Having been blessed with the experience of living for almost two
years in a place where the change of seasons is distinct, I had the opportunity
to see for myself how much the Liturgical seasons are in sync with the changes
in the times and seasons of the land. It
was also clear that the Latin Rite has a lot of its seasons matching the
movements of the seasons of the Northern Hemisphere, something which those of
us having lived all our lives either near the Equator or in the Southern
Hemisphere would only have a conceptual idea of.
This became very clear to me whenever autumn or fall arrived. It signaled the start of shorter days and
longer nights, and most noticeable would be the change of the colours of the
surrounding foliage. The leaves that
were alive in hues of green would begin to change with the onset of the cooler
weather, causing them to turn to breathtaking shades of amber, yellow, red and
ochre. With their very life being drawn out
of them by nature’s hand, each leaf seems to be holding on with as much
tenacity as it can till gravity and the wind prove to be too much and that
break from the branches causes it to depart into the equally barren land
below. It is in such a life-changing
environment that the Church chooses to observe in her liturgical life our
shared experiences of a limited mortality when the celebrations of All Saints’
Day and All Souls’ Day follow one after the other in the beginning of the month
of November.
While the liturgical emphasis of All Saints’ Day is one of great joy
and celebration, that of All Souls’ Day has a distinctively subdued, softened
and muted character. All Saints’ Day is
a day of festivity and joy because we who are living and form the Church
Militant give honour and pray for the continued intercessions of the Church
Triumphant, made up of the millions of canonized as well as non-canonized
saints who stand ‘facing God face to face’ in eternity. Of course, these terms seem rather
ecclesiastical to many, to the extent that many may have the notion that the
heavenly existence is more of the result of an overactive imagination than a
portrayal of heaven’s rich realities.
What we are saying in essence is that there is a great life in God that
has fullness beyond what our tiny and limited minds can grasp, and there are
those who have undergone the purification either in this life or in purgatory
to enable one to fully be embraced by God.
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| A tapestry of the Communion of Saints that can be seen in the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in the city of Los Angeles by artist John Nava. Each of these huge murals flank the walls of the Cathedral, pictorially depicting each saint's movement in life toward Christ and the Altar in the sanctuary. |
Any Christian who has a notion of what his baptism calls us all
toward will always hope to attain this permanent and eternal state in
life. Celebrating this Solemnity well,
both liturgically and theologically reaffirms and re-instills this hope that
all of us share, reminding us that no happiness and no suffering in this life
lasts forever. The attainment of heaven
is something that almost requires a change, a conversion, and an enlightenment
that re-orientates what drives most of us at our core. This is a dying to the self that is part and
parcel of the Christian journey, putting into practice what Jesus said about
shouldering his yoke and learning from him.
These saints who go before us show us what a life lived in a forward
looking hope ends in, and pave the way for us who have yet to complete our
pilgrimage in this life.
Balancing this celebration is what the observance of All Souls’ Day
does. Bringing to mind the lives of
those who have ended their lives here, it reminds us that the journey towards
heaven requires us to still be somewhat connected with our deceased relations
and friends who make up the Church Penitent.
The mystery of our shared mortality is given a liturgical reminder when
we actively call to mind the many lives of those who still await a purification
before they can fully receive God’s eternal embrace of love. Not that God doesn’t want them in heaven, but
that by their unblinkered and unprejudiced view of their own choices made in
this life, they come to the honest conclusion that they are not yet ready for
the one who is love. Loving on our own
often small terms makes us live with constricted hearts that are not yet ready
to have our hearts beat fully in tandem with the heart of God. All Souls’ Day reminds us all that we have a
duty and a holy obligation to pray and offer penances for the many souls who
are undergoing the searing pain of this honesty that one cannot hide from once
our lives here are at their end. It also
reminds us to always have our eyes cast on what is eternal, especially when
faced with the many choices that often ask us to put aside our fundamental
option in life.
It is not surprising that many are not comfortable with the
observance of All Souls’ Day, given that it reminds us of our own
mortality. But when it is observed with
sound theology and dignified liturgy, it allows us to make that very important
connection with those who have lived this life and are no longer physically with
us. It also reminds us that they are
actually still alive in our prayers, in our memories, and in our hearts, and
that this life and its joys are only a prelude of much greater joys to come.
Celebrating and observing these two days in the liturgical calendar
is ample evidence that our worship and our faith are very organic in
nature. Our connectedness binds us
beyond life’s borders gives us all great hope, simply because we are never alone
in our journey toward God.
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