All Saints Day / All Souls Day

11-01-2020Weekly Reflection© LPi

I remember as a child the meticulousness my father would bring to a task. Whether it be tending to a chore in the yard, repairing something, or painting a room, the tiniest of every detail demanded his attention. He had great patience. I benefited greatly by his example and remember these lessons well. We all need examples to follow. It is important to identity folks who excel at simple things and show us how to do things well.

There are those among us and those who have gone before us who serve as these models and witnesses. They are ordinary people who in their “extraordinary ordinariness” capture our attention and allow us to see things more clearly. These are the prophets, martyrs, teachers, witnesses, heralds, and innovators who bring a single-minded devotion to God to even the simplest of tasks they perform. They have an openness to being used and become vessels of Divine justice, mercy, and presence.

They call us to the “more” of life and point us to the Gospel in all of its simplicity and splendor. They remind us of the little ones of the Kingdom and the values we all need to cultivate and possess. They are the poor in spirit, the meek, the merciful, and the peacemaker who often are rejected not only by those who have far different agendas but by those you think would welcome them.

All of the saints in heaven and on earth form this cloud of witnesses who journey with us as we make our way through life. They offer us inspiration, wisdom, intercession, and support. They direct us toward true happiness and remind us that we are all called to be saints. All it takes is desire, love, and fidelity. There is much we can learn from the official saints of the church. Their guidance is ever before us and ever with us.

But there is also a lot to learn from the unofficial saints of the church. They sit beside us every Sunday, are our neighbors and ordinary people we meet every day. Because of the devotedness of their faith, they remind us to keep going, remain focused, and cultivate purpose and meaning, and give voice to those who have none. The inspiration is all around us.

Pay attention to the details. Do what you do with great love. Know that you are not alone. Believe that you can persevere. Have great faith.

All Souls Day

Question: November is called the month of All Souls. More recently, it has been called the Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed. Can you tell us more about this feast and the remembrances of this month?

Answer: November 2nd, the Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed, dovetails with November 1st, the feast of All Saints. The saints, our models of Christian living, are one with God in heaven. All the faithful departed are those who have died with hope and trust in a loving God who calls us to greater growth and development, even beyond death. This growth and development occurs in a state of being that we have traditionally called purgatory.

While the Western Church has emphasized the cleansing and purifying nature of purgatory, the Eastern Orthodox Church has emphasized the growth and development aspect of it. Today, belief in purgatory allows one who has died in Christ to continue growing and developing before meeting God face to face. God continually invites communion with these loved ones, but some feel the need to continue growing and developing before entering into full communion with God.

These November feasts vividly remind us of the rich reality known as the communion of saints. This belief stresses the strong affirmation that the church is always one in Christ. Death does not sever any of the bonds that unite us in Christ. That is why it is a fitting practice to pray for the dead and to ask them to pray for us. Just as we do that for each other when we are alive, so, too, do we continue that bond and concern for each other even beyond death.