My dear parishioners,

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."

    On this day, as youngsters my parents would take me and my siblings to the cemetery to visit and pray for the dead.  As morbid as this may sound, it has been a blessing in my life.

    I reflect on the meaning of life and death.  I truly appreciate both events.  I walk over to a site and take a close look at the dates that appear on the tombstone.  I calculate their age.  While some lived very short lives, others lived a lifetime.  I take notice of when they were born, but also when they died, and I think about the events that have passed since their departure.  I wonder what they would think of it all.

    For me, death has always been an outstanding "proof" of an intelligent being’s existence.  It is definitely by design, because it is independent of all human considerations.  Death ignores wealth and power.  It is indiscriminate: it takes us all, and often by surprise.  Death is very practical.  It is the great grinding mill.  It reduces all of us to dust and into a memory.  Its purpose is twofold: it nudges us along to get something done, and it remind us to be grateful of others, before we/they are gone.

    Of course not everyone heeds the warnings.  For this reason, we pray for them today. Unlike so many things in life, with life we have one chance to live it.  We can't keep trying over and over again, even if most of us would be much better at it if we had another chance at it.  Nope, there is only a certain amount of time to do it, and then it is time to say goodbye.  We all have jobs to do; some are short, some are long, some are known by many, some are known only by God.  But God knows them all! 

    Of course, not all these jobs were according to the Lord's Will.  Some of our departed brothers and sisters may have lived for years in conflict with their very own conscience.  For this reason, we pray for them today.      

    What will our prayers do for them?  God loves those who imitate Him.  The Lord helped everyone, even those who did not know Him or believe in Him.  He helped whenever and wherever he could.  Today, go visit a cemetery and leave some flowers and prayers at someone's tomb. If you can’t make it, please pray for the dead.  You will be showing your love for them in the only way you can and in the only place you can.

    Believe me, that will be worth more than you could ever imagine.  It will do you and that person a lot of good.

    God bless you.
    Pray for me!
    In Mary Help of Christians,
    Fr. Franco