OMELIE / Omelie EN

01 nov 2026

1 November 2026 – ALL SAINTS’ DAY

1 November 2026 – ALL SAINTS’ DAY

1st reading: Rev 7:2–4, 9–14; Psalm 23; 2nd reading: 1 John 3:1–3; Gospel: Matt 5:1–12

I shall begin with a verse from the responsorial psalm, which may help us to understand today’s feast: ‘Who may ascend the mountain of the Lord? Who may stand in his holy place? Those with clean hands and a pure heart, who do not turn to idols.’ The psalmist asks himself – or asks us – two questions: can we human beings draw near to God; can we be with him and enjoy his company? It seems not, for his holiness and his greatness render us utterly unworthy. And then he gives the answers. Only ‘those with clean hands and a pure heart’ can draw near to God – those who give no room to feelings of malice or vengeance, to carnal or deceitful sentiments. Furthermore, those who ‘do not turn to idols’ – that is, those who keep their distance from deceptive and false images – can be with God. We know that our God is not like the gods of this world, known as idols: these too are subject to man’s negative emotions. Indeed, they are man’s own creation, and therefore cannot transcend human limitations: we would not even know how to imagine them as better than ourselves.

The answer tells us that it is possible to be close to God: the Saints know this possibility and live it out. They have completely abandoned idols and, for the love of Jesus and thanks to him, have ‘innocent hands and a pure heart’. St John, in his visions recounted in the Book of Revelation, observed ‘an immense multitude, which no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language’. These were the ones who, together with the angels, proclaimed their joy for the God who sent Jesus, and for Jesus who, as the Lamb, offered himself up for us.

These are all those we call saints, because their lives have become one with the life—that is, with the love—of the Father. John himself, in his first letter, tells us that we are children of God. Just think: children of God! It might seem to us—if we were not used to hearing this expression—an exaggeration, or even blasphemy. Children of God! We live the very same life as God, with all its characteristics of holiness and greatness. Obviously, we can call ourselves children of God because the Son—the one and only, the only-begotten—has entered our lives through his Word, through his humility, through his cross. We too, therefore, share—thanks to Jesus—in the holiness of the saints. We add our names to the list of those who could not be counted! But, as John tells us, there is a condition: this applies to those who ‘purify themselves, just as he is pure’. It is not possible to be holy and to be children of God if there are idols within us and in our lives that rule the world.

The Saints whom we venerate today have undertaken this labour of purifying themselves, and it has cost them dearly to carry the cross of Jesus, as well as their own crosses, which are never absent from those who ‘do not turn to idols’.

What is the life of these Saints like—whom we admire, whom we would like to follow, who are an inspiring example? Let us hear it from Jesus himself. He told us this in his first discourse addressed to the disciples and the crowds who had made the effort to follow him up the mountain, leaving their daily tasks behind. Up there, he uttered an exclamation of joy ten times. He intended to help us understand that now, with him, observing the Ten Commandments is no longer a burden, because we have the grace to experience the Father’s love, which we receive from him and live out by giving it to everyone.

Jesus’ joy, which is communicated to those who listen to him, is expressed by the word ‘Blessed’ nine times, and on the tenth occasion with ‘Rejoice and be glad’. It is as if he were saying: now that I, Jesus, have come, the journey begun by Moses comes to an end—a difficult and arduous journey, marked by sins and unfaithfulness, yet always accompanied by divine mercy. Only Moses could stand on the mountain back then, whereas now everyone can draw near to God’s presence and closeness. And they experience it by listening to Jesus.

It is Jesus who sees what lies along the path of the simple and poor: there is poverty—not endured, but accepted with simplicity; sorrow for the evil that fills people’s hearts; meekness that makes the heart content with everything; purity of heart; the desire to spread peace; mercy, which is already a likeness to God the Father; the desire to always be in God’s will; and the strength to endure persecution and even slander. All this nourishes, rather than hinders, our blessedness; it does not take away the possibility of rejoicing and of being part of the Kingdom of Heaven—that is, of following, loving, listening to and obeying the King of the Kingdom, sent by the Father as God with us, Emmanuel! We are all close to God, with ‘innocent hands and a pure heart’, with our gaze turned away from idols!

Translated with DeepL.com (free version)