Revelation 7:2-4,9-14
Psalm 23(24):1-6
1John 3:1-3
Matthew 5:1-12a
In today’s first reading, John sees “a great multitude that no one could count,” gathered from every nation, tribe, people, and language. No individual or committee could count them either! The Church canonizes holy women and men as examples for us to learn from and as intercessors with whom we pray. Yet today’s feast reaches far beyond the canonized saints: it celebrates all those God has welcomed into heaven.
When Jesus names the blessed in today’s Gospel, he begins not with worldly achievement but with humility and hardship: the poor in spirit and those who mourn. He concludes with those persecuted for the sake of righteousness.
Take a moment today to remember the saints in your own life who will never be canonized. Tomorrow, on All Souls Day, we will pray for our departed loved ones by name. Today, we give thanks to God for their lives and the ways they have shaped ours.
As the second reading reminds us, “Beloved, we are God’s children now; what we shall be has not yet been revealed.” By God’s grace, we, too, hope one day to stand among that great multitude.All the saints of God -pray for us.
Happy Solemnity!
Happy New Month !!
Fr Joseph Osho