It is therefore a holy and wholesome thought to pray for the dead, that they may be loosed from sins.
2 Maccabees 12:46
As the leaves start to change color and fall to the ground, we are reminded once more of the destiny of all things. It is an inescapable reality of all creatures, from tardigrades to whales, from the pauper to the King; everyone and everything will one day die. At death the bodies of all men shall remain in the grave until the end of the world, but their souls will immediately enter into a particular judgement where they will see God face to face, as He is, in all His glory. When their soul sees God, they will either cry out in love: “Lord, have mercy on me!” and run to His loving embrace, or shriek in hatred and scurry off to that place of outer darkness, where there will be “weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Matthew 13:42). As we go into October, we march closer to that sacred period of Allhallowtide. We seek to emulate the “Hallows” or Holy Saints of the church during this period, as they are our guides toward Heaven. The closer we get, the more prevalent our final destiny burrows itself into our minds and hearts for recollection and contemplation.
Allhallowtide invites us to commemorate, over the course of three days, each level of Christ’s Holy Church. Hidden under a bombardment of grotesque commercialization from our secularized society, the holy day of All Hallows Eve, commonly known by its Gaelic form “Hallowe’en”, brings to the minds of the Church Militant here on earth the macabre reality of their last end and exhorts us to examine ourselves well so that they might be ready to face death with confidence and stand before the Son of Man in the judgment. It matters not when or where we die, but how we die, that is of utmost importance. Upon examination of our consciences, can we say with humble confidence, with all presumption removed as far as possible, that if we were to die at this very moment, would we enter the Kingdom?
The second day, All Hallows Day, stirs up hope within the pilgrim faithful with the celebration of the Church Triumphant, the blessed in Heaven. All the Saints, whether they be canonized or not, are celebrated in great solemnity on November 1st. This day is of such great importance to the life of the Church that she binds all her faithful, in an obligation of love and justice, to attend the sacred liturgy and participate in the holy sacrifice of the Mass. This is done so that we can give glory to God who is “wonderful in His saints” (Psalm 67:36). For those we revere and have passed into eternity that radiated Christ in a particularly splendorous way, this is the day on which we honor them. They met death with smiles on their faces, as if it were a dear friend, “[for] those who live well in the world, death is not frightening but sweet and precious” (St. Rose of Viterbo). Their entrance into glory shows us to not fear death so much and prompts us to follow the path which they have tread – the path blazed for them by the Savior.
As the sun sets on that solemn day, on All Souls Day, sometimes called the day of the Dead, holy mother Church calls us to remember in a very special way, the oft-forgotten members of the Church: the Church Suffering. These poor souls that have been saved, but have not yet reached the Beatific Vision. Across the world, the Church Militant will remember their dearly departed in diverse ways in order to gain indulgences for these suffering souls who to bear the pains of being temporarily separated from God. They do this principally by voluntarily attending Mass, visiting cemeteries, offering penances or other sacrifices, and praying from the Office of the Dead, a treasured gift of the Divine Office, that Church, in her wisdom, dedicates most especially to the dearly departed. By these and many other actions, the Church encourages her flock to be generous and compassionate to those suffering beyond our comprehension, to not automatically assign them to ‘a better place’ as secular society does, but to understand the reality of purgatory and our faith.
To answer this most solemn exhortation, the Northern Virginia Divine Office Society will be gathering, as is our custom, to the hallowed cemetery of the historic St. Mary of Sorrows Church, the same church where Clara H. Barton and the American Red Cross helped bring comfort to the injured and dying men. This hallowed ground is cascaded with graves that span centuries. It is them that we remember, along with those whose mortal remains rest in far away places. I like to think that as we offer our supplications to the most merciful Triune God on their behalf, somehow, those in Purgatory join in with us in a chorus that pains with an incomprehensible longing they have to see God face-to-face and rest forever with Him. If the dead could speak once more, and if those who rest in St. Mary of Sorrows Cemetery could rise out of the grave only briefly with one last message for us on earth, doubtless they would say something along these lines:
Have pity on us, you who still have life within you!
For His sake, please,
we entreat and exhort you,
do not repeat our mistakes!
Help us!
For we are starving and thirsting
To see the Lord.
Do yourself a favor
and walk with Him at every moment
And make amends for your faults
While you still have time.
For you don’t want to spend
A single moment
Here with us.
Written by Joshua A. Terrie