VIGIL OF ALL SAINTS DAY (ALL HALLOWS’ EVE)
Greetings and blessings, beloved family. Happy Thursday of the Thirtieth Week in Ordinary Time and Happy vigil of All Saints (All Hallows’ Eve) Day!
We thank God for bringing us all successfully to the end of the month of October.
On this Feast day, through the intercession of our Blessed Mother Mary and the Saints we celebrate today, we humbly pray for God’s Divine Grace and Mercy upon us all. We continue to pray for the safety and well-being of our children and for peace in our family and the whole world.
May our Blessed Mother Mary Intercede for all those in pain and sorrow. We particularly pray for those mourning the loss of a loved one who recently passed away and the souls in Purgatory. Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them. May their gentle souls and souls of all the faithful departed through the mercy of God rest in perfect peace with our Lord Jesus Christ… Amen 🙏 ✝️🕯✝️🕯✝️🕯
PRAYER FOR THE DEAD: In your hands, O Lord, we humbly entrust our brothers and sisters. In this life, you embraced them with your tender love; deliver them now from every evil, and bid them eternal rest. The old order has passed away: welcome them into paradise, where there will be no sorrow, no weeping or pain, but fullness of peace and joy with your Son and the Holy Spirit forever and ever. Amen🙏
A PRAYER FOR PEACE: Lord Jesus Christ, You are the true King of peace. In You alone is found freedom. Please free our world from conflict. Bring unity to troubled nations. Let Your glorious peace reign in every heart. Dispel all darkness and evil. Protect the dignity of every human life. Replace hatred with Your love. Give wisdom to world leaders. Free them from selfish ambition. Eliminate all violence and war. Glorious Virgin Mary, Saint Michael the Archangel, Every Angel and Saint: Please pray for peace. Pray for unity amongst nations. Pray for unity amongst all people. Pray for the most vulnerable. Pray for those suffering. Pray for the fearful. Pray for those most in need. Pray for us all. Jesus, Son of the Living God, have mercy on us. Jesus, hear our prayers. Jesus, I trust in You! Amen 🙏
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Today’s Bible Readings: Thursday, October 31, 2024
Reading 1, Ephesians 6:10-20
Responsorial Psalm, Psalms 144:1, 2, 9-10
Gospel, Luke 13:31-35
VIGIL OF ALL SAINTS DAY (ALL HALLOWS’ EVE): On this day, we mark All Hallows’ Eve, which is the vigil of All Saints (All Hallows) Day, a major feast on the liturgical calendar and a Holy Day of Obligation. Hallows’ Eve (October 31st) is connected with All Saints Day (November 1st) and All Souls Day (November 2nd). These three days are the “Days of the Dead,” a triduum also known as Allhallowtide or Hallowmas, reminding the faithful of the reality of heaven and hell; the communion of Saints; and our obligation to pray for the Holy Souls in Purgatory. May all the Saints intercede for us and may the gentle repose of the souls of all the faithful departed through the mercy of God rest in perfect peace with our Lord Jesus Christ… Amen 🙏
Today, we celebrate the Memorial of Saint Wolfgang, Bishop and Saint Quentin, Apostle of Amiens, Martyr at Rome. Through the intercession of our Blessed Mother Mary and the Saints on this feast day, we humbly pray for God’s Divine Grace and Mercy upon us all. We pray for the poor, the needy and the most vulnerable in our communities and around the world. We pray for peace, love, justice and unity in our marriages, our families and our world. We pray for the sick and dying, especially those who are mentally and physically ill, strokes, respiratory and stomach diseases and those suffering from cancers and other terminal diseases. We pray for the souls in Purgatory and the repose of the souls of the faithful departed. We pray for all widows and widowers. And we continue to pray for our Holy Father, Pope Francis, the Bishops, the Clergy, for vocations to the priesthood and religious life, for the Church, for persecuted christians, for the conversion of sinners, and Christians all over the world…. Amen🙏
SAINT WOLFGANG, BISHOP: St. Wolfgang (934-994 A.D.), also known as the Great Almoner, was a Benedictine monk, reformer, and Bishop of Regensburg, Bavaria from Christmas 972 until his death. He’s regarded as one of the three great German saints of the 10th century, the other two being Saint Ulrich of Augsburg and Saint Conrad of Constance. The Benedictine monk and bishop, who served as a missionary to pagans and a reformer of the Church in southeastern Germany, was born around 934 in the historic southwestern German region of Swabia. St. Wolfgang came from a family of nobility and was privately tutored as a child and received an excellent education. Later on, the future monk was educated at the renowned Monastery of Reichenau, and