November 2, Tuesday

ALL SOULS

 

Created for Life

Death will always remain a mystery and a pain. Yet as Christians we live in faith and hope. If we had enough faith, we would face death without fear and welcome it as a homecoming in the house of the Father. In our faith, there is no place for the doubt that in death God will abandon his people, the work of his hands, his image and likeness, for whom Christ died and rose from the dead. God will not let us perish for ever. In Christ, we have God’s promise that we will rise from the dead for glory and eternal joy. In this hope, we commend today all the dead into the hands of the living God.

 

First Reading: Wisdom 3:1-9

As for the souls of the just, they’re in the hands of God; the torment of death never lays a finger on them. In the eyes of the not-so-just, the just seem to have died and gone to hell; but such affliction as they may have suffered was merely their exit fee from this world to the next. Their departure was misinterpreted as their demise; in reality they’re at peace. Yes, the just suffer as much as the unjust during the death process; but their passing is full of hope and the promise of immortality.

Such punishments as the just incur are few, but  their rewards are great. God puts them to the test, and they always pass with f lying colors. Like gold ore in the furnace the Lord refines them; like burnt offering from the sacrificial fire he receives them.

When it’s Final Awards Day, you’ll be able to  pick  them out;  they’re the sparks dancing about in the harvest after death, the final, burn-the- stubble bonfire. They’ll govern the nations and lord it over nationalities; their Lord will reign forever.

Those who put their faith in the Lord will understand truth; those who are faithful will enjoy eternal rest. He showers grace and mercy on those who are committed to him. From time to time he even drops by for a personal chat with them.

 

Second Reading: Romans 6:3-9

So what do we do? Keep on sinning so God can keep on forgiving? I should hope not! If we’ve left the country where sin is sovereign, how can we still live in our old house there? Or didn’t you realize we packed up and left there for good? That is what happened in baptism. When we went under the water, we left the old country of sin behind; when we came up out of the water, we entered into the new country of grace—a new life in a new land!

That’s what baptism into the life of Jesus means. When we are lowered into the water, it is like the burial of Jesus; when we are raised up out of the water, it is like the resurrection of Jesus. Each of us is raised into a light-filled world by our Father so that we can see where we’re going in our new grace-sovereign country.

Could it be any clearer? Our old way of life was nailed to the cross with Christ, a decisive end to that sin-miserable life—no longer at sin’s every beck and call! What we believe is this: If we get included in Christ’s sin-conquering death, we also get included in his life-saving resurrection. We know that when Jesus was raised from the dead it was a signal of the end of death-as-the-end. Never again will death have the last word. When Jesus died, he took sin down with him, but alive he brings God down to us. From now on, think of it this way: Sin speaks a dead language that means nothing to you; God speaks your mother tongue, and you hang on every word. You are dead to sin and alive to God. That’s what Jesus did.

 

Gospel: JOHN 14: 1-6

“Don’t let this throw you. You trust God, don’t you? Trust me. There is plenty of room for you in my Father’s home. If that weren’t so, would I have told you that I’m on my way to get a room ready for you? And if I’m on my way to get your room ready, I’ll come back and get you so you can live where I live. And you already know the road I’m taking.”Thomas said, “Master, we have no idea where you’re going. How do you expect us to know the road?”Jesus said, “I am the Road, also the Truth, also the Life. No one gets to the Father apart from me.

 

Prayer
God of the living,
we believe that you are a God
of a love that is stronger than death
since your Son Jesus Christ, born as one of us,
destroyed death for ever.
Let all the faithful departed live
in the security of your love.
Let them enjoy peace, your peace,
which escaped them so often in life,
and give to us, too, the courage
to face life and to live it
in close union with your Son.
We ask you this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

 

Reflection:

Give continuity to the good of those who went ahead of us.

Today we remember our dear deceased. We thank the Lord for the gift of all our dear ones who have gone ahead of us. For many people, the month of November, and not just today, is a time dedicated to the commemoration of all the faithful departed. We pray for them, for those who had the joy of knowing Christ and his Gospel and also those who were not enlightened by the light of Easter and lived without hope. We want our love to reach all the deceased.

Every year, when this date arrives, the chest of memories is opened again. We remember the faces and names of all those people who have been linked to us. Some people live this moment with great sadness. They cannot bear the memory or the pain of separation. But for others this day is a reminder that we have ‘things to do and miles to go’ before we join the life our dear ones who have gone ahead of us. We thank God for those dear and near ones he has placed in our path and who have helped us to be who we are.

The words of Jesus in the Gospel of John sustains our hope: “I am going to prepare a place for you.” It is not that we have to secure our “heavenly retirement” by our good way of life. For every human being Jesus has prepared a place with God. Therefore, death is not the end, but the beginning, the gateway to the fullness of life.

The term ‘death’ has become a taboo, as sex once was taboo. Many people are even afraid to talk about death and do everything in their capacity to evade the certainty of death and always try to postpone their appointment with death. The most important aspect of their prayers to God and the saints has become asking for the favour so that their appointed time of death be delayed.

Remember, Martha and Mary, the sisters of Lazarus rebuked Jesus because he did not intercede for Lazarus when he was facing death and left him to die. Many times, we reproach God, and the saints, because they fail to intervene to protect the biological lives of our dear ones.

 

Video available on Youtube: Give continuity to the good of those who went ahead of us.