We are already the children of God
All Saints
Cobh
1 November 2026
My friends,
It is difficult not to be taken aback by all the gory Halloween ‘decorations.’ One is taken aback by the sheer increase in the ‘skeletons’ and ghostly figures that decorate shops and houses. One wonders what it represents today as against the past traditions.
Death is a constant companion in our lives as we witness the aging and death of family, neighbours and friends, as we move forward on life’s journey. Today, however, we witness death in extraordinary proportions in war situations, as well as the increase in urban violence. One would have thought that we would rather shrink away from the glorification of death.
But no. We have some need, not so much to glorify death rather to face it, confront it as the single certainty in life – from which we find a path to cherish and value life, despite its frailty. It is, therefore, no accident that in the life of the Church we hold both closely together on November 1st today and All Souls tomorrow November 2nd.
That belief is neatly expressed in the Creed as we profess our faith in the Communion of the Saints – the Communion of the living and the dead – the Communion of those who have journeyed before us and with us. This is a wonderfully wholesome vision of life now, death and life hereafter.
Its probably no accident that we celebrate All Saints before All Souls – we begin with a celebration and thanksgiving for all the holy ones, those with designated feast days and the unofficial ones, those who lived under the radar leading unsung but saintly lives. Some of them were or are known to us. Their blessed nature shines through in our engagement with them.
My friends, when we look ‘round us we see many who are living heroic lives. People who though having experienced many setbacks and made major mistakes have through good friends and by God’s grace undergone a conversion of heart and will. Their perseverance and good nature are rays of light into their families and the community. These we count among the living saints.
There are too the publicly venerated saints, those canonised and recognised for their exceptional life. From among them many choose a particular saint through whom we make intercession to God for a particular grace and blessing. We are drawn to do so because that individual saint gave witness to a particular virtue which we desire to emulate in our life.
There are many atheists and believers too who tend to frown on or even ridicule this devotion - classifying it as some kind of idolatry – they are greatly mistaken. Devotion and intercessory prayer to any saint is an act of faith in the Incarnation itself – an expression of the profoundly human sharing of Christ Jesus in our human journey – The Word was made flesh and he dwelt among us.
The feast of All Saits – all the saints set the tone for our remembrance of the dead through tomorrow and the month of November. It means we treasure all the human virtue, goodness, beauty and perseverance that continually enriches life. We also on the other hand, acknowledge the evil and darkness that prevails in our hearts – a darkness and shadow which calls out for honesty, conversion, healing and reconciliation.
The Book of Ecclesiastes which is read on the Feast of All the Saints of Ireland invites us,
“Let us pray for these illustrious women and men,
Our ancestors in their successive generations …
In their descendants there remains
A rich inheritance born of them …
The peoples will proclaim their wisdom,
The assembly will celebrate their praises.”
Amen.
