2017November 1, Solemnity of All Saints

2017November 1, Solemnity of All Saints


RV 7:2-4, 9-14

PS 24:1BC-2, 3-4AB, 5-6

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


1 JN 3:1-3

MT 5:1-12A



Good Morning …..

How was your Halloween ? Do you have plenty of chocolates and candies.? Did you celebrate the Halloween the Catholic Way ? or the Usual Commercial Way ? What did you bring out from your houses , the ghosts, the witches, the scary things Or the Saints of your houses.

As Catholics, let us celebrate Halloween in a Catholic Way, that is, presenting our saints as the models of our lives.

Let us remember that Halloween means Holy Eve or all hallows eve which precedes the celebration of the All Saints Day, That is why celebrating Halloween in a Catholic Way is bringing out the Holy , the Saints in our homes.

Today we celebrate the All Saints’ Day or the All Hallows Day. And for us Catholics this is an important celebration of thanksgiving and recognition for the person who have lived according the Will of the God and the Church recognized and proclaimed them as Saints.

The origin of this remembrance is the experience of Judas Maccabeus of the loss of lives of his men in the battle: he believed that his soldiers were good men, offered their lives for family, for community and in death where will they go. So he collected contributions from the remaining soldiers and offered the money to the temple with a request for the priests to pray those soldiers who have died. And this is the beginning of the belief in the life after death.

Likewise in Jesus Time: this has been a new teaching, the resurrection of the dead. And this has been the controversy with the Sadducees who do not believe in the Resurrection. Jesus said: I will go to the Father’s House and prepare a room for you so that where I am there you must go also.

It is in view of this that we understand the Saints as people who have live the Gospel of Jesus Christ. They have live by the Code of Jesus which is the Beatitudes.

The Beatitudes or the Sermon on the Mount, in Matthew is the CODE OF CONDUCT for all those who want to follow Jesus. The Beatitudes has a deep spirituality and present a deep knowledge of who God is. It has three themes of the which are : compassionate service, sacrifice and call to peace.

We can also say that the Beatitudes is the Revised Ten Commandments and the lives of the saints are examples of this Beatitudes. They have lived the Beatitudes.

As Catholics, we are called to become Saints : to Be Holy as your Father in Heaven is Holy .

And becoming Saints is living out his Beatitudes. we are saints when we follow God’s Will. AMEN