at Wurtzburg. St. Wolfgang showed intellectual prowess and found companionship during his years of study, but was also dismayed by the petty jealousies and moral lapses he observed in Wurtzburg’s academic environment. In 956, his school companion Henry was chosen to lead the Archdiocese of Trier. Though St. Wolfgang had become interested in monastic life, he chose to go with Henry to Trier, where his service to the Church included a teaching position in the cathedral school. After Archbishop Henry’s death in 964, St. Wolfgang left Trier, became a monk of the Order of Saint Benedict, and settled at a monastery in the diocese of Augsburg. Its school prospered under his direction, and the local bishop – the future St. Ulrich – ordained him to the priesthood in 968. In his youth, St. Wolfgang had envisioned a secluded life of contemplation; but things turned out differently, as he was sent east to evangelize the Magyars in 972.
By Christmas of that year in 972, St. Wolfgang had been chosen as the new Bishop of Ratisbon (present-day Regensburg in Bavaria). But he continued to live out his monastic vocation, retaining his distinctive Benedictine habit and dedicating himself to the same ascetic lifestyle. Amid the work of preaching and reform, St. Wolfgang remained a man of prayer, silence, and contemplative solitude. Not surprisingly, the Bishop of Ratisbon made monasticism a focus of his church reforms, reviving religious life in places where it had fallen into disorder. Wolfgang also showed extraordinary care for the poor in his diocese, to such an extent that he was called “the Great Almoner.” On the other hand, he was also involved in affairs of state at a high level, and tutored the children of the Duke of Bavaria, including the future Holy Roman Emperor St. Henry II. St. Wolfgang, despite being one of the great bishops and saints of his time, still encountered serious difficulties in his leadership of the Diocese of Ratisbon. On one occasion, a political conflict caused him to withdraw from his diocese to a hermitage for a period of time. St. Wolfgang is also said to have struggled with the great geographical extent of the diocese, parts of which were eventually entrusted to the Bishop of Prague. In 994, while traveling in Austria, St. Wolfgang became sick and died in the village of Puppingen near Linz Austria on October 31, 994 AD. Miracles associated with his tomb, including many healings, led to his canonization on October 8, 1052 by Pope St. Leo IX (r. 1049-1054). Several of St. Wolfgang’s devotees experienced relief from stomach ailments, and he remains a patron saint of such troubles today. His intercession is also sought by victims of strokes and paralysis, and by carpenters, therefore, St. Wolfgang is the Patron Saint of apoplexy; carpenters and wood carvers; paralysis; Regensburg, Germany; stomach diseases; strokes.
PRAYER: God, Light and Shepherd of souls, You established St. Wolfgang as Bishop in Your Church to feed Your flock by his word and form it by his example. Help us through his intercession to keep the faith he taught by his word and follow the way he showed by his example. Amen 🙏
SAINT QUENTIN, APOSTLE OF AMIENS, MARTYR: Saint Quentin († 287) also known as Quintinus was a Roman, descended from a senatorial family. According to legend, he was born in Rome, Italy, son of a Roman senator named Zeno. He was a convert to Christianity. Full of zeal for the kingdom of Jesus Christ, he left his country and went into Gaul, accompanied by eleven other apostles sent from Rome. They separated to extend their campaign of evangelization to the various regions of France. Saint Quentin remained at Amiens and endeavored by his prayers and labors to make that region part of Our Lord’s inheritance. By the force of his words and works he preluded the glory of his martyrdom. He gave sight to the blind, vigor to paralytics, hearing to the deaf, and agility to the infirm, in the name of Our Lord, simply by the sign of the Cross. At all hours of the day he invoked his God in fervent supplications. But this apostolate could not escape the notice of Rictiovarus, the Roman prosecutor who at that time represented Maximian Herculeus in Gaul. Saint Quentin was seized at Amiens, thrown into prison, and loaded with chains. Rictiovarus asked him: How does it happen that you, of such high nobility and the son of so distinguished a father, have given yourself up to so superstitious a religion, a folly, and that you adore an unfortunate man crucified by other men? Saint Quentin replied: It is sovereign nobility to adore the Creator of heaven and earth, and to obey willingly His divine commandments. What you call folly is supreme wisdom. What is there that is wiser than to recognize the unique true God, and to reject with disdain the counterfeits, which are mute, false and deceiving?
