Commemoration of the Faithfully Departed
My Dear Parishioners,
It is hard to believe that October is over and that we are in the first weekend of November.
We just completed our annual “October Count,” and the numbers are very encouraging. The average number of people coming to our Vigil Mass is 168 people. The average coming to our 7:30AM Mass is 114 people. The average coming to our 9:30AM Mass is 141 people. The average coming to our 11:30AM Mass is 128 people.
The total average number of people attending Mass in our parish each weekend is 551 people. This is up from last year’s average of 457 people who were attending weekend Masses.
These numbers show the strength of our parish. We are heathy, alive, growing, and will be around for many years to come.
This weekend we observe the Commemoration of the Faithfully Departed, also known as “All Souls Day.” Throughout the month of November we are asked, in a special way, to remember the faithfully departed. We do so as we celebrate the Saints in Heaven. We do so as we pray for the Poor Souls in Purgatory.
The Catechism teaches “Each man receives his eternal retribution in his immortal soul at the very moment of his death, in a particular judgment that refers his life to Christ: either entrance into the blessedness of heaven – through a purification or immediately (or entrance in the realm of the damned) …” (CCC, 1022).
Of this period of purification the Catechism teaches “All who die in God’s grace and friendship, but still imperfectly purified, are indeed assured of their eternal salvation; but after death they undergo purification, so as to achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven” (CCC, 1030).
The Church calls this “experience” “purgatory”. Purgatory is a great gift to us. Jesus teaches that we must be Holy, as His Heavenly Father is Holy (Matthew 5: 48), and that nothing unclean will enter Heaven (Rev 21: 27). St. Peter further adds: He who called you is holy. Therefore, be holy yourselves in all your conduct. For Scripture says, “Be holy, for I am holy.” (1Peter 1: 15-16)
This is a high bar. Thankfully, Scripture reminds us that we have the power to help our deceased loved ones enter Heaven. 2 Macabees 12:46 reads “It is therefore a holy and wholesome thought to pray for the dead, that they might be loosed from sins.” So, we rejoice that the souls in purgatory are aided by our prayers. The Saints teach us that praying for the souls in purgatory is the highest act of charity.
Jesus is so good to have given us this power, and responsibility. We, moreover, can pray for more than our own deceased loved ones. We can pray for all of the faithfully departed and especially pray for those who have no one to pray for them.
The reward will be when we get to Heaven and “as we enter Heaven, we will see them, so many of them, coming toward us and thanking us.
We will ask who they are, and they will say: ‘A poor soul you prayed for in purgatory.’” ~Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen.
We can obtain Plenary Indulgences for the Poor Souls in these ways:
Visiting a Cemetery: An indulgence, applicable only to the Souls in Purgatory, is granted to the faithful, who devoutly visit a cemetery and pray, even if only mentally, for the departed. Typically the indulgence is plenary each day from November 1-8; on other days of the year, it is only a partial indulgence.
Visiting a Church on November 2: A plenary indulgence, applicable only to the Souls in Purgatory, is granted to the faithful, who on the day dedicated to the Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed [November2 {as well as on the Sunday preceding or following, and on All Saints’ Day}] piously visita church. In visiting the church it is required that one Our Father and the Creed be recited.
Indulgence Requirements: To acquire a plenary indulgence it is necessary also to fulfill the following three conditions: sacramental Confession, Eucharistic communion, and prayer for the intention of the Holy Father while being detached from sin. It is appropriate that the sacramental Confession and especially Holy Communion and the prayer for the Pope’s intentions take place on the same day that the indulgenced work is performed; but it is sufficient that these sacred rites and prayers be carried out within several days (about 20) before or after the indulgenced act. One sacramental Confession suffices for several plenary indulgences, but a separate Holy Communion and a separate prayer for the Holy Father’s intentions are required for each plenary indulgence.
The condition of praying for the intention of the Holy Father is fully satisfied by reciting one Our Father and one Hail Mary.A plenary indulgence can be acquired only once in the course of the day.
I am also including a Litany for the Poor Souls that we can pray throughout the Month of the Faithfully Departed. Feel free to add your own special intention into the Litany.
