November 2, 2025
The Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed
(All Souls)
Lectionary: 668
The following
are a selection of the readings that may be chosen for this day.
Reading
I
The souls of the
just are in the hand of God,
and no torment shall touch them.
They seemed, in the view of the foolish, to be dead;
and their passing away was thought an affliction
and their going forth from us, utter destruction.
But they are in peace.
For if before men, indeed, they be punished,
yet is their hope full of immortality;
chastised a little, they shall be greatly blessed,
because God tried them
and found them worthy of himself.
As gold in the furnace, he proved them,
and as sacrificial offerings he took them to himself.
In the time of their visitation they shall shine,
and shall dart about as sparks through stubble;
they shall judge nations and rule over peoples,
and the Lord shall be their King forever.
Those who trust in him shall understand truth,
and the faithful shall abide with him in love:
because grace and mercy are with his holy ones,
and his care is with his elect.
Responsorial
Psalm
R.
(1) The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
or:
R. Though I walk in the valley of darkness, I
fear no evil, for you are with me.
The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.
In verdant pastures he gives me repose;
beside restful waters he leads me;
he refreshes my soul.
R. The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
or:
R. Though I walk in the valley of darkness, I fear no
evil, for you are with me.
He guides me in right paths
for his name’s sake.
Even though I walk in the dark valley
I fear no evil; for you are at my side
with your rod and your staff
that give me courage.
R. The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
or:
R. Though I walk in the valley of darkness, I fear
no evil, for you are with me.
You spread the table before me
in the sight of my foes;
You anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
R. The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
or:
R. Though I walk in the valley of darkness, I fear
no evil, for you are with me.
Only goodness and kindness follow me
all the days of my life;
and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD
for years to come.
R. The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
or:
R. Though I walk in the valley of darkness, I fear
no evil, for you are with me.
Reading
II
Brothers and
sisters:
Hope does not disappoint,
because the love of God has been poured out into our hearts
through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.
For Christ, while we were still helpless,
died at the appointed time for the ungodly.
Indeed, only with difficulty does one die for a just person,
though perhaps for a good person
one might even find courage to die.
But God proves his love for us
in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us.
How much more then, since we are now justified by his Blood,
will we be saved through him from the wrath.
Indeed, if, while we were enemies,
we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son,
how much more, once reconciled,
will we be saved by his life.
Not only that,
but we also boast of God through our Lord Jesus Christ,
through whom we have now received reconciliation.
Or:
Brothers and
sisters:
Are you unaware that we who were baptized into Christ Jesus
were baptized into his death?
We were indeed buried with him through baptism into death,
so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead
by the glory of the Father,
we too might live in newness of life.
For if we have
grown into union with him through a death like his,
we shall also be united with him in the resurrection.
We know that our old self was crucified with him,
so that our sinful body might be done away with,
that we might no longer be in slavery to sin.
For a dead person has been absolved from sin.
If, then, we have died with Christ,
we believe that we shall also live with him.
We know that Christ, raised from the dead, dies no more;
death no longer has power over him.
Alleluia
R. Alleluia,
alleluia.
Come, you who are blessed by my Father;
inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
Jesus said to the
crowds:
“Everything that the Father gives me will come to me,
and I will not reject anyone who comes to me,
because I came down from heaven not to do my own will
but the will of the one who sent me.
And this is the will of the one who sent me,
that I should not lose anything of what he gave me,
but that I should raise it on the last day.
For this is the will of my Father,
that everyone who sees the Son and believes in him
may have eternal life,
and I shall raise him on the last day.”
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/110225.cfm
Yesterday
we celebrated the feast of All Saints. Today is the commemoration of All
Souls—a commemoration of all the faithful departed.
The Church
often speaks of the totality of the baptised as the Communion of Saints. The
word ‘saints’ is used in the scriptural sense of the New Testament, when it
generally refers to baptised members of Christian communities.
The
Communion of Saints is formed of three groups. The first are those who can
properly be called ‘saints’, that is, those who have died and are now enjoying
a face to face relationship with God for all eternity. We sometimes call that
‘heaven’, but it is less a place than a relationship.
The second
group are those who are living on earth at the present time, and are part of
the Pilgrim Church on its way to ultimate union with God in unending happiness.
The third
group are those we are remembering today. They are those who have died, but are
not quite ready to meet God face to face. Most of us would probably acknowledge
that we are far from perfect, and that we still need to go through some
purifying process before entering the eternal presence of God. What that
process is like, it is not for us to speculate.
What we
are reminded of today is that those who are already in the eternal presence of
God, and those who are still on pilgrimage on earth can help the group we call
‘Holy Souls’ to reach the Vision of God sooner, through our good works and
prayers.
And so,
although it is a “holy and wholesome thought to pray for the dead”*, it is
especially appropriate on this day. Naturally, we will remember especially
family members and good friends, but we should also think of those who may not
have anyone to remember them. When our time comes to leave this world, it is
the prayers of those people on whom we will depend.
____________________________________________
*From 2 Macc 12:46, as stated in the Douay-Rheims 1899 American Edition Bible.
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LECTIO DIVINA
Sunday,
November 2, 2025
All Souls Day
1. Lectio
a) Opening prayer
Spirit of God, come from the four
corners of the earth and breathe on these dead persons so that they may rise
again (Ez 37: 9). Come Holy Spirit, breathe on our minds, hearts and souls so
that we may become a new creation in Christ, firstborn into life eternal. Amen.
b) Gospel reading
Jesus said to them,
"All that the Father gives Me will come to Me; and him who comes to Me I
will not cast out. For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but
the will of Him who sent Me; and this is the will of Him who sent Me, that I
should lose nothing of all that He has given Me, but raise it up at the last
day. For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who sees the Son and
believes in Him should have eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day."
c) Prayerful silent time
That the Word of God may enter into
our hearts and enlighten our life.
