Grace to you and peace as we approach the ‘grateful’ month of November.
On Friday, the Catholic Church will observe the Solemnity of All Saints, also known as All Hallow’s Day. This is our great annual holyday to praise God for saving so many souls and bringing them into the eternal happiness of heaven. The liturgical celebration begins at vespers on the evening of October 31, All Hallow’s Eve. November 1 is a holy day of obligation for Catholics to attend Mass. On Sundays and holy days, Catholics are asked to participate in the Mass and to refrain from unnecessary work.
Did you ever notice the connection between the words holyday and holiday? We are so practical and work-oriented that we have lost God’s plan for Sundays and other holydays to be time for rest and renewal. So, this Friday, come to the Eucharist to remember your personal saints with admiration, and ask for their intercession for your needs.
All Saints is a day for celebrating the victory of people like our own relatives and friends, both famous and obscure who live now in heaven along with famous official saints like St. Joseph, St. Patrick, St. John Paul II. It is like an anniversary party for those who have run the race of life and finished it well and have gotten a tremendous reward: life after death in the kingdom of heaven. These have gone ahead of us in death and divine judgement. Perhaps they were once in purgatory, which is a place where we make up for our sins. After purification there, they are admitted into the presence of God in heaven where the saints live – not just the thousands who have officially been called saints, but everyone else, too – the millions and millions who tried to be friends of God while on earth and were welcomed into his heaven. These are all saints, and we should not ignore their example or intercession.
Sins have consequences. Not everyone has been holy or even good. Common sense says that most people are not so faithful or loving, or sin-free as to be ready to go right into heaven. That is why we have All Souls’ Day, November 2, the Commemoration of the Faithful Departed, so that they will more quickly be cleansed. We pray for people when they die, so that they can be helped by the Masses and prayers of others. Assuming nothing, positive or negative, we keep our loved ones in mind after death and pray for their immortal souls, especially on anniversaries, other special occasions, and November 2, All Souls’ Day. On that day, it is a kindness for us, the living to ask God’s mercy for the deceased, especially the family members we name, but also all the poor souls in purgatory who have no one to pray for them, that one day they will make up for the sins they committed on earth and join the communion of saints in heaven.
Beginning as a harvest celebration in Ireland, Halloween or Hallowe’en (a contraction of Hallows’ Even or Hallows’ Evening), also known as All Hallows’ Eve, or All Saints’ Eve, is observed on October 31, the time in the liturgical year dedicated to remembering the dead, including saints (hallows), martyrs, and all the faithful departed. Many of our neighborhoods will overflow with little children. If you are a driver, take special care on the road. We teach our “trick or treater” to respect the property of neighbors and to inspect all candy before it is eaten.
Here is a prayer for everyone to keep this day in balance:
“God, bless all the people we will meet.
Let our visit with them to be a pleasant treat. Whatever the costumes we wear tonight,
may all be clothes with Christ’s light.
Protect us from danger and the devil’s ways,
that tomorrow with the saints we may sing your praise.”
Halloween activities include trick-or-treating, attending Halloween costume parties, carving pumpkins into jack-o’-lanterns, lighting bonfires, apple bobbing, divination games, playing pranks, visiting haunted attractions, telling scary stories, as well as watching horror films. In some places, it is a more commercial and secular celebration. It is also the anniversary of my ordination to the priesthood in 1981 and my late father’s birthday in 1920.
Last month was the national observance of Priesthood Sunday USA which was inaugurated in 2002. This is the time each year to express appreciation and gratitude to all the priests who have served God’s people; it is a way to allow Catholics to recognize good priests who, day in and day out, do an outstanding job in serving them in parishes across America. The focus is on the place of the priesthood as a central reality in the life of the Church. The shortage of priests makes us less visible and, consequently, less prominent.
Remember in your prayers your priests, those in your parishes and especially Timothy Cardinal Dolan, Father Nicholas Callaghan, Monsignor Marc Filacchione, Monsignor Robert Hospodar, Monsignor Joseph LaMorte, Father Brian McWeeney, Monsignor Douglas Mathers, Father Ryan Muldoon, Father Anthony Omenihu, Father Stephen Ries, Monsignor Kevin Sullivan, Monsignor Peter Vaccari, Bishop Edmund Whalen. Thank them for what they do to bring the Lord to the faithful through the sacraments. Also, visit the web site, www.nypriest.com.
Keep in mind that Sunday, November 3 marks the return of Eastern Standard Time. Before going to sleep next Saturday, remember to turn your clocks BACK one hour and avoid being early for Mass. Next year, Daylight Saving Time will resume on March 9 and end on November 2, 2025.