Scripture Reading
John 5:28-29
"Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice and come out — those who have done what is good will rise to live, and those who have done what is evil will rise to be condemned."
Reflection
All Souls Day turns our attention to the dead in the full weight of that word — those who have gone ahead of us into whatever comes after. Christian hope does not sentimentalize death or pretend it is nothing; it faces the grave squarely and hears in that silence the voice of Jesus: the dead will hear his voice and come out. The graves do not have the last word. Pray today for those who have died, and for your own readiness.
Prayer for Today
Dear God,
We pray for the spirit of Juliet, our beloved sister, wife, mother, and friend.
Take her into Your arms, dear God, and bring peace to her soul.
May her transition be sweet.
We see at this time all of the beloved people who mourn her.
And we watch as a glorious angel of God now ties the golden cord of eternal life at one end to Juliet's heart and at the other end to the heart of everyone who so receives her.
And now the angel places her hands on this cord, signaling the power of God, which blesses and sustains us, and holds firm our relationships through life and through death.
We receive into our hearts the truth of God's eternal life.
Through the glory of God and the mercy of God and the majesty of God, may love still live forever and forever.
Please uphold us through this sorrow and this loss, as we grieve and release this one we loved and shall so sorely miss.
Dearly beloved God,
Be our strength at this time, that we might yet see the truth of the world as You created it.
That there is no death, that Juliet still lives, and in You we sitll live with her.
Thank you so much.
AMEN.
We pray for the spirit of Juliet, our beloved sister, wife, mother, and friend.
Take her into Your arms, dear God, and bring peace to her soul.
May her transition be sweet.
We see at this time all of the beloved people who mourn her.
And we watch as a glorious angel of God now ties the golden cord of eternal life at one end to Juliet's heart and at the other end to the heart of everyone who so receives her.
And now the angel places her hands on this cord, signaling the power of God, which blesses and sustains us, and holds firm our relationships through life and through death.
We receive into our hearts the truth of God's eternal life.
Through the glory of God and the mercy of God and the majesty of God, may love still live forever and forever.
Please uphold us through this sorrow and this loss, as we grieve and release this one we loved and shall so sorely miss.
Dearly beloved God,
Be our strength at this time, that we might yet see the truth of the world as You created it.
That there is no death, that Juliet still lives, and in You we sitll live with her.
Thank you so much.
AMEN.
Amen.