It seems that the older we get, we attend more funerals than baptisms. The cycle of life is on the downside, we have grandchildren, great grandchildren, and so it goes. One aspect of Christian life which is rarely thought of is praying for our deceased brothers and sisters. Modern culture likes to presume that everyone goes to Heaven when they die. This is an error perpetrated by Satan, the father of lies. Now, some of you are thinking, “why should I bother thinking of this?” It is because back in 1517, this error was started with the removal of the Deuterocanonical books, often mis-labeled the “apocrypha” or “secret books” of the Bible. When the Bible was codified at the Council of Rome in 382, this was the existing Biblical canon of 73 books and remained so, until the erroneous editions of the Bible that deleted seven books from the canon, circa 1517. These are historical facts, not personal feelings. Moreover, souls from 1517 to now, given this “new way of thinking”, souls of the living are not only in spiritual error, but, the souls of those deceased suffer as there is nobody to pray for them. That is both sad and spiritually not good for those deceased, as they cannot pray for themselves. I encourage all of you to contemplate the following verse from Second Maccabees, 12:44: “nisi enim eos qui ceciderant resurrecturos speraret superfluum videretur et vanum orare pro mortuis” (said: nee-see /ay-nihm/ay-ohs/qwee/che-chee-der-ant/reh-sur-reck-too-rohs/spare-ah-rhet/soo-per-floo-oom/vee-deh-reh-toor/eht/vah-noom/oh-rah-rey/pro/mor-too-ees.) The scripture translates to: “For if he had not hoped that they that were slain should rise again, it would have seemed superfluous and vain to pray for the dead.”
This particular verse has been the center of my prayers since my father died last June. Previous to me experiencing dad’s death, the mother of one of my friends at the parish died suddenly. He was swarmed with older siblings who flew in for the funeral of their mom. None of the siblings are practicing Christians and my friend was his mother’s caretaker, as she was wheelchair bound. The funeral was held for her, as well as had the wake and viewing prior, as is customary for a Catholic, and it was a very holy and solemn occasion. I especially grieved for my friend, as being the youngest in the birth order as well as he has been caregiver to his mom for so many years, he did not have the time to mourn at the wake or funeral. His head was filled with logistics with the funeral, burial and all of the details with the estate post mortem. (I am still experiencing this with my dad, and it is no fun, frankly.) I thought, what can I do for him and his mom? This is one of the blessings of consulting the complete Bible–our prayers for the dead. So many times we may feel “I am powerless to do anything when someone dies” especially when we are prevented, for whatever reason, from attending the funeral. One direct answer that doesn’t require physical presence exists-you can pray for them, their family, and all the holy souls in purgatory who have nobody to pray for them. Also, you can ask for the intercession of all the holy souls in purgatory to storm Heaven with their prayers for your intentions. A great prayer is the Prayer of St. Gertrude: + “Eternal Father, I offer You the Most Precious Blood of Your 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.” + It logically follows, then, that we truly are a family of spiritual brothers and sisters, given this verse from scared scripture as well as the text of the St. Gertrude Prayer. Know that your prayers are exactly what you can do for people no matter where you are located. Take some time to reflect this month on people you could pray for and do exactly that. You may be surprised at gifts of grace you get from this contemplation and prayer. God reward you all!
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