“And this is the will of the one who sent me, that I should not lose anything of what he gave me, but that I should raise it on the last day.” // John 6:39

What about my son? He hadn’t been to Mass for years. (He never got past the scandalous behavior of certain Church leaders.) He drowned in a river in Guatemala; no priest came to give him Last Rites. Yet, a few weeks before he died, he asked my forgiveness for hurts he’d caused and forgave me for hurting him. He regretted his faults, even his hypocrisy. He also lived a life of charity. From what little he had, he gave to the poor. He stood up for the weak and vulnerable. Was he numbered among the faithful?

Those of us haunted by such questions find deep solace in the Church’s prayers on All Souls Day. 

I’m consoled by Jesus’ teaching that it’s the Father’s will that my son is not lost and that Jesus raise him on the last day (see John 6:39).

My son’s Baptism, each Holy Communion he made, and his Confirmation were real encounters with Christ. He most certainly belonged to Christ. 

And yet, as much as I’d like to, I cannot glibly claim that he went straight to Heaven. While I remain on this side of eternity, I cannot know. I receive this mystery as an invitation to trust God more fully. 

Will you trust with me? Let’s pray for all our beloved who’ve preceded us in death. Together let’s entrust them to God’s mercy and pray for their final purification in Purgatory and entrance into Heaven. And in a distinctly Catholic practice, let’s also ask for their prayers, that on the last day we may rejoice together in the final Resurrection.