Today we celebrate All Saints Day. Today we remember all the champions of our faith. Some are well known like Joseph and Peter. Some are obscure like Polycarp and Ansgar. Some were great intellects like Augustine and Thomas Aquinas. Some were very simple men and women like St. John Vianney. Some are known only by the people who look to them as Saints. They all belong to a great communion, the Communion of Saints. We too belong to that communion through our relationship to Jesus and while we struggle here on earth, it is our destiny to live forever in the kingdom prepared for us. If we follow the Beatitudes that we hear in today’s Gospel we will be honored by God as saints even if we are never officially recognized by the church.  All Saints Day is like our All Star Game. These are the ones who have made it. They model for us what is necessary for us to achieve sainthood. They model for us the relationship to the Lord which allows all of us to live forever with Him. Today at the 9:30 Mass we celebrated the Book Of Life Mass during which we celebrated those who were called to the kingdom during the past year. As a parish we should never forget those who have gone before us and their families who miss them so much. I am grateful to all who made this beautiful memorial possible.

  Tomorrow we will remember all of our beloved dead as we celebrate All Souls Day. Please take some time on Monday and remember all those who have gone before us and say a prayer or two for all of your loved ones. This is a great day to visit one of our Catholic Cemeteries and honor all who have passed from this life into the arms of the Lord.

  I would like to write a special message of congratulations today. I want to congratulate the parish of Our Lady of Hope. As of last count we have raised over $46,000 for the House of Hope. Certainly the committee has worked long hours to make that happen and they know how much we appreciate their efforts but this message goes out to all of you. For a parish this size to raise that amount of money in such a short period of time is phenomenal. You should all be very proud.  To all of you who have contributed in any way thank you. The fund raising part of the project is coming to a close and we will be cutting off the time for contributions as of December 1st. As you may remember we had set a goal of $55,000. We are as you can see just a small amount short of that goal and like I said we are extremely grateful for what we have received. If there are any people who are still inclined to make a donation or for whatever reason have not been able to contribute to the project I invite you to get those contributions in before December 1st. We did commit to the $55,000 and I believe in that commitment so anything that we are short will be picked up by the parish.  If you still would like to help, it will be greatly appreciated. I think that the total amount of time, talent, and treasure committed to this project was outstanding. Congratulations on your commitment Our Lady of Hope. You have brought hope to people in need.

  I hope you all enjoyed Halloween and are looking forward to all of the holidays and their opportunities to be with family and friends to pray and play together.

  Have a great week. Pray for your parish. Know that you are loved and live that love.

                                                                         Fr. Clem