(All Souls)
Information about All Souls[1]
Readings for the Feast of All Souls[2]
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
Readings and Commentary:[3][4]
Reading 1: Wisdom 3:1-9
But the souls of the just are in the hand of God,
and no torment shall touch them.
They seemed, in the view of the foolish, to be dead;
and their passing away was thought an affliction
and their going forth from us, utter destruction.
But they are in peace.
For if before men, indeed, they be punished,
yet is their hope full of immortality;
Chastised a little, they shall be greatly blessed,
because God tried them
and found them worthy of himself.
As gold in the furnace, he proved them,
and as sacrificial offerings he took them to himself.
In the time of their visitation they shall shine,
and shall dart about as sparks through stubble;
they shall judge nations and rule over peoples,
and the LORD shall be their King forever.
Those who trust in him shall understand truth,
and the faithful shall abide with him in love:
Because grace and mercy are with his holy ones,
and his care is with his elect.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Wis 3:1-9
This passage, while frequently used on the feasts of martyrs can be understood as an early description of the process of achieving a place in the heavenly kingdom by all those who went before us in faith. The flow of this description provides a good picture of the purification of all the faithful that takes place in the transition from life, through purification in Purgatory (“…chastised a little, they shall be greatly blessed”), to new life with the Father.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 23:1-3a, 3b-4, 5, 6
R. (1) The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
or:
R. Though I walk in the valley of darkness, I fear no evil, for you are with me.
The LORD is my shepherd;
there is nothing I lack.
In green pastures you let me graze;
to safe waters you lead me;
you restore my strength.
R. The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
or:
R. Though I walk in the valley of darkness, I fear no evil, for you are with me.
You guide me along the right path
for the sake of your name.
Even when I walk through a dark valley,
fear no harm for you are at my side;
your rod and staff
give me courage.
R. The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
or:
R. Though I walk in the valley of darkness, I fear no evil, for you are with me.
You set a table before me
as my enemies watch;
ou anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
R. The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
or:
R. Though I walk in the valley of darkness, I fear no evil, for you are with me.
Only goodness and love will pursue me
all the days of my life;
I will dwell in the house of the LORD
for years to come.
R. The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
or:
R. Though I walk in the valley of darkness, I fear no evil, for you are with me.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Ps 23:1-3a, 3b-4, 5, 6
The principle thrust of this, most popular of the Psalms, is trust in God. The figure of the Good Shepherd is later used extensively by Christ reinforcing his relationship to the Father.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reading II: Romans 5:5-11
(and ) Hope does not disappoint,
because the love of God has been poured out into our hearts
through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us.
For Christ, while we were still helpless,
died at the appointed time for the ungodly.
Indeed, only with difficulty does one die for a just person,
though perhaps for a good person
one might even find courage to die.
But God proves his love for us
in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us.
How much more then, since we are now justified by his blood,
will we be saved through him from the wrath.
Indeed, if, while we were enemies,
we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son,
how much more, once reconciled,
will we be saved by his life.
Not only that,
but we also boast of God through our Lord Jesus Christ,
through whom we have now received reconciliation.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Rom 5:5-11
St. Paul speaks of the hope of Christians who have been made holy, sanctified, “justified” by their faith in Christ Jesus. This faith was “poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit” [in Baptism]. (This linkage begins the apostle’s Trinitarian theology)
This justification was not through some merit of theirs (ours) but through God’s infinite mercy. The demonstration of this mercy was Christ’s sacrifice for those who called him “enemy”. While still burdened by sin (because the Law of Moses defined sin and all were sinners because of this), Jesus became the sacrifice of atonement, his blood reconciled us to the Father by removing the sin that kept us apart.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Or: Romans 6:3-9
(Or) are you unaware that we who were baptized into Christ Jesus
were baptized into his death?
We were indeed buried with him through baptism into death,
so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead
by the glory of the Father,
we too might live in newness of life.
For if we have grown into union with him through a death like his,
we shall also be united with him in the resurrection.
We know that our old self was crucified with him,
so that our sinful body might be done away with,
that we might no longer be in slavery to sin.
