Never Forget the Dead {All Souls}

Do you give more thought to fallen leaves than to your fallen relatives and friends?  Some of our dearly departed are still awaiting heaven, in a cleansing place called purgatory, and benefit from our prayers and sacrifices on their behalf.

Whether one believes in it or not, purgatory is real and if we end up there we'll wish more people down here were earnestly praying for our release.  On All Souls Day (November 2) the Church commemorates all the faithful departed and we continue to hold them in our prayers in a special way throughout the month of November.

Priests are allowed to offer three Masses on All Souls Day.  Participating in these Masses (though not required) is an honor and a gift we can give the poor souls awaiting heaven. 

Father Saguto, FSSP, offers Mass at Holyrood Catholic Cemetery on All Souls Day.

 

An altar boy lights the candles surrounding the catafalque on All Souls Day.

Biblical scholar Dr. Scott Hahn gives a straight forward answer to questions surrounding the biblical truths of purgatory in an interview on EWTN's Journey Home.  As a former anti-Catholic and still zealous evangelist, his perspective is especially insightful

Father Vreeland, FSSP, prays absolution over the catafalque at High Mass.

If you've never been to a Solemn High Requiem Mass for All Souls Day, St. John Cantius Church in Chicago, Illinois, uploaded a video of theirs.  Consider it a history lesson in this year of faith.

Today I attended my first High Requiem Mass for All Souls Day at North American Martyrs parish in Seattle.  The Gregorian Chant from the choir loft above sounded heavenly, as always, and the somber tone of the sequence before the Gospel was especially moving.  I posted a short clip (above), which, though a poor amateur recording from the pew, gives a little auditory taste of today's high Mass in Seattle.

Someone once told Venerable Fulton Sheen, "I don't believe in hell."  Rev. Sheen quipped, "You will when you get there."  The same could be said about purgatory, "You'll believe in it if you stop there on your path to heaven." 

 II Mac 12:38-46

Hebrews 12:29 

1 Cor 3

May the souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace.

Moira Noonan's Testimony {From New Age to Christ and His Church}

If you can't take time to listen to the whole talk, please hear the first 10 minutes~
Powerful.

Meandering Home {Day 7: South Bend to Chicago}

Peter receives an exuberant greeting from the hounds at Uncle Wayne's house.

The sting of leaving Zachary at Notre Dame {at 2:22PM} was eased by divine grace, and by the fact that we had a dinner engagement in Chicago with Tim's uncle and cousin that evening.  Treated to deep dish Chicago-style pizza, we enjoyed the chance to visit with Wayne and Stacy and meet their (growing) menagerie of furry friends.  Checking into our hotel after the family reunion, we were assigned to room 222.

Cousin Stacy, Uncle Wayne, Tim and Bridget

A long desired wish to visit St. John Cantius Church in Chicago, put a family pilgrimage at the top of our to-do list during our short stay in the Windy City.  We navigated toll roads and one way streets to the Church, and upon entering were surprised to find the entire nave filled with scaffolding and drop cloths. We knew that extensive renovations were happening at St. John Cantius, but had no idea that the place was actually off limits to visitors that day.  We walked along the outside isle, taking in the beauty amidst the construction chaos.  A quick call to the main office filled in a few blanks:

"Hello, St. John Cantius."
"Hello, we are visiting from Washington State and made a special stop to visit the Church. Father Phillips told us that one of the Brothers could show us around the Church today."
(Pause) "The Church is closed today and tomorrow, the only days it's not open to the public during the construction project.  Can you come back another day?"
"No, we are only in town today."
(Pause) "Where are you?"
"We are in the Church, near the baptismal font.  The doors were open... the construction crew must have been on a break because we didn't see anyone when we arrived."
"Stay right there.  I will be right over."

St. John Cantius, under renovation

Not even a minute after we were given instructions to stay put, a construction worker some 30+ feet above us on a scaffolding platform yelled down,

"Hey!  Get out of here!  There's no one allowed in here today!" 
"But Father told us to wait right here.  He's on his way over to see us."
(Pause) "OK... Well then could you unplug that extension cord and unwind it from the base of the pillar?"

Main altar at St. John Cantius, during renovations Aug. 2012

Brother Matthew arrived shortly thereafter, a pleasant, peaceful young man in his fifth year (of eleven) of formation for the priesthood in the Canons Regular of St. John Cantius.  Well informed and entirely welcoming despite the scheduled building closure, Brother Matthew visited with us, answering our many questions and sharing the mission and charism of St. John Cantius.  Amazing renewals are happening in our Holy Catholic Church, and the Restoration of the Sacred at St. John Cantius offers a glimpse of the tremendous, heavenly beauty of our prayer and worship, rediscovered and restored.

Brother Matthew with Joseph and Peter at St. John Cantius, Chicago

Restoring the sacred, St. John Cantius is filled with beautiful works of art.

Like most religious orders, St. John Cantius' priests and brothers welcome prayer requests and have an online prayer request form, through which prayers can be requested from anyone, anywhere.