Wikipedia page unless otherwise linked. ↩︎
This includes the illustrious JYP; which Mr. JYP is rightfully still salty about and has vowed to fire whoever was responsible for that decision if ever finds out who they were. ↩︎
I think it was a lady, at least. I was very far away. ↩︎