Homily: November 2, 2024, The Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed (All Souls); Pleanary Indulgnce.

-

 “The souls of the just are in the hand of God, and no torment shall touch them.”

This beautiful passage from today’s first reading is one we often hear at funeral Masses. It comforts and consoles us deeply, assuring us of God’s merciful love and protection for those who have passed from this life.

Today, as we commemorate All Souls’ Day, we remember the souls of all the faithful departed, those in purgatory awaiting the fullness of union with God. Their souls are in the hands of God, and while we need not worry for them, we can still assist them with our prayers.

During the first week of November, the Church offers us the special grace of a plenary indulgence for our deceased loved ones. But what exactly is a plenary indulgence?

It is a special grace that removes the temporal punishments due to sin. While the Sacrament of Reconciliation forgives sins and removes the eternal punishment of hell, temporal punishments may remain.

Temporal punishments are the natural consequences arising from our actions, which remain even after receiving forgiveness, such as habits of sinful acts, damages happened in our relationship with God due to sin, our leaning towards sin, broken relationships with people we have hurt or betrayed, sinful acts which led to damage of property, health or life of other peopled which take time, sometimes generations, to repair and restore, or the emotional and psychological burden of guilt or regret that linger on even after being forgiven.

Many people left this world carrying these unresolved burdens in their souls. A plenary indulgence will remove these punishments, offering purification, spiritual release and helping souls to reach heaven sooner than later.

You can obtain a plenary indulgence for yourself, for someone else, or for the souls in purgatory. During the first eight days of November, here’s how you can receive the graces of this indulgence:

1. Visit a cemetery and offer prayers for the deceased.

2. Visit a church or chapel on All Souls’ Day and pray (an Our Father and Apostles’ Creed are suggested).

3. Receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation within this period.

4. Receive Holy Communion.

5. Pray for the intentions of the Pope by praying one Our Father, one Hail Mary and Glory Be.

This indulgence can be a beautiful and powerful gift for your departed loved ones, helping them on their journey toward heaven.

Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them. May their souls, and the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.



Comments

Post a Comment

Read

Homily: July 5, 2026 Fourteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time (I will give you rest)

-
 “Thus says the LORD: Rejoice heartily, O daughter Zion, shout for joy, O daughter Jerusalem!”  A Beautiful and comforting words of prophet Zechariah. A long weekend is of course a time of joy for us especially as we celebrate 250th year of independence.  But truly, are you rejoicing in life? Are you rejoicing as a believer? Only a person who is truly free can be full of joy and be at peace. Life in this country is full of freedom; we enjoy privileges and opportunities that many people in some other parts of the world are still yearning and fighting for. Yet I have a friend, whenever I ask, “How’s life?”, would often reply, "It sucks,.  Is life really that burdensome? Yes, we all struggle with some variations of family problems, work issues, disappointments, sickness, and other daily battles, and our own battle with sin and evil. But we have the freedom to work, to speak, to go anywhere, to believe in any religion, to choose what we want. Is there nothing worth rejoi...
Read more

Homily: October 18, 2025, Feast of St. Luke the Evangelist (Right - Companion)

-
“Behold, I am sending you like lambs among wolves. Carry no money bag, no sack, no sandals; and greet no one along the way.” This line from today’s Gospel captures the mission Jesus gave to His seventy-two disciples. He sent them out two by two, trusting completely in divine providence. Tradition tells us that St. Luke, whose feast we celebrate today, was among these seventy-two. Jesus’ instruction was clear: they were to depend entirely on God. No extra money, no supplies, no comfort just faith and obedience. It sounds difficult, but throughout history, we’ve seen countless saints who lived this way: St. Francis of Assisi, St. Mother Teresa, and many others who relied fully on God’s providence and never lacked what they truly needed. In the first reading, St. Paul writes to Timothy and mentions St. Luke. He laments that many of his companions abandoned him, but says with great affection, “Only Luke is with me.” Luke stayed faithful to Paul even when others walked away. Luke was not on...
Read more

Homily: June 30, 2026, Tuesday of the Thirteenth week in Oridnary Time (God's Favorite)

-
"You alone have I favored, more than all the families of the earth." Through Amos, God is reaffirming His covenantal relationship with Israel as His chosen nation, as promised to Abraham. It is an affectionate expression of God's faithful love. The rest of this reading is about Amos warning Israel the consequences of turning away from God, intending to bring them back to faithfulness. Despite all the disobedience and unfaithfulness, God loves Israel and continues to favor them specially. He has chosen them and will not back out of His choice. This is truly how God loves. Faithful, unwavering, unchanging. I heard that when someone spoke with Mother Teresa, she would ignore everything else around her and give her full attention to that one person. She remained fully present for as long as that person needed her. St. John Paul II was also well known for giving people that same kind of attention. They did that well because they were really giving God their undivided attention...
Read more

Homily: July 7, 2026, Tuesday of the Fourteenth Week in Ordinary Time (Shepherd)

-
In today's first reading, the Lord says through the prophet Hosea: "They made kings in Israel, but not by my authority; they established princes, but without my approval." I wonder what would go through Pope Leo’s mind when he reads this passage today. Just last week, the Holy See excommunicated six bishops from the SSPX (Society of St. Pius X), four of whom were newly consecrated without the approval of the Vatican. Sadly, this is not the first time in the history of the Church. Throughout the centuries, there have been similar situations where certain individuals or groups have outright opposed the authority established by Christ and acted against the unity of His Church. Today’s Gospel is so apt. Jesus looks upon the crowds and sees sheep without a shepherd. He is not simply talking about people who have no leaders, but rather lacking leaders after the heart of God. There is no true shepherd. "I will give you shepherds after my own heart" (Jeremiah 3:15). Jes...
Read more

