This week we will celebrate All Saints Day on Friday, November 1 (a holy day of obligation) and All Souls Day on Saturday, November 2. These days always remind me that I am part of something much bigger than myself. We belong, not just to a parish, or an Archdiocese in southeast Michigan, but to a worldwide church. And even more than that, our faith community is not limited just to this time and space. We belong to a community of discipleship which goes back to Jesus, and some fellow believers have gone on to the next life, but we still belong to them and they to us. We belong to a great communion of believers, of disciples, of saints! We draw encouragement and inspiration from those who have fought the good fight, and have now received the reward of their labor. We truly stand on the shoulders of these giants; they have contributed to our faith tradition, and now the torch has been passed on to us. As we recall their memory, we can still learn from them how to lives as disciples.
It is often pointed out that the Feast of All Saints is for all the lesser known saints that do not have their own feast day; it is a day to remember those whom we have known and loved. Who are you celebrating? All Souls Day is a day to remember all of our departed loved ones, entrusting them once again to the love and mercy of God.
We will remember all of those whose funerals were celebrated here at Transfiguration during the past year at all our weekend masses. You will have an opportunity to light a candle around the Pieta for any deceased loved one. “Eternal rest grant unto them, Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them May their souls, and the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace.”
And speaking of saints: The relic of Blessed Solanus Casey, OFM Cap will be at our parish, November 8-10. On Friday evening, November 8, we will have evening prayer and a talk on Blessed Solanus by Fr. Dan Crosby, OFM Cap at 7 PM. On Saturday, November 9, the relic will be available for veneration from noon until 4:00 PM. On the weekend, we will offer the anointing of the sick at all the masses in his honor.
Fr. Jeff