For a dead person has been absolved from sin.
If, then, we have died with Christ,
we believe that we shall also live with him.
We know that Christ, raised from the dead, dies no more;
death no longer has power over him.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Rom 6:3-9
St. Paul expresses both the hope and the theology behind our belief in the resurrection of the faithful with Christ. In Baptism we are receive the adoption of God. As His children we join His Only Son and pass, as he did through death to new life.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gospel: John 6:37-40
“Everything that the Father gives me will come to me,
and I will not reject anyone who comes to me,
because I came down from heaven not to do my own will
but the will of the one who sent me.
And this is the will of the one who sent me,
that I should not lose anything of what he gave me,
but that I should raise it (on) the last day.
For this is the will of my Father,
that everyone who sees the Son and believes in him
may have eternal life,
and I shall raise him (on) the last day.”
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Jn 6:37-40
This Gospel passage is part of the “Bread of Life” section from St. John’s Gospel. In this selection, the Lord tells those gathered that no one will be rejected that asks to follow the Son of God. He goes further telling the crowds, that anyone who believes in him “may have eternal life.”
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reflection:
Think for a moment about those who do not believe in God. They reject first the idea that they have beginnings with God who is at once Creator and Savior; Father and Guardian. In rejecting the notion that they were created they bring the human person down to the level of “just another animal species”; without soul or divine spark; an “accident of nature”, as the neo-Darwinians would have us believe. (Is it any wonder they would think of the destruction of human embryos with no more compassion than a person breaking an egg for breakfast?)
Since they have relegated the human person to the status of “animal”, then the value of that life must therefore be placed on a plane with all life- numbered by the calendar in days, weeks, months and years; ending by coincidence of nature either to biologically set limits of age or through natural selection, killed by a predator, disease, or climate. That ending, of course is permanent – life simply stops, the organic material left, decomposes and life goes on; but for others, not for the one who died.
Think for a moment about the emotions of these people as they either approach death themselves or one they love comes to the end of their life. There must, according to their life view, be a hopeless fatality about the process. Their loss is complete; destruction is total, there is no recourse. For the atheist death completes the sum total of who they are; the legacy of ashes.
Contrast this view with our own. We believe that we were created by a loving God who not only gave us life in body and spirit, but also created us in his “immortal” image. The shell he bids us wear on earth may die, but that soul, unique to all God’s creatures is like his own. We believe that through his infinite mercy and love, he sent his Son to us when we had fallen; when we had created a gulf between God and humanity too wide to be bridged by human effort. His Son, we believe, created a bridge across which we can reach; a bridge to eternal life.
It is because of our belief that we have hope. We have hope in this life because in the promise of salvation we are given peace to live in happiness and hope in our final passage to new life in the spirit. Without hope – we would be like those who believe that death is the end and that life is of no consequence, actions without meaning. We believe that what we do does matter, God has a plan and we are part of it. Better still, we are part of an eternal plan and our life on this earth is a proving ground, so to speak, in which we are tested a bit. And if we fail, as all of us must to some degree, we given time to become God’s perfect instrument in a place with rather negative connotations but which is truly a gift – purgatory. Who among us would wish to come before the Heavenly Father with our earthly failures begriming us?
Today the Church remembers those who have gone before us; who died to this world in the sure hope we all share of coming at last to the ultimate joy of life in the Heavenly Kingdom. We pray for those who have no hope and give thanks for the faith we share, that through that faith we are made righteous, justified and adopted by God and will meet those again who have achieved the promise we share.
Pax
[1] The picture used today is “An Angel Frees the Souls of Purgatory” by Lodovico Carracci, 1610
[2] ALTRE
[3] Text of Readings is taken from the New American Bible, Copyright © Libreria Editrice Vaticana, Psalm Response is from Printed source United States Conference of Catholic Bishops 3211 4th Street, N.E., Washington, DC 20017-1194 November 11, 2002 Copyright (c) by United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
[4] Reading options taken from 668 of the Lectionary for Mass. Suggestions from the USCCB are provided in line. Readings from the Jerusalem Bible use Gospel Option 2 from St. Matthew’s Gospel.
