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Wednesday, November 02, 2005

Meditation
John 6:37-40

Have you ever thought about the meaning of today’s title? It’s a day to honor and pray for all souls—for everyone who has ever existed or ever will exist. Remembering all those who have died, even just thinking about death itself, lends a solemn feeling to the day. And yet we who are baptized into Christ can have great hope in the face of death. With St. Ambrose we can assert the truth: “Christ’s death is the life of all.”

“We ought not bewail death,” declared St. Ambrose, “for it is the cause of universal salvation.” Jesus’ death reconciled each of us to God. Our differences have been settled. The penalty due our sins has been paid. This is true for us, for our loved ones who have died, for those who have yet to be born, indeed for all souls.

What a loving Father we have! And what a great hope! “The souls of the righteous are in the hand of God” (Wisdom 3:1). This should be our focus today. We don’t have to experience only sadness. We can rejoice as well in God’s love—the love that provided for our redemption, the love that offers us the hope of heaven, the love that is daily poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit (Romans 5:5).

Believe it or not, this same love even allows death. St. Ambrose explained it this way:
“Death was not part of nature
. . . . That is, God did not will death in the beginning; he gave it rather as a healing medicine. For once man was condemned to lasting toil for his sins, his life became wretched; there had to be an end to the misery so that death might restore man’s original condition.”

Our “original condition” is immortal life, which the faithful now receive as a “gracious gift after dying” (St. Ambrose). “For this is the will of my Father, that all who see the Son and believe in him may have eternal life, and I shall raise them up on the last day” (John 6:40). Ponder these truths today. Let their promise lift up your heart.

“Father, thank you for the death of your Son, Jesus. Thank you for holding me and all of my loved ones in your hands. Fill me today with more of your love, with hope in Christ’s death and resurrection, and with faith in your will for my life.”

Wisdom 3:1-9; Psalm 23:1-6; Romams 5:5-11

One Bread, One Body

<< Wednesday, November 2, 2005 >>

All Souls

Wisdom 3:1-9
1 Corinthians 15:51-57

Psalm 23
John 6:37-40

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THE BIBLE ON PRAYING FOR THE DEAD

"God tried them and found them worthy of Himself." —Wisdom 3:5

According to the Bible, what happens to us when we die? The Bible seems to imply that some people immediately go to heaven after death. Jesus told the good thief: "This day you will be with Me in paradise" (Lk 23:43). It seems logical that some people also immediately go to hell, although nowhere in the Bible is this stated explicitly. The Bible does say: "It is appointed that men die once, and after death be judged" (Heb 9:27). However, this verse does not say judgment immediately follows death, or that heaven or hell always immediately follow judgment.

However, the Bible does indicate that some of the dead do not go immediately to heaven or hell. Judas Maccabeus provided "an expiatory sacrifice" for the soldiers who had died for the Jewish faith (2 Mc 12:43). It would be useless to make offerings for people in heaven or hell (see Lk 16:26), so these people must be on the way to heaven. To argue for resurrection, Paul mentioned that the Corinthian church baptized the dead by proxy (1 Cor 15:29). This would be useless for anyone in heaven or hell, so baptism by proxy must have been for those in purgatory. They had given their lives to Jesus but had not been baptized. We should pray for the dead as the Spirit leads.

Prayer: Father, may I pray for the dead as did the Christians of the New Testament.

Promise: "No one who comes [to Me] will I ever reject." —Jn 6:37

Praise: The Morrow family keeps a list of loved ones who have died, and make it a practice to regularly pray for their souls by name.