Month of the Dead - Day 22 - Office of Suppliant

Pray, pray!

"It is therefore a holy, and wholesome thought to pray for the dead, that they may be loosed from sins." - 2 Machabees 12:46

Prayer is the first means of aiding the souls in Purgatory, the chief liberating key of this prison. Prayer for the dead glorifies God, assists the suffering souls, and benefits the living. It gives glory to God in procuring new adorers in heaven, if only one day sooner. It helps the dead in alleviating their sufferings, and even in delivering them entirely. It benefits the heart from which it proceeds: it is so sweet to speak of those we love, to think of those we cherish! And then, is not prayer for the departed our balm, our only consolation? Useful to our soul, this prayer leads it to enter into itself, to reflect on the decisive moment following death, to amend, to render itself more irreproachable, to prepare to appear before the Supreme Judge.

Besides, it is recommended to us by different Councils, especially those of Florence and Trent.

Popes have encouraged it. Celestine I said that the custom of praying for the dead had been ahmost enforced by law by the prince of the Apostles. Two centuries later, in order to awaken the compassion of the faithful, Saint Gregory the Great said that the more dignified a soul was the more it suffered.

In 1849 Pius IX founded a Mass in perpetuity for the French who died within the walls of Rome while trying to re-establish it, and in i860 and consecutive years he had a solemn service celebrated for the brave volunteers who fell victims in the cause of the Church.

The Doctors and holy Fathers speak frequently of its efficacy. Saint Paul prays for Onesiphore: "May the Lord show him mercy on the last day!" Saint Epiphanius victoriously demonstrates that nothing is more useful, natural, or proper to excite admiration than this almost universal practice of praying for the dead. Saint Ephrem said: "Pray for me after my death." Saint Ambrose prayed constantly for the Emperor Theodosius. Saint Augustine made supplication for his mother. Saint John of Damascus said that those who die in a state of grace derive considerable help from the prayers recited for them.

Therefore I will pray for them with confidence, since nothing on their part can compromise the effect of my prayer; I will pray often; I will pray with fervor at the invitation of the Church, to obey the voice of religion and of nature.

Efficacy of Prayer for the Dead

Tertullian relates that he knew a woman born of Christian parents, who died in the flower of her age, shortly after marriage. She fell asleep in the peace of the Lord. At the moment the priest commenced the prayers customary before burial, her hands were seen to cross on her breast, only falling to her side at the conclusion of the service. We see by this and the following striking fact that prayer for the dead can be traced back to the first ages of Christianity.

"As we were all praying in prison," says Saint Perpetua, " after our condemnation to the wild beasts, the name of Denocratius suddenly escaped me. This Denocratius was my brother according to the fiesii; at seven years of age he had unliappily died from a cancer in the face, which made him a horror to everybody. The remembrance of his misfortune afflicted me; I was astonished at his not having appeared to me yet in spirit, and immediately knew that I ought to pray for him. Thereupon I commenced to do so with fervor, lamenting in the sight of God. The following night I had a vision in wliich I saw Denocratius come forth from a gloomy place inhabited by many persons. He experienced great heat and thirst, his countenance was dejected, his color wan, the ulcer he had in life still visible. A great distance, hindering approach, lay between us. Near him rested a large, deep basin filled with water. In vain did he strive to drink; he could not reach it. This afflicted me greatly. I awoke and recognized that my brother was suffering, but with the certainty that I could relieve him. I prayed for him, tearfully entreating God day and night to grant me his deliverance. After some days he again appeared to me with blameless, well-dressed body, taking refreshment; a scar replaced the sore. The height of the basin was diminished, and the child drank unceasingly from a gold phial, till, being completely satiated, he joyfully quitted tne water to play as children do. Upon awaking I felt confident that he had been freed from pain."

We see, from this beautiful example of ecclesiastical antiquity, the belief of the Church has at all times been that there exists a place and state of expiation after this life. Saint Augustine, who knew the authenticity of Saint Perpetua's acts, and wdio has pronounced her revelations to be even as edifying as the triumph of her martyrdom, remarks that this child must have been guilty of some sins after Baptism; for there are children who have some use of their reason before the age of seven years. But as it is not well developed, their sins are not such as merit eternal damnation. This is why it is necessary to pray for them with confidence, hoping to be useful to them, as we see that Denocratius was really released from punishment through the prayers of his sister.

Practice

Recite some prayer for the faithful departed both morning and evening.

Prayer of the Church

May the humble prayers we address to Thee, Lord, for the souls of Thy servants departed, be acceptable in Thy sight, and obtain for them that, freed from the bonds of sin, they may enjoy the fruit of Thy redemption; Who Hveth and reigneth with God the Father^ in the unity of the Holy Ghost, forever and ever. Amen.

Jesus, meek and humble of heart, make my heart like unto Thine.

- text taken from Month of the Dead by Father Celestin Cloquet, translated by a Sister of Mercy, with the Imprimatur of Archbishop Michael Augustine Corrigan, Archdiocese of New York, 18 October 1886