Strive to live in communion of saints

With the month of November upon us, let us turn our hearts and minds to our beloved dead as well as to our own mortality. It is probably easier to do the former than the latter only because we are not inclined to dwell on that fact of our earthly lives; each of us will die and depart this earth.

However, we profess our Catholic faith in the “communion of saints” with those who have lived and died believing in and loving God and neighbor and who now enjoy seeing Him face-to-face, those who have lived and died believing in and loving God and neighbor and who are being purified of every stain of sin and who will see Him face-to-face, and, finally us—those who live on earth doing our best to love God and neighbor in the sure and certain hope of seeing God face-to-face when we die. To profess our Catholic faith in this great “communion of saints” should give us great hope for eternity, but it should also motivate us now to live our lives of faith, hope and charity by keeping focused on Jesus. It is for Him and because of Him that we live and love and, literally, are who we are.

The month of November begins for us who are Catholics with the two great feasts, which give us, and the world, the best example of the great “communion of saints,” All Saints’ Day, Nov. 1 and All Souls’ Day, Nov. 2.

All Saints’ Day is a holy day of obligation and, as such, all Catholics of the age of reason (7 years of age) are obliged to attend Holy Mass. This year Nov. 1 falls on a Sunday and thus it should be very easy for all to attend and participate at Holy Mass. The Mass of All Saints is what is to be celebrated on this Sunday. All of the proper prayers for the Mass of All Saints express what a life of holiness is all about: giving glory to Almighty God and saving one’s soul. My brothers and sisters, just as it was for all of the saints before us, so it is for each of us. Our first and life-long vocation from baptism to death is to be holy and all of the saints are the examples for us that if they can do this, so can we.

All Souls’ Day is not a holy day of obligation, but if at all possible, I urge you to go to Holy Mass and pray for all of those holy men and women who are being purified in purgatory in anticipation of being perfectly united with God in heaven for all eternity. These holy souls cannot pray for themselves, but they depend entirely on our great love and charity to assist them with our prayers and sacrifices. Remember that what we do in prayer and deed for the poor souls certainly aids them, but increases our own holiness of life and draws us even closer to the saints and the poor souls in the great “communion of saints.”

During this month of the solemn remembrance of the holy and beloved dead of every age in the Catholic Church, let us use God’s graces to better prepare ourselves for that moment when He calls each of us to render an accounting of our stewardship of our lives. Commit to daily prayer in the morning and the evening, at least. Commit to setting a good example for at least one other person every day. Commit to making a real sacrifice for a special intention. And, commit to daily Mass and to confession during the month.

Let us pray for each other in this month of the great “communion of saints!”
With the month of November upon us, let us turn our hearts and minds to our beloved dead as well as to our own mortality. It is probably easier to do the former than the latter only because we are not inclined to dwell on that fact of our earthly lives; each of us will die and depart this earth.

However, we profess our Catholic faith in the “communion of saints” with those who have lived and died believing in and loving God and neighbor and who now enjoy seeing Him face-to-face, those who have lived and died believing in and loving God and neighbor and who are being purified of every stain of sin and who will see Him face-to-face, and, finally us—those who live on earth doing our best to love God and neighbor in the sure and certain hope of seeing God face-to-face when we die. To profess our Catholic faith in this great “communion of saints” should give us great hope for eternity, but it should also motivate us now to live our lives of faith, hope and charity by keeping focused on Jesus. It is for Him and because of Him that we live and love and, literally, are who we are.

The month of November begins for us who are Catholics with the two great feasts, which give us, and the world, the best example of the great “communion of saints,” All Saints’ Day, Nov. 1 and All Souls’ Day, Nov. 2.

All Saints’ Day is a holy day of obligation and, as such, all Catholics of the age of reason (7 years of age) are obliged to attend Holy Mass. This year Nov. 1 falls on a Sunday and thus it should be very easy for all to attend and participate at Holy Mass. The Mass of All Saints is what is to be celebrated on this Sunday. All of the proper prayers for the Mass of All Saints express what a life of holiness is all about: giving glory to Almighty God and saving one’s soul. My brothers and sisters, just as it was for all of the saints before us, so it is for each of us. Our first and life-long vocation from baptism to death is to be holy and all of the saints are the examples for us that if they can do this, so can we.

All Souls’ Day is not a holy day of obligation, but if at all possible, I urge you to go to Holy Mass and pray for all of those holy men and women who are being purified in purgatory in anticipation of being perfectly united with God in heaven for all eternity. These holy souls cannot pray for themselves, but they depend entirely on our great love and charity to assist them with our prayers and sacrifices. Remember that what we do in prayer and deed for the poor souls certainly aids them, but increases our own holiness of life and draws us even closer to the saints and the poor souls in the great “communion of saints.”

During this month of the solemn remembrance of the holy and beloved dead of every age in the Catholic Church, let us use God’s graces to better prepare ourselves for that moment when He calls each of us to render an accounting of our stewardship of our lives. Commit to daily prayer in the morning and the evening, at least. Commit to setting a good example for at least one other person every day. Commit to making a real sacrifice for a special intention. And, commit to daily Mass and to confession during the month.

Let us pray for each other in this month of the great “communion of saints!