All Souls Day 2020
Today is the day to remember especially those we love but see no longer because they have died.
2020 have been particularly hard for those who have been bereaved this year without being able to be present at the death, or attend a funeral, or having a funeral that was very different from what they would have wanted in 'normal' times.
2nd November is known in the Church of England as the 'Commemoration of the Faithful Departed' or 'All Souls Day'.On 2nd November 2018 my post for All Souls Day asked, 'should Christians pray for the dead?' I gave a partial answer, which was neither yes nor no. Part of my answer was that it depends how you think of intercessory prayer (praying for others). I referred to Michael Ramsay, a former Archbishop of Canterbury who wrote that true prayer for others isn't so much making petititions or using any words. It's being with God with others on our hearts.
Some people find it helps to light a candle or place flowers in a significant place as an act of remembrance. It can also help to join with others in doing that. If you cannot leave your home, you can light a virtual candle' as a way of creating space for yourself to remember, give thanks or grieve, knowing that others are doing the same. There is a place here on the Church of England website where you can do that.
The prayer below is a prayer of remembrance, particularly for those who have died in the faith of Christ. I think it can be used for anyone who has died. None of us knows the depths of another's heart and we cannot plumb the depths of God's mercy for 'the lost'."Hear us, O merciful Father,
as we remember in love
those whom we have placed in your hands.
Acknowledge, we pray, the sheep of your own fold,
lambs of your own flock,
sinners of your own redeeming.
Enfold them in the arms of your mercy,
in the blessed rest of everlasting peace,
and in the glorious company of the saints in light. Amen."
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