November 2 through November 8, 2025
* * * * *
(November 2, 2025: All Souls Day)
* * * * *
“The souls of the just are in the hands of God...”
In one of his pamphlets that was later published in a broader collection entitled The Catholic Controversy, Francis de Sales wrote:
“We maintain that we may pray for the faithful departed, and that the prayers and good works of the living greatly relieve them and are profitable to them for this reason: that all those who die in the grace of God – and consequently, in the number of the elect – do not go to Paradise at the very first moment, but many go to Purgatory…from which our prayers and good works can help and serve to deliver them.”
“We agree the blood of Our Redeemer is the true purgatory of souls, for in it are cleansed all the souls of the world. Tribulations also are a purgatory, by which our souls are rendered pure, as gold refined in the furnace. It is well known that Baptism in which our sins are washed away can be called a purgatory, as everything can be that serves to purge away our offenses. But in this context, we take Purgatory for a place in which after this life the souls which leave this world before they have been perfectly cleansed from the stains they have contracted. And if one would know why this place is called simply Purgatory more than are the other means of purgation above-named, the answer will be, that it is because in that place nothing takes place but the purgation of the stains which remain at the time of departure out of this world, whereas in Baptism, Penance, tribulations and the rest, not only is the soul purged from its imperfections, but it is further enriched with many graces and perfections. And agreeing as to the blood of Our Lord, we fully acknowledge the virtue thereof, that we protest by all our prayers that the purgation of souls – whether in this world or in the other – is made solely by its application.” (CC, pp. 353-354)
Notwithstanding the effects of our prayers and good works on behalf of our dearly departed, Francis de Sales reminds us that at the end of the day it is the life and death of Jesus Christ that purifies our souls, whether in this life or in the next. To that end, whether it is the just or the unjust, whether it’s in this world or the next, we are all in the hands of God.
Here is hoping that we pray for our faithful departed. And here is hoping that our faithful departed pray for us: after all, is it not true that all of us could stand to do with some purgation of one kind or another?
* * * * *
(November 3, 2025: Monday, Thirty-first Week in Ordinary Time)
* * * * *
“The gifts and the call of God are irrevocable…”
At the risk of being politically incorrect, God is not an “Indian giver.” (For the record, “Indian-giver” has nothing to do with the Indians reneging on a promise – it has to do with a government that gave all kinds of things to Native Americans only to rescind them later.) Unlike human institutions, when God gives gifts, they are non-refundable. They cannot be returned. They cannot be traded in. They must be used.
In today’s Gospel, we hear that one of the best ways to make use of your God-given gifts is to share them with folks from whom you can expect to receive no return. In other words, what better way to say ‘thank you’ to God than by sharing your gifts with no hope of being repaid?
In his Introduction to the Devout Life, Francis de Sales observed:
“To give away what we have is to impoverish ourselves in proportion as we give, and the more we give the poorer we become. It is true that God will repay us not only in the next world but even in this one. Nothing makes us so prosperous in this world as to give alms. Oh, how holy and how rich is the poverty brought on by giving alms!” (IDL, Part Three, Chapter 15, p. 165)
What return can we make to God for all the gifts that God has given us? In the Salesian tradition, we show our gratitude by ‘paying it forward,’ that is, we share what we have – and who we are – with others who have less.
Without making them feel any less.
* * * * *
(November 4, 2025: Charles Borromeo, Bishop)
* * * * *
“Since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us exercise them.”
In his Introduction to the Devout Life, Francis de Sales observed:
“When he created things, God commanded plants to bring forth their fruits, each one according to its kind. In like manner he commands Christians – the living plants of his Church – to bring forth the fruits of devotion, each according to one’s position and vocation. Devotion must be exercised in different ways by the gentleman, the laborer, the servant, the prince, the widow, the young girl and the married woman. Not only is this true, but the practice of devotion must also be adapted to the strength, the activities and the duties of each particular person.” (IDL, Part One, Chapter 3, p. 143)
All of us are called to be saints. No two of us are called to be saints in exactly the same way. As living plants of the Church, how will each of us in our own ways bring forth the fruits of devotion today?
* * * * *
(November 5, 2025: Wednesday, Thirty-first Week in Ordinary Time)
* * * * *
“Owe nothing to anyone, except to love one another…”
In an episode of Gilligan's Island (guest-starring Phil Silvers as a director and/or talent scout) entitled, The Producer, the cast creates a musical version of William Shakespeare's Hamlet. Three songs are performed, one in which they cast sings “Neither a borrower nor a lender be”. Here are the lyrics:
“Neither a borrower nor a lender be. Do not forget: Stay out of debt;
Think twice, and take this good advice from me, Guard that old solvency. There’s just one other thing you ought to do. To thine own self be true.”
