20181102
HOPE FOR OUR DEPARTED
LOVED ONES
02 NOVEMBER,
2018, Friday, All Souls
Readings at Mass
Liturgical Colour:
Violet or Black.
(The following psalms
and readings are selected from the many options for this day.)
|
First reading
|
Isaiah 25:6-9 ©
|
|
The Lord will prepare a banquet for every nation
|
On this mountain,
the Lord of hosts will prepare for all
peoples
a banquet of rich food.
On this mountain he will remove
the mourning veil covering all peoples,
and the shroud enwrapping all nations,
he will destroy Death for ever.
The Lord will wipe away
the tears from every cheek;
he will take away his people’s shame
everywhere on earth,
for the Lord has said so.
That day, it will be said: See, this is
our God
in whom we hoped for salvation;
the Lord is the one in whom we hoped.
We exult and we rejoice
that he has saved us.
|
Second reading
|
Romans 5:5-11 ©
|
|
Now we have been reconciled by the death of his Son,
surely we may count on being saved by the life of his Son
|
Hope is not deceptive, because the love of
God has been poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit which has been given us.
We were still helpless when at his appointed moment Christ died for sinful men.
It is not easy to die even for a good man – though of course for someone
really worthy, a man might be prepared to die – but what proves that God
loves us is that Christ died for us while we were still sinners. Having died to
make us righteous, is it likely that he would now fail to save us from God’s
anger? When we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, we were still
enemies; now that we have been reconciled, surely we may count on being saved
by the life of his Son? Not merely because we have been reconciled but because
we are filled with joyful trust in God, through our Lord Jesus Christ, through
whom we have already gained our reconciliation.
|
Gospel Acclamation
|
Jn6:39
|
Alleluia, alleluia!
It is my Father’s will, says the Lord,
that I should lose nothing of all he has
given to me,
and that I should raise it up on the last
day.
Alleluia!
|
Gospel
|
|
Mark 15:33-39,16:1-6 ©
|
|
Jesus gave a loud cry and breathed his
last
|
When the sixth hour came there was
darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour. And at the ninth hour Jesus
cried out in a loud voice, ‘Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?’ which means, ‘My
God, my God, why have you deserted me?’ When some of those who stood by heard
this, they said, ‘Listen, he is calling on Elijah.’ Someone ran and soaked a
sponge in vinegar and, putting it on a reed, gave it him to drink saying; ‘Wait
and see if Elijah will come to take him down.’ But Jesus gave a loud cry and
breathed his last. And the veil of the Temple was torn in two from top to
bottom. The centurion, who was standing in front of him, had seen how he had
died, and he said, ‘In truth this man was a son of God.’
When
the sabbath was over, Mary of Magdala, Mary the mother of James, and Salome,
bought spices with which to go and anoint him. And very early in the morning on
the first day of the week they went to the tomb, just as the sun was rising.
They
had been saying to one another, ‘Who will roll away the stone for us from the
entrance to the tomb?’ But when they looked they could see that the
stone – which was very big – had already been rolled back. On
entering the tomb they saw a young man in a white robe seated on the right-hand
side, and they were struck with amazement. But he said to them, ‘There is no
need for alarm. You are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified: he
has risen, he is not here. See, here is the place where they laid him.’
Gospel Matthew
11:25-30
25 At that time Jesus
declared, “I thank thee, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that thou hast
hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to babes; 26 yea, Father, for such was
thy gracious will.* 27 All things have been delivered to me by my
Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father
except the Son and any one to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. 28 Come
to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take
my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and
you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is
light.”
HOPE FOR OUR DEPARTED LOVED ONES
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ ISAIAH 25:6-9; ROMANS 5:5-11; MATTHEW 11:25-30 ]
Today, as we celebrate
All Souls Day, we want to remember the departed souls of our loved ones. For those of us who have just lost our
loved ones, our memories of their departure are still fresh in our minds and
the pain of their absence is still felt deeply in our hearts. We long for
their presence with us still. We wish they were around, especially during
special celebrations. For others, their loved ones might have departed
many years ago. Still, whenever we think of them, our hearts ache for
their presence. We wonder where they are. Are they in heaven or in
purgatory? For our loved ones whom we think did not die well or at peace
with God because of a sudden death or were estranged from God, we might even
wonder whether they would be saved.
If we have such thoughts
and anxiety, today the scripture readings give us the assurance, that God who is
all merciful will be forgiving towards them. Indeed, the God whom we worship and love is
such a generous and all-forgiving God, He sent us His Son Jesus Christ to save
us and die for us whilst we were still sinners. St Paul wrote, “We were
still helpless when at his appointed moment Christ died for sinful men. It is
not easy to die even for a good man – though of course for someone really
worthy, a man might be prepared to die – but what proves that God loves us is
that Christ died for us while we were still sinners.” Christ did
not die for the righteous or for good people but for sinners. He
came to show the Father’s love and mercy for us all. Indeed, as St Paul
wrote, “But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior
appeared, he saved us, not because of any works of righteousness that we
had done, but according to his mercy, through the water of rebirth and renewal
by the Holy Spirit.” (Tit 3:4f)
Indeed, for St Paul, it
is unthinkable that God would condemn us to hell when He has reconciled us with
His Son. “Having died to
make us righteous, is it likely that he would now fail to save us from God’s
anger? When we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, we were still
enemies; now that we have been reconciled, surely we may count on being saved
by the life of his Son?” In the acclamation before the gospel, we read
the words of Jesus. “It is my Father’s will, says the Lord, that I should
lose nothing of all he has given to me, and that I should raise it up on the
last day.” (Jn 6:39)
Again, we read in the prophet Micah who said, “Who is a God like you, pardoning
iniquity and passing over the transgression of the remnant of your possession?
