The Church celebrates two important feasts: on November 1, Catholics around the world celebrate All Saints’ Day. The following day, November 2, is dedicated to praying for the departed.
November 1st, All Saints’ Day
As its name suggests, All Saints’ Day is the feast of all saints, known and unknown. Throughout the year, the Catholic Church celebrates the saints it has officially canonized as exemplary models and witnesses of the faith. On November 1, it also honors the much more numerous “anonymous” saints, who often lived discreetly in the service of God and their contemporaries. By extension, this feast is also a feast for everyone, because everyone is called by God to holiness.
Father Laurent Rivet explains the meaning of All Saints’ Day: All Saints’ Day – YouTube
The All Saints’ Day mass will be broadcast live from the parish of Saint-Sauveur, Bambous, on Wednesday November 1 at 9:30 am on MBC 2. The celebrant is Father Sylvio Lodoiska.
All Saints’ Day special on MBC 2 at 8:30pm: “Couma bann sin, ceki to finn gagne gratis, donn li gratis”. This program gives a voice to the young people who took part in the WYD in Lisbon, among others.
Still on the subject of WYD 2023, this Sunday, October 29 at 6:30 pm on MBC SAT & at 8 pm on MBC 2, Pastorale des Jeunes et des Vocations offers a travelogue on this event that brought together 1.5 million young people around Pope Francis. Here’s a video link for part 1:
Mass times in all parishes on the island for All Saints’ Day will be available on the Port-Louis diocese website: www.dioceseportlouis.org
November 2, day of prayer for the dead
By dedicating this day to the deceased, the Church also signifies that death is a reality that it is necessary and possible to accept, since it is a passage towards God in the footsteps of the risen Christ.
These 2 days have a special significance: they bring families of all generations together in remembrance of those who have gone before us in life and death. The habit of putting flowers on graves is a sign of hope. Some parishes organize a time of welcome and prayer in cemeteries or invite those who have lost a loved one to gather in church for a celebration.
La Vie Catholique and MTI/Helium Business Solutions present the booklet “Célébrer la vie – Vivre la mort dans l’espérance de la résurrection”.
La Vie Catholique is proud to unveil its latest publication, “Célébrer la vie – Vivre la mort dans l’espérance de la résurrection.” Produced by Danielle Babooram, the Editor-in-Chief of La Vie Catholique, this booklet is born of the experience common to us all, that of facing death and bereavement.
This booklet is a valuable guide that will meet the needs of people going through the painful ordeal of losing a loved one. It covers every stage of the loss of a loved one, from the preparation of the funeral home to the wake, the burial and the 8-day prayer.
Every moment, every gesture, every object is carefully detailed in this booklet, with the aim of enabling anyone to get through this period without apprehension, while helping the community present to experience a serene time of prayer and recollection. Liturgical texts and hymns are also provided to facilitate celebrations.
The booklet will be available for sale in parishes at a price of Rs 150, as well as at the offices of La Vie Catholique.
The official launch of the booklet will take place on Friday October 27 at the Salle Pere Laval in Port-Louis, in the presence of staff from MTI/Helium Business Solutions, La Vie Catholique and numerous guests, including representatives of the various funeral services of the diocese and Mauritian society.
