CONMEMORACIÓN DE TODOS LOS FIELES DIFUNTOS 2025

Queridos hermanos y hermanas: hoy, en la Iglesia, conmemoramos a todos los fieles difuntos (el Día de los Muertos). Empecemos con algunas preguntas: ¿Tienes algún amigo o familiar fallecido? Cuando los recuerdas, ¿sientes tristeza o alegría? ¿Crees que tus seres queridos siguen vivos? ¿Dónde crees que están?

Hoy nos unimos a la Iglesia universal para orar por las personas que nos han precedido y están en la presencia de Dios, como nos recuerda la primera lectura del Libro de la Sabiduría. Al mismo tiempo, recordamos que todos formamos una sola familia en Cristo. Por eso, al celebrar la eucaristía por ellos, creemos que estamos en comunión con quienes se nos han adelantado a la casa del Padre. Los recordamos y oramos por ellos. Hoy profesamos que no creemos en la muerte, sino en la resurrección; por eso creemos que nuestros seres queridos no están muertos, ya que nuestra fe nos asegura que están vivos en la presencia de Dios, que están en sus manos y que él cuida de ellos como un pastor cuida de sus ovejas. Ahora están experimentando la vida verdadera, la vida eterna, en la presencia de nuestro Señor Jesucristo.

En el pasaje del Evangelio según san Juan que hemos leído hoy, Jesús dice: «Esta es la voluntad de mi Padre: que todo el que vea al Hijo y crea en él tenga vida eterna, y yo lo resucitaré en el último día». En otro momento, en el mismo evangelio, nos ha dicho que volverá para llevarnos con él, para que estemos con él donde él esté. Esa es nuestra fe. La Iglesia nos ofrece esta conmemoración no solo para orar por los difuntos, sino también para recordar su memoria y todo lo que compartieron con nosotros, especialmente las cosas buenas.

También es una oportunidad para agradecer a Dios su vida en la tierra. Cada uno de ellos fue un regalo de Dios, una especie de préstamo que nos hizo para compartir durante un tiempo determinado.

La realidad es que todos los seres humanos vamos a experimentar la muerte algún día, pero sería estupendo si aprendiéramos a convivir y disfrutar de nuestros seres queridos para que, cuando llegue el día de su partida, en lugar de cuestionar a Dios, le demos gracias por habernos dado la oportunidad de compartir con ellos.

Al hacer memoria de nuestros difuntos, es importante tener en cuenta que ya no están físicamente con nosotros y que solo nos queda recordarlos y orar por ellos. Eso es todo lo que podemos hacer por ellos, pero aquí seguimos muchos y estamos vivos. Por lo tanto, les invito a vivir según el Evangelio, a mantener a Jesús en sus corazones y a amar a su prójimo como a ustedes mismos. Tengan presente, queridos hermanos y hermanas, que la vida es un regalo de Dios y que cada persona que encuentran en ella también lo es, así que traten de vivir una Buena vida y de compartir lo mejor de ustedes con sus seres queridos. Denles amor, misericordia, compasión y perdón para que, cuando partan a la presencia de Dios, más allá de la tristeza natural por su partida, puedan experimentar la satisfacción de haberles dado y compartido lo mejor de ustedes. No esperen a que la muerte les arrebate a sus seres queridos para decirles cuánto los aman y aprecian. Háganlo hoy, porque mañana podría ser demasiado tarde. No sabemos lo que pasará mañana, así que sean felices hoy y hagan felices a las personas que los rodean. Compartan tiempo con ellos y den lo mejor de sí mismos. Echaremos de menos a nuestros hermanos y hermanas que se han ido, pero los mantendremos siempre en nuestra memoria. Oremos a Dios para que les muestre su misericordia y los haga dignos de vivir con él para siempre. Amén

P. Luis Segura M.S.C.

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COMMEMORATION OF ALL THE FAITHFUL DEPARTED 2025

Dear brothers and sisters, today in the Church we commemorate all the faithful departed (All Souls' Day). Let us begin with some questions: Do you have any deceased friends or family members? When you remember them, do you feel sadness or joy? Do you believe that your loved ones are still alive? Where do you think they are?

