Solemnity of All Souls, St. Mirin's Cathedral

“Young man, I tell you to get up,” says Jesus in the Gospel passage of today’s Mass. With these merciful and life-giving words, Jesus restored to his widowed mother a young man who had died. This miracle serves as anticipation of Jesus’ own resurrection and of the resurrection of the dead.  We observe today’s Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed with our hope in the risen Christ and in the resurrection of the dead. We come to this Mass in the sure knowledge that death is not the end, but is the way to the fullness of life.

On this day, people remember and give thanks for their loved ones who have died: spouses, parents; grandparents; children; relatives and dear friends; loved ones who lived a full and long life; loved ones who died too soon. Probably everyone has come to this Mass with memories of people we love and we miss. For all of these we pray today in the hope that Jesus gives us. Our prayer can extend too to all the Faithful Departed and to those who have no one to pray for them.  This is a day on which we share each other’s loss and we fulfil our responsibility in charity for the souls of all the faithful departed.

Today we remember and pray for the dead. We may even shed a tear. But this is not a day to wallow in grief and sadness. This day reminds us that we live by hope and that hope will lead us to the Father’s house. We give thanks to God for our life. We give thanks to God for the lives of our loved ones who have died. We draw strength and inspiration for our daily lives from the hope that we celebrate and receive on this day and at this Mass. 

In the Gospel, Jesus restored the mortal life of a young man who had died. The death and resurrection of Jesus promises something even more sublime, the gift of a new life, of a life that will never die, the gift of eternal life. And this is what today’s Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed, the Feast of All Souls, is really about.