Economics 101 tells us that we should not rack up debt. We should fulfill our obligations. We should only buy those things for which we can afford to pay.
In the Salesian tradition, however, there is one exception. We all owe a debt to one another that Francis de Sales calls Christian ‘piety.’ And what is this debt? We have an obligation to treat one another with profound respect and reverence. And this debt is non-negotiable.
How can we fulfill that debt today?
* * * * *
(November 6, 2025: Thursday, Thirty-first Week in Ordinary Time)
* * * * *
“There will be rejoicing among the angels of God over one sinner who repents...”
Whence comes all this rejoicing over repentant sinners? In his Treatise on the Love of God, Francis de Sales wrote:
“God’s favor floats over all life’s difficulties and finds joy in turning all miseries to the greater profit of those who love him. From toil he makes patience spring forth, contempt of this world from inevitable death, and from concupiscence a thousand victories. Just as the rainbow touches the thorn of Aspalathus and makes it smell sweeter than the lily, so our Savior’s redemption touches our miseries and makes them more beneficial and worthy of love than original innocence could ever have been. The angels, says our Savior, have ‘more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine just who have no need of repentance.’ So, too, the state of redemption is a hundred times better than that of innocence. Truly, by the watering of our Savior’s blood – made with the hyssop of the cross – have been restored to a white incomparably better than that possessed by the snows of innocence. Like Naaman, we come out of the stream of salvation more pure and clean than if we had never had leprosy.” (TLG, Book II Chapter 6, pp. 116 – 177)
“Redemption is a hundred times better than innocence.” Given the fact that all of us suffer from the leprosy of sin in any number of ways, not only should the power of repentance make for rejoicing among the angels in heaven, but this repentance should also produce even greater rejoicing among us here on earth! Who else but God could have the power to turn our sins into a means of our salvation?
* * * * *
(November 7, 2025: Friday, Thirty-first Week in Ordinary Time)
* * * * *
“I myself am convinced about you, my brothers and sisters, that you yourselves are full of goodness…”
Am I good, or am I evil? Your answer to this question is no mere theoretical or abstract discussion. In the Salesian tradition, at least, the question – and its answer – makes all the difference between life and death. If you believe that you are good, odds are that you will think, feel, believe and behave in ways that lead to life. By the same token, if you believe that you are evil, well – not surprisingly – you will in all likelihood think, feel, believe and behave in a way that leads to death.
In his Introduction to the Devout Life, Francis de Sales observed:
“Consider that a certain number of years ago you were not yet in the world and that your present being was truly nothing. The world had already existed for a long time, but of us there was as yet nothing. God has subsequently drawn you out of nothingness to make you what you are, and God has done so solely out of his own goodness. Consider the nature God has given to you. It is the highest in this visible world. It is capable of eternal life and of being perfectly united to his Divine majesty.” (IDL, Part One, Chapter 9, p. 53)
During the 1970’s it was quite popular to say, “God doesn’t make junk.” While not exactly high theology, it does get to the heart of the Salesian understanding of human nature. To use the words of St. Paul, we humans – all of us – are “full of goodness.” As members of the Salesian family, we know that being good and having good are not the same things as doing good. We all fail to live up to our God-given goodness. We all fail to put our goodness into action. We all fall short when it comes to recognizing and sharing our goodness.
In other words, as good as we may be, we sometimes do bad things.
Remind yourself throughout this day that God has made you a good person – after all, you are made in God’s very own image and likeness. In like manner remind yourself throughout the day to ask for the grace you need to share that goodness with others.
Paul was convinced that you are good. Are you?
* * * * *
(November 8, 2025: Saturday, Thirty-first Week in Ordinary Time)
* * * * *
“The person who is trustworthy in very small matters is also trustworthy in great ones…
In his Introduction to the Devout Life, Francis de Sales observed:
“Put your hand to strong things by training yourself in prayer and meditation, receiving the sacraments, bringing souls to love God, infusing good inspirations into their hearts, and in fine, by performing big, important works according to your vocation. But never forget your distaff or spindle. In other words, practice those little, humble virtues which grow like flowers at the foot of the cross: helping the poor, visiting the sick and taking care of your family with all the duties and responsibilities that accompany such things.”
“Great opportunities to serve God rarely present themselves, whereas little ones are frequent. Whoever will be ‘faithful in little things’ will be placed ‘over many’, says the Savior. (IDL, Part Three, Chapter 35, pp. 214-215)
With what little, ordinary things will God entrust us today? How faithful will we be?
* * * * *