NOTE: This post was written on All Soul’s Day. Apparently, my computer and WordPress (which hosts my blog) were having a tiff, so they wouldn’t talk to one another. All has been forgiven now. Apologies for the delay.
Today is the Christian holiday in which we remember everyone who has ever died, from Adam and Eve to Aunt Francine. Christians have always prayed for the dead. About a thousand years ago, a French abbot named Odilo started the tradition of remembering all of the deceased faithful specifically on this date. But not simply to remember them; Abbot Odilo urges us to remember our dearly-departed with JOY. If they died believing in Jesus, they are living a very good life.
We Christians are a pretty big family. Since one of the centerpieces of our faith is that those who believe will never die, the Christian family has been growing for generations. The house built by the carpenter from Nazareth has many rooms. There’s one waiting for each of us.
A lot of us get squeamish when we talk about death. The modern culture of the world persists in treating it as “the end,” It’s not. It is the beginning of the best part of our lives. We enter into the part of our life where there are no worries, no illnesses, no tragedies. The race that Jesus ran for us is over and we’re in the winner’s circle.
Death is an inevitable part of our Earthly creation. Our created being, like all of creation, has a natural shelf life. The satiric newspaper The Onion put it perfectly when it proclaimed, “Despite years of medical research, the mortality rate for human beings remains 100%.” This human shell of ours will eventually wear out and we will move on.
All Soul’s Day is a reminder that, while yes, we will in fact die, that should be a day of joy, not a day of grief. The loved ones you “lost” will be reunited with you. That is a promise made by The One who always keeps His promises.
So, remember Mom and Dad, that brother who died too young and the friend who was lost to tragedy. Visit their graves, talk to their old pictures. And smile. Because they’re smiling at you right now.
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