October & November in the Church

Some of the bulletin covers and prayers we have used this month reflect our Catholic tradition of using October as the month to celebrate both our Respect for Life and Our Lady of the Rosary. The dignity of each human life, created in God’s image, means that every person deserves respect from the time of conception until natural death. Especially in times of exceptional hardships surrounding unexpected pregnancies, disabilities, serious illness and the dying process, we are called as a society and especially as members of the Body of Christ to help one another to bear these burdens, and many programs in the Church do just that.

So it is very fitting that this month also calls us to a closer relationship with the Blessed Virgin Mary. Mary said yes to bearing the Savior in her womb despite the grave hardships she faced. Meditating on the mysteries of the Holy Rosary helps us to spend time with Mary, the greatest of all the saints, as we remember the joyful mysteries she experienced with Jesus, the mysteries of light through his ministry, the sorrowful mysteries of her son’s death, and the glorious mysteries they share with us as disciples. The following poem is one way to enter into the spirit of the Rosary.

Finally, as we enter November this week, we will gather again this Wednesday to celebrate the gift of All Saints, and throughout the month remember and pray for All Souls. May we too have countless people of the Church to pray for us when we rest in the peace of death and await Christ raising our resurrected bodies to be like his own in the glory of heaven!