"It is not Death that will come to fetch me, it is the good God. Death is no phantom, no horrible specter, as presented in pictures. In the catechism it is stated that death is the separation of soul and body, that is all! Well, I am not afraid of a separation which will unite me to the good God forever.”  (St Therese of Lisieux)

Today we remember the many who have gone before us in the sleep of death, those who are in the state of final purgation. Our prayers are to support them as they yearn to experience the fullness of God's glory. In judgment they had a glimpse of God in all his glory. They have died in Christ, but their white garment is still stained. Only the blood of the Lord can make them glistening white once more. As we support them with our prayers, so they in turn will support us, when we go through the same state of final purgation.