“Do you realize how many events and choices that had to occur since the birth of the universe, leading to the making of you just exactly the way you are?”
-A Wrinkle in Time, by Madeleine L’Engel
On All Saints (November 1st), we remember those who had a special devotion and connection to God in their lifetimes, all of the Saints of our church. Celebrated on November 2nd, All Soul’s Day (a.k.a. The Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed) is a day of prayer and remembrance for all those who have died before us, and we might celebrate with a mass or vigil where we pray for and remember those who have died throughout the previous year. These commemorations take on local cultural significance around the world and are celebrated in diverse ways rich in symbolism and meaning. I do wonder if we here on earth are not more in need of the prayers and intercessions of those who have died before us than they are in need of ours, but I also know praying for and remembering them makes me feel closer to the people in my life who have died, and for some reason it also makes me feel closer to God.
In today’s gospel, Jesus is questioned by a group of Sadducees who, like Jesus, were Torah-abiding Jews, except the Sadducees did not accept the concept of resurrecting the dead. They tried to catch Jesus up with a question about marriage designed to show resurrection as ridiculous, but Jesus responded by telling them God does not care about the same things we care about, and that to God we are all alive. In The Message translation, Jesus says “Those who are included in the resurrection of the dead will no longer be concerned with marriage nor, of course, with death. They will have better things to think about, if you can believe it. All ecstasies and intimacies then will be with God.”
In God’s realm, tracing the generations back to the dawn of humanity, we are all alive. In my own family I have had living experience with only six generations. I remember as far back as my paternal great-grandmother Elsie Wood, whose husband was killed in a 1924 coal mining accident in Strathcona, Nova Scotia. She was born in 1893 and died in 1983 at the age of 89. Fast forwarding to the spring of 2022, my nephew Isaac, who was born in 1999 welcomed a new addition to his family making six generations, I believe. I can close my eyes and easily imagine these generations stretch from youngest to oldest, although it is hard to comprehend how vastly the world has changed between my great-grandmother’s lifetime and the newest generation.
When I take a step back and try to consider my ancestors dating back to the dawn of humanity, I am reminded of the countless decisions and actions that needed to occur for me to even be here right now in 2022. Contemplating the souls of those who have gone before me, I am both overwhelmed and humbled. All I can do is watch and listen, surrounded by the love of thousands.
Trevor Droesbeck
Archdiocese of Moncton
Office of Evangelization and Catechesis
NOV
2022
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