As you read this, we commemorated All Saints and All Souls days this past week. I have been thinking about those who have gone before. Personally, I am thinking about my father, who died when I was 19, and my grandparents. My family was not a calm and peaceful place due to many factors. So I remember these family members not as simple relationships but as people with interesting lives who touched me in different ways. My grandfather was a cook on a Navy submarine. He one time filled several cereal bowls with all the cereal in the box to prove to his stubborn grandson, myself, that the toy on the picture was not in the box! My grandmother who, when we lived with her during one of my parent's separations, locked my brothers and I in our room on Saturday morning, so she could sleep later. It was reasonable, because if not, we would take a blanket and surf down the long stairway like a roller coaster! My other grandfather I never knew. He came to America from Greece, in an arranged marriage. He stayed briefly, became ill, and leaving his pregnant wife, went back to Greece shortly to die. And so, my personal heritage is before me. But also at Mass, we call upon the Saints and all those who have gone before us. We call upon an angel to take our sacrifice to the heavenly altar, and we remember the Holy Father and our Archbishop. We are a communal church, and this is most evident when we celebrate Eucharist during these holy days. We pray to the Communion of Saints to intercede for us.
Dear Lord, we thank you for our Church, eternal Church, Church throughout the world, and the church called St. Jane Frances. We remember and honor all who have built this Church, the many countless people whose toil and riches were poured into these places, so that all may revere God and carry on a relationship with His Son. Thank you Lord, for the benefit of their hard lives and labor. Let us continue on and give this gift to those who will come after us.Blessings,
Deacon Steve
“To preserve Purity, three things are necessary; the practice of the Presence of God, prayer, and the Sacraments; and again, the reading of holy books—this nourishes the soul .”
~ Thoughts of the Cure D’Ars