When the holy preacher was found to be invulnerable to either promises or threats, the prosecutor condemned him to the most barbarous torture. He was stretched on the rack and flogged. He prayed for strength, for the honor and glory of the name of God, forever blessed. He was returned to the prison when the executioners who were striking him fell over backwards, and told Rictiovarus they were unable to stand up, and could scarcely speak. An Angel released the prisoner during the night, telling him to go and preach in the city, and that the persecutor would soon fall before the justice of God. His sermon, a commented paraphrase of the Apostles’ Creed, has been conserved. To his profession of faith in the Holy Trinity, he added that Our Lord Jesus Christ, whom he adored, gave sight to the blind, hearing to the deaf, health to the sick and even life to the dead. At His voice, the lame leaped up and ran, paralytics walked, and water was changed into wine… He has promised to be forever with those who hope in Him, and He never abandons those who place their hope in Him; by His omnipotence He delivers them, whenever it pleases Him, from all their tribulations. His guardians discovered that he had disappeared, though all doors were barred, and found him in the city preaching. They were converted by the prodigy. But Rictiovarus was furious and said to them: You, too, have become magicians? Brought back before the tribunal as a sorcerer, Saint Quentin said: If by persevering in my faith, I am put to death by you, I will not cease to live in Jesus Christ; this is my hope, I maintain it with confidence. He was again placed on the rack and beaten, and tortured with other demoniacal means; his flesh pierced with two iron wires from the shoulders to the thighs, and iron nails were thrust into his fingers, his skull and body. Finally, this glorious martyr was decapitated, after praying and saying: O Lord Jesus, God of God, Light of Light…, for love of whom I have given up my body to all the torments… ah! I implore Thee, in Thy holy mercy, receive my spirit and soul, which I offer Thee with all the ardor of my desires. Do not abandon me, O most kind King, most clement King, who livest and reignest with the Father, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, forever and ever! His death occurred on October 31, 287. His body was twice buried secretly, and twice it was rediscovered miraculously — in the years 338 and 641, first by Saint Eusebie of Rome, on a marshy island, where it had remained intact; later near the city of Augusta, by Saint Eloi. Saint Quentin remains in great honor in France above all, where more than fifty-two churches and as many localities were, at the beginning of the 20th century, dedicated to his memory; he is honored also in Belgium and in Italy. Charlemagne and the kings of France have gone to venerate the relics of Saint Quentin. He is the Patron Saint against coughs
Saint Quentin, Apostle of Amiens, Martyr ~ Pray for us 🙏
SCRIPTURE REFLECTIONS:
Bible Readings for today, Thursday of the Thirtieth Week in Ordinary Time | USCCB | https://bible.usccb.org/daily-bible-reading
Gospel Reading ~ Luke 13:31-35
“It is impossible that a prophet should die outside of Jerusalem”
“Some Pharisees came to Jesus and said, “Go away, leave this area because Herod wants to kill you.” He replied, “Go and tell that fox, ‘Behold, I cast out demons and I perform healings today and tomorrow, and on the third day I accomplish my purpose. Yet I must continue on my way today, tomorrow, and the following day, for it is impossible that a prophet should die outside of Jerusalem.’ “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how many times I yearned to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, but you were unwilling! Behold, your house will be abandoned. But I tell you, you will not see me until the time comes when you say, Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.”
