November 1, 2012

Solemnity of All Saints

This is Oct. 31.  This evening, people throughout the US will be celebrating what is commonly called "Halloween".  Halloween comes from the Old English. 

"Hallow" means holy.

"een" is the contraction for "evening".

Put them together and its Halloween.

And so, Halloween means "Holy Evening".  That's because this is the evening when Traditionally we celebrate the Saints come marching in and the demons flee in terror.  Of course, Hollywood has turned that topsy turvy.  But the Church still celebrates the coming of the Saints.

Solemnity celebrated on the first of November. It is instituted to honour all the saints, known and unknown, and, according to Urban IV, to supply any deficiencies in the faithful's celebration of saints' feasts during the year....Read more.

Lectionary: 667

A Reading from St. John's book of Revelations

Rv 7:2-4, 9-14

I, John, saw another angel come up from the East,
holding the seal of the living God.

>>>If you remember, in the book of Revelations, St. John is having a vision of heaven.  This angel holds the seal of the living God.  This is something which is mentioned in the OT book of Ezekiel:

Ezekiel 9:4
King James Version (KJV)
⁴ And the Lord said unto him, Go through the midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem, and set a mark upon the foreheads of the men that sigh and that cry for all the abominations that be done in the midst thereof.

He cried out in a loud voice to the four angels
who were given power to damage the land and the sea,
"Do not damage the land or the sea or the trees
until we put the seal on the foreheads of the servants of our God."

>>>

Ezekiel 9:5-6
King James Version (KJV)
⁵ And to the others he said in mine hearing, Go ye after him through the city, and smite: let not your eye spare, neither have ye pity:⁶ Slay utterly old and young, both maids, and little children, and women: but come not near any man upon whom is the mark; and begin at my sanctuary. Then they began at the ancient men which were before the house.

I heard the number of those who had been marked with the seal,
one hundred and forty-four thousand marked
from every tribe of the children of Israel.

>>>144,000 is a mystical number.    

After this I had a vision of a great multitude,
which no one could count,
from every nation, race, people, and tongue.

>>>It represents an uncountable multitude, as you can see.

They stood before the throne and before the Lamb,
wearing white robes and holding palm branches in their hands.
They cried out in a loud voice:

"Salvation comes from our God, who is seated on the throne,
and from the Lamb."

>>>Those who wash their robes in the blood of the Lamb include amongst them those of us who partake of the Eucharist which is the Blood of Christ.

1 Corinthians 10:16
King James Version (KJV)
¹⁶ The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ?

All the angels stood around the throne
and around the elders and the four living creatures.
They prostrated themselves before the throne,
worshiped God, and exclaimed:

"Amen. Blessing and glory, wisdom and thanksgiving,
honor, power, and might
be to our God forever and ever. Amen."

>>>This vision is celebrated in the Mass when we pray the "Holy, Holy, Holy".

Then one of the elders spoke up and said to me,
"Who are these wearing white robes, and where did they come from?"

>>>Then one of the Saints asked St. John, "who are those in the great multitude which you see?"

I said to him, "My lord, you are the one who knows."
He said to me,
"These are the ones who have survived the time of great distress;
they have washed their robes
and made them white in the Blood of the Lamb."

>>>St. John didn't know, so the Elder explained.  They are the ones who have endured a time of great distress and washed in the Blood of the Lamb.

The time of great distress refers to the fact that we are all tested:

1 Peter 1:7
King James Version (KJV)
⁷ That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:

and we must all suffer with Christ if we want to be in that number:

Romans 8:17
King James Version (KJV)
¹⁷ And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.

Responsorial Psalm Ps 24:1bc-2, 3-4ab, 5-6

Response. (see 6) Lord, this is the people that longs to see your face.

The LORD's are the earth and its fullness;
the world and those who dwell in it.
For he founded it upon the seas
and established it upon the rivers.

R. Lord, this is the people that longs to see your face.

Who can ascend the mountain of the LORD?
or who may stand in his holy place?
One whose hands are sinless, whose heart is clean,
who desires not what is vain.

R. Lord, this is the people that longs to see your face.

He shall receive a blessing from the LORD,
a reward from God his savior.
Such is the race that seeks him,
that seeks the face of the God of Jacob.

R. Lord, this is the people that longs to see your face.

>>>We who partake of the Sacraments do so because we believe God's promises and want to be united to Him, because we long to see His face.

Second Reading from the first epistle of St. John

1 Jn 3:1-3

Beloved:
See what love the Father has bestowed on us
that we may be called the children of God.

>>>As St. Paul also says:

Romans 8:15
King James Version (KJV)
¹⁵ For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.

Yet so we are.
The reason the world does not know us
is that it did not know him.

>>>As Jesus also said:

Matthew 10:23-25
King James Version (KJV)
²³ But when they persecute you in this city, flee ye into another: for verily I say unto you, Ye shall not have gone over the cities of Israel, till the Son of man be come.²⁴ The disciple is not above his master, nor the servant above his lord.²⁵ It is enough for the disciple that he be as his master, and the servant as his lord. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebub, how much more shall they call them of his household?

Beloved, we are God's children now;
what we shall be has not yet been revealed.

We do know that when it is revealed we shall be like him,
for we shall see him as he is.

>>>Again, St. Paul said:

1 Corinthians 13:12
King James Version (KJV)
¹² For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.

Everyone who has this hope based on him makes himself pure,
as he is pure.

>>>And again, Jesus said:

Matthew 5:48
King James Version (KJV)
⁴⁸ Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.

A reading from the Holy Gospel according to St. Matthew

Mt 5:1-12a

When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain,
and after he had sat down, his disciples came to him.

>>>Jesus went up to the mountain and His students followed Him.

He began to teach them, saying:

"Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.

>>>He said to them, "Happy are they who rely upon God and not upon their own powers.

Blessed are they who mourn,
for they will be comforted.

>>>Holy are they who suffer and grieve, God will comfort them.

Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the land.

>>>Saints are they who are patient and kind, they will receive the land as their reward.

Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be satisfied.

>>>Blessed are they who long for the justice of God's Kingdom upon the earth, they will receive it.

Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.

>>>Holy are they who give mercy, they will receive it.

Blessed are the clean of heart,
for they will see God.

>>>Pure and holy are they who keep themselves pure, they will see the face of God.

Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called children of God.

>>>Holy are they who keep the peace, they are God's children.

Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness,
for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.

>>>Saints are they who suffer for the justice of God, they will receive eternal life.

Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you
and utter every kind of evil against you falsely because of me.

>>>Happy are you who are punished and reviled because of me.

Rejoice and be glad,
for your reward will be great in heaven."

>>>Celebrate on that day, because your reward will be great in Heaven:

Revelation 22:12-15
King James Version (KJV)
¹² And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.¹³ I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.¹⁴ Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.¹⁵ For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie.

Sincerely,

De Maria