Brothers and Sisters,
This weekend, we have the distinct privilege of celebrating the three states of the Church: the Church Militant, the Church Suffering, and the Church Triumphant. At the present time, the Church Militant is all of us, her disciples as pilgrims on earth. Others have died and are being purified which is the Church Suffering, while still others are in glory, contemplating in full light, God Himself, Triune and One, exactly as He is as the Church Triumphant. We celebrate the Church Triumphant on Saturday in the Solemnity of All Saints and on Sunday the Church Suffering with All Souls Day.
All Souls Day is a day to remember and to pray for all those who have died: our family, and friends, and those who have no one to pray for them, that they would pass through the purification of purgatory and enter into heaven. This is also a day for us to remember our own mortality and to realize that we are on a very short pilgrimage through this life on our way to the next, and how we live now determines what comes next for us. In the Gospel reading from John, Jesus tells us that the will of the Father is mercy, and the mission of the Son is to fulfill that mercy. On this day, as we remember the dead, we are reminded of the embrace of God that transcends time. Even in death, no soul escapes the loving attention of God who calls them to Himself. The Cross and Resurrection of Jesus guarantee that death never has the final word, God does. And His word is life.
God Bless,
Deacon Howard