In today’s Gospel reading, the Pharisees tempt Jesus to deviate from His path to protect Himself from Herod. Jesus resists this temptation, saying to them, ‘today and tomorrow and the next day, I must go on’. He had to continue on His journey to Jerusalem, even though it was the city that killed the prophets and where He would be rejected. Jesus knew that that this was the journey God wanted Him to take, even though it would lead to His rejection and death. The Gospel had to be preached in Jerusalem, the focal point of God’s presence for the people of Israel. In those times when we have a sense of what God is asking of us, the path He is calling us to take, we too need to say to ourselves and maybe to others, ‘I must keep going today and tomorrow and the next day’. What is it that allows us to keep going, when the temptation to take an easier path is strong? In the first reading, Saint Paul speaks about the need to put on God’s armour. We need the strength that only God can give us if we are to take the path that God desires us to take, the path of life for us and for others. Saint Paul speaks of this armour of God in various ways, such as truth, integrity, faith, the word of God and prayer. With regard to prayer, he says, ‘Pray all the time, asking for what you need, praying in the Spirit on every possible occasion’. Prayer opens us up to receiving the strength from the Lord that enables us to remain faithful to His call whenever our relationship with Him is put to the test.
In the Gospels, Jesus often uses images from nature to express the meaning and purpose of this mission. In our Gospel reading today, He compares Himself to a mother hen gathering her brood under her wings. Jesus longed to gather the people of Jerusalem in a similar way. Yet, the tragedy is that Jerusalem refused to be gathered. Jesus speaks in the Gospel reading out of a sense of powerlessness. He has a deep longing to gather people to Himself but that longing goes unfulfilled if people refuse to allow themselves to be gathered. Jesus acknowledges his powerlessness before the great mystery of human freedom. The Lord’s desire for us needs to meet with some level of desire in us for Him, if his purpose for our lives is to come to pass. Yet, in the first reading St. Paul expresses his conviction that nothing can come between us and the love of God made visible in Jesus Christ. Perhaps then the Lord’s love, His longing for our hearts, can eventually overcome even our resistance. However, the Gospel reading today suggests that the Lord longs for us to respond to His loving initiative towards us, and is greatly distressed when that response is not forthcoming.
Sometimes we can have a sense of what the Lord is asking us to do, the path He is calling us to take, but we struggle to do what He is asking. We are tempted to take another path, an easier one. Jesus sometimes found Himself in this situation, just as in today’s Gospel when some people come up to Jesus and ask Him to take a different path to the one He is travelling because His life is in danger; Herod wants to kill Him. In spite of that danger, Jesus expresses His determination to keep going towards the city of Jerusalem, because He wants to gather its people to Himself. Jesus shows a determination to keep taking the path that God is asking Him to take. Like Jesus, we too can be tempted to give up something that we know to be worthwhile, or to turn away from a path that is the path we really need to take. At such times we need help from outside ourselves to keep on running the race, fighting the good fight, keeping the faith. What enabled Jesus to keep going when He was tempted to turn back was His relationship with God, His Father. What helps us to keep going in testing times is our relationship with the Lord. There is a word of exhortation in the letter to the Hebrews, which echoes the call of the Gospel reading to us today: ‘Let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith’.
In our first reading today from the Epistle of St. Paul the Apostle to the Church and the faithful in the city and region of Ephesus the exhortation that he gave to the faithful about how the people of God should always strive to put on the whole armour of God, which is a reference to all the many gifts, blessings, graces and all the guidance which we have received from the Lord, the gift of His Wisdom and the Holy Spirit, that become our source of hope and strength amidst all the difficulties hardships, trials and all the darkness surrounding us. The Lord has always provided us with the means and the help needed for us to resist the challenges and to remain strong despite the persecutions that we may face. Most importantly, we must always trust in the Lord and be open to His help, as we likely cannot overcome those difficulties by ourselves without God. At that time, in Ephesus and in other places, the Christians in the community did face quite a bit of challenges from various sources, from the external attacks and obstacles laid by the local and Roman authorities, the opposition from the pagan worshippers who disliked the spread in popularity of the new Christian faith, as well as from the Jewish authorities and groups who wanted to curb the continuing spread of the Christian faith in proclaiming Christ despite their efforts to snuff the Church and the Christian missionary efforts from the very beginning. There were also significant divisions within the community of the faithful, from the disagreements in how they ought to follow the Lord and His Law and commandments, and also the presence of false teachers and heretical ideas that were already rampant even from those early days of the Church.
