DAILY- HOMILY

November 2, 2015 - COMMEMORATION OF ALL THE FAITHFUL DEPARTED

(All Souls' Day)

Violet 

Wis 3:1- 9 / Rom 6:3 – 9 / Mt 25:31 - 46

First Reading: Wis 3:1- 9

     The souls of the just are in the hands of God and no torment shall touch them.

     In the eyes of the unwise they appear to be dead. Their going is held as a disaster; it seems that they lose everything by departing from us, but they are in peace.

     Though seemingly they have been punished, immortality was the soul of their hope. After slight affliction will come great blessings, for God has tried them and found them worthy to be with him; after testing them as gold in the furnace, he has accepted them as a holocaust.

     At the time of his coming they will shine like sparks that run in the stubble. They will govern nations and rule over peoples, and the Lord will be their king forever.

     Those who trust in him will penetrate the truth, those who are faithful will live with him in love, for his grace and mercy are for his chosen ones.

Second Reading: Rom 6:3 - 5       

You know that in baptism which unites us to Christ we are all baptized and plunged into his death. By this baptism in his death, we were buried with Christ, and, as Christ was raised among the dead by the Glory of the Father, do we begin walking in the new life. It was an image of his death when we were grafted in him, and so we will also share in his resurrection.  

Gospel: Mt 25:31 – 46

     "When the Son of Man comes in his glory with all his angels, he will sit on the throne of his Glory. All the nations will be brought before him, and as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, so will he do with them, placing the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.

     The King will say to those on his right: 'Come, blessed of my Father! Take possession of the kingdom prepared for you from the beginning of the world. For I was hungry and you fed me, I was thirsty and you gave me drink. I was a stranger and you welcomed me into your house. I was naked and you clothed me. I was sick and you visited me. I was in prison and you came to see me.'

     Then the good people will ask him: 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and give you food; thirsty and give you drink, or a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to see you?' The King will answer, 'Truly, I say to you: whenever you did this to these little ones who are my brothers and sisters, you did it to me.'

     Then he will say to those on his left: 'Go, cursed people, out of my sight into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels! For I was hungry and you did not give me anything to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink; I was a stranger and you did not welcome me into your house; I was naked and you did not clothe me; I was sick and in prison and you did not visit me.'

     They, too, will ask: 'Lord, when did we see you hungry, thirsty, naked or a stranger, sick or in prison, and did not help you?' The King will answer them: 'Truly, I say to you: whatever you did not do for one of these little ones, you did not do for me.'

     And these will go into eternal punishment, but the just to eternal life."

Reflection:

     Today's Gospel reading is the account of the Last Judgment in the Gospel of Matthew where Jesus tells us that we would be judged depending upon how we cared for our neighbor: "Whenever you did this to these little ones who are my brothers and sisters, you did it to me" (Mt 23" 40) and "whatever you did not do for one of these little ones, you did not do for me." (Mt 23: 45)  At our death each of us will face the judgment of the Son of Man.

     It is very fortunate that we Filipinos have rituals and practices that help us deal with death. We have a strong sense of family: it is shown by frequent visits to the tombs of our deceased family members and friends. Especially for those with Chinese ancestry, flowers and fruits are used to show honor to the dead. Deaths and funerals are followed by days of prayer and family gatherings which are opportunities to remember the dead and to give mutual support to family members.

     Many visit their dead in cemeteries or columbaria on November 1, All Saints' Day, and/or on November 2, Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed. On November 1, cemeteries become cities of the living and the dead. We continue to pray for our dead and hope they are all in God's peace.

     The basis of our hope is Christ's triumph and resurrection from the dead. He promised that his faithful followers would share in his triumph and resurrection. In his discourse on the bread of heaven, he promised to give us himself as food for eternal life. The Eucharist is given us as food for eternal life.

     Even from the Gospel stories we do not fully understand what Christ's resurrected body looked like. We do not know what we would be at our own resurrection at the final judgment.   

     But we live in faith and in hope that we will keep on living and hopefully in God's peace and heaven. Heaven is our true and final home and where our life journey should end.

     As we recall and pray for all the faithful departed, especially for our departed family and friends, we pray that the Lord will help and guide us in our journey to be with him.

WE PRAY FOR MTQ DAILY PRAYER DIARY INTENTIONS:

BIRTHDAY

     KITAY E. ESPAÑOL

     MARIA CARMINA UBAÑA

     OLIVER C. REYES

     SHEENA LORRAINE GO KAW

     VICTOR N NAÑAGAS, JR

     WENDY E. JUGUETA

IN MEMORIAM (+)

     CHEW SEE

     LI, EMILIO (JUN 30, 1937 – NOV 2, 1990)

     JULIAN SANTIAGO

     GO BON SHU

     GO BON CHONG

Finally, we pray for one another, for those who have asked our prayers and for those who need our prayers the most. 

Have a good day!

**************************************************

These reflections are distributed free and are for personal use only. Feel free to send the Daily Prayer reflections to your friends, colleagues and relatives; however, if you do, please include the following: 

  +================================================+

   |  The Daily Prayer, a service and an apostolate of the

   |  priests, laity and friends of Mary the Queen Parish

   |  distributed free and for personal use only.  

  +================================================+