A month of joyful remembrance

In the Church’s liturgical year, the month of November is that specific time during which we Catholics are urged to direct our prayers and sacrifices to the poor souls in purgatory for their consolation in their time of purgative love. We do this most conscious of the fact that their day of holy commemoration is preceded by the great Solemnity of All Saints who persevered in their earthly lives of faith, hope and charity and now rest for all eternity in the glorious beatific vision, heaven. The Church wants us to celebrate these two days and this month as a time of profound gratitude to Almighty God for His mercy to all and as a time of joyful remembrance of all who loved and served Him and their neighbor.
 
Moreover, these two beautiful feasts on the first two days of November remind us of that article of faith which we profess in the communion of saints and of which we are a part.  November 1 is a holy day of obligation and our duty to attend and participate at Holy Mass is the very same as that of every Sunday. Should we not do so through our own fault or neglect, we commit a mortal sin. Fortunately, in our diocese, Holy Mass is readily available to all Catholics either on the vigil of the holy day or the day itself. 
 
This year, I ask a special favor of every Catholic and that is to pray for the eternal rest and peace of Bishop John Kinney and Bishop Paul Zipfel, both of whom died this year.  As you pray this month for your own beloved dead, include them in your prayers. This is a spiritual work of mercy which is most pleasing to Almighty God and it is He Who rewards us for our sincere acts of mercy.
 
By now, you are aware of the great blessing and honor the Lord God has bestowed on Father Austin Vetter, now Bishop-Elect Vetter of the Diocese of Helena. As he has been called to the fullness of the priesthood of Jesus Christ and the apostolic ministry, and as he has humbly and generously said “yes” to the Lord, know that all our good priests and our diocese have been honored and blessed as well.
 
A portion of this issue of our diocesan newspaper is about the bishop-elect and I hope you enjoy reading about this moment. At the same time, I ask you to pray for your priests in a special way that they will continue to serve us all with that priestly zeal for souls we all need.
 
When a priest kneels before the bishop who ordains him, he makes a solemn and public promise of respect and obedience to his bishop and his successor bishops. Now, we are privileged to see this promise put into practice and let us all be grateful for the courageous faith which impelled Fr. Vetter to keep his promise and which is kept by every one of our priests each day. It is a visible replica of the obedience of Jesus in doing the will of the Father.
 
This year the month of November will be a memorable one for our diocese and I ask and urge you to immerse yourselves in our Catholic life at Holy Mass, at adoration of the Blessed Sacrament and in the greater practice of the corporal and spiritual works of mercy. May it all be for the greater honor and glory of Almighty God and for an increase in the virtues of faith, hope and charity in your lives.