As we reflect on the words of the Sacred Scriptures today, we are reminded of the need for all of us to remain faithful, strong and vigilant amidst every moments in our lives when we may face challenges, difficulties, trials, opposition, ridicule, obstacles and other hardships that may dampen our desire to follow the Lord faithfully as His beloved and holy people, as His disciples and followers. We must not easily give up just because of these obstackes and challenges. We need to put our trust and faith in the Lord, that He is always with us in our journey and struggles. We must also realise that as Christians, it is likely that we may face persecution and oppression just as the Lord Himself has faced the same difficulties and persecutions. Today, as we enter this solemn time, which is also the Eve of All Saints’ Day, the beginning of the occasion of Allhallowtide and which we all celebrate as Halloween, let us all enter into deeper realisation of our lives and reflect on whether we have truly obeyed the Lord and walked in His ways as we should have, and let us all remember that in the end, our goal and focus should be to look forward to the perfection and fullness of grace that will come one day, when the Lord will come to gather all of His faithful and worthy ones back to Him, and bring us all into His eternal kingdom, in the fullness of grace, of perfection of bliss and love. We also remember all those holy and devoted people of God, our holy predecessors, whom have persevered through the many hardships and obstacles as mentioned, and they did not give up their faith in God. On the contrary, they remained faithful and committed to Him, living their lives and enduring through the many persecutions and challenges with joy, knowing that they have obeyed the Lord and lived their lives according to the path that God has shown them. We should also therefore be inspired by their good examples and inspiration, and remain strong in our own faith, remembering that all those Saints and martyrs are in fact still with us, constantly praying for us and supporting us in our journey. And as the world celebrates the secular celebrations of Halloween, inspired from this celebration of the All Hallows’ Eve, let us all celebrate the true spirit of the Allhallowtide season that is modelling ourselves upon the examples of the virtuous and worthy Saints of God, so that we too may one day be worthy of Heaven as they are. May the Lord, our most loving and compassionate God continue to strengthen and empower each and every one of us with the power, wisdom and guidance, the ‘armour of God’ needed for us to resist the temptations and pressures in life. May He continue to guide us in our journey of faith and life, helping us to be good role models and inspirations for everyone around us by our faithful journey and obedience to God and His will, keeping in mind at all times to maintain a good relationship with God through prayer and other means. May the Lord help us all in our journey and struggle towards Him, and empower us with the courage and strength, so that we may always be strong in our commitment and dedication to serve the Lord at all times. May He continue to bless us in our every good efforts and works, our every commitments to His cause, so that by our every actions, words and deeds, truly worthy of Him, we may continue to proclaim Him as always in our communities and among all those whom we encounter in life. May God in His infinite grace and mercy, grant us the grace and ability to love God and be generous to our neighbor and may He bless us in our every efforts and endeavours, now and always, forevermore. Amen🙏
DEVOTION OF THE MONTH OF OCTOBER:
MONTH OF THE HOLY ROSARY: The Catholic Church designates and dedicate October as the Month of the Holy Rosary. During this month the faithful venerate the Blessed Virgin Mary especially under her title of Our Lady of the Rosary, and make special effort to honor the Holy Rosary with group recitations and rosary processions. The Lady of the Rosary honors a large battle between the Catholic Church and the Muslim caliphate of the Ottoman Empire. This battle, in the Gulf of Patras, near Greece, took place in the 16th century, on October 7, 1571. St. Dominic de Guzman, the founder of the Order of Preachers, is the Saint to whom Our Lady famously appeared and gave the prayers of the Holy Rosary to assist him as a spiritual weapon in combating heresy and leading souls back to the one, true Catholic faith. Our Blessed Mother Mary ~ Pray for us 🙏
THE MYSTERIES OF THE ROSARY: Until about the 15th century hundreds of mysteries were part of the Rosary devotion then the 15 mysteries that we know today were definitively fixed as “the Mysteries of the Rosary.” Pope John Paul II, in his encyclical, Rosarium Virginis Mariae, in 2002 added the five Luminous Mysteries.
