Sunday Homily, November 2, 2014, All Saints
Readings:
Wisdom 3, 1-9, The souls of the just are in the hand of God.
Psalm 23, The Lord is my shepherd, there is nothing I shall want.
1 John 3, 1-3, See what love the Father has bestowed on us.
John 6, 37-40, I will not reject anyone.
All Souls Day observations–
Let me give you a bit of history and the thinking behind this All Souls' Day. Five observations: the theology, purgatory-limbo, a legend, pre-Christian practices, and today.
1. The Theology. All Souls' Day is part of a package with All Saints. The idea is: on All Saints' Day we honor all those who are enjoying the beatific vision, that is, heaven, the saints. On All Souls' Day we honor those who have died but have not reached heaven because they had penance to do.
We are talking mortal & venial sin here. If the person died with mortal sin, they are you know where. Those with venial sins have to go through purification and purging, which brings us to All Souls' Day and purgatory.
2. Purgatory & limbo. People ended up in purgatory to purify themselves with suffering, before being allowed into heaven. Limbo was for whom? It was for people, especially children who died without being baptized. They remained there how long? Forever. Can you imagine a baby there or even in the old purgatory?
At least the Catholic Church recently acknowledged that the limbo idea was bogus. The pope said it does not exist and never did. Though many consider purgatory to be in the same class, it still exists. Want to know how we know? A previous pope was offering indulgences. The indulgence is for the soul in purgatory. It speeds up the process. There are partial & total indulgences. We can win them for these souls and get them out or we can win them for ourselves.
For instance, on the last feast of Peter & Paul Rome offered an indulgence if you visited a church named after one or both of these two, and you recited a prescribed menu of prayers.
3. The legend. It happened around 1000 A.D. that a monk, St. Idolo, from the French monastery of Cluny was shipwrecked on a desolate island as he returned from a pilgrimage to the Holy Land, i.e., Israel. On the island he met a poor hermit. The hermit told him that among the rocks was a crevice from which came the anguished voices of the many suffering in purgatory. Likewise, listening carefully you could hear the devils cursing that living people were speeding up the sufferings of these souls by praying and doing penance for them.
Some time after this, i.e., 1000 A.D., the Cluny Monastery established an All Souls' Day. Ca. 1300 Rome followed suit.
4. Pre-Christian times. There is evidence that at least in Mexico numerous tribes had a day or period when the departed ancestors were honored. The purpose was to honor them, remember their example, and to communicate with them. Today in Mexico & in Hispanic families the Day of the Dead is still celebrated. This custom has been celebrated for 3,000 years.
5. Today. Limbo has been discarded by Rome and many scholars consider purgatory a dinosaur idea from antiquity. Consequently, All Souls' Day celebrates Samantha, my mom & dad, Rosemary's mom & dad, and all our loved ones pictured on the stage. All Saints' Day handles the canonized. Hell is also considered today a mental concept, not real.
So we say, What special blessing did you receive from one of these people pictured or whom you remember in your heart?
Today's Saint
I would like to talk today about a saint for the day. Every day has its saint. I want to talk about one.
Ever hear of a 67 year old black guy named Johnny Lindsay? I read about him in the Dallas Morning News this summer. Another of the army of exonerees.
Johnny spent 26 years in prison for a rape he did not commit. He got out in 2008. Can you believe that, 26 years! Oh, but how he had grown.
He came out of prison without anger, bitterness, or desire for revenge. In fact, he came out with a desire to do one thing positive for someone. He had reached that acceptance state where peace lives.
Ever since Johnny was 12 years old music had touched his spirit. What kept his spirit alive those 26 years was music. He sang in a choir the prisoners formed. He said music was his saving grace and he dreamed all those years of finally being exonerated one day and doing one thing good for others.
At his release he was given $2 million. So his wife, Sherita, and he decided to actually take piano lessons. He met Debbie Beach and she became an inspiration for him. She taught them and shared her dream to have her own music school. Johnny & Sherita bought her all the keyboards she needed to open her school.
Has Johnny come out of prison eager for revenge? Does he hate? Is he angry? I think I would be. However, he, like so many, many of these exonerated men is at peace.
Even this past Wedneswday, two men were exonerated and released after 14 years in prison. They are not angry and not looking for revenge. Johnny loves and accepts others. He is at peace, with others and with himself.
With whom are you not at peace? What do you need to do to attain the peace Johnny has?
Reference: Dallas Morning News, June 23, 2014.