The Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed (All Souls)

For a Doctrinal Homily Outline for next Sunday, The Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed, please click here.

• Central idea: Purification in this life.
• Doctrine: The final purification or purgatory.
• Practical application: Assisting the souls in purgatory.

The central Catholic teaching on purgatory is this: “All who die in God’s grace and friendship, but still imperfectly purified, are indeed assured of their eternal salvation; but after death they undergo purification, so as to achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven” (CCC 1030). As we have seen, Sacred Scripture refers to this as “a cleansing fire” (CCC 1031).