A Note From Father Eickhoff

October 30, 2022

The Holy Catholic Church has a serious problem.

This week the Church is competing with the secular feast of Halloween for the attention of people in our community.  Halloween of course features parties, costumes, and lots and lots of candy.  The Church wants us to focus on the virtuous lives of the saints and the necessity of praying for those persons who have died.  As much as I enjoy reading of the heroic lives of the saints of God and accept that praying for the dead is a good and righteous activity, I must admit that fun and sweets has the greater immediate appeal.

As you can tell by the opening lines of this bulletin article, this week features two of the most important feasts of the Church Year.  On November 1 the Church celebrates the Solemnity of All Saints.  The following day (November 2) the Church remembers all of the dead with the Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed.  When it comes to speaking about the saints of God, it should be kept in mind that we – The Church on Earth – do not claim to know who all the saints of God are.  The Church recognizes men and women as saints, but we human beings are not the ones who actually determine whether a person is a saint.  That determination belongs to God alone.  There are doubtless many men and women who lived holy lives devoted to God whose names we do not know, but are known to God, and are His saints in heaven now.  This Solemnity of All Saints is set aside to thank God for these unknown men and women and to praise God for giving to all of us the hope of being someday saints of God through His generosity and mercy.

The Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed is set aside to pray for those persons who have died. We ask God in prayer to forgive the sins of those who have died and to grant them a place in the Kingdom of God.  If we are honest with ourselves, we know that none of us are perfect and all of us are in need of prayer and God’s grace.  The saints themselves are often recorded as asking for prayers for themselves after they have died.  If these holy men and women – who were known on Earth as being devoted to God – frequently asked for prayers for themselves after their earthly death, then it follows that we should pray for everyone who has died.

St. Anne Parish will hold Masses in honor of All Saints on Tuesday, November 1 at:

7am, 12pm, 4.45pm, and 7pm

St. Anne Parish will hold Masses in honor of All Souls on Wednesday, November 2 at:

8am, 7pm

There will not be any adoration or confessions on Wednesday, November 2.

Yours in Christ,

Fr. Stephen Eickhoff
Pastor