Requiem Eucharist for the Commemoration of the Faithful Departed
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Requiem Eucharist for the Commemoration of the Faithful Departed Monday 2 November 2020 12.45pm Welcome to Southwark Cathedral Set on the south bank of the River Thames in one of the most vibrant and diverse communities in London, this building has been a constant witness in a place of change. The first church was built on this site around the year 606. First a convent, then a monastery, it became in 1106 the Augustinian Priory of St Mary Overie. With Westminster Abbey and St Bartholomew the Great in Smithfield it is one of the three remaining great monastic churches of London. At the Reformation the Priory became a parish church and it remains so for the people of Bankside. In 1905, as south London was rapidly expanding, the church was consecrated as the cathedral for the new Diocese of Southwark. As well as a place of constant witness to our faith in Jesus Christ, this church has a momentous and proud history and has had links with many famous and influential characters including St Thomas Becket, Geoffrey Chaucer, William Shakespeare and Charles Dickens. In the 20th century this cathedral was at the heart of the new movement in theology termed ‘South Bank Religion’. This movement asked challenging questions of people about faith in the modern age which continue to be explored at Southwark Cathedral which describes itself as ‘inclusive: faithful: radical’. Whatever has brought you here today, you are most welcome.Become part of the life here if you can; it will change your life as you encounter with us our living God. All Souls Day, the day on which the church prays for the repose of the souls of all our departed brothers and sisters, was originally celebrated on the day after the Feast of Pentecost. However, because of the practice at the Benedictine Abbey of Cluny where the Feast was moved to the day after All Saints Day (1 November) many churches in the 9th century followed this practice. In the 13th century the Feast was officially moved so that at the beginning of November the church gives thanks for and prays for all the departed, those in the communion of saints, and those amongst our own families and friends who have died. The mediaeval church had a well worked out doctrine of purgatory and this feast was very much associated with the belief that those souls unable yet to be brought into the beatific presence of God because they had not yet paid the price of their sins could be brought to heaven through the prayers and good deeds of those on earth and particularly through the offering of the sacrifice of the Mass on their behalf. It goes without saying that such a doctrine did not fit with the belief of the post- reformation Church of England. It was not until the rise of the Oxford Movement in the 19th century that All Souls Day began to be celebrated again. Since recent revisions of the Calendar and the Lectionary the Commemoration 4 of the Faithful Departed has been restored to the practice of the church. However, the doctrine of purgatory has not been similarly revived! However, it has been seen to be important to remember the dead, to pray for them and on this day to give thanks for all that they have meant to us and continue to mean to us. There is no way that we can ever forget those who have gone before us and for those who have recently been bereaved this day can be of particular comfort. Within the liturgy today we read the names of all those for whom members of the congregation wish to pray. It is a solemn moment in the Christian year as we hear the names of so many, and so many memories of them come flooding back. It is a Eucharist that properly expresses the truth that the church militant (on earth), expectant (in paradise) and triumphant (in heaven) are one and the same. All Souls Day is associated with many traditions around the world. In some societies Altars for the Dead are set up in the homes and decorated with pictures of the dead, with offerings of food and displays of marigolds – the traditional flower of the dead. In Mexico drawing on the traditions and rituals of the Aztecs there is a great threes days of the celebrations. All Hallows’ Eve, All Saint’s Day and All Soul’s Day are collectively observed as “Los Dias de los Muertos” (The Days of the Dead). First and 5 foremost, the Days of the Dead are a time when families remember the deceased. But it is also a time marked by festivities, including spectacular parades of skeletons and ghouls. Sugar skulls are made, traditional banners and carried and the families spend time in the graveyards sharing a special meal. Amongst the traditional foods are the sugar skulls (bought from the bakeries with the names of each one of the members of the family who are alive and of the deceased), candied fruit and pumpkins, tamales (corn meal with meat or raising wrapped in corn husk) and maize dough cakes, as well as enchiladas and chalupas (thicker corn tortillas with toppings). In whatever way we keep the day whether with festivities or with great solemnity, the intention is always the same, that the souls of the faithful through the mercy of God may rest in peace and rise in glory. We stand for the entrance of the clergy and altar party. 6 The Gathering In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. All Amen. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you All and also with you. Christ calls us to share the heavenly banquet of his love with all the saints in earth and heaven. Knowing our unworthiness and sin, let us ask from him both mercy and forgiveness. We meet to remember before God our loved ones, those who have died, a long time ago, or more recently, who we never forget. This year, however, we meet conscious that over 45,000 people have died in the UK and over a million worldwide as a consequence of this pandemic – and people are still dying. We may not know their names, though they are known to God, but we pray for each one and all who are suffering the pain of bereavement and loss. Christ calls us to share the heavenly banquet of his love with all the saints in earth and heaven. Knowing our unworthiness and sin, let us ask from him both mercy and forgiveness. 7 You raise the dead to life in the Spirit: Lord, have mercy. All Lord, have mercy. You bring pardon and peace to the broken in heart: Christ, have mercy. All Christ, have mercy. You make one by your Spirit the torn and divided: Lord, have mercy. All Lord, have mercy. Almighty God, who forgives all who truly repent, have mercy upon you, pardon and deliver you from all your sins, confirm and strengthen you in all goodness, and keep you in life eternal; through Jesus Christ our Lord. All Amen. 8 The Collect Let us pray for the peace and well-being of the whole Church. Eternal God, our maker and redeemer, grant us, with all the faithful departed, the sure benefits of your Son’s saving passion and glorious resurrection that, in the last day, when you gather up all things in Christ, we may with them enjoy the fullness of your promises; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. All Amen. We sit for 9 The Liturgy of the Word First Reading Wisdom 3. 1–9 Read by Ken Woolhouse. A reading from the Book of Wisdom. The souls of the righteous are in the hand of God, and no torment will ever touch them. In the eyes of the foolish they seemed to have died, and their departure was thought to be a disaster, and their going from us to be their destruction; but they are at peace. For though in the sight of others they were punished, their hope is full of immortality. Having been disciplined a little, they will receive great good, because God tested them and found them worthy of himself; like gold in the furnace he tried them, and like a sacrificial burnt-offering he accepted them. In the time of their visitation they will shine forth, and will run like sparks through the stubble. They will govern nations and rule over peoples, and the Lord will reign over them for ever. Those who trust in him will understand truth, and the faithful will abide with him in love, 10 because grace and mercy are upon his holy ones, and he watches over his elect. This is the word of the Lord. All Thanks be to God. Responsorial Psalm Psalm 23 Response Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I will fear no evil. The Lord is my shepherd; therefore can I lack nothing. He makes me lie down in green pastures and leads me beside still waters. R He shall refresh my soul and guide me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I will fear no evil; for you are with me your rod and your staff they comfort me.