Pastor’s Letter & November 8 Bulletin

Pastor’s Letter & November 8 Bulletin

6 Nov 2020 | Posted by: chadmin

The November 8 bulletin is now available online.

Dear friend,

The month of November is a blessed time to remember our deceased loved ones. The feast of All Saints invites us to celebrate the Church Canonized Saints. The feast of All Souls calls us to pray for all of our deceased loved ones. Daily we all face the reality that we are imperfect. God’s Kingdom of Heaven is a state of perfection. The need for purification prior to entering Heaven is something that is only fully understood by God. It is the cross of Jesus that heals and forgives. It is the cross of Jesus that conquers sin and death. It is the cross of Jesus that opens the gates of heaven to each of us. As we pray for our deceased loved ones, it is important that we envision them already with God in heaven. However, we can’t underestimate the power of our prayer and the need of some souls for our sacrificial offerings. Praying, doing works of penance, fasting, and offering Masses for our loved ones, are all ways that we bring the power of the cross close to those in need. Free will is our greatest gift. Free will is the gift that that we can misuse in sin or the gift that can lead us to sainthood. As we pray through this month of November, may our remembrance of our deceased loved ones encourage us to practice the good they lived and ask God to receive them into the Kingdom of Eternal Bliss.

The Gospel this weekend invites us to reflect on ten women waiting to enter a wedding banquet. They wait for the bridegroom to arrive long into the night. The story hinges on their preparation. The five wise ones have extra oil for their lamps while the foolish are unprepared. Because they were unprepared, they had to leave to buy more oil. While they left, the door was opened and closed. How often we find ourselves not prepared for certain aspects of life? As they return ready to enter the feast with their lamps lit, the five foolish ones find the door locked and their entrance refused. Jesus uses this story to help us envision the importance of preparing for Heaven. At death, we no longer have the opportunity to go fix the mistakes of our lives. The time for healing and forgiveness is now. The time for apology and gratitude is this side of judgement. When we meet the Lord, we can’t ask for a bit more time. May the Lord challenge us to spiritually prepare for death by how we live our lives today. The more we think about explaining our lives and our decisions to Jesus, the more we understand our opportunities for growth. May we all set the goal to process everything with Jesus, through the Sacraments this side of Heaven, so we have no surprises at our face-to-face meeting. We entrust ourselves and our loved ones to this process of healing and forgiveness.

Have a great week.

Father David