May the Lord give you peace and health in the Holy Spirit.
It is 02nd November 2021.
We celebrate All Souls Day as the Commemoration of all the Faithful Departed.
We reflect on Isaiah 25:6-9; Romans 5:5-11; and the Gospel of Mark 15:33-39.
“We believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep” (1 Thes. 4: 13-14). Our approach is to be one of a continual relationship of the truth of the faith with the deceased in the light of revelation. Death is inevitable, unavoidable, and unexpectedly timed reality every one of us must face whether we are rich or poor, good, or bad, and saint or sinner. Believing in the Lord who utters daily to us all: “I am risen, and I am with you always.”
Longing for eternal life is engraved in our being by God. That is why, the Catechism of the Catholic Church, n. 1030 teaches us: “All who die in God’s grace and friendship, but still imperfectly purified, are indeed assured of their eternal salvation; but after death, they undergo purification, so as to achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven.” The Second Vatican Council stresses: “In full consciousness of this communion of the whole Mystical Body of Jesus Christ, the Church in her pilgrim members, from the very earliest days of the Christian religion, has honoured with great respect the memory of the dead” (Lumen Gentium, n. 50).
However busy we might be today; the Church invites us to pray for our beloved deceased and to pause at their tombs in the cemeteries. The meaning of earthly needs to be contemplated as we stand in front of their tombs. Again, the Council emphasizes: “Faith, with its solidly based teaching, provides every thoughtful man with an answer to his anxious queries about his future lot. At the same time, it makes him able to be united in Christ with his loved ones who have already died and gives hope that they have found true life in God” (Gaudium et spes, n. 18).
Even though their physical presence has vanished, yet their memories are deep within our hearts. The Psalmist sings, “Though my flesh and my heart waste away, God is the rock of my heart and my portion forever” (Ps 72: 26).
Let us place the souls of the faithful departed from our homes, friends, relatives and all who asked us to pray for. Particularly remember those who died during this pandemic, those who were angry and not ready to accept the offer of God’s forgiveness, those who died in the war zone, prisons, hospitals, hospices, and orphanages. May God wipe away the tears from our eyes and keep us in faith and hope.
Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord. And let perpetual light shine upon them. May their souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.
God bless you all.