Greetings Prayer Warriors,
Many of you are aware that November 2nd is All Souls Day, a time to pray for the dead. My heart turns toward loved ones who have passed. However, since I have developed the habit of praying for marriages on Mondays (I hope you have by now too), I am reminded that our job as a spouse is to get our partner to heaven. Perhaps that means not only praying copious prayers during the marriage, but ongoing prayers of supplication for our spouse upon their passing. It is the rare person who dies a saint, for we are all sinners, so let us amplify our prayers!
I encourage everyone to pray for souls all month long, until it becomes a habit, at which point you won’t want to stop! A priest said it best when he exclaimed, “There are no ingrates in heaven, so if you pray for souls today, they will reward you once they get to heaven!” So, for those of you who thought, “If I my spouse dies first, who’s going to pray for me?” you now have your answer!
Turning to supplication, they prayed that the sinful deed might be fully blotted out. If he were not expecting the fallen to rise again, it would have been superfluous and foolish to pray for the dead. But if he did this with a view to the splendid reward that awaits those who had gone to rest in godliness, it was a holy and pious thought.Thus, he made atonement for the dead that they might be absolved from their sin. 2 Maccabees 12:42, 44-46
Since nothing unclean can stand before God, let us pray for the cleansing purgation of the dead, so that one day they will be with God forever in eternity.
If you need a prayer to get you started, here is an excellent one written by St. Gertrude.
Eternal Father, I offer Thee the Most Precious Blood of Thy Divine Son, Jesus, in union with the masses said throughout the world today, for all the holy souls in purgatory, for sinners everywhere, for sinners in the universal church, those in my own home and within my family. Amen.
Keep praying for marriages too, so that one day each spouse may be given their glorious crown in heaven!
Peace, Joy, and Love,
Janet
Prayer is a gift of eternal value. Pass it on!
