All Souls Night, November 2, 2025

On this holy All Souls Night, we bow our heads and lift our hearts to remember every soul who has departed this earthly life. Tonight we pray not only for the saints and the righteous, but for all souls—the forgotten and the remembered, the named and the nameless, those who rest in peace and those who still need our prayers.

Tonight, the church invisible and visible becomes one. We stand in the gap between earth and eternity, interceding for those who have gone on before us, trusting that our prayers can still reach them, that love transcends the boundary of death, that the communion of souls continues beyond the grave.

We remember those who died alone, whose names we may never know, whose stories were cut short. We remember those who suffered in their final days, whose pain we could not ease, whose burdens we could not lift. We remember those taken by violence, by illness, by accident, by the cruelty of this world. We remember those who left this life uncertain, afraid, or unprepared.

For all these souls, we pray tonight: May they find the peace that eluded them in life. May they be welcomed into the light that never dims. May they be embraced by the love that casts out all fear. May they be forgiven as we are forgiven, loved as we are loved, restored as we hope to be restored.

We remember our own departed loved ones whose faces we still see in dreams, whose voices we still hear in memory, whose absence still creates an emptiness no one else can fill. We speak their names aloud tonight, calling them into remembrance: our parents and children, our spouses and siblings, our friends and fellow travelers on this earthly journey.

We light candles in their memory, small flames that push back the darkness, symbols of the eternal light that cannot be extinguished by death. Each flame is a prayer, each flicker a whisper of love sent across the divide, each glow a reminder that those we love are never truly gone.

We remember those who died without faith, without hope, without the comfort of knowing they were loved. For them especially, we pray tonight. May the mercy of the Almighty, which is greater than we can imagine, reach them where they are. May the love of Christ, which knows no boundaries, embrace them. May the Spirit, which moves where it wills, bring them home.

We pray for those who mourn tonight, who feel the weight of loss heavy upon their shoulders, whose grief is still fresh, whose tears still flow. Grant them comfort. Surround them with your presence. Remind them that death is not the end, that love is stronger than death, that we will see our loved ones again in that place where God wipes away every tear.

We acknowledge the mystery of death—how it takes those we love but cannot take the love itself. How it separates us for a season but cannot break the bonds forged in life. How it silences voices but cannot silence memory. How it closes eyes but cannot close hearts.

On this All Souls Night, we commit every departed soul to the tender mercy of God:

The souls of the faithful and the doubtful.
The souls of the strong and the weak.
The souls of those who believed and those who struggled to believe.
The souls of the celebrated and the overlooked.
The souls of those who were ready and those who were not.
The souls of our ancestors reach back through generations.
The souls of those whose time was cut short.
The souls of those who lived long and full lives.

May they all rest in peace. May they all rise in glory. May they all find what they sought and more than they could imagine. May they all be gathered into the eternal embrace of Divine Love.

And may we who remain carry their memories as sacred trust, live in ways that honor their lives, love as they taught us to love, and prepare ourselves for the day when we too will cross over and join that great congregation of souls on the other side.

Until we meet again, may they rest. May they be blessed. May they know peace. May they be home.

Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them. May they rest in peace and rise in glory. May their souls and the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace.

Amen. Ashé. Selah. So be it.

— All Souls Night, November 2, 2025