Today is All Souls Day and the start of a month that is traditionally devoted to praying for the dead, especially those we have known and loved. 

These people are still very present to us in our daily lives. The second Archbishop of Westminster, Cardinal Manning, had been married as an Anglican clergyman. When his wife died he became a Catholic priest. Every night he would kneel by his bed and take a photo of his dead wife from under his pillow and say his prayers with her. They are not gone, only in another place…

For many years, the National Shrine of Saint Jude has promoted the Carmelite devotion to the souls of the departed by establishing a Dead List that is renewed each year. You can add names, here.

“Eternal rest grant unto them , O Lord, 
and let perpetual light shine upon them. 
May the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace.”
Amen