Dear friends in Christ

The liturgy of this Sunday draws our attention in particular to one of the truths contained in the Creed—the resurrection of the body and life everlasting. The whole of the Bible is saturated with the hope of the resurrection. At the time of our Lord’s life on earth, most people believed in this truth. Sacred Scripture teaches us that death was not part of God’s original plan for mankind. It is the consequence of the sin of our first parents. Through the resurrection, Jesus Christ demonstrated His power over death. By the act of His resurrection, Jesus has taken away the sting of death and made His death the act of our redemption. To resurrect means to lift up something that has fallen down, to bring back to life what was dead, to restore life to what has become dust. The Church has always taught that the resurrection of Jesus is the basis of Christian Faith. She also has consistently believed in the resurrection of our physical bodies in which we live, subsist and move. The soul will then be reunited with it’s proper body. If we are to experience the resurrection of the body after death and judgement, it follows that we should take care of both body and soul. Of course, the more care should be taken of our soul, the immortal principle of man, but we cherish also the body which in this life is a temple of the Holy Spirit. As we pray in this month for the Faithful Departed—our beloved dead—we call to mind God’s many blessings which enable us, even now on earth, to enjoy the promises of the world to come.

God bless you!

Msgr Kevin Hale