He does not retain his anger forever, because he delights in showing clemency.
He will again have compassion upon us; he will tread our iniquities under foot.
You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea.”
But do we really have
the confidence to claim and believe in God’s mercy and forgiveness? If we do, then we should have confidence
that our loved ones would be welcomed into His kingdom. This explains why
Jesus invites us all saying, “Come to me, all you who labour and are
overburdened, and I will give you rest. Shoulder my yoke and learn from me, for
I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. Yes, my
yoke is easy and my burden light.” To be able to arrive at a conviction
of God’s love and mercy, we must first enter into the mind and heart of our
Lord. To carry the yoke with the Lord is to share in His pain, suffering
and in His hope. In other words, we must put on the Lord. St Paul
urges us. “Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ
Jesus.” (Phil 2:5) St Peter
also wrote, “Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you
should follow in his steps.” If we lack confidence in God’s mercy, it is
because we do not have the mind of Christ in our hearts. St Paul wrote on
justification by faith alone. “For we hold that a person is justified by faith
apart from works prescribed by the law.” (Rom 3:28)
How can we be certain of
God’s love and mercy? This
is why God sent us His only Son. If God has given up His only Son to us
all for our salvation, St Paul asked, “What then are we to say about these things?
If God is for us, who is against us? He who did not withhold his own Son,
but gave him up for all of us, will he not with him also give us everything
else? Who will bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who
justifies. Who is to condemn?” (Rom 8:31-33) Not only does the
death of Jesus express the love and mercy of God our Father, but more than
that, He is constantly interceding for us on our behalf. “It is Christ
Jesus, who died, yes, who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who
indeed intercedes for us. Who will separate us from the love of Christ?
Will hardship, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril,
or sword?” (Rom 8:34f) Indeed, St Paul assures
us that nothing can separate us from the love of Christ.
The truth remains that
only Jesus can show us the Father’s love. This is what the Lord says, “Everything has been
entrusted to me by my Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father, just
as no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to
reveal him.” So if we want to know the heart of the Father, we must come
through Jesus. Hence, He said to Thomas, “I am the way, and the truth,
and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you know
me, you will know my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen
him.” (Jn 14:6f)
But we cannot understand
what the Lord knows about His Father unless we too become a child of God as
Jesus, the Son of the Father, was. “Jesus exclaimed, ‘I bless you, Father, Lord of
heaven and of earth, for hiding these things from the learned and the clever
and revealing them to mere children. Yes, Father, for that is what it pleased
you to do.” To feel the love of the Father, we must put on the heart of a
child, which is that of love, trust and obedience. A child does not doubt
the love of his or her parents. He or she expects the father or mother to
protect him or her, and to take care of his or her needs, and to be there for
him or her when he or she is in danger. On account of a child’s trust in
his or her parents, the child submits in obedience to the will of his or her
parents, believing that they will always act in his or her interest.
This, too, must be the way we look at God and conduct ourselves before Him.
So we are confident of
His love and mercy for the departed souls, that they are in purgatory, and many
of them have already entered into the communion of saints. This hope that God will forgive us
our sins is not mere wishful thinking but rooted in His love. St Paul
wrote, “Hope is not deceptive, because the love of God has been poured into our
hearts by the Holy Spirit which has been given us. Not merely because we
have been reconciled but because we are filled with joyful trust in God,
through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have already gained our
reconciliation.” So we can be confident that our loved ones, even if they
apparently did not live good and righteous lives, are in purgatory, or are
already in heaven. The souls in purgatory are at peace, but not in
complete rest because they long to find rest in God. “There is one thing I ask
of the Lord, for this I long, to live in the house of the Lord, all the days of
my life, to savour the sweetness of the Lord, to behold his temple.”
What prevents them from
accepting God’s love and mercy? They are unable to let go of all that is
earthly and worldly. They
cannot let go of their lack of forgiveness. They continue to bear grudges
and resentment against those who hurt them. They cannot let go of
their ties to their loved ones. They cannot let go of their worldly
attachments. That is why they are restless. On one hand, they know
that God is waiting for them to return home to Him, but they are not able to
let go and let Him take over. As the Prophet Isaiah says, heaven is a state
of communion and love for all regardless. It is the celebration of the
communion of saints, one with each other, in each other, for each other but all
in God. This is the symbol of “a banquet of rich food, a banquet of fine
wines, of food rich and juicy, of fine strained wines.” It is a
feast of love and unity.
How can we help them?
We must help them by our prayers. With the psalmist, we pray with and for the
departed souls. “The Lord is my light and my help; whom shall I fear? The
Lord is the stronghold of my life; before whom shall I shrink? There is
one thing I ask of the Lord, for this I long, to live in the house of the Lord,
all the days of my life, to savour the sweetness of the Lord, to behold his
temple. I am sure I shall see the Lord’s goodness in the land of the
living. Hope in him, hold firm and take heart. Hope in the Lord!” Through
our love for them and our assurance that they can depart to be with God by
forgiving their enemies and leaving their worldly and earthly attachments, they
will find peace and joy in God. Indeed, “the Lord will wipe
away the tears from every cheek; he will take away his people’s shame
everywhere on earth, for the Lord has said so. That day, it will be said:
See, this is our God in whom we hoped for salvation; the Lord is the one in
whom we hoped.”
Written
by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All
Rights Reserved
No comments:
Post a Comment