A good and holy intention

Over at Shouts in the Piazza, Father Guy Selvester has a good and helpful reflection on the month of November, a month traditionally given to prayers for the dead.

In part,

The sadness that sometimes accompanies our reflections on our beloved dead is, of course, the most natural of human reactions. In his gospel St. John the Evangelist tells us that even "Jesus wept" at the death of his friend, Lazarus. But the the preface of the Mass of Christian Burial also teaches us that, "The sadness of death gives way to the bright promise of immortality." So, while we here who remain behind are naturally sad because we miss those whom we love once again we must look with eyes of faith to the future when we will see them again and experience a joy that no one can take from us. The sadness of our grief only serves to remind us all the more of the love we have for them [more].