Information about All Souls[1]
Readings for the Feast of All Souls[2]
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
Readings and Commentary:[3][4]
Reading 1: Wisdom 3:1-9
But the souls of the just are in the hand of God,
and no torment shall touch them.
They seemed, in the view of the foolish, to be dead;
and their passing away was thought an affliction
and their going forth from us, utter destruction.
But they are in peace.
For if before men, indeed, they be punished,
yet is their hope full of immortality;
Chastised a little, they shall be greatly blessed,
because God tried them
and found them worthy of himself.
As gold in the furnace, he proved them,
and as sacrificial offerings he took them to himself.
In the time of their visitation they shall shine,
and shall dart about as sparks through stubble;
they shall judge nations and rule over peoples,
and the LORD shall be their King forever.
Those who trust in him shall understand truth,
and the faithful shall abide with him in love:
Because grace and mercy are with his holy ones,
and his care is with his elect.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Wis 3:1-9
This passage, while frequently used on the feasts of martyrs can be understood as an early description of the process of achieving a place in the heavenly kingdom by all those who went before us in faith. The flow of this description provides a good picture of the purification of all the faithful that takes place in the transition from life, through purification in Purgatory (“…chastised a little, they shall be greatly blessed”), to new life with the Father.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 23:1-3a, 3b-4, 5, 6
R. (1) The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
or:
R. Though I walk in the valley of darkness, I fear no evil, for you are with me.
The LORD is my shepherd;
there is nothing I lack.
In green pastures you let me graze;
to safe waters you lead me;
you restore my strength.
R. The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
or:
R. Though I walk in the valley of darkness, I fear no evil, for you are with me.
You guide me along the right path
for the sake of your name.
Even when I walk through a dark valley,
fear no harm for you are at my side;
your rod and staff
give me courage.
R. The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
or:
R. Though I walk in the valley of darkness, I fear no evil, for you are with me.
You set a table before me
as my enemies watch;
ou anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
R. The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
or:
R. Though I walk in the valley of darkness, I fear no evil, for you are with me.
Only goodness and love will pursue me
all the days of my life;
I will dwell in the house of the LORD
for years to come.
R. The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
or:
R. Though I walk in the valley of darkness, I fear no evil, for you are with me.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Ps 23:1-3a, 3b-4, 5, 6
The principle thrust of this, most popular of the Psalms, is trust in God. The figure of the Good Shepherd is later used extensively by Christ reinforcing his relationship to the Father.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reading II: Romans 5:5-11
(and ) Hope does not disappoint,
because the love of God has been poured out into our hearts
through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us.
For Christ, while we were still helpless,
died at the appointed time for the ungodly.
Indeed, only with difficulty does one die for a just person,
though perhaps for a good person
one might even find courage to die.
But God proves his love for us
in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us.
How much more then, since we are now justified by his blood,
will we be saved through him from the wrath.
Indeed, if, while we were enemies,
we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son,
how much more, once reconciled,
will we be saved by his life.
Not only that,
but we also boast of God through our Lord Jesus Christ,
through whom we have now received reconciliation.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Rom 5:5-11
St. Paul speaks of the hope of Christians who have been made holy, sanctified, “justified” by their faith in Christ Jesus. This faith was “poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit” [in Baptism]. (This linkage begins the apostle’s Trinitarian theology)
This justification was not through some merit of theirs (ours) but through God’s infinite mercy. The demonstration of this mercy was Christ’s sacrifice for those who called him “enemy”. While still burdened by sin (because the Law of Moses defined sin and all were sinners because of this), Jesus became the sacrifice of atonement, his blood reconciled us to the Father by removing the sin that kept us apart.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Or: Romans 6:3-9
(Or) are you unaware that we who were baptized into Christ Jesus
were baptized into his death?
We were indeed buried with him through baptism into death,
so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead
by the glory of the Father,
we too might live in newness of life.
For if we have grown into union with him through a death like his,
we shall also be united with him in the resurrection.
We know that our old self was crucified with him,
so that our sinful body might be done away with,
that we might no longer be in slavery to sin.
For a dead person has been absolved from sin.
