Reading I Rv 7:2-4, 9-14
I, John, saw another angel come up from the East, holding the seal of the living God. He cried out in a loud voice to the four angels who were given power to damage the land and the sea, “Do not damage the land or the sea or the trees until we put the seal on the foreheads of the servants of our God.” I heard the number of those who had been marked with the seal, one hundred and forty-four thousand marked from every tribe of the children of Israel. After this I had a vision of a great multitude, which no one could count, from every nation, race, people, and tongue. They stood before the throne and before the Lamb, wearing white robes and holding palm branches in their hands. They cried out in a loud voice: “Salvation comes from our God, who is seated on the throne, and from the Lamb.” All the angels stood around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures. They prostrated themselves before the throne, worshiped God, and exclaimed: “Amen. Blessing and glory, wisdom and thanksgiving, honor, power, and might be to our God forever and ever. Amen.” Then one of the elders spoke up and said to me, “Who are these wearing white robes, and where did they come from?” I said to him, “My lord, you are the one who knows.” He said to me, “These are the ones who have survived the time of great distress; they have washed their robes and made them white in the Blood of the Lamb.”
The Word of the Lord
REFLECTION
Today the Roman Catholic Church celebrates the Feast of All Saints. Honoring the Saints began with Pope Boniface IV in May 609. He "dedicated the Pantheon in Rome to the Blessed Virgin Mary and he "translated" many relics from the catacombs to it then renamed it St. Maria ad Martyres. Later the Roman Catholic Church moved the date of All Saints' Feast Day to November 1st.
Who are the Saints? In the Catechism of the Catholic Church Saints are defined as "The 'holy one' who leads a life in union with God through the grace of Christ and receives the reward of eternal life. The Church is called the communion of saints, of the holy ones."(p.898 Glossary of CCC) We as Catholics pray the Apostle's Creed and profess that we believe in "the communion of saints." (CCC, #946,947,948)
Why do we believe in the "communion of saints?" The "communion of saints" is the unity in Christ of all the redeemed, those on earth, and those who have died. It has also been interpreted to refer to unity in the "holy things" (communio sanctorum), especially the unity of faith and charity achieved through participation in the Eucharist. (p. 871, Glossary of CCC). Wow!
Many of the saints dying communicated to their friends and family that their death will allow them to help them more. St. Dominic said on his deathbed, "Do not weep, for I shall be more useful to you after my death, and I shall help you then more effectively than during my life." St. Therese of Lisieux before dying said that she "promised to spend her heaven doing good on earth."
You could celebrate All Saints' Day in a special way this year. Here are a few suggestions.
Thank God for all the unnamed Saints, some may even be your own relatives.
Bake a soul cake (check out Catholic Culture recipes).
Pray the Litany of the Saints, maybe even chant it.
Pray the rosary and on each bead ask a saint to pray for us.
We are united through Christ Our King (in the Eucharist)! Let us rejoice that we and the "communion of saints" join together in Christ at every Holy Mass, now, here on earth.
God bless you all and Happy All Saints' Day!
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