Friday, October 31, 2014



Friday of the Thirtieth Week in Ordinary Time

(Philippians 1:1-11; Luke 14:1-6)

Passing through neighborhoods today we see signs of death.  Neighbors are not really being ghoulish although the displays of figures hanging from trees defy generosity of thought.  The lighted pumpkins and moving skeletons actually ridicule death because of widespread belief in the immortality.  Secular humanists aside, the people believe that the soul transcends death.

But should they really be so sanguine about it? Souls may continue to exist, but bodies deteriorate in the ground if they are not incinerated beforehand.  And bodies are so integral to the human person that it is hard to imagine life without them.  Could we communicate without tongues to speak, ears to listen, or fingers to type our thoughts?  We wouldn’t enjoy a meal with friends to say nothing of the satisfaction that we derive from a glass of wine or perhaps a Dunkin’ Donut.  Death may be one frustration after another until the last day when Christ will raise our bodies to be like his in glory.

All Saints and All Souls Days bid us not to worry about life after death.  They assure us that the same Christ, who cures the man suffering from dropsy in today’s gospel, will not forget those who believe in him.  He will be there when they die, be it the Sabbath or not, to fulfill their needs.