Homily: May 23, 2026, Saturday of the Seventh Week of Easter (Scripture is enough)

-
 “There are also many other things that Jesus did, but if these were to be described individually, I do not think the whole world would contain the books that would be written.” Once I walked into our youth Bible study, and they were discussing the Book of Enoch, an ancient Jewish apocalyptic text traditionally connected to Enoch, the great-grandfather of Noah. They asked me questions about it. I had read it myself when I was their age, mostly out of curiosity, but honestly, I do not remember much of its content. There are also several other apocryphal writings, like the Gospel of James, the Gospel of Thomas, and the Gospel of Mary Magdalene. But the Church never considered them inspired Scripture, because many of them were written decades after the death of the last Apostle, St. John. Public Revelation ended with the death of the last Apostle. Sometimes I also wish the Bible had more details about Jesus’ infancy and His hidden life. But St. John reminds us today that the world its...
Read more

Homily: July 6, 2026, Monday of the Fourteenth Week in Ordinary Time (Crowd)

-
 "When Jesus arrived at the official's house and saw the flute players and the crowd who were making a commotion..." That detail in the Gospel about ‘the crowd’ caught my attention.  There were many people in that house that day. They were not people who lived in that household, they were there because someone died. Some could be relatives, some neighbors, some were professional mourners, some were there because they were curious or idle. I grew up in India, the most populated country in the world. The cities are always crowded. Buses are full, trains are full, bus stations and markets are full of people. Everywhere you look there is a crowd. But just because there is a crowd does not mean something meaningful is happening. Sometimes people gather simply because they have nowhere else to go. It was similar in Jesus' time. People gathered at weddings, funerals, and wherever something was happening. Many people followed Jesus not because they believed in Him but because...
Read more

Homily: May 18, 2026, Monday of the Seventh Week of Easter (Holy Spirit )

-
 “And when Paul laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied.” I have always wished to experience similar impact and intensity of the Holy Spirit. But I wonder if I wish because I need the gift of tongues in my ministry? Or I wish because I am interested in being part of the excitement? Being inflamed by the Holy Spirit does not always end up with these dramatic outward results. Yet it seems to be happening rather often in the conversion experiences of the early Christians and hardly in these later times. Perhaps we do not have the same deep hunger the early Christians had for the sacraments. In the face of persecution and uncertainty, knowing their lives were always on the line, their desire for the grace of God was thus very intense and strong. They also lived in a world with possibly less distractions, so the Gospel of Jesus could enter more deeply into their hearts. In contrast, we live now in a society where life has become c...
Read more

Homily: May 2-2026 Memorial of St.Athanasius, Bishop and Doctor of the Church.

-
 “Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on my own.” Jesus is one with the Father. Jesus is not just a teacher or a prophet. He is the eternal Son of God— fully divine and fully human. He took on our human nature to save us, to redeem us, to bring us back to the Father. Today, the Church celebrates Athanasius of Alexandria, one of the great defenders of this truth. He lived in the 4th century and served as the bishop of Alexandria. At that time, a serious error began to spread in the Church. A priest named Arius taught that Jesus was not truly God— that He was only a creature, that He was created, and not equal to the Father. This teaching was very popular. Many people followed it.  St. Athanasius stood firm. Even as a young deacon, he defended the true faith. In the year 325, the Church gathered at the Council of Nicaea. There, the bishops proclaimed clearly: I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Only...
Read more

Homily: May 29, 2026 Wednesday of the Eighth Week in Ordinary Time

-
Holy Family School Mass   "The grass withers, and the flower fades, but the word of our God remains forever." What comes to your mind when you hear the term “the Word of our God”? If you are thinking it is the Bible, then you are right. The Word of God is the Bible. The Bible is also known as the Book of books, because the Bible is a collection of many books. Do you know how many books are in the Bible? If you think there are about 10 books, put up your hands. What about 20 books? Put up your hands. Who thinks there are more than 50 books? And you are right! There are 73 books in the Holy Bible! Do you know how long it took to write the Bible? Who says 100 years? 500 years? More than 1000 years? Oh yes, the 73 books of the Bible were written over 1,500 years. Around 40 different authors contributed to it. It has been translated into hundreds of different languages and read by billions of people around the world, over hundreds and hundreds of years. The world has changed over ...
Read more

Homily: February 16, 2023, Thursday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time

-
 “Get behind me satan.” Jesus’ words to St. Peter, the first pope, are so powerful. Last week, a man came for reconciliation, and he gave me this beautiful chain with a cross which has the Holy face of Jesus on one side. The other side of the cross has these words: ‘ Vade Retro Satana’ in Latin, which means ‘Get behind me, satan’. These are powerful words used in exorcism. Satan is evil and cunning, he tempted Adam and Eve by cleverly rationalising for them how it seemed logical to disobey God. In the same way, Peter was suggesting to Jesus to avoid the way of suffering and death, which seemed logical but was ultimately against God’s plan. If we look around us, we see the same thing happening in our world. Satan continues to tempt us with the good life, using technology to increase pleasure, enhance comfort and convenience, to make life easy and avoid anything that could involve hardship, even for the good and betterment of the world. He tempts women to destroy life of the unborn ...
Read more