Praying for our Beloved Deceased

“Jesus said to her, ‘Your brother will rise.’ Martha said to him, ‘I know he will rise, in the resurrection on the last day.’ Jesus told her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life; whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?’ ” (Jn. 23–26)

BISHOP KEVIN J. SWEENEY

In the 11th Chapter of John’s Gospel, we hear of the death of Lazarus and Jesus’s arrival after Lazarus had “already been in the tomb for four days.” We eventually hear how Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead. I have found there are two moments in between Jesus’ arrival and raising of Lazarus that are most important for our prayer and reflection. First, the encounter between Jesus and Martha (Jn. 11:17–27) is filled with emotion. Martha is mourning the death of her brother. She may even be angry with Jesus as she says, “If you had been here, my brother would not have died.” How many of us have experienced this grief and pain at the death of a loved one? As a priest, trying to offer consolation, I have found Jesus’ words so comforting, “Your brother will rise.” I have also been inspired and strengthened by Martha’s faith, “Yes, Lord, I have come to believe.”

The second moment follows (Jn. 28–37), as they go to the tomb and Martha’s sister, Mary, has a similar emotional encounter with Jesus. Then we read, “When Jesus saw her weeping and the Jews who had come with her weeping, he became perturbed and deeply troubled, and said, ‘Where have you laid him?’ They said to him, ‘Sir, come and see.’ And Jesus wept.” We remember that Jesus was “fully human,” like us “in all things but sin.” In this moment, we see Jesus sharing in the grief and deep feeling of loss that Martha and Mary felt, that we have felt and feel at the death of a loved one.

We know and believe that Jesus not only raised Lazarus from the dead, but also that, by his own death and Resurrection, he has conquered sin and death, so that we may have eternal life. As we celebrate this “Paschal Mystery” at every Mass, we may be especially conscious of the hope and promise of eternal life when we celebrate Mass at Easter or at a Funeral or Memorial Mass.

The month of November is another time when we, as Catholics, are especially conscious of the “promise of everlasting life.” Part of the beauty of our Catholic faith is the Liturgical Calendar, the Feasts and Seasons that we celebrate and remember together, year by year, in our prayer, as individuals, families, parishes and together with the whole Church. As we begin November with the Feast of All Saints and the “Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed” on All Souls’ Day, we pray for and remember throughout this month all those who have died and especially those who have died in the past year. Sadly, in this year of 2020, in our local communities, in our country and throughout the world, we have lost so many loved ones to the coronavirus. We pray for the repose of their souls and the consolation of their families.

I recently read a quote from St. Mother Teresa of Calcutta, speaking about this time: “November begins with two beautiful days, The Feast of All Saints and All Souls. Holy Mother Church remembers all of her children, to whom she has given the life of Jesus through Baptism ...We all know that during this whole month we give them extra love and care, by praying to them and for them.”

Whether we offer a Mass intention for a loved one who has died or we visit the cemetery or we simply called that loved one to mind (and heart) in prayer, that act of faith can strengthen our hope. We remember Jesus’s words to Martha, not only, “your brother will rise,” but, “I am the resurrection and the life; whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?” We can each ask for the grace and confident faith to say, with Martha, “Yes, Lord, I have come to believe,” especially during this month of November as we pray for all our beloved deceased.