In every Mass there is what is known as the fracturing rite. This is when the priest takes the host ,which has been consecrated, and breaks it in half. He then breaks off a small particle of the host and places it into the chalice. These three pieces of the host are symbolic of the Church which is divided among three realities. There is the Church Triumphant (which is those who now reign with God in Heaven and thus are forever known as saints), the Church Penitent (which is those who are now in Purgatory and very much so are in need of our prayers and sacrifices), and the Church Militant (which is all of us on this earth who must continue to persevere onward towards the Heavenly Kingdom).
Throughout the next couple of days the Church places its focus upon this reality in a most special way. Today we place our attention upon the Church Triumphant as we call upon all the saints to intercede on our behalf. On Monday our attention will be shift towards the Church Penitent as we recall the need to pray for all of the dead. And finally we as the Church Militant see our goal in life which is to embrace death in confidence as we place our sight upon Heaven with our desire to be numbered as one of the saints. No matter which of these three realities that one finds themselves within we can claim with the confidence of faith that Christ's offering of self upon the cross effects all of these realities.
Today we celebrate the Solemnity of All Saints. The Church's calendar is filled with with the names of many saints, but we must also remember that anyone who is in Heaven known or unknown by name is a saint. The saints have lived lives which were worthy of Heaven. Each saint tells a different story, but at the story's conclusion they were found worthy of Heaven. It is now their duty to give proper adoration to God in a most perfect way as they are able to join with Moses in seeing God face to face. They now forever look upon us and pray for our behalf that we too may enter into this most beautiful relationship with God.
We, on the other hand, must continue to strive to be like them. It would be an error for us to think that sainthood is out of our reach; if we were to hold onto this notion we at the same time would be proclaiming that Heaven is an impossibility for us. We are the Church Militant because we find ourselves on this earth and thus we must continue to do battle with Satan and all of the evil spirits who prowl about this earth seeking the ruin and loss of souls. As the Church Militant we must remain obedient to our state in life and at the same time fight against the enemy who desires our soul. Sainthood is not out of reach for us, but we must strive to achieve this goal.
The Solemnity of All Saints proclaims this goal to us. It encourages us onward towards sainthood. It forces us to realize the importance of dying in the state of grace; because once we pass through the effects of Purgatory we will be assured of our Heavenly reward. May we turn close to all of the saints this day and entrust ourself to their care, especially to our Blessed Mother. Our Blessed Mother always leads us towards her Son and thus she points the way towards the Heavenly Kingdom for all of us. Each and every one of us are called to be saints, but do we truly believe this path to be possible? Each and every one of us are called to be saints, but do we desire to be numbered as one of them?
May all the angels and saints of Heaven , pray for us, and may they lead us onward towards the Kingdom of Heaven.
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