Saint Anne Parish

Message from Fr. Brito:

All Saints/All Souls

On Saturday we celebrated All Saints Day. This Sunday we celebrate All Souls day. All Saints Day feast we contemplate the holy ones who have gone before us and who have left us an example to follow.

While the saints are meant to be role models for today’s men and women, the pope likes to remind people that holiness is not something completely out of reach — it’s not some “rare privilege for the few,” but an inheritance everyone receives at baptism.

ßThe pope has said, “Saints aren’t superheroes nor were they born perfect. They are like us, each one of us,” but when they experienced the life-changing encounter with God, they never left his side.

So are you ready to be a saint!?

We’ve compiled some of Pope Francis’ Top 10 Secrets of Success for living a holy life in the slideshow below:

Follow God with your whole heart without compromise
Get your sense of security from God and not things
All ways serve others
Learn to suffer with those who suffer and to rejoice with those who rejoice
Bear suffering and adversity without hatred.
Respond to evil with goodness.
Reconcile people, build peace.
Have a joyous humble heart; don’t judge.
Pray.
Follow the beatitudes

The saints hope and pray that we join them in heaven. They are our friends and our coming to heaven increases their joy.

All souls day is for those who have died. It is a day to remember our brothers and sisters who have gone before us. The Church holds that there is a place in which poor sinners go before they can enter into heaven. We call this place purgatory. Purgatory is a place in which we are made perfect before we behold the face of God. It is like raw gold that is placed into fire. When exposed to the fire the gold separates form all that is impure and at the end it is pure. The same thing happens to us through the purifying fires of purgatory.

We offer this mass today to help our brothers and sister through their time of purification. We even call them the “poor souls in purgatory”. They are poor cause they cannot help themselves, but we can help them with our prayers and offerings. Never forget the poor souls, remembering them is an act of mercy and charity.

We have a book that will be brought up during the presentation of the gifts. I invite you to write the names of your loved one in this book so that we can pray for them during this month of November. Amen