Dear Friends in Christ,
November in the global North is marked by shorter days and longer, chillier nights.
It’s also the month when the Church especially remembers the souls of the departed, as on All Souls’ Day.
And just as the cooler weather can be sobering—summer is long gone—so the focus on the deceased can be a bracing reminder of what awaits us all.
This isn’t a bad thing.
For many of us who enjoy the conveniences of modernity—central heating, indoor plumbing, fresh foods year-round and oodles of gadgets powered by electricity—it’s easy to slip into a comfortable lifestyle and live as though it will last forever.
Yet it’s precisely the awareness of our approaching death and particular judgment that should give us genuine comfort, oddly enough.
For deep down we sense that the system that supplies us with lots of creature comforts is built on shaky ground. We’re reminded of that truth whenever the power goes out in a storm or the Internet service goes kaput.
This is why a somber reminder of death can move us in the direction of real inner peace. We realize that the world will never satisfy us, so why put our hopes on it?
Real peace comes from focusing on Our Lord, the only one who can fill our hearts.
in Jesus will we find calm amid the storms of life.
To meditate on that truth, try praying with our Retreat Guide
on “Navigating Stormy Seas.” It can help us keep our sights on reaching the shores of a
happy eternity.
