Commemoration of the Faithfully Departed (All Souls)
Fr. Hugh Gillespie, SMM
Commemoration of the Faithfully Departed (All Souls Day)
Death is a fact of life. Life has a limit and comes to an end.
However, it is that fact that actually gives very real meaning to our life. Strange statement? Human life, was created by God! But human life was created destined for glory! Destined for a goodness. Destined for a happiness that will not end!
Human kind was originally created for that destiny (goodness, happiness and glory). But, we on earth do not experience this; in fact, in our sin fallen world, we do not have unending happiness. Rather, we experience illness, hardship, fear, uncertainty, and struggle.
Our mortal life has a limit. Our life has a limit. But that also means pain has a limit; illness has a limit; hardship has a limit. All of these things, have a limit as well! Ultimately, when the world is brought to completion by the Lord, all of these things will pass away. They will be no more.
Note that Our Lord did not come to take pain away from the world. Jesus loves us all. He came in the most perfect way. Our Lord could have snapped his fingers and removed pain from the world. He could have removed it in any way He chose! But He loves us so much! He chose to stretch out His hands to the wood of the Cross, and have the pain of this world nailed to Him. Note how unspeakably great that love is for us! Hear more in the audio.
We Have Been Given A Great Gift
We who live in this sin fallen world, have been given a great gift! It is a gift of faith. Faith that enables us to realize there is more than this world. We are reminded, through faith, that human life is still destined for glory; destined for happiness that will not end!
When we gather at Mass, we gather through faith knowing we are to share in the victory of the resurrection of the Lord. We are promised a share in that victory . . . all who have faith, even those that have fallen asleep and have gone before us!
Death provides a certain meaning to our living. It does so, because our time is brief. Because it is brief, what we do with our lives matters! Why? The time we have been given is the time God gives us to move into the eternal glory. Lets be honest. There are times we do not value every day that the Lord has given us! We wasted or misused many of them. We desire eternal life, but often we find ourselves not on this path.
Today We Pray For Our Loved Ones
On All Saints Day we recognize and pray for those who used their time on earth well! Today, we remember that is not all of us! While the blessed in heaven are perfect, the mercy of God extends to the imperfect as well!
Yesterday’s Gospel was the Beatitudes, and name the glory the Saints realized in their lives. Today, we hear the same Beatitudes, a call from God for all of us to grow into their fullness.
Today we pray for our loved ones who walked the path of life, in most cases, imperfectly! Many are undergoing a purification so the glory promised to them might be theirs.
Hear more of this Meditation Piece on All Souls Days. Listen to how we are still connected to our loved ones, even after they have gone on before us! Hear how we can still help them!
