November is a month of special commemoration. It is the month during which we remember the members of our immediate families, our friends, communities, people of our parishes and all those who have no one to remember them. They have gone to Eternal Life and one day we will join them again.
In the seasonal cycle November is a dull, gloomy month when darkness encloses us and daylight is short. It lends itself to brooding and reflection. Outdoor work is at a minimum. Even the animals and birds are more scarce and lethargic. Growth is limited. And yet if the seeds do not die in the ground they will not bear fruit in the Spring. Nature insists on taking its time. Nothing is rushed.
The mystery of life and of death creep into our consciousness as we try to fathom the wonder of our individual lives and those of others. How often do we hear it said, “She died before her time” or “he could have had many more years.” But could he? Is there a fixed span for anyone’s life? We have to answer “No”. In the psalms we read, “Our span is seventy years or eighty for those who are strong.” But this doesn’t always follow.
“We do not know the day nor the hour.” Nor do we know when or where or how. We only know the one certainty which is that the Lord will call us saying, “Come you blessed of my Father into the home I have prepared for you from all Eternity.”
Death is not the end. In the Preface of the Mass for the Dead we read, “Life is changed not taken away.” We can be sure of a place among the Saints who have gone before us. How privileged we are to know and to believe where we are going! “Into your hands O God, I commend my Spirit.” We belong to an inseparable community linked together across time and space in the Body of Christ. We will be with those who have gone before us again.
And so our loved ones are not dead to us. They live on in our memory and very often in our daily lives we sense their closeness and their influence. It is always good to pray for our dead. They are “where no eye has seen, no ear has heard, nor can it enter into our hearts what God has in store for those who believe in Him.”
St Paul in his letter to the Thessalonians ch4 tells us, “We want you to be quite certain about those who have died to make sure that you do not grieve about them like people who have no hope. We believe that Jesus died and rose again and that it will be the same for those who die in Jesus. God will bring them to Himself.”
God is ever faithful and keeps His promises. We never disappear from His loving gaze. The Book of Genesis assures us that, “When Abraham had breathed his last, dying at a happy old age, he was gathered to his people.” Jesus says to each one of us intimately, “I have loved you with an everlasting love. You are mine and I will never forget you.” Eternal rest grant to all those who have gone before us. May everlasting light shine upon them and may they rest in peace in the embrace of the Blessed Trinity. •
Sr Abbie O’Sullivan