The Life in The World to Come

A dear Aunt of mine passed away on First Saturday. She was one of a kind, an elegant, glamorous woman who was enchanting to be around. She dressed and looked like a movie star and I always enjoyed being with her.

When I made my confirmation, I asked her to be my sponsor. As a gift to me that day she gave me a silver rosary she had blessed by Pope Pius XII. Yet, she struggled with her faith and was honest about that to me.

The day before she died, First Friday our family went to Mass and Confession, praying for her and when the call came that things were worsening it was providential that we were able to use the family rosary to pray the Divine Mercy Chaplet for her at the hour of Mercy. The hands of each of her great niece and nephews each held and lead a decade...for her soul for the hour of her death. "Eternal Father, I offer You the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Your dearly beloved Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, in atonement for our sins and those of the whole world. For the sake of His sorrowful Passion, have mercy on us and on the whole world. Holy God, Holy Mighty One, Holy Immortal One, have mercy on us and on the whole world."

Tomorrow the boys will be on the altar serving her funeral Mass and we will pray for her soul again, as we should. The Catholic faith is about death. We believe in the life yet to come, the eternal life. This will be a Catholic homeschooling day. Burying the dead, praying for the dearly departed are Corporal and Spiritual Works of Mercy and +living+ our faith. What a rich faith we have....

Beyond that we also believe in the tradition of the Gregorian Masses.

GREGORIAN MASSES--WHAT THEY ARE AND WHY WE SHOULD HAVE THEM OFFERED!
By author Susan Tassone


The Mass Heals!


We hear stories of people who have been healed in body and we are in awe! We seldom consider how much Jesus does to heal souls suffering on earth and more so the souls suffering in Purgatory. A place which none of us have seen and to which many of us could go. We are invited to act on what Our Lady and the Saints are telling us!


Our Lady at one of her apparitions has said, "Most souls go to Purgatory, many go to Hell, and only a few go directly to Heaven." She also tells us that we gain "new intercessors" when we pray for the Holy Souls in Purgatory. They become our nearest, sincerest, and dearest friends on earth and in Heaven.


Christ told St. Faustina, "All these souls are greatly loved by Me. They are making retribution to My justice. It is in your power to bring relief. Draw all the indulgences from the treasury of My Church and offer them on their behalf. Oh, if you only know the torments they suffer."


We do not stop to think about the physical and spiritual healing through the Eucharist. Today, many are discovering how the Eucharist for the deceased also heals the living as they come into deeper relationship with Jesus. Dr. Kenneth McCall has over 1000 cases of emotional or physical healing occurring with clients by offering a Mass for their deceased loved ones. The Mass heals the living and the dead!


Our Lady states, "If we get to church early, and if we spend 10-15 minutes with Our Lord instead of leaving quickly like you do, there would be more miracles in your life and fewer sicker people among you." The power of prayer is grabbing the headlines. An Arizona journal reports that "intercessory prayer" produced measurable improvement in the medical outcome of critically ill patients. The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is the highest act of worship and the highest form of prayer. St. John Chrysostom says, "Christ is the victim that gives solace to the dead."


So what are you doing for our dear deceased loved ones? Who do you miss the most? Who do you wish you could have done more for in their life? Who hurt you? Who helped you the most spiritually or temporally? Have a Mass offered for them! The Council of Trent tells us, "The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, the Perpetual Sacrifice, is the greatest of all suffrages for the Holy Souls."


A great avenue to have Masses offered is through the Missions. By offering your Masses through the Missions you are providing bread and wine for the Eucharist for a priest in mission countries. These offerings also help with liturgical expenses, books for seminarians, and ministries of the Church. These priests depend on your Masses as their lifeline. Can we help them? Can we help Christ continue His mission on and beyond this earth. And when we do help we are also being merciful to ourselves! Many parish Mass Intention Books are filled years ahead. We have an opportunity to help our deceased loved ones and our missionaries spread the Gospel and bring the Eucharist to God's beloved poor.The Eucharist is the source and summit of all Christian life. Let us be missionaries of the Eucharist for the Holy Souls languishing in Purgatory.


What are Gregorian Masses? The name is derived from Pope St. Gregory the Great who was the first to popularize this pious practice. St. Gregory relates in his Dialogues how, when he had finished the series of thirty Masses for a departed Monk, the monk appeared to tell him he had thus gained entry into glory on completion of the Gregorian Masses. The hallowed tradition has been declared "a pious and reasonable belief of the faithful" on the authority of the Sacred Roman Congregation on indulgences. The Gregorian Masses are offered for ONE DECEASED SOUL...not a couple or family. PUT THEM IN YOUR WILLS!


As you will appreciate, few priests by reason of their work are free and able to offer the 30 consecutive Masses of the Gregorian series without interruption. Hence, it requires extra time to arrange to have the Gregorian Masses scheduled as this cannot be done usually in a place where there are only a few priests. This is why they are usually offered through the "Missions." The customary offering for the uninterrupted series of 30 daily consecutive Masses.


Remember to have Masses offered for yourselves, special occasions, during the Holidays. It is refreshing surprise to give someone the gift of prayer! St. Anselm tells us that those we hear or have offered during life are more profitable than those offered for us after death. In this way we shall not be at the mercy of those who remain behind. There is much truth in the proverb which says: "A candle placed before us gives more light than ten candles placed behind us." Only by the means of the Mass can we nourish the hope of being received into Heaven immediately after death, without having to pass through the cleansing flames of Purgatory.


St. Gregory points out in his story of his life that he was instructed by God in the benefit of these thirty masses. He recommends the practice of this devotion various times.

St. Vincent Ferrer in his writings states that he had thirty consecutive masses celebrated for his deceased sister whom he saw delivered from purgatory.

Pope Benedict XIII praised this practice.


Several religious orders articulate in their rules and constitutions that thirty Gregorian masses be said for every deceased member. Carmelites, Domincans, Nuns of the Visitation, and others follow this observance.

One can find in the Sacred Congregation of Indulgences that Gregorian Masses are good and beneficial. It is the same as one getting a mass for a particular intention and of course one has to have the right spiritual disposition of faith. With regard to Gregorian Masses, it is a series of thirty masses in a row, consecutive for one individual only. It is not something that is magical.

It is approved by the Catholic Church as “speedily efficacious by the Divine Mercy” for the deliverance of a soul from purgatory, a practice that is pious and reasonable.

Please join me in praying for the Holy Souls. We are all on our way to dying. It is inevitable and I pray that we are prepared and strengthened by our faith.