Through the meditations of the complete Rosary one recalls and has impressed on his mind, the Popes tell us, “the chief mysteries of the Christian religion,” “the mysteries of our Redemption,” “the great mysteries of Jesus and His Mother united in joys, sorrows, and triumphs.” The twenty mysteries are divided into four equal groups, known as “The Joyful,” “The Sorrowful,” “The Glorious,” and “The Luminous Mysteries.”
PRAYER OF ST. LOUISE DE MONTFORT: O Jesus living in Mary, come and live in Your servants, in the spirit of Your holiness, in the fullness of Your might, in the perfection of Your ways, in the truth of Your virtues, in the communion of Your mysteries. Subdue every hostile power, the devil, the world and the flesh, in the strength of Your Spirit, for the glory of Your Father, Amen 🙏🏽
https://www.catholicculture.org/culture/liturgicalyear/overviews/months/10_1.cfm
THE POPE’S MONTHLY INTENTIONS FOR 2024: FOR THE MONTH OF OCTOBER – FOR A SHARED MISSION: We pray that the Church continue to sustain in all ways a Synodal lifestyle, as a sign of co-responsibility, promoting the participation, the communion and the mission shared among priests, religious and lay people.
https://www.usccb.org/prayers/popes-monthly-intentions-2024
PRAYER FOR PEACE ~ POPE FRANCIS:
Lord God of peace, hear our prayer!
Prayers for Peace | https://mycatholic.life/catholic-prayers/prayers-for-peace/
During this Ordinary Time, please let us all continue to pray for peace all over the world, particularly in Africa, Nigeria, the Middle East, for an end to the current war in Israel-Palestine, and the Ukraine-Russia conflicts and for peace in our families and throughout our divided and conflicted World. Amen 🙏🏾
PRAYER INTENTIONS: During this season of the Ordinary Time, through the intercession of our Blessed Mother Mary and all the Saints on this feast day, we humbly pray for our children and children all over the world, we pray for their health, safety and well-being, we particularly pray for those who have no one to care for them and those who are terminally ill, we pray for God’s Divine healing upon them. We pray for all mothers, wives, those going through challenges in their marriages, Victims of verbal and spousal abuse, and we pray for peace, love and unity in our families and our world. Every life is a gift. We pray for God’s deliverance from impossible causes or situations. For all widows and widowers. And we continue to pray for our Holy Father, Pope Francis, the Bishops, the Clergy, and all those who preach the Gospel. We pray for Vocation to the Priesthood and Religious life. We particularly pray for all Youths and all Seminarians. For the Church, for persecuted Christians, for all the innocent who suffer violence due to political or religious unrest, for the conversion of sinners and Christians all over the world. Amen 🙏
Let us pray:
My compassionate Lord, You yearn to protect me from the many evils in this world. You yearn to heal me of the wounds my sins have caused. And You yearn to bestow upon me the gift of eternal life. I accept Your protection, dear Lord, and pray for the healing I need. Please cover me always and bestow upon me the gift of eternal life. Jesus, I trust in You ~ Amen 🙏🏽
Save Us, Savior of the World. Most Sacred Heart of Jesus and Most Precious Blood of Jesus, have mercy on us. Our Blessed Mother Mary; Saint Wolfgang, Bishop and Saint Quentin, Apostle of Amiens, Martyr at Rome ~ Pray for us 🙏
Thanking God for the gift of this day and praying for justice, peace, love and unity in our families and our world and for God’s Divine Mercy and Grace upon us all. Have a blessed, safe, grace-filled and fruitful week 🙏🏽
Blessings and Love always, Philomena💖
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