Today we join the universal Church in praying for those who have gone before us and are now in God's presence, as the first reading from the Book of Wisdom reminds us. At the same time, we remember that we are all one family in Christ. Therefore, as we celebrate the Eucharist for them, we believe that we are in communion with those who have gone before us to the Father's house. We remember them and pray for them. Today we profess our belief not in death, but in resurrection; therefore, we believe that our loved ones are not dead, for our faith assures us that they are alive in God's presence, that they are in his hands, and that he cares for them as a shepherd cares for his sheep. They are now experiencing true life, eternal life, in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ.

In the Gospel passage from John that we read today, Jesus says, “This is the will of my Father: that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.” Elsewhere in the same Gospel, he tells us that he will return to take us with him, so that we may be with him wherever he is. That is our faith. The Church offers us this commemoration not only to pray for the dead, but also to remember them and all that they shared with us, especially the good things.

It is also an opportunity to thank God for their life on earth. Each one of them was a gift from God, a kind of loan He gave us to share for a specific time.

The reality is that all human beings will experience death someday, but it would be wonderful if we learned to live with and enjoy our loved ones so that, when the day of their departure arrives, instead of questioning God, we thank Him for giving us the opportunity to share with them.

When we remember our deceased, it is important to keep in mind that they are no longer physically with us and that all we can do is remember them and pray for them. That is all we can do for them, but many of us are still here and alive. Therefore, I invite you to live according to the Gospel, to keep Jesus in your hearts, and to love your neighbor as yourselves. Remember, dear brothers and sisters, that life is a gift from God, and every person you meet in it is also a gift. So try to live a good life and share the best of yourselves with your loved ones. Give them love, mercy, compassion, and forgiveness so that, when they depart to be with God, beyond the natural sadness of their passing, they may experience the satisfaction of having given and shared the best of themselves with them. Do not wait until death takes your loved ones from you to tell them how much you love and appreciate them. Do it today, because tomorrow may be too late. We don't know what tomorrow will bring, so be happy today and make those around you happy. Spend time with them and give them the best of yourselves. We will miss our brothers and sisters who have passed away, but we will always keep them in our hearts. Let us pray to God that He will show them His mercy and make them worthy to live with Him forever. Amen.

Fr. Luis Segura, M.S.C.

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All Souls Day: Remembrance and hope

Remembrance of those who preceded us, who led their life, who concluded this life; remembrance of the many people who were good to us: in the family, among friends… And also, remembrance of those who did not manage to do so much good, but who have been received in God’s memory, in God’s mercy. It is the mystery of the Lord’s great mercy.

And then hope. Today is a day of remembrance in order to look forward, to look at our journey, our path. We walk towards an encounter, with the Lord and with everyone. And we must ask the Lord for this grace of hope: the hope that never lets us down; the hope that is the everyday virtue that carries us forward, that helps us to solve problems and to look for ways out. But always forward, forward. That fruitful hope, that every-day theological virtue, one for any moment: I will call it a theological virtue of “the kitchen”, because it is approachable and always comes to our aid. Hope never disappoints: we live in this tension between memory and hope.

I would like to consider something that happened to me at the entrance. I was looking at the age of the fallen. The majority were between 20 and 30 years old. Lives cut short, lives without a future. And I thought of the parents, of the mothers who received that letter: “Madam, I have the honor of informing you that your son is a hero”. “Yes, a hero, but they have taken him away from me”. So many tears in those lives cut short. And I could not but think of today’s wars. The same thing is happening today too: so many people, young and not so young… In the wars of the world, even in those closest to us, in Europe and outside: so many dead! Life is destroyed without awareness.

