Today is a day to commemorate the past, a day to remember those who have walked before us, who have also accompanied us, have given us life. To remember, to commemorate. Remembrance is what makes a people strong, because it feels rooted in a journey, rooted in a history, rooted in a people. Remembrance helps us understand that we are not alone, we are a people: a people with a history, with a past, with a life. Remembering so many who have shared a journey with us, and they are here [indicating the surrounding tombs]. It is not easy to remember. We often struggle to turn our thoughts back to what has happened in my life, in my family, in my people…. But today is a day of remembrance, the remembrance that takes us to the roots: to my roots, to the roots of my people.
~ Pope Francis, November 2, 2018
Prayer:
O Most Blessed Virgin Mary, my Mother, I turn to you in supplication and by that sword which pierced your sorrowful heart at beholding your beloved Son, Jesus Christ, suffer on the cross, I pray and ask thee to help the holy souls in Purgatory.
O Eternal Father through the most Precious Blood of Jesus and through the Sorrows of Mary have pity upon the holy souls in purgatory. Amen.
And today we celebrate...