If, then, we have died with Christ,
we believe that we shall also live with him.
We know that Christ, raised from the dead, dies no more;
death no longer has power over him.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Rom 6:3-9
St. Paul expresses both the hope and the theology behind our belief in the resurrection of the faithful with Christ. In Baptism we are receive the adoption of God. As His children we join His Only Son and pass, as he did through death to new life.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gospel: John 6:37-40
“Everything that the Father gives me will come to me,
and I will not reject anyone who comes to me,
because I came down from heaven not to do my own will
but the will of the one who sent me.
And this is the will of the one who sent me,
that I should not lose anything of what he gave me,
but that I should raise it (on) the last day.
For this is the will of my Father,
that everyone who sees the Son and believes in him
may have eternal life,
and I shall raise him (on) the last day.”
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Jn 6:37-40
This Gospel passage is part of the “Bread of Life” section from St. John’s Gospel. In this selection, the Lord tells those gathered that no one will be rejected that asks to follow the Son of God. He goes further telling the crowds, that anyone who believes in him “may have eternal life.”
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reflection:
Think for a moment about those who do not believe in God. They reject first the idea that they have beginnings with God who is at once Creator and Savior; Father and Guardian. In rejecting the notion that they were created they bring the human person down to the level of “just another animal species”; without soul or divine spark; an “accident of nature”, as the neo-Darwinians would have us believe. (Is it any wonder they would think of the destruction of human embryos with no more compassion than a person breaking an egg for breakfast?)
Since they have relegated the human person to the status of “animal”, then the value of that life must therefore be placed on a plane with all life- numbered by the calendar in days, weeks, months and years; ending by coincidence of nature either to biologically set limits of age or through natural selection, killed by a predator, disease, or climate. That ending, of course is permanent – life simply stops, the organic material left, decomposes and life goes on; but for others, not for the one who died.
Think for a moment about the emotions of these people as they either approach death themselves or one they love comes to the end of their life. There must, according to their life view, be a hopeless fatality about the process. Their loss is complete; destruction is total, there is no recourse. For the atheist death completes the sum total of who they are; the legacy of ashes.
Contrast this view with our own. We believe that we were created by a loving God who not only gave us life in body and spirit, but also created us in his “immortal” image. The shell he bids us wear on earth may die, but that soul, unique to all God’s creatures is like his own. We believe that through his infinite mercy and love, he sent his Son to us when we had fallen; when we had created a gulf between God and humanity too wide to be bridged by human effort. His Son, we believe, created a bridge across which we can reach; a bridge to eternal life.
It is because of our belief that we have hope. We have hope in this life because in the promise of salvation we are given peace to live in happiness and hope in our final passage to new life in the spirit. Without hope – we would be like those who believe that death is the end and that life is of no consequence, actions without meaning. We believe that what we do does matter, God has a plan and we are part of it. Better still, we are part of an eternal plan and our life on this earth is a proving ground, so to speak, in which we are tested a bit. And if we fail, as all of us must to some degree, we given time to become God’s perfect instrument in a place with rather negative connotations but which is truly a gift – purgatory. Who among us would wish to come before the Heavenly Father with our earthly failures begriming us?
Today the Church remembers those who have gone before us; who died to this world in the sure hope we all share of coming at last to the ultimate joy of life in the Heavenly Kingdom. We pray for those who have no hope and give thanks for the faith we share, that through that faith we are made righteous, justified and adopted by God and will meet those again who have achieved the promise we share.
Pax
[1] The picture used today is “An Angel Frees the Souls of Purgatory” by Lodovico Carracci, 1610
[2] ALTRE
[3] Text of Readings is taken from the New American Bible, Copyright © Libreria Editrice Vaticana, Psalm Response is from Printed source United States Conference of Catholic Bishops 3211 4th Street, N.E., Washington, DC 20017-1194 November 11, 2002 Copyright (c) by United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
[4] Reading options taken from 668 of the Lectionary for Mass. Suggestions from the USCCB are provided in line. Readings from the Jerusalem Bible use Gospel Option 2 from St. Matthew’s Gospel.
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