Today, thinking of the dead, preserving the memory of the dead and preserving hope, let us ask the Lord for peace, that people may no longer be killed in wars. So many innocent dead, so many soldiers who leave their lives behind. But why is this? Wars are always a defeat, always. There is no total victory, no. Yes, one conquers the other, but beneath there is always the defeat of the price that is paid. Let us pray to the Lord for our departed, for everyone, for everyone: may the Lord receive them all.

And let us also pray for the Lord to have pity on us and give us hope: the hope to press on and to be able to find them all together with Him, when He calls us. So be it. [Synthesized from Pope Francis, Homilies, 2 XI 23]

Rev. Jos Rajesh Peter M.S.C

All Souls Day – 2025

My friends, I gave this homily years ago but I think it is worth repeating because it is very comforting, especially the words of Pope Saint John Paul II.

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Today is the Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed, or as it is commonly called, All Souls Day.  Today we commemorate – we remember – all those who have gone before us.

This type of remembrance is celebrated by many cultures:

The Chinese have the Ghost Festival

In Japan – the Bon Festival

And, one that we may be more familiar with – Mexico has the Day of the Dead (or Dia de Los Muertos).

As Church – our celebration is centered on prayer for our ancestors, descendants and friends who have died.  We remember and we pray for them.  We also ask them to pray for us.

Regarding praying for the dead – Pope Saint John Paul II talked about that  in 1999.  In August, 1999 – Saint John Paul gave three talks during his Wednesday General Audiences:  one on Heaven; one on Hell and one on Purgatory.

The Holy Father – applying what St. Thomas Aquinas said hundreds of years ago – said that Heaven, Hell and Purgatory are states of being of a spirit – rather than physical places – as our human minds perceive.

In a nutshell – this is what Pope Saint John Paul said:

“Heaven is neither an abstraction nor a physical place in the clouds but rather a living, personal relationship with the Holy Trinity.  When the form of this world has passed away, those who have welcomed God into their lives and have sincerely opened themselves to his love, at least at the moment of death, will enjoy forever that fullness of communion with God – which is the goal of human life.

Hell – is the state of those who knowingly and purposely reject God.  Rather than a place – hell indicates the state of those who freely and definitively separate themselves from God – and freely choose – to never be with him. 

Because of Free Will –  man is called to respond to God freely.  Man can either accept – or reject God's love and forgiveness.”   

My friends – this is our sainted pope – who lived in the same era we live in.  If there is someone you are worried about – take heart in John Paul's words. 

We don't jump in and out of Hell – because of this or that.  Hell is a definite choice – that is made to knowingly and purposely reject God from our life.  The question is:  "How many people knowingly and freely choose Hell ?"

Now – what about Purgatory ?

The Holy Father explained that purgatory does not indicate a place –  but a "condition of existence", where Christ "removes ... the remnants of imperfection".

Saint John Paul said:  "As we have seen in the previous two catecheses, man has a definitive option for – or against – God.  He can choose to either to live with the Lord in eternal beatitude, or to remain far from his presence."

”But for those who find themselves in a condition of being open to God – but still imperfectly – the journey towards full beatitude requires a purification, which the faith of the Church illustrates in the doctrine of ‘Purgatory’ (cf. Catechism of the Catholic Church, n. 1030-1032).

So, my friends – that's why we celebrate All Souls Day.  To remember and pray for those of our ancestors, descendants and friends who have died and are now being purified by the love of God. 

 And – because those in Purgatory are members of the Communion of Saints – along with us and those already in Heaven:

We ask them to pray for us, as we continue our journey in life…

…When Jesus first began his public ministry – after spending 40 days in the desert – his very first words were, “I have come to proclaim Good News.”

In our gospel reading today – we just heard Jesus say:

"I will not reject anyone who comes to me.  “This is the will of my Father:  That everyone who believes in me may have eternal life."

Is that Good News – or what ??  Praise God !!!