2. Meditatio
a) A key to the reading
•
In John’s Gospel, the basic perspective
concerning Jesus and His mission is that the Word made flesh is sent by the
Father into the world to give us life and to save that which was lost. The
world, however, rejects the Word incarnate. The prologue of the Gospel presents
us with this thought (Jn 1: 1-18), which the Evangelist will gradually
elaborate on in the Gospel story. The synoptic Gospels, in their own way,
proclaim the same news. One need only think of the parables of the lost sheep
and the lost drachma (Lk 15: 1-10) or the declaration: I did not come to call
the just, but sinners (Mk 2: 17).
•
This thought is also found in this passage: I
have come down from heaven, not to do my own will, but the will of Him who sent
Me (Jn 6: 38). This is the will of my Father, that everyone who sees the Son
and believes in Him should have eternal life (Jn 6: 40). The key words in
John’s Gospel are see and believe. To see implies and automatically means to
believe in the Son sent by the Father. This faith brings the believer to
possess eternal life. In John’s Gospel, the salvation of the world is already
fulfilled by the first coming of Christ through the incarnation and the
resurrection of the one who allows Himself to be lifted up on the cross. The
second coming of Christ on the last day will be a completion of this mystery of
salvation.
•
Today’s Gospel is taken from the section that
speaks of the mystery of Jesus (Jn 1-12). The text takes us, for the second
time in John’s Gospel, to Galilee at the time of the Passover: After this,
Jesus went across the sea of Galilee ... it was near the Passover, the feast of
the Jews (Jn 6: 1, 4). A great crowd followed him, (Jn 6: 2) and Jesus, seeing
the crowd that followed him, multiplies the loaves. The crowd wants to proclaim
Him king, but Jesus disappears and goes up to the mountain alone (Jn 6: 15).
After a brief pause that allows us to contemplate the Lord walking on the water
(Jn 6: 16-21). the story continues the next day (Jn 6: 22)when the crowd ,
seeks out Jesus. Then comes the discourse on the bread of life and Jesus’
warning to obtain the food that will last forever (Jn 6: 27). Jesus defines
Himself as the bread of life. He makes reference to the manna given to the
people by Moses as a figure of the true bread that comes down from heaven and
gives life to the world (Jn 6:, 30-36). This is the context in which the words
of Jesus are pronounced (Jn 6: 37-40). In this context we come across a new
kind of opposition and a new rejection of the revelation of the Christ as the
bread of life (Jn 6: 41-66).
•
Jesus’ words concerning everyone who goes to him
echo God’s invitation to take part in the benefits of the banquet of the
covenant (Is 55: 1-3). Jesus does not reject those who come to him. Rather, He
gives them eternal life. In fact, His mission is to seek and save the lost ones
(Lk 19: 27). We are reminded of this in the story of the meeting of Jesus with
the Samaritan woman by Jacob’s well (Jn 4: 1-42). Jesus does not reject the
Samaritan woman, but begins a ‘pastoral’ dialogue with the woman who comes to
the well to draw material water and there finds the man, the prophet, and the
Messiah who promises to give her the water of eternal life (Jn 4: 13-15). In
our passage, we find the same structure. On the one hand the people seek
material bread. On the other hand, Jesus gives them a long spiritual discourse
on the bread of life. The witness of Jesus who eats the bread of God’s will (Jn
4: 34) echoes the teaching of the Master in this Gospel passage (Jn 6: 38).
• At
the last supper, Jesus takes up this discourse again in chapter 17. It is He
who gives eternal life (Jn 17: 2) and preserves and watches over all those whom
the Father has given to him. Of these none is lost except the son of perdition
(Jn 17: 12-13).
b) A few questions
to guide our meditation and
practice.
•
The Word made flesh is sent into the world by
the Father to give us life, but the world rejects the incarnate Word. Do I
welcome into my life the Divine Word who gives eternal life? How?
•
I came down from heaven not to do my will, but
the will of Him who sent Me (Jn 6: 38). In Jesus, we see obedience to the will
of the Father. Do I internalise this virtue in my life and live it out daily?
•
Anyone who sees the Son and believes in Him will
have eternal life (Jn 6: 40). Who is Jesus for me? Do I try to see Him with the
eyes of faith, listen to His words and contemplate His way of being? What does
eternal life mean for me?
3. Oratio
a) Psalm 23
The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want;
he makes me lie down in green
pastures. He leads me beside still waters; he restores my soul.
He leads me in paths
of righteousness for His name's sake. Even though I walk through the valley of
the shadow of death, I fear no evil; for thou art with me; thy rod and thy
staff, they comfort me.
Thou preparest a table before me
in the presence of my enemies; thou anointest my head with oil, my cup
overflows.
Surely goodness and mercy shall
follow me all the days of my life; and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord
forever. b) Closing prayer
O God, who at the table of your word
and of the bread of life nourish us so that we may grow in love, grant that we
may welcome your message into our heart so that we may become yeast and
instruments of salvation in the world. Through Christ our Lord. Amen
4. Contemplatio
Contemplation is knowing how to adhere with one’s mind and heart to the
Lord who by His Word transforms us into new beings who always do His will.
“Knowing these things, you will be blessed if you do them.” (Jn 13: 17)
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