Next weekend will be a busy one as we welcome seminarian Jason Alvarez for the annual St. Charles Seminary Appeal. Jason and his family are from St. Francis Cabrini Parish in Fairless Hills. We are looking forward to getting to know one of our future priests and to renew our support for St. Charles Seminary.
Next weekend our Annual Forty Hours Devotions also begin. Sign-ups for Adoration of the Most Blessed Sacrament will be around the Church. Please remember that all time slots must be taken to properly honor the Most Blessed Sacrament.
Let us continue to lay siege to Heaven for the Poor Souls in Purgatory, for the sanctity of marriage, for the end of abortion, for our first responders and military personnel, for the conversion of all hearts to the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus. St. Joseph, Patron of the Church, and our Patron, pray for us! Fr. Michael J Pawelko, Pastor
LITANY FOR THE POOR SOULS IN PURGATORY
O Jesus, thou suffered and died that all mankind might be saved and brought to eternal happiness. Hear our pleas for further mercy on the souls of:
My dear parents and grandparents, My Jesus Mercy!
My brothers and sisters and other near relatives, My Jesus Mercy! My godparents and sponsors of Confirmation, My Jesus Mercy! My spiritual and temporal benefactors, My Jesus Mercy!
My friends and neighbors, My Jesus Mercy!
All for whom love or duty bids me pray, My Jesus Mercy! Those who have suffered disadvantage or harm through me, My Jesus Mercy!
Those who have offended me, My Jesus Mercy! Those whose release is near at hand, My Jesus Mercy!
Those who desire most to be united to Thee, My Jesus Mercy! Those who endure the greatest sufferings, My Jesus Mercy!
Those who are most deserving on account of their service to the Church, My Jesus Mercy!
The rich, who are now the most destitute, My Jesus Mercy! The mighty, who are now powerless, My Jesus Mercy!
The once spiritually blind, who now see their folly, My Jesus Mercy!
The frivolous, who spend their time in idleness, My Jesus Mercy! The poor who did not seek the treasures of heaven, My Jesus Mercy!
The impure who gave themselves to the desires of the flesh, My Jesus Mercy!
The agitators who failed to promote peace, My Jesus Mercy! The abortionists who did not know what they were doing, My Jesus Mercy!
The tepid who devoted little time to prayer, My Jesus Mercy! The indolent who neglected to perform good works, My Jesus Mercy!
Those of little faith, who neglected the frequent reception of the Sacraments, My Jesus Mercy!
The habitual sinners, who owe their salvation to a miracle of grace, My Jesus Mercy!
Parents who failed to watch over their children, My Jesus Mercy! Superiors who were not solicitous for the salvation of those entrusted to them, My Jesus Mercy!
Those who strove for worldly riches and pleasures, My Jesus Mercy!
The worldly-minded, who failed to use their wealth and talents in the service of God, My Jesus Mercy!
Those who witnessed the death of others, but would not think of their own, My Jesus Mercy!
Those who did not provide for the life hereafter, My Jesus Mercy! Those whose sentence is severe because of the great things entrusted to them, My Jesus Mercy!
The pope, kings, and rulers, My Jesus Mercy!
The bishops and their counselors, My Jesus Mercy! My teachers and spiritual advisors, My Jesus Mercy!
The priests and religious of the Catholic Church, My Jesus Mercy! The defenders of the Holy Faith, My Jesus Mercy!
Those who died on the battlefield, My Jesus Mercy! Those who fought for their country, My Jesus Mercy! Those who were buried in the sea, My Jesus Mercy! Those who died of stroke, My Jesus Mercy!
Those who died of heart attacks, My Jesus Mercy!
Those who suffered and died suddenly in accidents, My Jesus Mercy!
Those who died without the last rites of the Church, My Jesus Mercy!
Those who died within twenty-four hours, My Jesus Mercy!
My own poor soul when I shall have to appear before Thy judgement seat, My Jesus Mercy!
PRAYER.
May the prayer of thy prayerful people, we beseech thee,O Lord, benefit the souls of Thy departed servants and handmaids: that thou may both deliver them from all their sins, and make them to be partakers of Thy redemption.
Amen.
Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine on them.
May the souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen